GLUTEN-FREE: Not just a fad diet!
Danielle Paananen is a homemaker; wife and Mom of 2 energetic boys ,and entrepreneur from Manitouwadge, Ontario. When she realized her eldest son would benefit from a gluten-free diet but couldn’t find the foods he needed in Manitouwadge, or surrounding communities. she rolled up her sleeves and got to work creating new recipes and converting old favourites; it wasn’t long before she realized there were many other people who would appreciate having gluten-free options to purchase in the Manitouwadge area. She currently works from home though she hopes to someday relocate to Manitouwadge’s downtown core. Paananen’s new column “Details by Danielle” will be published every other week on OntarioNewsNorth.com, don’t hesitate to leave your questions, comments or topic requests for Danielle below, she looks forward to hearing from readers!
Danielle Paananen, Owner/Baker, Gluten-Free Manitouwadge
I’ve been getting a lot of people telling me lately that they think that a gluten free diet is mostly just a “fad diet”. Their logic being that, since the number of people on a gluten free diet is growing exponentially, people must just be doing this purely because of the novelty of going gluten free. Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that there is not a little bit of a fad going on, however, the vast majority of those who are gluten free, are on such a diet because they HAVE to be, not because they want to be.
Those who are on the diet because they have to be, have either Celiacs Disease, or a Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity. The ONLY way to manage either one is to be on a strict gluten free diet. Symptoms of accidental gluten ingestion can range anywhere from indigestion to extreme fatigue, to malnourishment (due to gluten building up in the intestines, therefore causing problems absorbing the nutrients in food), and (if ones Celiac Disease is severe enough), potentially death (which would be a result of either malnourishment or other autoimmune diseases directly linked to Celiacs).
As you can see, it can be an absolutely necessary to go gluten free for a lot of people (as many as 1 in 133 people have a gluten sensitivity of some kind). Going gluten free is a huge lifestyle change, not just a diet. It is honestly one of the hardest diets I’ve ever seen (to start up at least). It’s not like you are just watching calories, where you read nutrition labels and watch you serving size. It’s not even like going vegan (which definitely has it’s challenges, don’t get me wrong), where you know for the most part by looking at something whether it has animal product in it, or take a quick look at the ingredients list to make sure. On a gluten free diet, you need to not only read the ingredients, but you also need to look at the allergy information (eg. “may contain wheat”). So even if it says that it “may contain”, you don’t eat it because of that chance that it has come in contact with gluten. Also, with many things that have been pre-made, pre-seasoned, or processed, I generally won’t chance it (even if there are no gluten-containing ingredients on the label). If a product doesn’t physically state somewhere that it is gluten free, it is probably processed in a facility where it can be cross-contaminated or maybe they dust conveyor belts with flour. If this is the case, you still have a product that has been contaminated, but they don’t have to list flour as an ingredient. Being gluten free means constantly checking every label, being incredibly careful in a kitchen that is not exclusively gluten free to make sure you don’t contaminate your own food, being extremely restricted when you go out to dinner (or travelling) and always worrying if the kitchen staff is being careful enough, and having to deal with the physical consequences if there is accidental gluten ingestion (which can take weeks to come out of your system!).
Now, for those who have chosen to go gluten free in spite of a gluten sensitivity, good for you! It is a gigantic lifestyle change that many cannot pull off (or stick to) without having that motivation of their sensitivities. I guarantee that I could not have done it if not for my son. Our family made the decision to take him off of gluten and all dairy (casein), as it has showed some promising improvements in a large amount of other autistic children. We had Ayden on this diet for only about a week when he started withdrawal symptoms, just like that of somebody addicted to heroin would have if they had stopped cold turkey. These lasted for 3 days, and it has been massive improvements from there, in everything including speech, temper tantrums, motor skills and social skills. If it weren’t for these changes in him over the last year, I would not have had to strength to get my whole house purged of anything containing gluten, and I would not have ever started my business, Gluten Free Manitouwadge, or this column. I owe all of it to Ayden.
For those of you contemplating a gluten free diet (whether you think you may have a sensitivity or not), there are several benefits, which I have listed in my first column. As I said, it is a huge lifestyle change for about the first month or so, and it can be challenging at times after that, but you may find that the benefits are worth it.
A fad diet is actually defined as a diet used to lose weight that becomes very popular very fast, and then fades out, sometimes just as quickly. Examples of these would be the Atkins diet (low carbs), South Beach diet (high protein, low carb), the “7 day diet” (eating all you want of a specific type of food that changes each day, eg. all the fruit you want except bananas on Monday). These diets can cause rapid weight loss in a, sometimes, unhealthy manner. Also losing weight this quickly on a diet like this can cause you to gain it back just as quickly if you’re not careful and go back to your old eating habits when you’re done. A gluten free diet is not something that people really use to lose weight, unless they start actually eating healthier at the same time. Gluten free foods can contain just as much fat, calories and sugar as any other “regular” foods. In fact, gluten free foods (if you are not careful), can actually make you gain weight, as some of the different ingredients you would use as substitutes may have MORE carbs and calories in them. As I have said before, it is a lifestyle change and is used to either avoid serious health issues for those who are required to switch to it, or to maintain the health benefits for those who chose to go on the diet, which may include weight loss, but can also include less stomach issues, less/no more acne, more energy, less fatigue, etc… I have noticed many of these changes in myself, and I also know the havoc that eating gluten does play on my system when I do eat it, and I don’t have sensitivity myself.
I hope this clears up a few questions, and helps raise awareness and understanding of what a gluten-free diet means (while providing a bit of insight regarding why some people choose it). As always, if you have any questions, comments or suggestions for a topic you may want to see in the future, please feel free to email me at GlutenFreeManitouwadge@gmail.com.
*Health themed columns found on OntarioNewsNorth.com provide general information about medical conditions and treatments. The information is not advice, and should not be treated as such. If you have any specific questions about any mental health or other medical matter, please consult your family physician, primary health care team or other professional healthcare provider.
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RELATED LINKS
- ORDER some delicious Gluten-free foods from Danielle directly on her website atwww.GlutenFreeWadge.ca
- Gluten-Free Manitouwadge on Facebook
- Gluten-Free Gab Column Archives
