Gluten-free diet

[Trudiann90]

I’ve been told to try a gluten-free diet but most gluten free foods have rice flour in them which I can’t have either. What should I do?

[BabsyWabsy]

Hi Trudiann, It is a bit mind blowing at first. The safest way to tackle this is to cook from scratch using veg, fruit, fish, meat, eggs, dairy (check for no stabilisers or emulsifiers in some dairy) etc. Then you now exactly what you are eating. Many of the commercial gluten free products are highly processed and contain lots of ingredients you wouldn't have at home. They are also expensive. Some of them have 20ppm of gluten, which is allowed in UK(!) If you can avoid them, do. You could also try gram flour (chickpeas), coconut flour, almond flour, pea flour and chestnut flour, corn flour, tapioca flour, potato flour, I am sure there are more. All rice free. Perhaps create your own blends from these? Proprietary GF flour blends all seem to use rice as a primary ingredient, so you will at least know to avoid these. I use gram flour and corn flour for lots of things.

[Trudiann90 in reply to BabsyWabsy]

This is my problem I’m not allowed to eat eggs, fish or chickpeas either this is what sets of my IBS.

[BabsyWabsy in reply to Trudiann90]

I am sorry to hear this. Can you ask for a referral to a dietician?

[Ibstenyears]

Hi Trudiann, I mix my own flour like BabsyWabsy. I use potato, tapioca, corn and small amount of rice flour that I mix with a half of tea spoon of xanthan gum per kilo. This mix is good for pizza, bread, pancakes and all sorts of things. I can’t eat chickpeas (like you) or any beans (interestingly enough I can have tofu and tempeh). The best way is to test it by trying. I know that sometimes what I am eating has nothing to do with flare ups, but the weather changes caused it or something stressful happened.