Tag Archives: gluten free diet

Healthy Surprise Delivers a Bounty of Vegan Snacks Each Month

Healthy Surprise is a company that ships out gluten-free, vegan, and raw snacks to the door steps of their subscribers. Founder Joe Winke stumbled upon the idea of sending healthy snacks to people after a friend sent him healthy food in the mail for his birthday. Who knew that making an assortment of healthy snacks and putting them in boxes would be a hit?

The snacks range from nuts to granola bars and cookies. You can find them in larger grocery stores or at your local health food store, and certainly online.

Joe and other “snackologists” try all of the snack items before they are placed in the boxes. Since people are particularly fond of kale, Healthy Surprise tries to send kale snacks every month in the boxes, but the rotation of different snack items changes monthly because they want subscribers to receive a healthy surprise each month! (more…)

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Samantha

Gluten-Free Diet Awareness is a Blessing and a Curse

As the words celiac and gluten free are becoming a part of our daily jargon, it seemed important to clear up some misconceptions about this disease and food intolerance. While it seems this topic is just another diet fad, the truth is anything but a trend.

More than three million Americans live with celiac disease. Those with celiac experience something very different than those with sensitivity to gluten. Celiac is an auto-immune condition that causes damage to the small intestine and causes poor absorption of nutrients. The issues occur as the body’s reaction to gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye, and barley). USANA Health Sciences’ naturopathic physician Dr. Nancy Steely explains that those with celiac disease (CD) experience a wide range of symptoms that commonly include muscle cramping, diarrhea or constipation, fatigue, skin rashes, and joint pain.

Dr. Steely clarifies why CD symptoms vary by person. As with all auto-immune disorders, the body attacks its own cells and therefore symptoms appear differently for each person. Due to this, many go misdiagnosed. The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness reports that people typically go 6-10 years before they receive a correct diagnosis of their symptoms. (more…)

Posted on June 1, 2023 by Lacy

Domino’s Pizza Introduces Gluten-Free Pizza Crust

Finally, some news gluten-free dieters – and pizza lovers – can rejoice over. Domino’s – the world’s largest delivery pizza chain – is announcing today that it’s planing to sell a pizza made with gluten-free crust. This decision comes after many customers began requesting a gluten-free option from the pizza giant.

“We are the first national pizza delivery chain to offer this,” said Domino’s CMO Russel Weiner. He does note, however, that while the crust is entirely gluten-free, it is baked in ovens with pizzas containing gluten, so those who are extremely gluten sensitive should be cautious.

The pizza crust is made from rice flour, potato starch, rice starch and olive oil, and costs $12 – which is about $3 more than their regularly priced pies, as most gluten-free products cost more than their gluten-containing counterparts.

Domino’s reportedly worked with the national Foundation for Celiac Awareness to bring the organization’s standards to their kitchens and employees. Alice Bast, president of the foundation, says that gluten free is becoming a selling point, and that the number one request they get from gluten-free customers is for gluten-free pizza and beer. (more…)

Posted on May 7, 2023 by Dana

Miley Cyrus Stays Trim Following a Gluten-Free Diet

Surprise, surprise: Just as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, rumors will circulate about celebrities, especially concerning their diet and exercise habits.

The most recent buzz is that pop singer and actress Miley Cyrus has an eating disorder. But the real news is how Miley responded. She fired back just a couple days ago on Twitter saying, “For everyone calling me anorexic I have a gluten and lactose allergy. It’s not about weight it’s about health. Gluten is crapppp anyway!”

Miley’s frame is indeed petite. But it doesn’t seem there’s any need to speculate that she has an eating disorder. She’s been on top of her health in the past and even followed the 5-Factor Fitness plan back in 2024, which involved exercising five days a week in five minute intervals, eating five meals a day, taking five minutes to prepare your meals, all within a 5 week time period. Doing this and following the recommended diet program kept her in prime shape for performing. (more…)

Posted on April 10, 2024 by Dana

NFCA: The Gluten-Free Resource for Current Nutrition Information

By Wendy Gregory Kaho

There’s a lot of talk right now about the gluten-free diet and weight loss. Whether it’s the latest celebrity claiming the pounds are falling off while avoiding gluten or discussions on blogs and Facebook, weight loss is tied to a gluten free lifestyle. For those of us who have been gluten-free for a while due to celiac disease or another gluten-related disorder, weight loss and gluten-free don’t always go together.

When I first went gluten-free 5 or 6 years ago, I lost 35 pounds. I ate a naturally gluten-free diet that omitted all gluten-containing foods, with very few gluten-free replacements. At the time, there weren’t many good gluten-free breads or baked goods to tempt me and the availability of gluten-free flours was limited.

Back when I was walking nearly every day to help with the swelling and discomfort of my gluten reactions, the pounds did literally melt off. Then I started a gluten-free blog and started sampling all the processed gluten-free foods that were flooding the market and sitting at a desk working on my computer. I gained back the weight and then some more. This is a typical scenario for a lot of gluten-free people. As our intestines heal and our body starts absorbing nutrients and calories, there is a tendency for those with celiac disease to gain some weight. If we aren’t careful about the food choices we make when we replace the gluten-full foods in our diet, we can be adding lots of sugar and fat and white processed starches, gluten-free flours and, of course, pounds. (more…)

Posted on April 6, 2024 by Health Buzz

We Love BOLD Organics Gluten-Free Frozen Pizzas

BOLD Organics made a skeptic a believer, so now we love BOLD Organics Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Pizzas.

The tag line for these pizzas reads, “Pizza lovers can finally enjoy a delicious and healthy frozen pizza.” Three major red flags stood in my way to believing this. Gluten-free, dairy-free, and healthy rarely equal good taste. As a lactose intolerant, gluten sensitive eater, I’ve gotten excited one too many times over these claims when it comes to a new product. Typically my experience with these restricted foods has been very unpleasant. I’ve often felt I was eating wallpaper paste and cardboard.

However, when the chance to try these pizzas came my way, I thought I’d give them a shot, hoping that maybe someone could prove me wrong.

I read the back story about the company before I sampled. Aaron Greenwald is the founder of BOLD Organics. He has struggled to find decent health food, especially gluten-free and dairy-free foods. My ears were perked. Then I learned that Greenwald brought Chef Eric Brenner on board to perfect his recipes. Together the two created a frozen pizza with claims unlike any other- healthy, organic ingredients, and great tasting alternatives to insure all pizzas are gluten-free and dairy-free.

The pizzas come in four flavors: Vegan cheese pizza, veggie lovers pizza, meat lovers pizza, and deluxe pizza. All four flavors have been made with ingredients that are very high quality for any pizza, especially a frozen pizza. Greewald and Brenner claim they searched the country for the best flavors and the highest health benefits. Their pizzas include items such as organic roasted red peppers, organic roasted yellow onions, and shiitake mushrooms. For non-vegan consumers, they chose the leanest and nitrate-free meats available on the market.
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Posted on February 21, 2024 by Lacy

Joy Bauer Addresses Gluten Confusion on Today

Gluten-free diets have caught mainstream attention in a big way, but it’s also a subject that’s widely misunderstood. Gluten is a protein that’s found in wheat, barley and rye, which means that gluten is also in any product that contains these grains as an ingredient.

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Posted on February 17, 2024 by Margaret

Celebs Flock to Udi’s Gluten Free Snacks at Sundance

Whether it’s a trend or a legitimate health concern, there’s no argument that gluten free is the biggest buzz in dieting. One of the most prestigious celebrity events is the Sundance Film Festival and this year, gluten free made a big appearance.

Elizabeth Olson, Emily Blunt, Rashida Jones, Mario Lopez, and Lil Jon were just a few of the big names that strolled through the Fender Lounge and Miami Oasis Gifting Lounge to taste several varieties of Udi’s gluten free foods. On Sunday night Udi’s also provided the gluten free meal for the Creative Coalition’s Annual Spotlight Initiative Awards Gala Dinner.

The Udi company has a had a health nut following for several years. The company was started in the Denver, Colorado area by a husband and wife team. The family business has always been noted for its breads and has since branched out in to free standing cafes, bakeries, and even a Middle-Eastern themed restaurant. The separate company, Udi’s Gluten Free, has blossomed as one of the front runners in quality gluten free foods. Bagels, bread, cookies, granola, and pizza crusts are just a few of the products Udi has produced and made available to the public.
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Posted on January 24, 2024 by Lacy

Gluten-Free Dorm Room Survival Tips

by Shelby Kaho from Celiacs in the House

When I come home for the weekend, I try to cram in as much time with my friends as I can, but Saturday night and Sunday before I head back to school, I get down to business and cook for a solid few hours preparing gluten-free food to put in my dorm room mini-fridge freezer. The menu usually consists of fried rice with lots of veggies, grilled or baked chicken cut into small slices, sautéed asparagus, black beans, sweet and sour sauce to put on the chicken and/or steak, ravioli with sauce, steak cut into strips and sautéed, pizza, French toast, and chocolate chip cookies. I pack everything in quart sized freezer bags that I fill halfway, release the air and flatten the contents. This makes everything flat and stackable. It also makes it easier to break off single servings if the food is in a thin layer and cut up into small pieces.

I also stock up my fridge with corn tortillas for microwave quesadillas, shredded cheese (I put this on rice bowls, quesadillas, etc…), fruit cups, microwaveable sausages, lunch meat, fruit smoothies, and kefir. I also have several drawers full of the items that don’t need to be refrigerated. Some of my staples are microwaveable rice, gluten-free pretzels, chips, bread, fruit snacks, and beef jerky.

My strategy is to cover the basics like protein and carbohydrate so that I know I won’t go hungry and will always have what I need available to me. I also keep a collection of spices and sauces to make things less monotonous. My favorites to keep on hand are tamari, mayonnaise, hot sauce, ketchup, mustard, garlic powder and chipotle powder.

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Posted on January 23, 2024 by GuestBlogger

The Gluten Weight Gain Connection

Aimee E. Raupp is the author of Chill Out and Get Healthy– a no nonsense guide for women on improving their health now. As well she is a licensed acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist with a masters of science in Traditional Oriental Medicine. For more information visit AimeeRaupp.com.

Everyone’s talking about gluten these days. Is it just hype or are wheat and other gluten containing foods bad for us? The short answer is yes.

Let me explain. Gluten is a large, water-soluble protein that makes doughy things doughier. It is comprised of two proteins: gliadin and glutenin and is found in grains like wheat, rye and barely (click here for a concise list of gluten containing foods.) As well, since gluten is such a good thickener, these days we can find it in most packaged and processed foods and candy. Gluten has become a staple of the American diet and our health is suffering because of it.

“How?” You ask.

Gluten is a very inflammatory substance that is difficult to digest and causes damage to the walls of your intestines. When this damage occurs, your intestinal walls become leaky and are unable to carry out their expected task of digesting necessary nutrients and filtering out toxins and hence, toxins make their way back into your bloodstream causing an autoimmune reaction. This autoimmune reaction manifests differently in each person, but ultimately, it predisposes you to many diseases and often leaves you feeling unwell, bloated and fatigued.

When it comes to gluten reactions, there are people with Celiac disease and there are people with gluten intolerance. About 1% of the population has Celiac disease—a genetic condition of severe gluten intolerance and then there are the other 30-40% of the population who have a more mild form of gluten intolerance.
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Posted on January 19, 2024 by GuestBlogger

Choosing a Gluten Free College

By Wendy Gregory Kaho

Choosing a college can be tough when you have celiac disease and/or gluten sensitivity. If your child is required to live in the dorms, you need to know what to look for in the dining hall to determine if a school really can meet your gluten-free needs. Here are some tips from our experience sending two gluten-free teens off to small liberal arts colleges.

Despite the good reputations in the food service world of both dining services, we found a wide variation in knowledge and follow through in serving gluten-free meals in both colleges. Look for dining services with training programs within the corporation and look out for programs that are researched and implemented by the chef or manager on duty.

Beware if you have new a new chef or dining manager. They will be getting an entire program up and running at the start of the school year and special diet meals will fall thorough the cracks and off their radar.

Smaller colleges are not always safer. With a much smaller gluten-free population to feed, some schools may have little to no experience even serving gluten-free meals. Ask very pointed, specific questions of everyone when asking about gluten-free meals. Watch the servers, the students and the kitchen preparation to see if you can spot weak links and poor kitchen practices.

Get everything in writing and consider registering with the Students with Disabilities Office at your school. This will protect you and your investment once you do choose a school.
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Posted on January 16, 2024 by GuestBlogger