7 Simple And Effective Celiac Disease

A comprehensive guide on Celiac Disease Diet plans. These diets will help you cope better with the condition.

What is celiac disease?

This is an immune-based condition where you react to foods made of gluten. Their consumption will lead to damage to the small intestines in these individuals. 

It has other names like gluten-sensitive enteropathy and Celiac Sprue. 

It is strictly autoimmune; predisposed individuals mount an immune response upon exposure to gluten, and ultimately damage occurs to enterocytes leading to the signs and symptoms of Celiac.

These Diets work by eliminating troublesome protein in the diet plans, preventing further deterioration of the digestive tract.

Diagnosis

The diagnosis can be made from symptoms and certain investigations.

Early symptoms of include Fatigue, diarrhea, Flatulence, constipation, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, etc.

Your doctors can request two investigations, and the results will be used to make a diagnosis in addition to earlier symptoms.

1. Serological test: Antibodies found in your blood are used to make a diagnosis.  When some antibodies increase in your blood, some of which can be used to predict the gluten-induced immune reaction.

2. Another way celiac is diagnosed is by using Gene testing: Doctors test for HLA antigens (DQ2 and DQ8). They use these HLA antigens to rule out the chances of your having the disease.

Further test that can be done after the two above indicates your risk of the disease are endoscopy and capsule endoscopy.

If you think you have celiac, rather than stay at home trying to self-diagnose and rationalize the disease diagnosed at home, book an appointment with your doctor.

If you are diagnosed with the disease, it is not the end of the world; with our list of best foods, you can still live a healthy life. 

Food You Can Eat with Celiac

The following should be part of your diet plans to help manage the condition better. You should make sure to consume gluten-Free foods. 

Earlier I have written about the health benefits of gluten-free diets. The article buttresses the myriad of health benefits we can gain by totally removing it from our dining tables. 

This article reminds us of how important it is to take out gluten from our diets, especially if the individual already suffers from it.  

Abstaining from it is the most potent treatment available for the disease. You need to change your approach to eating and work towards having fewer to no immune reactions after meals. 

Below Are Examples of Foods You Can Eat.

1. Eat Dairy Products:

Examples are butter, milk, cheese, and most yogurts.

 These types are naturally occurring foods that are good for people with sensitivities. They won't worsen your condition.

 I'm sure you thought gluten-free implies no dairy products.

 Well, I am here to tell you that your favorite dairy products can be part of your celiac diet. 

Be careful to read the contents of these products before consumption. If any dairy products contain it either as flavors or additives, the manufacturers usually will mention it among the contents. You can also put a call across to the company that made the product or look up the product on their website.

2. Vegetables:

This class of foods is natural and completely devoid of it. You may not see labels on them stating they are gluten-deficient. Be rest assured they lack it. You can eat them with peace of mind. 

If they are processed or if manufacturers had to introduce it into them. They will almost always state it. 

Sufferers can have their favorite vegetables with peace of mind and with confidence that they won't end up with immune reactions. 

3. Fruits:

It is another set of naturally occurring foods devoid of this protein. It is part of meal plans for persons diagnosed with this disease.

4 . Fish and Meat

They usually are not spiced with it but if they become fried or roasted; some manufacturers add it as additives so watch out. 

Note that commercial fish feeds contain it, so you might want to avoid eating fish rared with these feeds or wheat.  Also, most battered fishes contain it as well as breaded fish. They should be kept out of your meal plans if you want to avoid them completely. 

5 . Potatoes:

These starchy vegetables are deficient in this protein and should be part of diets. Potatoes aren't whole grains and don't contain them.

6. Flours:

Different flours are available; many are gluten-rich and not advisable to include in your meal plan.  Most contain wheat or white flour have lots of it. If you are suffering from the condition, take careful steps to eliminate those types of flour from your diet. Also, non-celiacs with gluten sensitivity should avoid this type of flour.

We have some available flours that are devoid of it and won't cause problems. They include flours of rice, Soy, Potatoes, Cornflour, etc.

In the market, you'll even find flours with nice flavors available for purchase that won't worry you. An example is almond flour made from ground almonds after removing the skin. It can replace regular wheat flour and you'll be just fine.

Note that almonds made in facilities that make gluten can contain it, so do well to read the product labels for contents before buying.  

Another commercially sold flour that is good for consumption is buckwheat. Despite bearing the name Wheat: Buckwheat isn't wheat grain and lacks this protein. It is used for baking and making yeast bread. Buckwheat is a rich source of B complex vitamins, Folic acid, minerals, iron, manganese, magnesium, and antioxidants.

Other examples of such flours in the open market include sorghum flour, Amaranth flour, Teff Flour, Arrowroot flour, Brown rice flour, Oat flour, chicken pea, coconut flour, tapioca flour, cassava flour, tiger nut flour, etc.

7 . Rice

Rice in its natural forms doesn't have gluten, say brown, white, or wild rice, long or short grains. Make sure you're buying unprocessed rice; to be certain you are buying the right rice. 

Products branded fast cooking or pre-cooked and marketed may contain lots of it so beware. Also, rice noodles are naturally free from it so you can eat them. 

Eating any of these diets will help you minimize immune-based reactions in your gut caused by diet sensitivity from celiac.

SEE ALSO: Spaghetti Bolognese Recipe

How to ensure your food is always gluten-free?

We have taken the time to explain what is involved in the disease and how eliminating the protein from your diet can be life-saving. 

What is now needed is; taking steps to ensure the food you get from food and grocery stores is ideal for you. 

We all know naturally occurring foods that are deficient but can be processed and some portions added to them. The unsuspecting sufferer can get it as a regular celiac meal without knowing it has it. 

They ended up consuming and having more problems. These problems are preventable if careful measures are in place before making purchases. Such measures include:

• Read the pack and leaflets of the food you are buying. Ensure you see the list of contents.
• Visit the manufacturer's website and read about the product.
• Call the manufacturer for further clarification.

Foods To Avoid 

 Avoid the following food in your diet plan if you are a sufferer. 

These foods will evoke an immune response against your small intestines leading to problems with digestion and absorption.

 The following should not form part of your diet:

1. Pasta:

Traditional pasta has it, but only a few are without it. Pasta from rice and corn flours that resemble wheat pasta and pasta from red lentils and chickpeas don't have these proteins. Except for these groups, others are gluten-rich and are not part of the diet table. Anywhere you find wheat-based pasta just run for your life. 

2. Bread

Bread and most baked food contain lots of these immune triggers and should not be in the celiac diet. You can add this to your diet if the company convinces you beyond reasonable doubt that the product is right for you and described on the product label.