About the Gluten Free Diet

Those who are diagnosed gluten intolerant early are the lucky ones, as they can, once they heal, eat so many of the more nutritious gluten free grains, gluten free oats etc. Those whose systems have been severely damaged will get much better on the gluten free diet, but many find that they can still only tolerate the easiest to digest rice based mixes.

For this reason Astoria Mills has 2 main gluten free flour mixes that are rice based, one that is rice free. One whole grain blend, for those who can tolerate some whole grains, and three bread mix bases, one which is rice based, two that are rice free. Astoria Mills mixes are made in a dedicated gluten free facility and are nut and peanut free, soy free, casein and dairy free. Mixes also do not contain eggs and recipes may call to have eggs or an egg substitute added.

Contrary to what you may think now, your life is not over if you can't have gluten or wheat, or even if you are sensitive to casein, milk, eggs or nuts. See a blog post about dairy here. There are many more alternatives available today than there used to be. More and more ready made gluten free products are available all the time.

Although there are many more choices of ready made gluten free foods now on the market, there is nothing like the fragrance and taste of something home made!

With Astoria Mills Mixes on hand, you will always have something in your kitchen that you can make wholesome foods out of. Dry mixes keep well for over a year. Handy to take on a trip too.

It is often hard to explain to those not familiar with CD or gluten intolerance that even a little can be toxic to you. In a recent workshop given by a Naturopath, Dr. Stephanie Jennings, in WhitbyOntarioCanada, where I gave a taste testing of some of my GF breads, Dr. Jennings, stated that even a miniscule amount of gluten can show up on tests for Celiac Disease. Other doctors insist that one must eat gluten for four months in order for a test to be effective. As I said, there is much more research that needs to be done, and each individual needs to decide for themselves about their health.

I also found out recently, while talking with someone suffering from an Autoimmune response to Gluten, that, it took her much longer to be diagnosed properly, since there seems to be no absolute test for a pure Autoimmune Gluten Intolerance associated with Wheat and Gluten.  Because a Gluten Intolerance/Autoimmune response is hard to detect as the culprit, many doctors are now telling people that the only way to tell, is to remove the offending allergen for about 3 months to find out if you feel better. My friend has a constant challenge to try and gain weight. That seems impossible to some of us who have the reverse situation.

Another friend who had suffered for years with her health, never thought to ask about a gluten test. After I mentioned it to her, she had herself tested. She was told she was not Celiac. She continued to eat wheat, tried all sorts of diets prescribed to no avail. Finally on a trip to her Cardiologist, who also just happened to be gluten intolerant, her Cardiologist mentioned that she could be gluten intolerant! Well, my friend wrote to me right away, I gave her my book, Health & Nutrition, which tells how to begin the gf healing stages and what to eat during these stages. After only two weeks on the diet, she was considerably better, after 4 months, she is almost back to her young self!

Continue ....Gluten Free Nutrition