Due to gluten intolerance lots of people need to follow a gluten free diet, which could be pretty difficult given the preponderance of gluten in foods. Cereals such as barley, wheat, rye and triticale are the main source of gluten, but this substance is also used as a food additive to give flavor, thicken or stabilize a certain product. A gluten free diet is recommended for the treatment of health problems like coeliac disease, migraines, wheat allergy, dermatitis herpetiformis and several others.

You may have rice, corn or oats  in your diet, provided they haven't been contaminated with gluten. A gluten free diet does not limit other starch sources. You can promote good health and take all the nutrients you need from gram flour derived from chickpeas, soy beans, taro roots, beans, potatoes and sweet potatoes. The ideal is to consume as many fresh foods as possible, because the risk of cross contamination is very high, and beyond your control.

Many over-the-counter medications contain gluten. It is also found in ketchup and ice-cream because of its thickening properties. Whenever you buy supplements or medications, make sure they do not contain gluten. Even cosmetics like lipsticks, lip gloss and lip balms may contain gluten, which makes them a potential threat for the health of someone on a gluten free diet.

A gluten free diet could be very difficult to follow given the widespread use of this substance, particularly if it is not even mentioned as an ingredient. Reliable products usually contain a warning telling users that one of the ingredients includes some gluten derivatives, but accuracy on labels is hard to check. The best thing you can do is to be strict with what products you eat or use. Prevention is the best way to the approach of gluten intolerance, and without self-education it is hard to cope with the situation.

It is your very interest to read as much as you can on the options available with a gluten free diet. Awareness in this context plays the most important role, because it keeps trouble away. Start by making a list with what you can and can't eat. Even when you discuss with the health care provider, he/she will give you some references for further reading, because it is difficult to sum up all you need to know for gluten intolerance. Closely follow instructions and get informed.

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