A Recipe Blog

Hey readers :-)

Well, the tone of this blog is going to change a little from now on!

After 6 months of chest pain (Costochondritis) and a myriad of other symptoms, I’ve discovered that I’m gluten intolerant! It was purely luck how I discovered this too… this lovely lady on Twitter happen to mention that costochondritis and gluten intolerance were related for her. Bazinga! :P

Not only am I much healthier now I’ve gone gluten free, my eyes have been completely opened to the world of food intolerances and catering for these. And it’s nowhere near as hard as I first thought I’d be.

At first, being a lover of food of all kinds, I was pretty depressed coming to the realization I’d have to be a whole lot more careful with my food intake. But it’s actually not that hard to be gluten free here in Oz, as by law, if something has a gluten-containing ingredient it in, it needs to be labeled. The most common one used in things is wheat, which is not only in bread & pasta, but also some thickeners, soy sauce, etc.

Whilst I realise there are a lot of gluten-containing foods, there are also a lot that are gluten free by nature (or by processing). Rice, polenta, corn, potatoes, fruit, beans, yoghurt, most chocolates, etc., etc., etc. If you’d like to read more about it, check out this link about coeliacs, and foods with and without gluten.

I should note, however, I’m not coeliac, just gluten intolerant. Being coeliac is a bit of a different boat, and my blood test before going gluten free were negative for being coeliac. But I am, at this stage, following the same diet a coeliac has to; no gluten at all. I may discover later though that I can handle some gluten, say in thickeners, but not until I work through things with my dietitian over time.

Anyway, I just want to say thank you for those who were awesome and very caring and supportive, my family and friends, whilst I suffered through the chest pain this year. I’m so glad I have the answer!

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for gluten free recipes from now on (to be enjoyed by all, not just me :-P).

~ Julieanne

Tags: coeliac, gluten free, gluten intolerance