Why Eat Gluten Free?

A couple of years ago, I found out that I have a gluten allergy. Since then, I have been experimenting with different flours, baking mixes, recipes, etc. to try and find food that tasted good and wouldn’t make me sick.

For those of you that don’t know, gluten is the elastic protein in wheat, rye, barley, graham, semolina, and spelt. Generally, commercial oats also contain gluten due to cross contamination in processing. Gluten is a stretchy ingredient that supports rise, structure, texture, and knead-ability. Basically, it helps hold everything together.

When someone with this allergy eats food that contains gluten, a toxic reaction occurs that damages the small intestine and makes it so food isn’t properly absorbed. Even a small amount of gluten in food can cause health problems. Once gluten is completely removed from the diet, the small intestine will start to heal and overall health will improve. It also decreases the likelihood of osteoporosis, intestinal lymphoma and other associated illnesses later on in life.