Here's A Simple Gluten Free Shopping List For Thyroid Health

Keen to adopt a gluten-free diet? Then you may want some expert tips on gluten-free shopping.

Firstly, let’s look at what gluten is.

Gluten is a specific protein found naturally in a variety of grains including wheat, rye, spelt, barley, oats, and triticale, which is a cross between wheat and rye.

You will also find gluten in a range of processed foods such as bread, pasta, breakfast cereals, desserts, biscuits, sauces, and microwave meals.

Gluten-Free Foods Are Not Always Healthy

You may already be aware gluten-free foods have gone mainstream with health food stores and supermarkets now offering a wide range of food products. BUT the problem is, many gluten-free alternatives are far from healthy.

To discover the truth, check the ingredients listed near the nutritional panel.

I don’t recommend gluten-free products made with soy, corn, vegetable oils, monosodium glutamate (MSG), artificial flavors, and preservatives. Also avoid gluten-free foods loaded with added sugars.
Corn (maize) and soy are commonly used as cheap substitutes for wheat. And that’s problematic as corn and soy may also initiate food intolerance symptoms.
Soy should definitely be avoided when you have a thyroid disorder. This includes soy oil which is labelled as ‘vegetable oil’. If you are not sure check to see if the label states the product contains soy.

Your Gluten-Free Shopping List

To help you get started on a gluten-free diet this shopping list offers alternatives to some of the most common grain based products.

Breads: rice, buckwheat + ‘wheat free’ varieties.
Breakfast cereals: organic corn flakes, rice bubbles, Amaranth, puffed buckwheat, and gluten-free muesli.
Flours: 100% buckwheat, Besan (chickpea), chestnut, coconut, and almond.
Non-gluten grains: amaranth, buckwheat, rice, millet, quinoa, sorghum, and teff.
Noodles: rice + 100% buckwheat.
Pasta: vegetable + rice varieties.
Porridge: Quinoa, rice + Polenta porridge.
Rice: brown, white, and wild.
Crackers: brown rice varieties free of gluten ingredients.

Here’s three things I would like you to know about going gluten-free;

Gluten can be hidden so it pays to be a ‘label detective’. These are some grocery items that you may not expect contain gluten. This includes soy sauce, baking powder, flavourings, and hydrolysed vegetable protein.
Alcohol is a common source of gluten. For example; beer contains gluten as it’s produced by fermenting cereals such as wheat and barley. If you still want to indulge in the occasional beer some breweries are producing gluten-free beers.
Cross contamination of gluten-free foods can occur during the manufacturing process when these foods come into contact with foods that contain gluten. For example, if the same equipment is used to make a variety of snack foods some gluten-free items get contaminated. Food labels often include a ‘may contain gluten’ statement if this is the case.

Intolerant To Gluten? You Could Also Be Intolerant To Dairy

It’s common for individuals with gluten intolerance to also react to milk and dairy products. If you find you are still experiencing digestive distress after giving up gluten I suggest you eliminate all dairy foods from your diet for at least 4 weeks.

This may help improve digestive function particularly if you have been experiencing bloating, flatulence and poorly formed stools.

A dairy intolerance can be due to a reaction to casein, or lactose. Casein is the protein naturally found in milk, while lactose is a sugar naturally found in milk. Be aware, some milk products are marketed as being ‘lactose free’ but it’s likely they will still contain casein.