Thursday, February 24

It's Great to Be Gluten-Free

When people find out that I am gluten-intolerant, I generally get a reaction like, “Oh you poor thing,” or “That must suck.” Well, I’m here to tell you that it does not, in fact, suck. In reality, I look at it as a really great thing. Sure, I can’t eat what everyone else is eating all the time, but is that really a bad thing? Let’s discuss…

1. It makes me more health conscious- When I first became GF, I did a heck of a lot of research trying to figure it all out. In doing so, I learned about health-related things outside of what it means to be gluten-free.

2. I’ve become an awesome cook, if I do say so myself.- Being gluten-free means steering clear of a lot of processed foods because of fillers, thickeners, etc. Because I can’t eat those quick and easy foods any more, I have learned how to cook, and do it well. I’ve also become really good at improvisating (or “improvising” if you want to be all correct about it…). Resourcefulness is as must for a gluten-free eater.

3. I don’t consume a lot of chemicals- This goes with my last point about processed foods. Now that I cook for myself, I find that I don’t consume ingredients that my grandmother wouldn’t recognize on a label… very often.

4. I’m more in-tune with my body- Now that I have this allergy (although they think I’ve always had it and was simply unaware that my body was hating me for stuffing it with gluten), I pay much closer attention to how my body is feeling all the time. Now, I can feel a gluten attack coming a mile away, which gives me time to pop half a bottle of enzymes at an attempt to soften the blow. For those of you who aren’t gluten-free, there is no pill that you can take for gluten-intolerance/Celiac. Nothing makes me more angry than when people say, “Well don’t you have medicine for it,” like I’m gonna whip out an epee pen and suddenly my face rash and painfully bloated stomach with magically go away. Not happening.

5. It has opened the world of new foods/desserts- I’ve always been one to try new things food-wise, but now more than ever, I am always searching for fun new foods that I can incorporate into my diet. Now, I think, why would I settle for something like this:

…when I can have this?

6. I eat bread. All. The. Time.- Before I found out I was gluten-intolerant, I was on every diet you can think of. Throughout this dieting process, I realized that I always lost weight when I stopped eating carbs, especially breads and pasta. Well, it really wasn’t the carbs, it was the gluten. Now that I have GF options I eat a heck of a lot of bread- at least once a day- and there is no bloated tummy to follow. It’s fantastic.

7. It keeps me healthier all around- Being GF has been enlightening for me in so many ways. I pay attention to my food, my body, and my fitness these days, and I attribute it all to my (relatively) new lifestyle. I see my “problem” as a blessing in disguise.

I’ve realized how important it is to take care of your body and how what you put in it affects every aspect of your life. I know that without this “problem” as people like to call it, I would still be eating crap food and not taking care of myself. Luckily, I can’t put gluten in my body, unless I want to risk death... Well, close enough.

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