‘Lucky’ to Be Gluten Free

I have been gluten-free for almost three years. I didn’t go this route because I have anything against gluten. In fact, I love gluten. However, gluten does not love me.

It look me a while to figure out that gluten—the main protein in wheat, barley and rye—had basically unfriended me. At some point my stomach started bothering me, to varying degrees, every day. It happened gradually, almost without me realizing it. I think I started to normalize the digestive discomfort and the other symptoms—brain fog, joint pain, exhaustion—that I later learned were connected to gluten sensitivity.

What finally made me realize the cause of my issues was—go figure—Wheat Thins. The day after eating a bunch of what I used to call the Devil’s crackers for a different reason (because I couldn’t stop eating them), I felt like I had a bad case of the flu. I was pretty sure it wasn’t the flu, and so I started Googling my symptoms.

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity.

I decided to eliminate gluten and see what happened. More things have gluten than I ever could have imagined (and it's "hidden" in a lot of foods like dressings and sauces), but I managed to figure out what I could and couldn’t eat.

The result? I felt better almost immediately and even better over time.

I miss bread. I miss cake. I miss pretzels. I miss pancakes. Of course, there are gluten-free versions of all of these things (and much more), but most gluten-free products are a pale comparison to the real thing (Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods cornbread being an exception). And, truth be told, even if I could tolerate the “real” versions of these foods, none of them really serve my body well.

In fact, going gluten free has put me on a path to eating whole foods almost exclusively. I get whole grains through oatmeal, and, of course, fruits, vegetables, and lean protein are all gluten free.

Lucky (truly) for me.