10 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free

 

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | Post Details

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6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | Why I Care

I am sure you know by now that I have a wheat allergy. I have had the allergy my entire life but it was not diagnosed until I was 19. You can learn more about the process and how it changed my life here. When I eat wheat, it causes migraine, stomach pains and digestive issues. I gain weight and I break out in hives more often. I tend to eat gluten free because it is easier than trying to just find things that are wheat free.

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | It's Not A Fad For Me

The Gluten free diet was a fad for awhile. Everyone and their mother was doing it because it was apparently good for you. Turns out, after some research, a gluten free diet is not good for people who don't need to remove gluten from their diet. So the fad has died down. While this was annoying at the time because people didn't take gluten allergies or Celiac's Disease seriously, it did increase the number of gluten free options that grocery stores and restaurants offered.

But for those of us with an allergy or Celiac's Disease, a gluten free diet isn't a fad. It's the diet we have to eat in order to live a healthy life. I have fewer migraines, I can maintain my weight and I have more energy. I will eat gluten free for the rest of my life. I won't cheat because it was eating wheat is just too hard on my body.

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | DON'T EAT MY FOOD

I feel like I need to address this because it's something I have experienced. I understand that people are curious about how gluten free good tastes but let's be real here. You wouldn't go buy some gluten free food on your own. I buy the food because I have. It isn't cheap. Gluten free food is much more expensive than it's regular counter parts. It is also hard to find gluten free food that tastes good. I have spent the last 9 years finding food that I actually enjoy eating, through a lot of trial and error. So if you are eating my food, I can't eat it. There isn't a lot I can eat. If you aren't eating gluten free, you can literally eat anything. So PLEASE, don't eat the gluten free things I can eat.

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | It Is Serious

This isn't something that is I am doing because I feel like it. It is an actual medical condition. So when I ask you to please not contaminate the butter or to be careful which knife is being used, please don't roll your eyes at me or get offended. This is just as serious as any other food allergy. I may not get into anaphylactic shock but the impacts on my body can last for days, even up to a week.

I take my allergy seriously. I make sure I don't ingest gluten accidentally. I do research on places to eat so when someone asks for options, I know of safe places ahead of time. I would hope that you respect that this is how I have to live my life.

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | You Don't Have To Too

I want you to know that you don't have to eat gluten free just because I do. We don't have to go to restaurants that have only gluten free food. Yes, having gluten free options on a menu is awesome. But most restaurants are aware of what gluten free means and can modify their food to accommodate me and my allergy.

I also don't want you to feel about about eating in front of me. You don't have this allergy and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. So if rolls are brought to the table, eat them! If there is cake at a party, eat it! Please don't worry about offending me! I appreciate the thought but I would rather you enjoy your food!

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | You Don't Have To Feed Me

I have seen some people who have food allergies, especially gluten, who insist that everyone caters to them. Please know they are not the majority. The majority of people with gluten allergies/sensitives understand that it is confusing and expensive to make sure there is something we can eat when we come to your home. You aren't an expert at how to make sure everything is safe for me to eat and I don't expect you to me.

So most of the time when I am going to someone's house for a party or an event, I will offer to bring something I know I can eat. I also make sure I know of other people attending with the same allergy so I can bring enough for them as well. I think that is more than fair. If it is a situation where I can't bring something, I will eat beforehand. My allergy is not your problem and I don't want to burden you with it!

6 Things To Remember If You Know Someone Who Is Gluten Free | I Would Rather Not Do It

If I could, I would eat wheat. Trust me, gluten free food isn't great. It takes a lot of trail and error to find food that actually tastes good and is appetizing. And like I said before, it is expensive. So I would much rather be in your shoes and eat anything I wanted. Please don't think I am doing this for attention. The last thing I want it to have to explain AGAIN that I have an allergy, what the side effects are and that yes, I will have to do this for the rest of my life.