Three Weeks Into My Diet....

[glutenfreeinminnesota]

Alright, when my GI called about a month ago and told me I had Celiac Disease, she mentioned three things as examples that had gluten...ketchup, dressing and shredded cheese...SO, I have avoided ketchup and dressing all together and have begun shredding my own cheese. Needless to say, people in my life who care about me are doing their own research and finding conflicting evidence! So...from all of you who are experienced and helped me a GREAT deal so far...ketchup, dressing and shredded cheese....gluten or not? And if gluten free does exist, any suggestions of brands? Thanks!!

[ciavyn]

From what I've read, ketchup should be fine, though it never hurts to check the label. Dressing can have gluten, especially creamy ones, so watch those. I buy a gluten free balsamic vinaigrette which is good. You could also just do oil and vinegar. And cheese generally is gluten free, but often celiacs have issues with dairy, especially before healing. Do searches for products: I google the food I want and "gluten free" and you can find the answers easily - they are usually right on this site..

[glutenfreeinminnesota]

From what I've read, ketchup should be fine, though it never hurts to check the label. Dressing can have gluten, especially creamy ones, so watch those. I buy a gluten free balsamic vinaigrette which is good. You could also just do oil and vinegar. And cheese generally is gluten free, but often celiacs have issues with dairy, especially before healing. Do searches for products: I google the food I want and "gluten free" and you can find the answers easily - they are usually right on this site..

Thanks!

[Shess0816]

Thanks!

[/quote

I eat shredded cheeses, ketchup, and salad dressing ALL the time without any problems! ) You just have to find the products that are gluten free. Heinz Ketchup is gluten free, so I always use that. If you have a grocery store near you that sells Kraft products, it is my understanding that they will label their foods with all allergens that could be considered gluten containing -- i.e. wheat, rye, oats, barley. Here is the link to their allergen statement on their website:

Open Original Shared Link

If you go to that link, go to the frequently asked questions section, and then type in gluten in the search bar. It will come up with their statement. So, based on that, I feel comfortable buying pretty much all Kraft products (of course the one's that don't have those allergens listed!). The nice thing is, Kraft makes both salad dressing and shredded cheeses. So, if your grocery store sells these products, all you have to do is go read the ingredient list on the back of the dressing bottles or bags of cheese, and if you do not see sources of gluten listed, you can eat those! )

Hope that helps!

[GottaSki]

Ketchup - we eat Heinz - no problem

Salad Dressings - we check label for gluten

Shredded Cheese - we have had no problem with kraft shredded cheeses, but just this weekend I purchased a large bag of sargento shredded mexican cheese mix and both of us had a mild reaction -- there was nothing listed on the label that was gluten (sometimes shredded cheeses do use wheat or gluten item to prevent caking - I haven't seen on any packages I've checked)

[Ahorsesoul]

"ketchup, dressing and shredded cheese"--Sounds like three things she was surprised might have gluten in them.

My three surprise items are:

soy sauce, root beer and yogurt

Welcome to the world of gluten free eating. How are you feeling and how are you doing finding gluten free foods?

[glutenfreeinminnesota]

"ketchup, dressing and shredded cheese"--Sounds like three things she was surprised might have gluten in them.

My three surprise items are:

soy sauce, root beer and yogurt

Welcome to the world of gluten free eating. How are you feeling and how are you doing finding gluten free foods?

Thanks everyone for your advice!! Tired of shredding my own cheese!! I am lazy I guess....

Ahorsesoul-it's going alright so far, as good as it can get I think! I have very supportive people in my life so that has helped a lot. My mom has gone out of her way to do tons of research and buy me cookbooks and such. I feel SO much better physically on this diet....emotionally it gets better day by day, still have my "WHY?!?!?" moments...but I feel healthier and more alive! I am so glad to finally know what was wrong, now I can start making myself better.

[Lisa]

Here is a list of companies who will clearly list all forms of gluten:

Open Original Shared Link If you don't see wheat, barley, malt or rye...it not in there.

In "olden days" it was thought that vinegar was not safe, it now considered safe due to the distillation process. Shredded cheese is mostly dusted with cellulose, which not a gluten concern, but always read labels. Some dressing do contain gluten, but if you buy from one of the above listed companies, all you have to do is read the labels.

[glutenfreeinminnesota]

Here is a list of companies who will clearly list all forms of gluten:

Open Original Shared Link If you don't see wheat, barley, malt or rye...it not in there.

In "olden days" it was thought that vinegar was not safe, it now considered safe due to the distillation process. Shredded cheese is mostly dusted with cellulose, which not a gluten concern, but always read labels. Some dressing do contain gluten, but if you buy from one of the above listed companies, all you have to do is read the labels.

Great info! Thanks so much Lisa!

[minniejack]

When I first started, I wore the pages out looking at the Triumphs Guide to Grocery Shopping and I googled products extensively. Now, over a year later, life is so much easier and it's just second nature for me. I gave my guide to a neighbor's mom who needed within about 6 months, 'cause I realized that I no longer needed it.

Good luck and know that it gets easier. And read those labels.

[DownWithGluten]

Everyone's already given good advice. I eat shredded cheese, Heinz ketchup and salad dressing too. But, like has been said, you just have to make sure the brand and type is okay. I don't make blanket statements...all of 'this' brand are okay, or all of 'this' food are okay... cuz ya never know. So like, you can't say "Ooooh yeah all cheese is perfectly fine!" Because, it's not. That might have been her point. For example, at some restaruants, the Caesar dressing is NOT okay because the parmesean cheese they use is grated and within the grating, they use flour to make it flow better...etc...yet if you go to Outback Steakhouse, their Caeser dressing IS okay...etc....ad infinitum.

So I basically go by this. If I do not know for sure that something is gluten free, I don't eat it. I check first. Even if it is something like shredded cheese or salad dressing. Those aren't foolproof, but there ARE brands and many options out there so that you CAN have them.

Does that make sense? Even like, Doritos. Cheetos are fine, but Doritos aren't. well, some flavors of Doritos are, but some aren't. As well. Milk chocolate Snickers are okay, but milk chocolate Milky Ways aren't. La dee da. Gets old kind of fast, but that's just how it is.

The only things we really CAN'T eat is flour, barely, rye, malt and possibly oats. The trick is knowing where it is hidden, and those are often hidden in things we might think are 'safe' like cheese. The cheese itself is fine, but not if it is seasoned with some spice that has flour in it...

[DownWithGluten]

Thanks everyone for your advice!! Tired of shredding my own cheese!! I am lazy I guess....

Ahorsesoul-it's going alright so far, as good as it can get I think! I have very supportive people in my life so that has helped a lot. My mom has gone out of her way to do tons of research and buy me cookbooks and such. I feel SO much better physically on this diet....emotionally it gets better day by day, still have my "WHY?!?!?" moments...but I feel healthier and more alive! I am so glad to finally know what was wrong, now I can start making myself better.

Oh...and lol to your comment about the mom. My mom has done the same thing. She's done tons of research, subscribed to clan thompson, made a binder of safe foods...etc. I'm more lazy and check things out of necessity. Frankly nutrition, food, diets, physical health... all that stuff bores me. but now, I'm forced to think about it! Boo. But yeah, thankfully she's been really supportive/helpful/etc.