Gluten Free - Help!

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My eldest has just been diagnosed with Celiac Disease and I was wondering if there are any other celiacs here who could help me out with tips, brands to use, things you wouldn’t of known to avoid. She’s really fussy with food so I can see it’s going to be a difficult transition and I’m dreading it!
Thank you in advance
 
Aww, how old is your daughter? I got diagnosed as an adult so easier for me to deal with.
Are you in Scotland? If so you can get some gluten free food on prescription like bread and pasta. I think England have phased it out, not sure about Wales or NI.
What food does your daughter enjoy? Then I could recommend a replacement.
The main things to avoid BROWS. Barley, Rye, Oats, Wheat and Spelt. Luckily all foods in the U.K. have to put allergens in bold so easy to read.
You can eat barley malt vinegar as the way it is distilled the barley is well under the safe limit.
If you are in facebook there are some fantastic support groups for information.
Feel free to ask me any questions you have.
 
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Soy sauce - you can get a gluten free brand called Kikkoman which tastes pretty much the same to me.
Cous cous contains gluten
Cornflakes - contain gluten! Had no idea.
Double check anything in a pickle - malt vinegar contains gluten.

Coconut flour is good for baking / coating things like fish or chicken to make “nuggets”.

The free from aisle in most supermarkets has a good range - Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose have heaps of alternatives to bread, biscuits, pasta and sauces etc.
Good luck! I think it’s getting easier in this day and age with awareness of such conditions so hopefully it’s not too difficult an adjustment for you all.
 
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Great tips above and just to add to be careful of cross contamination, utensils, toaster etc. The supermarkets have great freee from ranges now it’s overwhelming at first but it will get easier
 
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Just gone GF myself so following with interest - Morrison’s have offers across most of their GF range this month. I’m no baker but really missed Teacake with a cuppa - Genius do s light spiced fruit loaf they also do some pancakes which I had this morning for a treat and they was lovely!

I didn’t realise how many things have Gluten in them! (Was genuinely shocked about the soy sauce) x
 
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Thank you all for all the tips and suggestions. She’s just turned 6, so she’s old enough to understand that she can’t have certain things and why she can’t have them, but not old enough to fully understand the whole picture of how much life is going to change. My youngest is dairy free so at least she’s not the only one in the family with an allergy and different foods.

We are going to a birthday party tomorrow and we’ll have to bring our own food as is too short notice. I’m just worried she’s going to feel quite isolated and different, which at this age is the opposite of what she wants to be.


I did a shop on Sainsbury’s today and even-though is not a big one, it had a decent range. I was surprised of how many things had wheat in them (McCain french fries!). She’s quite fussy when it comes to food, more of a “beige tapas” kind of girl so I guess is just trial and error to find fish fingers/chicken that she likes.

I also bought a new baking tray and little pan to cook her pasta in, to try to avoid cross contamination.

Any recommendations on brands of pasta? We had Sainsbury’s free from tonight and it wasn’t very nice.
Also, any good chain restaurants?

Thank you
 
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I’ve been gluten and dairy free for 7 years. I’ll come back to this when I have time tomorrow.

It’s easy once you get into it.
 
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Thank you all for all the tips and suggestions. She’s just turned 6, so she’s old enough to understand that she can’t have certain things and why she can’t have them, but not old enough to fully understand the whole picture of how much life is going to change. My youngest is dairy free so at least she’s not the only one in the family with an allergy and different foods.

We are going to a birthday party tomorrow and we’ll have to bring our own food as is too short notice. I’m just worried she’s going to feel quite isolated and different, which at this age is the opposite of what she wants to be.


I did a shop on Sainsbury’s today and even-though is not a big one, it had a decent range. I was surprised of how many things had wheat in them (McCain french fries!). She’s quite fussy when it comes to food, more of a “beige tapas” kind of girl so I guess is just trial and error to find fish fingers/chicken that she likes.

I also bought a new baking tray and little pan to cook her pasta in, to try to avoid cross contamination.

Any recommendations on brands of pasta? We had Sainsbury’s free from tonight and it wasn’t very nice.
Also, any good chain restaurants?

Thank you
If you use Instagram I would reach out to mrsmummywright_sw she follows the diet gluten free as her boy is a coeliac. She'll post recipes she's adapted to be gluten free etc and she's very friendly so would chat with you via private message
 
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Hopefully once she begins to feel better she will see how worthwhile it is.
I find the Tesco pasta the nicest. It doesn’t taste much different to me.
You can buy the toaster pockets to toast her bread in the same toaster to avoid cross contamination. That’s what I do.
Nando’s is excellent if she likes going there. They get a manager to take the order and clean the grill before cooking.
I find Prezzo and Zizzi have good choice too.
 
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All the supermarkets have free from options. I find Morrison's was better than most places for snacks/cupboard food. Most of the meat in Asda is GF such as the beef burgers, meatballs, turkey meat and their breaded chicken. Found they have the best 'fresh' options.

If you eat out, check menus before you go as some tend to have 1/2 GF options and class themselves as inclusive :rolleyes: Pizza express is fab as it can do any of their pizzas as GF including the dough balls.
 
Thank you all for all the tips and suggestions. She’s just turned 6, so she’s old enough to understand that she can’t have certain things and why she can’t have them, but not old enough to fully understand the whole picture of how much life is going to change. My youngest is dairy free so at least she’s not the only one in the family with an allergy and different foods.

We are going to a birthday party tomorrow and we’ll have to bring our own food as is too short notice. I’m just worried she’s going to feel quite isolated and different, which at this age is the opposite of what she wants to be.


I did a shop on Sainsbury’s today and even-though is not a big one, it had a decent range. I was surprised of how many things had wheat in them (McCain french fries!). She’s quite fussy when it comes to food, more of a “beige tapas” kind of girl so I guess is just trial and error to find fish fingers/chicken that she likes.

I also bought a new baking tray and little pan to cook her pasta in, to try to avoid cross contamination.

Any recommendations on brands of pasta? We had Sainsbury’s free from tonight and it wasn’t very nice.
Also, any good chain restaurants?

Thank you
I was diagnosed at 13 now 30! It is a million times easier now than it was. Pasta they are all pretty similar.
Chain wise look for ones that are coeliac accredited. I would join the fb groups coeliac eat out too and coeliacs eat abroad. The frozen sections of supermarket gf are really good.
I would also join coeliac UK makes life 100x easier.
At home make sure separate toaster (or toaster bags) and just make sure wash things properly.
If ever get accidentally glutened peppermint tea, flat lemonade and gluten free ginger biscuits (M&S and Lidl have nice ones) work a treat.
Private message if you want anything else
 
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Buckwheat (not wheat) makes nice pancakes.
 
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Hi. I’ve been coeliac for over 20 years. Whenever you’re eating out ask if they have a gluten free menu as a lot of restaurants do now and even if it’s not advertised they will often have gf pasta or bread available. Prezzo has a good choice on their gluten free menu. You can also get gluten free pizzas at Dominos, Pizza Express and Pizza Hut (certainly the ones near me). I tend to buy my pasta at Tesco as at my local one it’s only £1 a bag. What’s really handy now is that prepared sandwiches are now available I really like the M&S ones. M&S gluten free cakes are worth a try too :)
 
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Have a look at the Amy’s Kitchen products on Waitrose and Ocado website.
 
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My eldest has just been diagnosed with Celiac Disease and I was wondering if there are any other celiacs here who could help me out with tips, brands to use, things you wouldn’t of known to avoid. She’s really fussy with food so I can see it’s going to be a difficult transition and I’m dreading it!
Thank you in advance
Hi, could I ask if you have worked out what treats your daughter is allowed to eat? Our neighbours child is coeliac and I want to make her up a bag of goodies for Halloween that won’t look too different to everyone else’s. I have found gluten free crisps but do you have any recommendations for jellies and chocolate etc?
 
I have coeliac disease, but I was diagnosed at the age of 23. In some ways it was harder being diagnosed as an adult because I have vivid memories of some of the foods I loved.

It can seem a lot at first, but it does get easier. Have a look at coeliac uk for some information as they are really helpful and make sure you always spell it as coeliac when you’re searching for information as celiac is the US spelling of it and they have different information to us.

As above though, you literally only have to look for Barely Rye Wheat and oats (BROW). No need to check for anything else (even spelt, as spelt is listed as wheat now too). Also don’t eat anything that says it’s a may contain for those ingredients or a may contain for gluten or that it was made in a factory that handles those ingredients or gluten. And avoid labels that say, “not suitable for wheat allergy suffers too.”

the only exceptions to the above are if the product says gluten free, it doesn’t matter what the ingredients say, if it says gluten free it’s fine.

also anything with barley malt vinegar in is also fine.

barley malt extract can also be okay at a certain level, but the product would either need to be labelled as gluten free or coeliac uk would have listed it in their directory or their app if it is safe.

also be wary of cross contamination, she will need a new toaster and it needs to be a toaster just for her too. She can’t eat chips from the chippy unless they fry their chips in a separate fryer to gluten items. She also needs her own butter, jams, spreads ect.

I’d also say join some Facebook groups as they are super helpful too.
 
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I have coeliac disease, but I was diagnosed at the age of 23. In some ways it was harder being diagnosed as an adult because I have vivid memories of some of the foods I loved.

It can seem a lot at first, but it does get easier. Have a look at coeliac uk for some information as they are really helpful and make sure you always spell it as coeliac when you’re searching for information as celiac is the US spelling of it and they have different information to us.

As above though, you literally only have to look for Barely Rye Wheat and oats (BROW). No need to check for anything else (even spelt, as spelt is listed as wheat now too). Also don’t eat anything that says it’s a may contain for those ingredients or a may contain for gluten or that it was made in a factory that handles those ingredients or gluten. And avoid labels that say, “not suitable for wheat allergy suffers too.”

the only exceptions to the above are if the product says gluten free, it doesn’t matter what the ingredients say, if it says gluten free it’s fine.

also anything with barley malt vinegar in is also fine.

barley malt extract can also be okay at a certain level, but the product would either need to be labelled as gluten free or coeliac uk would have listed it in their directory or their app if it is safe.

also be wary of cross contamination, she will need a new toaster and it needs to be a toaster just for her too. She can’t eat chips from the chippy unless they fry their chips in a separate fryer to gluten items. She also needs her own butter, jams, spreads ect.

I’d also say join some Facebook groups as they are super helpful too.
Could you recommend any gluten free chocolate bars or jellies? Want to make up a treat bag for someone coeliac
 
Could you recommend any gluten free chocolate bars or jellies? Want to make up a treat bag for someone coeliac
Most of the haribo sweets are, the Halloween bags I bought definitely are. Maom sweets, swizzel lollipops and their chewy ones are gluten free. Galaxy chocolate, wispas, flakes, twirls, buttons are ok. Snickers are gf too.
Ones to avoid are malteasers, mars bars, Milky Way bars, toffee crisps, anything with wafers in. I hope that helps.
 
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Diagnosed at 26. I would recommend Schar pizza bases to make your own pizzas - fun and tasty!
My other favourite things would be Salti's by Schar which are like ritz crackers, the New york deli GF bagels..only when toasted though, nairns snackers (almost like crisps). Bird's Eye potato waffles are also a winner.
In terms of dining out - if you are near to Manchester - Sweet Mandarin is amazing, GF Chinese restaurant :love::love: they really know their stuff.
 
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M&S do the tastiest gluten free chicken goujons. You’d never know they were gluten free - lots in a pack and they’re always on the 3 for £12 offer and they freeze. Their free from fish fingers are brilliant too.
Tesco pasta and gravy mix are better than the other supermarkets in my opinion 👍🏼
 
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