Before going gluten-free did you pay attention to the ingredients in your food?
I must admit I rarely read the ingredient labels on food I ate. Maybe once in a while when I would look at the number of calories or the amount of fat. And when I was pregnant with my daughter, I did begin to pay attention to sugars and serving size.
I remember my happiest lesson was learning that five Dove Minis equates to just one serving. If being able to eat that much ice cream while pregnant doesn’t make you happy, I don’t know what will…
But that was all before I needed to learn to eat gluten-free.
After you go on a gluten-free diet, you have to read labels
When you begin a gluten-free diet you have to actually stop and read the ingredients. Few foods actually tell you whether they are gluten-free or not. So you have to figure it out yourself, product by product. This at first is very overwhelming.
Your quick trip to the grocery turns into a depressing long excursion as you realize a) how hard it is to find gluten-free food and b) how little you paid attention to what you put in your body and c) how much junk there is in most of the food you buy.
As you shop, you naturally see the benefits of foods made with fewer simpler ingredients.
Reading labels for ingredients naturally you tend toward simpler foods
Eating healthy begins by building your meals around natural foods – I knew that. But it didn’t hit home until I started seeing what was in the food I bought.
Looking for gluten-free ingredients is hard when you have to filter through names like Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate or Monosodium Glutamate or Natural Flavorings.
You start to see the beauty in food ingredient labels that are simple. Simple and understandable.
Eating foods and meals made with foods with simpler ingredients results in eating healthier
And there you go. By seeking out simple natural foods – like fruit, vegetables, and products with simple ingredient lists, you take a major step toward eating healthier.
Have you eaten healthier since going gluten-free? Tell us about it in the comments below!
