gluten

Learning that you have an allergy or sensitivity to products containing gluten — anything containing wheat, barley, or rye — can be stressful in and of itself, let alone trying to find the extra funds to support your new diet. If you've given up gluten, you've probably noticed after trips to any health food specialty stores that gluten-free food items are not cheap. Even though it's estimated that one in every 133 Americans is afflicted with celiac disease (that's roughly 2.8 million people), premade gluten-free foods are significantly more money than their gluten-filled counterparts. Which is why I've come up with some tips for how to live gluten-free without breaking the bank.

1. Buy the Basics: Rather than get caught up with all of the shiny, expensive new gluten-free items your local grocery store has started stocking its shelves with, stick to the basics. Vegetables, fruits, fish, meats, brown rice, potatoes, corn, quinoa, and nuts are all gluten-free, so try getting creative with foods that are gluten-free to begin with.

Keep reading for more tips.

Unless you're shopping at stores like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods — grocery stores that indicate which products are gluten-free — it can be difficult to figure out what is and isn't free of gluten, not to mention, time consuming! Here are some tips to make gluten-free shopping a bit easier.

1. Become a label reader! This is the most important tip, which is why it's number one. Before you go to the store, print out this safe gluten-free food list, and this unsafe gluten-free food list, so you know what ingredients to watch out for. If you see the words wheat, barley, rye, oats, or malt listed in the ingredients, steer clear. And double check to make sure the item wasn't made on equipment or in a factory that also processes wheat — cross-contamination can be just as harmful if you are intolerant to gluten.

Keep reading for more tips.

For anyone with celiac disease — or an allergy, intolerance, or sensitivity to gluten — the six-letter word "gluten" most likely has a prominent place in their daily conversations. I try my hardest not to be that annoying friend who grills the waiter about every item on the menu. But gluten is no laughing matter, especially if your body can't process it and you are trying to adhere to a gluten-free diet — which is why you need to be armed with the right information before dining out or even going to the grocery store.

A protein found in wheat, rye, and barley, gluten is usually the main ingredient in grain-based products like breads and pastries since it allows flour to rise. When I first went gluten-free, my rule of thumb was this: the doughier the item, the more harmful it is for me. The usual suspects include bread, crackers, cookies, biscuits, breaded meat, croutons, pasta, pizza crust, noodles, muffins, noodles, and cake.

But I have found foods with hidden sources of gluten that I would never have guessed I needed to steer clear from. Find out what some of these foods are.

Certain packaged goods companies make cooking unhealthy as simple as one, two, three — just think of Nestle's slice and serve cookie dough rolls and Easy Cheese. Now thanks to innovators like Purely Elizabeth, it's just as easy to be smart and heart healthy as it is to slice and bake. The New York based company is bringing a new face to the convenient cooking category by introducing yummy mixes suitable for those eating a gluten-free or vegan menu. Believers in the motto, "you are what you eat," they pour pure ingredients into their easy made mixes so consumers can proudly claim that they themselves are all natural and organic. 'Cause let's face it — nobody wants to be cheese in a can.

Curious to see if their taste lived up to their great expectations, I tried out the Oatmeal Cherry Cookie Mix ($9/bag). I won't lie — my expectations on the taste level were pretty mediocre. But, much to my delight (and to the delight of my children!) the mix was a hit in my kitchen.

Want to hear more of my review on the mix?

For many of us, eating a sandwich is no big deal. For others, like celiac disease sufferers, it is a big deal. Gluten challenged, they can't just order up a sammy with any old bread. They have to make sure the loaf is free of gluten or get creative with their options. While some folks are diagnosed at an early age, some don't discover the dietary restricting disease until adulthood when changing lifelong eating habits becomes a major hurdle.

If you are looking to cut some gluten out of your diet or know someone who is, help them out by giving them these pointers.

• Do your research. Make a cheat sheet of all the ingredients you cannot have and keep it in your wallet so you won't be paralyzed in the grocery store aisle.
• Find out how to read a food label. Don't rely on the "Gluten-Free" stamp alone. You may miss out on valid options if you are soley dependent on that.
• Go to a Whole Foods type grocery store to find all of the GF options available to you. Load up on a few cake and cookie mixes to brighten your spirits. Just don't eat the whole box!
• Research what restaurants carry GF menu options and learn how to make non-GF meals work for you.
• Get creative in the kitchen. Use your new ingredients to come up with innovative recipes. If you're not a chef kind of gal, sign up for a GF cooking class. You may get some good tips from other attendants, too!

Ready to see the rest of our pointers?

Flapjacks, pancakes, short stacks, or griddle cakes — it's all the same way of saying pancakes. But all pancakes are not the same, especially for people who want to maintain a gluten-free diet. Folks who suffer from celiac disease or those that choose to live sans gluten can still butter up some cakes and pour the syrup on for a home cooked breakfast that will even have gluten eaters licking their plates clean.

Want to take a peek at the yummy recipe?