Gluten is a common term for the proteins found in wheat, rye, barley, triticale, malt, and brewer’s yeast.1 It is what helps maintain the shape and texture of foods made with these grains. The list looks simple enough, but we have not yet considered the various products made from these grains that are then used in various foods. This can make it difficult to really know which consumables contain gluten.
For example, products like semolina, farina, spelt, farro, bulgar, emmer, and more, are all products made from wheat. If you see one on a food item’s ingredient list, you may not immediately know that it contains gluten.
Consuming gluten typically isn’t a problem unless you have a sensitivity to or intolerance for it. People diagnosed with Celiac Disease experience the more serious side-effects because the intake of gluten actually causes damage to the small intestine. Not only does this hinder nutrient absorption, it can also result in symptoms like weight loss and diarrhea.2 For these reasons, malnutrition is a serious concern for individuals with this condition.
Non-celiac gluten sensitivity essentially means that, even though a person tests negative for Celiac Disease and negative for a wheat allergy, they still experience some of the milder side-effects. Typically, this means they may experience some intestinal symptoms, headaches, fatigue, and joint pain if they consume gluten.2
How surprised would you be to learn that the opposite can actually be true? Gluten-free foods can contribute to weight gain because food manufacturers will often add fat and sugar to help recreate the qualities that gluten gives to food.3 In fact, there is no evidence that supports the idea that gluten-free foods can help someone lose weight.3
The reason gluten-free diets are perceived as beneficial for weight loss probably comes from the fact that going “gluten free” can simply mean sticking to unprocessed foods. For example, avoiding glutinous foods (like cake, pasta, etc.) can mean a lower daily calorie count which is potentially what helps gluten free dieters lose weight.
Research has determined that there is a safe threshold in terms of gluten consumption. So, if a food is labeled as “gluten free,” what that really means is that it contains less than 20 parts per million of gluten.4 Okay, but what does that even mean? We rarely quantify things this way. Parts per million refers to how much gluten there is in relation to all the other ingredients. This is not a fixed number. Some foods have a little more and some have a little less.
Each low-gluten food item adds to your overall daily intake. This means that if you consume too many “gluten-free” foods, you can accidentally consume more than the safe amount. Individuals with Celiac Disease are advised to consume no more than 10-50 milligrams per day.4
Following a gluten-free diet is actually pretty tough to adhere to, and if you don’t pay attention to what you’re eating (or if you stick to the same foods every single day), you may put yourself at risk for nutrient deficiencies. Not to mention that gluten-free foods typically aren’t enriched with the nutrients you’re already missing by avoiding gluten-containing foods.3
According to an article by the Gluten Intolerance Group, some of the most common nutrients that are difficult to obtain on a gluten-free diet include:
If you need to go gluten-free, Healthline explains that the easiest way to avoid gluten is to eat unprocessed, single-ingredient foods. This means you should avoid foods like bread, pasta, cereal, cookies, muffins, pizza, crackers, and certain beverages like beer. You should also avoid foods made or topped with soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, hoisin sauce, certain broths or marinades, and even some salad dressings.1
If you are going to consume grains, you are encouraged to stick to foods like quinoa, rice, buckwheat, tapioca, corn, and gluten-free oats.1 To be extra-safe, check the packaging for a “gluten-free” label on these items because many foods that are naturally gluten-free (like oats) may still be contaminated with gluten because they are processed or packaged in the same facility as gluten-containing products.
The lists go on for both the do’s and don’ts of gluten-friendly dieting, so be sure to check with a reputable source for a more complete list of foods.
Do you have any tips or tricks for gluten-free dieters? Share your thoughts in the comments below! For more articles like this one, subscribe to our newsletter to receive monthly highlights from the Living Healthy Blog.
I am a 59-year-old male who is still playing competitive soccer. – 2 x 45 minute halves each game. Any suggestions for a halftime snack to boost my 2nd half energy level?
– Joe B.
Bravo for keeping up your game! Many athletes experience a decline in energy level toward the end of a match, especially those lasting nearly 2 hours. Hopefully you are consuming a balanced meal a couple of hours prior, then a sports drink 5 to 10 minutes before kickoff. A halftime snack helps to postpone fatigue, stabilize blood sugar and keep up the pace during the second half.
Items with significant fat, fiber or protein — which slow digestion and thus blood glucose replenishment – should be avoided at this time. For that reason, even a flavored yogurt cup or granola bar may not be suitable.
A halftime snack should be comprised of carbohydrates, fluids and electrolytes. Examples include: watermelon slices, orange wedges, grapes, applesauce packet, half fruit bar + water, coconut water, and a sports hydration drink. Carbohydrate gels are another (more expensive) option.
Sources:
– Debbie J., MS, RD
This article should not replace any exercise program or restrictions, any dietary supplements or restrictions, or any other medical recommendations from your primary care physician. Before starting any exercise program or diet, make sure it is approved by your doctor.
Some questions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
Have a nutrition question? Our registered dietitian is ready to help!
Email nutrition@lafitness.com or submit your question below and it may be featured in an upcoming article!
Today is the 3rd Anniversary of the Living Healthy Podcast, presented by LA Fitness. Hi everyone! I just wanted to give you a quick update on what is going on with the show. We are trying to plan out 3 LIVE podcast episodes covering Exercise, Nutrition, and Sleep...
LA Fitness will be open on Easter Sunday, April 4th 2021! Modified clubs hours are below!Easter Sunday Hours Sunday, April 4th (U.S. & Canada) Club Hours: 8AM - 4PM Regular hours will resume on Monday, except in Canada (Alberta clubs be open from 8AM to 10PM,...
The Down Syndrome Ironman Chris Nikic attempts to be the first to complete an Ironman event with Down Syndrome. Welcome back to the Living Healthy Podcast! Today we’re going to be talking to an inspirational young man named Chris Nikic - The Down Syndrome...
“I think we really get down on ourselves when we mess up and then we backslide all the way. Try to find something positive. It doesn’t matter what your starting point is, you need to be ready to say, ‘I am done with doing this to myself.’”
Patricia Ebaire is not just a success story; she is an inspiration to others who believe that older age must certainly translate to struggle. Many of us pair the idea of aging with stiff joints, loss of flexibility, and general aches and pains. Yet, Patricia is here to show us how wrong that notion can be.
Patricia shared her story with us with the hope of encouraging and motivating others to believe in what they can do. “It’s never too late and you’re never too late,” she says.
We believe in her message and are grateful for the opportunity to share it. This is her story:
Up until about 4 years ago, Patricia was sure that her health was fine. She had always been fairly active and at a healthy weight, so it never seemed of critical importance to monitor her weight very closely. “I thought everything was going great and didn’t think much about having gained 5 pounds a year over the course of the last 10 years.” That’s 50 pounds over the total time period. However, when thinking about it on a yearly basis, 5 pounds hardly seems worth noting. Yet, a few years ago, the results of her blood work told her it was time to make some changes. That was her wake–up call.
With the guidance of her doctor, Patricia adopted some new health goals. Ideally, she hoped to exercise 40 minutes a day. Her actual routine looks more like 2-3 days a week. “It’s an ongoing challenge,” she says. She knows what her ideal fitness regimen would be, but she puts in her best and is satisfied knowing that she does everything she can.
This is perhaps where most people begin to give up. If they are unable to maintain the very specific regimen they had in mind, they begin to feel a sense of failure that drives them away from their goal. Patricia’s optimism tells her she can just try again the next day! Despite her fitness plan looking different from the initial goal, her progress continues because she does her best to exercise every single day, even if that only amounts to 10 minutes of brisk walking.
To be fair, her Tuesdays and Thursdays are highly active. On Tuesdays she can be found taking a strength and toning class, teaching yoga, and then playing Pickleball, a sport that merges the elements of ping pong, tennis, and badminton. On Thursdays, she swaps her strength and toning class for weight training and then goes on to yoga and Pickleball.
“At first, I didn’t think my food choices made an impact because I wasn’t feeling bad.”
“The other thing I needed to adjust was my diet,” Patricia explains. “I knew I had to change how I ate carbs, veggies, and protein. What I wasn’t into was balancing it all.” Incorporating the new changes meant “giving up things I was eating too much of. At first, I didn’t think my food choices made an impact because I wasn’t feeling bad. I never used to count carbs and calories in my whole life, but I decided I was NOT going to take a medication. I added fiber, ate less salt, and ate foods with fewer preservatives. Once I did that, eating enough became a challenge because carbs used to be a huge part of my caloric intake and I had to cut that down. But I tell myself every day that each day is a new start. So, even if I backslide a bit, I feel like I can try again the next day.”
We know that, for many people, adjusting nutrition can be a serious effort. We like to ask people who have done it successfully, what their biggest challenges were and how they overcame them. This was Patricia’s answer:
“Balancing the whole thing was my biggest challenge. I started carrying all my snacks with me so I would never be at the mercy of what food was available at the time. I also always used to look at nutrition labels, but I look at them with a different eye now. I think to myself, ‘Do I want one piece of cake or do I want a couple of meals?’ If I really get a craving, for example with pound cake, I cut one piece of cake into 8 pieces and I call them “Patricia bites,” so I take a nibble and I SAVOR it.”
Patricia’s favorite thing about being active was not the weight loss of 54 pounds. “That wasn’t even intentional,” she says. “I just wanted to do what was better for my health.” Her favorite thing was the newfound energy!
“I feel like I can do anything any time. I forget that I’m 66 because there is nothing that I’m not able to do. I live on a second-floor apartment and I can carry 6-8 grocery bags up those stairs at a time. I love the energy! Before I lost the weight, I didn’t even realize how low–energy I was.”
It’s easy to fall into the habit of thinking that a person succeeded because they have something in them that you don’t. To that, Patricia says “I think we really get down on ourselves when we mess up and then we backslide all the way. Try to find something positive. It doesn’t matter what your starting point is; you need to be ready to say, ‘I am done with doing this to myself.’”
When it comes to sticking to a new routine, Patricia reminds us that “there are so many choices in terms of exercise and food! Choose an exercise you like by trying many of them until you find one that makes you smile. “It’s the same with food. “Maybe you do not like cabbage, so try spinach, or kale, or other greens. The fact that there are so many choices, means that you can find healthy foods that you like and build a healthy diet around those choices.”
When you experience a moment of doubt, Patricia shares that it’s important that you don’t beat yourself up over what other people are doing. “Pat yourself on the back for what you’re doing. Wherever you are is a great place. Don’t ever make your place a bad place. Your effort means so much more than what the other person is doing because their muscles have been doing that for years. Your muscles are trying to get there!”
Ultimately, her message to any generation is that “it’s never too late and you’re never too late. It’s okay to start over the next day, so it’s okay to mess up because you can start over.”
Do you have an inspirational story you’d like to share with us? Email us at blog@lafitness.com for a chance to be featured in an upcoming post!
For grammatical correctness, length, and clarity, minor edits – none of which alter the original or intended meaning – have been made to the quotes provided.
Today is the 3rd Anniversary of the Living Healthy Podcast, presented by LA Fitness. Hi everyone! I just wanted to give you a quick update on what is going on with the show. We are trying to plan out 3 LIVE podcast episodes covering Exercise, Nutrition, and Sleep...
LA Fitness will be open on Easter Sunday, April 4th 2021! Modified clubs hours are below!Easter Sunday Hours Sunday, April 4th (U.S. & Canada) Club Hours: 8AM - 4PM Regular hours will resume on Monday, except in Canada (Alberta clubs be open from 8AM to 10PM,...
The Down Syndrome Ironman Chris Nikic attempts to be the first to complete an Ironman event with Down Syndrome. Welcome back to the Living Healthy Podcast! Today we’re going to be talking to an inspirational young man named Chris Nikic - The Down Syndrome...
My husband and I are thinking about having a baby, what is a good nutrition guide to follow when pregnant?
-Misty
How wonderful! Why not follow a smart pre-conception diet now? Laying down a good nutritional foundation means that you’ll not only increase the likelihood of conceiving but also of a healthy first trimester – for you as well as the baby. Get hubby on board, too. ?
Many “conception diets” recommend that half your plate be from fruits and vegetables, a quarter from whole grains and a quarter lean protein, which agrees with USDA’s Choose MyPlate guidelines. If you’re trying to get pregnant, drinking reduced or whole fat milk is correlated with normal fertility, but not 1% or skim (non-fat). Consume healthy plant-based fats like avocado, nuts, olives and coconut oil in moderation. Limit refined sugar, red meat and foods containing trans-fat.
As many women don’t know they are carrying a baby until several weeks into pregnancy, taking a prenatal vitamin with 100% RDI of folic acid (400 µg folate equivalent) and iron (18 mg) is advisable. Many produce items (notably spinach, asparagus, Brussel sprouts) have the B-vitamin folate, necessary for early neural tube development. Dietary sources of the important blood mineral iron include meat, fortified cereals, beans, and dark green leafy vegetables.
During pregnancy, follow your obstetrician’s advice and that from established and trusted institutions such as The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND), and The US Office on Women’s Health (OWH).
You’ll need extra fluids, nutrients and calories as your pregnancy progresses. In the first trimester, folate and other vitamins and minerals are crucial for proper neural tube development, so a good prenatal vitamin is key. Strictly avoid alcohol during this time.
The second trimester is when you start to expand blood volume and increase maternal stores while your baby grows rapidly from the size of a nut (3”, 1 oz.) to a football (12”, 1 lb.) while developing all of its organs and features. About 2 additional cups of fluids are needed per day. Adding around 300 extra calories from healthy foods with adequate calcium and iron will support this growth.
In the last trimester, your baby is filling out to full-term weight. This is when you are truly “eating for two, ” although in terms of energy, you really only need an additional 200 calories on top of your 2nd trimester needs.
Sources:
– Debbie J., MS, RD
This article should not replace any exercise program or restrictions, any dietary supplements or restrictions, or any other medical recommendations from your primary care physician. Before starting any exercise program or diet, make sure it is approved by your doctor.
Some questions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
Have a nutrition question? Our registered dietitian is ready to help!
Email nutrition@lafitness.com or submit your question below and it may be featured in an upcoming article!
Today is the 3rd Anniversary of the Living Healthy Podcast, presented by LA Fitness. Hi everyone! I just wanted to give you a quick update on what is going on with the show. We are trying to plan out 3 LIVE podcast episodes covering Exercise, Nutrition, and Sleep...
LA Fitness will be open on Easter Sunday, April 4th 2021! Modified clubs hours are below!Easter Sunday Hours Sunday, April 4th (U.S. & Canada) Club Hours: 8AM - 4PM Regular hours will resume on Monday, except in Canada (Alberta clubs be open from 8AM to 10PM,...
The Down Syndrome Ironman Chris Nikic attempts to be the first to complete an Ironman event with Down Syndrome. Welcome back to the Living Healthy Podcast! Today we’re going to be talking to an inspirational young man named Chris Nikic - The Down Syndrome...
It’s hard enough as it is to lose weight, and the more we learn, the more we find how many factors stack up against our efforts to maintain our progress. A review of the literature on weight loss maintenance and weight regain has narrowed down the potential reasons for why keeping the weight off is so difficult. To help us understand why weight maintenance is tough, it helps to consider what makes it successful to begin with.
According to this literature review, successful weight maintenance is associated with:
These 5 items are all things you can do. You can work for greater initial weight loss, you can add physical activity to your lifestyle, you can change your nutrition habits.
The following factors also contribute highly to successfully maintaining weight loss, but they are not as easy to manipulate.
In this list we can see how much our psychological, social, emotional, and environmental situations all contribute to our overall ability to care for our health. We haven’t even touched the biological factors that make our individual endeavors more difficult. The bottom line is, there is never ONE reason why you are struggling with maintaining your weight loss.
Now that we can clearly see the common factors among those who are successful, we can easily run through those lists and identify which factors are playing a part in our personal struggle. A lot of it is founded in our ability to adhere to certain routines and to new habits. An equally important piece comes in the form of our emotional and psychological strength and the type of support we have.
If all these things are tied together, it seems that a person would need a life that is perfect in all ways in order to achieve and maintain their goals. However, we know that no one has a perfect life, and yet there are successful people everywhere. How do they do it and what can we learn from their success that we can apply to our own approach?
The answer to that is attempted in “Keep the Weight Off” articles everywhere. Everyone has their own idea of which approach works best. Yes, there is some cross-over, but a lot of the advice typically goes back to something along the lines of “watch what you eat” and “do more exercise.” However, if any of the above factors mean anything, the real answer should be something only you can determine based on your individual circumstances.
Take some time today to think through areas in your life that, if improved, can help you set a foundation for success. A strong foundation can make the difference you need to get where you’re trying to go.
We invite you to share what you plan to tackle to increase your total wellness and to establish a stronger base. Let us know in the comments below! To read our dietitian’s advice for Slow Weight-Loss, How to Handle a Weight-Loss Plateau, or How to Calculate Your New Calorie Limits After Weight-Loss, click the links to read the QA’s. For more articles like this one, subscribe to our newsletter to receive monthly highlights from the LA Fitness blog!
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