Eating Wheat & Gluten Free

      I've recently done quite a bit of research on eating wheat and gluten free. It seems as though eating gluten free would be considered wheat free, but not entirely! They go hand in hand with each other, but aren't the same. The wheat that is grown today is very different from the wheat grown a hundred years ago. There are many health issues that have come to fruition over the past several decades relating to wheat/gluten intolerance or allergy.  I've made the decision to  eat wheat and gluten free so that I can help my body to become more healthy, as well as relieve some problems that I have which are due to consuming wheat and gluten. 
       There are many diets and fads out there that claim that you will lose weight and be healthier than ever. What they don't say is that you'll more than likely gain all the weight back plus more, after you stop the diet. Diets are temporary. They never last, a lifestyle change is what needs to happen to make yourself happy and healthy.
       This is my lifestyle change. There are so many pluses to living a wheat & gluten free lifestyle. Every week or so, I plan on writing about my struggles and achievements living without wheat & gluten.
      If you've ever paid attention to your food labels, you know that wheat is in EVERYTHING! Seriously, it's crazy to look at all the foods, condiments, and drinks that I've been eating and drinking and seeing that the majority of them contain wheat! My husband is very supportive of this lifestyle change (although I'm not making him change much of his diet, of course the meals I make will be wheat/gluten free, so he'll have to deal with that : ) Without my husband's support, I don't think I would do so well with this lifestyle change.
       I'm on day 4 of eating wheat/gluten free. It has been a little challenging, especially at first, when looking for a snack and realizing almost all the snacks that I would "go to" when hungry, had wheat/gluten in them. So the first step was to throw away everything that would tempt me, that included wheat/gluten. I also gave away some of the food to friends and neighbors. The next step was to go to the store and buy snacks I could "go to", that were healthy and wheat/gluten free. Some of the best snacks that I "go to" are raw nuts, cheese sticks (have to be careful with these, some include wheat), fruits and vegetables.
      You may be wondering what I would eat in place of bread, pasta, cereal, etc. Well, there are TONS of other replacements you could eat. You could make (or buy) bread that is wheat/gluten free (which are tasty). You could replace wheat pasta with quinoa or rice pasta. (Although I'm trying to avoid white rice, & soy at all costs). These are also very tasty. Some oats are ok to eat, but many contain wheat that is not included on the ingredients list on the packages they come in, so I'm also trying to avoid most oats.
      I recommend that if you are curious about the health issues that can/do come from eating wheat and gluten, check out some books and do your own research. It's best to do research for yourself than take someone's word for it. Especially, with things as serious as your health. Some books that I've found informative and helpful are:  "Wheat Belly" by Williams Davis, MD., "Healthier without Wheat" by Dr. Stephen Wangen and "Wheat-free, Worry-free: The Art of Happy, Healthy, Gluten-free Living" by Danna Korn. These are a few among a huge group of books, and scholarly journals out there that are very informative and helpful.