Sticking With Your Psoriasis Diet
There are plenty of hidden sources of gluten derived from grains, including:
- Malt vinegar (barley)
- Soy sauce (barley)
- Rye (barley)
- Semolina (wheat)
- Spelt (wheat)
- Kamut (wheat)
Get in the habit of reading ingredient lists very closely, and be wary of any and all additives. If you’re not entirely sure if an ingredient may have gluten, look it up before you buy — even a little bit of gluten can cause serious trouble when your body can’t tolerate it well.
Whole foods are generally safer, as long as they aren’t a part of a grain that produces gluten.
Cook for Yourself
Life will be much easier if you can do away with prepackaged meals and store-bought preparations. Sure, this will mean you have to put in some more kitchen time, but there are some major rewards: you’ll know for certain there’s no gluten in your meals, you’ll sidestep any nasty preservatives, and you’ll save money.
You may also find yourself eating a lot healthier when you’re controlling the amount of fat and salt that goes into each dish.
Focus on Vegetables
Going gluten-free doesn’t automatically make you healthier — you’ll have to make smart substitutions for a wholesome, balanced diet. If grains made up a substantial part of your plate before, it’s time to find some good veggie stand-ins.
You should aim to take in a colorful range of vegetables and fruit each week, but it’s alright to fall back on some favorites more often than not.
Zucchini is surprisingly versatile: use a vegetable peeler to make thin ribbons for a salad, invest in a spiralizer to make zucchini noodles in place of pasta, grate it up and make fritters, or scoop out the centers and use the zucchini boats for favorite fillers.
Pick up a Paleo Cookbook
If you find it hard to come up with a variety of good gluten-free recipes on a daily basis, or you’re tired of buying specialty ingredients, follow the lead of another eating plan that happens to align with a gluten-free lifestyle.
The paleo diet is based on the idea that the human body has not evolved to consume and digest some of the modern foods that factor into a typical menu plan, namely grains and dairy. You don’t have to agree with all the principles of the diet to enjoy many of the recipes, which center on meat and wholesome produce, so you might want to take some inspiration from accomplished paleo chefs while you stick to your gluten-free vow.
Wait It Out
If you do decide to go gluten-free for the good of your psoriasis symptoms, be patient — results can take time to surface. Experts recommend that you stick with your gluten-free diet for at least three months to see if it brings a significant change, at which point you can decide if gluten is really to blame for your psoriasis.
If you’re not sure how much good the dietary adjustment has done your body, you may want to start adding gluten back in at the three-month mark, and track your reaction.
