Hey there reader
So, a couple of months ago, I got diagnosed with Celiac disease. If you follow me on Instagram, then you already know this.
I'm not one to "announce" things like this on my social media. Believe it or not, even though I'm a blogger, I prefer to keep my life private.
But, considering I'm a food blogger and have developed a relationship with my readers over the last ten years, I wanted to share this with you.
Just in case you don't know, Celiac disease means my body can't process gluten, and if I eat gluten, then my intestines get inflamed, and I get sick. So no gluten means no pasta, pizza, or bread.
If you've followed me for any amount of time, then you know I grew up in an Italian-American family, and all of those foods have been staples in my life forever.
As I've gone through my weight journey, a top priority has been keeping pasta and pizza a part of a healthy diet. And I did. I've maintained a healthy lifestyle that included lightened-up pasta and pizza recipes.
But a couple of years ago, I started having a lot of digestive problems along with other symptoms I thought were just a part of getting older. And, now that I think about it, many symptoms I had started 7-10 years ago but just got worse over the last year.
I often went to the doctor and was told to drink more water, eat more fiber, and other suggestions that never got to the root of the problem.
Anyway, during my annual physical this year, I asked my doctor to test me for Celiac. My friend who has Celiac recommended I do this because my symptoms were very similar to hers. So I did. I also went to a GI doctor who did a scope on me.
All the tests came back that I had Celiac Disease.
I had mixed emotions when getting this news. First, I felt relief because I finally knew what was wrong with me. Like I said, my stomach issues were getting worse, and now that I'm aware of the problem; I could fix it.
Then I got nervous. As a food blogger, I'm sure you can imagine this isn't the best news to hear. I mean, I create and cook all kinds of healthy recipes for a living. Food (gluten or not) has been my life for ten years.
But like all the challenges I've had to deal with in life, I figured it out.
Most of the recipes on OYS are naturally gluten-free, and those that aren't can easily be adapted. So continuing with recipes for OYS won't be a problem. And with recipes that do include flour, pasta, or other gluten, I have recipe testers.
Beyond the blog, a personal challenge, in the beginning, was finding gluten-free pasta, bread, flours, and other items to swap into my favorite recipes. I never paid attention to gluten-free products before.
But, in the last couple of months, my family and I have been testing all kinds of gluten-free food items. I've been trying different pasta brands, premade pizza crusts and mixes, gluten-free flour, gluten-free bread crumbs, and more.
My two favorite stores (so far) for gluten-free pasta, flours, and other food are Wegmans and Thrive Market.
Wegmans is excellent because all of their gluten-free selections are clearly labeled, and I find that super helpful.
Thrive Market inches past Wegmans for the top spot because it has a more extensive selection of gluten-free specialty brands and at better prices. In addition, you can browse the website by gluten-free diet - there are 3500 items you can choose from. Don't worry; you can filter by category to quickly find what you are looking for. See all the gluten-free items here.
You can also create lists to save your favorite gluten-free finds. For example, here's my gluten-free pantry list on Thrive Market. As I test new items (and like them), I'll add them to the list.
My favorite brands so far are:
Schar - for bread, pizza crust, and breadcrumbs
Jovial - for pasta
Bio nature - for pasta
Thrive Market Brand - for pasta, pasta sauce, oats, baking products, spices, and condiments.
I'm not sure how Thrive Market compares to Aldi's, Walmart, Target, or other grocery stores. But if you're looking to stock your pantry with organic, high-quality gluten-free pantry items, then Thrive Market has the best prices, especially on the Schar, Jovial, and Bionature brands.
If you want to see everything I get in my latest Thrive Market haul, then check out my Instagram story highlights, I share everything there.
I've been gluten-free for almost two months. I'm still learning about the gluten-free lifestyle, but so far, with the changes I've made, I feel 100% better.
It's one thing to change your diet because you want to, but it's another to remove gluten because you need to. Having access to food items than make that easier is so helpful.
If you don't have celiac or a gluten sensitivity Thrive Market offers many organic, high-quality brands, so even if you don't have celiac or gluten sensitivity, you might still find it helpful to shop there.
Right now Thrive Market is giving new subscribers 25% off their first order. Also, don't forget to check out my gluten-free pantry list on Thrive Market.
I hope you found this helpful? Let me know if you have any questions.
Talk to you soon.
Tammy
This post contains affiliate links. I am an affiliate for Thrive Market and earn a small commission when you subscribe. I've been a Thrive Market subscriber since 2015 and only recommend this company because I use them frequently and believe in their business. You're by no means obligated to use my links but, if you do, thank you for supporting Organize Yourself Skinny.
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