Hey reader,
So, in early May 2021, 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 been around OYS for a while, 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 loss journey, a top priority has been keeping pasta and pizza a part of a healthy diet.
But a couple of years ago, I started having digestive problems, and other symptoms I thought were just a part of getting older.
And, now that I think about it, many symptoms started 7-10 years ago but just got worse over the last couple of years.
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 in 2021, 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. 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, you can imagine this isn't the best news to hear. I create and cook all kinds of healthy recipes for a living, and food (gluten or not) has been in my life for ten years.
But like all the challenges I've had to deal with in life, I figured it out. Since becoming gluten-free, I feel 100% better.
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. I have all gluten free recipes in the gluten free category on my blog to make them easier to find.
| Browse Gluten Free Recipes |
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 had never paid attention to gluten-free products before.
But, my family and I have been testing all kinds of gluten-free food items. I've been trying different pasta brands, premade pizza crusts, mixes, gluten-free flour, gluten-free bread crumbs, etc.
My two favorite stores (so far) for gluten-free pasta, flours, and other food are Wegmans and Thrive Market.
Wegmans is excellent because 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 find what you are looking for quickly. 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, Thrive Market has the best prices, especially on the Schar, Jovial, and Bionature brands.
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 makes that easier.
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.
Thrive Market is giving new OYS subscribers 40% off their first order.
I hope you found this helpful? Let me know if you have any questions.
Talk to you soon.
Tammy Overhoff
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 not obligated to use my links, but if you do, thank you for supporting Organize Yourself Skinny.
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