If you eat a gluten-free diet or want to try one, it’s natural to want to take the easy way out: Eat your standard American fare, such as sandwiches, and replace the wheat bread or tortillas you’re accustomed to eating with gluten-free bread or tortillas.
Although doing so can prevent reactions to gluten, going gluten-free this way can lead to new, non-gluten-related ailments and diseases, such as weight gain, increased blood sugar levels, and insulin-related health conditions. That’s because gluten-free grain flours and starches (i.e., rice flour, corn meal, sorghum flour, millet flour, corn starch, tapioca starch, cassava starch, and potato starch) are high in calories and carbohydrates and high glycemic, meaning that they can spike blood sugar levels.
Why Not Go Gluten-Free the Standard Way?
Unwanted weight gain is a common result of eating processed gluten-free breads and other products. In one study published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology in 2006, 82 percent of people who went on a gluten-free diet gained weight in the first two years of eating that way, including 81 percent of the people in the study who were overweight.A standard gluten-free diet is linked to an increased risk of metabolic syndrome in people who have celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity.
Metabolic syndrome, sometimes called insulin resistance syndrome, is a cluster of at least three of five risk factors, including large waist size, low HDL cholesterol, elevated blood pressure, blood sugar levels, and triglycerides, which often occur in concert and predispose people to Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
The Lowdown on Grain-Free Tortillas
Instead of eating gluten-free bread or tortillas, it’s tempting to turn to grain-free tortillas. They’re a better option than their gluten-free counterparts for many people because they’re generally lower in carbohydrates and lower glycemic.Beware, however: Grain-free tortillas often are made from cassava flour, a high-glycemic, low-nutrient starch, or from chickpea flour, almond flour, or coconut flour, ingredients that can be allergenic and problematic for some people who are intolerant.
7 Fresh Produce-Based Alternatives to Bread
When it comes to gluten-free, the healthiest strategy begins when you let go of the belief that your sandwiches have to look like traditional sandwiches or that your wraps must be made with flour-based bread or tortillas.Instead, think outside the bread box and get creative using vegetables (and two fruit) as alternatives to buns and wraps. Try these seven produce-based ideas for bread substitutes.
You can steam the collard greens for a few minutes until bright and tender, then arrange them on a plate and use a paper towel to pat dry before filling them. Try them with red pepper hummus and assorted vegetables with or without chicken strips.
To cook them, drizzle or brush the portobello caps with extra-virgin olive oil. Place them on a small baking sheet gill side up and roast the caps for 12 minutes, or grill them for about 5 to 7 minutes on each side.
Season them with salt and pepper, and allow them to cool slightly, release their juices, and dry a bit before using them as buns to sandwich virtually any type of burger.
Drizzle with a few tablespoons of olive oil or coconut oil, and place in a 400-degree, preheated oven. Roast the sweet potato slices for 5 minutes, then flip them over and roast for another 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and set aside on a plate.
Stack a small broiled turkey burger with sage or a small piece of cooked fish and a few spinach or lettuce leaves on top of each sweet potato slice, and place another roasted sweet potato slice on top. Use a toothpick or skewer to hold each mini-sandwich together.