It’s Too Expensive
While it’s true to some extent that eating Gluten-Free can be expensive, I do believe that there are ways to cut costs and still eat well.
I’m also a firm believer in emphasizing Quality – whether we’re talking food, design or clothing.
Anything of Quality is going to serve you well.
Clothing and furniture will last that much longer, and when it comes to food, well, it’s your health that’s at stake.
So even if the Gluten-Free lifestyle is a bit of an investment for you, I prefer to think of this as Supplemental Insurance.
In other words, you are investing in & taking better care of your body, with the ultimate goal of reducing your trips to the doctor – and medical costs in general.
I’ve addressed this belief further in my Free Guide: 7 Ways to Design a Gluten Free Life.
It’s OK to Cheat
Actually, it’s never OK to cheat, especially if you’re Celiac and you know better.
I’ve heard horror stories about people who became a good deal sicker – beyond the point of ever being able to recover their health – just from not taking their gluten-free lifestyle seriously.
Again, this comes down to the gluten-free diet being a medical necessity if you are to maintain your health.
If it isn’t a necessity for you, and you’ve adopted a gluten-free diet for non-medical reasons, then that is a very different scenario.
The Gluten-Free Diet is Synonymous With Deprivation
Absolutely not.
This is the equivalent of telling yourself that you will never again be able to splurge on your favorite foods.
Or splurge, period.
I think you can absolutely have your cake and eat it too! These days, you can find gluten-free baked goods in any grocery store, and there are many gluten-free bakeries – some of them even ship!
If you’re a do-it-yourself type, there is a huge selection of cookbooks to choose from so you can set to work and bake from scratch just about any item your heart desires.
There is absolutely no need to deprive yourself.
In fact, I would really discourage this because deprivation never works. Instead, try to focus on the many foods you CAN eat and your goal for better health overall!
Eating Gluten Free is Just a Fad
While a gluten-free diet may have become a fad for some folks, it is definitely NOT a fad for anyone with a medically diagnosed condition.
It’s a known fact that if you are celiac or gluten intolerant you simply must adhere to a gluten-free diet or your health will suffer.
Anyone who chooses to adopt a gluten-free diet when it is not medically required, may have bought into a fad, but for the vast majority of us eating gluten-free is a medical necessity.
Which brings us to the next Myth.
Eating Gluten Free is a Great Way to Lose Weight
Au contraire, many people find they GAIN weight once they give up Gluten, for the very reason that gluten was making them sick.
Also, just because a product is Gluten free doesn’t mean it is lo-cal or healthy; let’s face it – processed food is processed food, regardless.
For people who do lose weight after going gluten free, that is likely because they’ve cut back on breads and other carbs – either substituting with gluten-free products or giving them up entirely.
In other words – they’re eating better, and healthier and that’s why they’re losing weight!
Gluten-Free Food is Weird & Could Make Other Family Member Sick
My husband has expressed this sentiment, and I’ve made a point of assuring him he was wrong.
In fact, I explained that if anything, he was likely even healthier – an unexpected side benefit of eating gluten-free meals on a regular basis.
There is also nothing weird about it.
Yes, you will likely learn of many grains you’d never heard of before – things like quinoa and teff – but that isn’t at all weird. That’s just opening yourself up to new experiences, and trying foods you may never have considered previously.
Nothing wrong with that at all.
Cross-Contamination is No Big Deal
I was guilty of this belief when I first started eating gluten-free.
I fought the recommendation to buy a separate toaster – I don’t even eat toast that often. Cross-contamination sounded like one more hurdle I just didn’t want to deal with.
Yet, a series of unexpected incidents convinced me that I happen to be super sensitive to a number of things, and at that point I caved.
I’ve never regretted it.
The thing is, food CAN become contaminated – just take a look at your typical toaster tray if you don’t believe me – it will likely be full of crumbs.
And those crumbs can easily be transferred to your food.
The same goes for restaurant dining. If your food is cooked on the exact same grill as regular food, especially hamburger buns – or anything breaded – your gluten-free grilled chicken breast will likely pick up some of those residual crumbs.
Case in point: I’ve shared my tale of a recent restaurant experience in Hawaii when I was told the potato chip fryer could be emptied of the gluten-contaminated oil, and then reheated with a fresh batch, so they could fry some chips just for me.
As thrilled as I was, what I didn’t mention previously, is that I actually ended up with a major stomachache, something I hadn’t experienced in a very long time.
This taught me that the deep fat fryer was still contaminated. It probably needed a good scrub in addition to changing out the oil, but unfortunately I hadn’t insisted on that.
Live and learn, right?
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