There are three ways that really help me stay gluten free. When I first went gluten free I felt like I needed to develop some kind of strategy because the hardest things to overcome was my starvation.

For those people on a typical diet it’s easy. When they become hungry, they just reach into the refrigerator and grab the first thing available. If they are out and about, they are also able to stop anywhere and get something to eat. We do not have that same luxury.

In the 1990’s this was a real struggle for me because gluten free was still a new concept. There was really no where to stop and grab food fast. Even 10 years later when my oldest son had to eat gluten free, the problem was worse, because kids cannot control their hunger.

Here are some best practices I wanted to share with you.

#1 Plan meals ahead of time

Simple meal planning and preparation has really help my family.  I allow myself one cooking/preparation day a week, usually Sunday or Monday. I make a list of meals I want to serve for that week and take it to the grocery store. I then cook one or two things to keep in the refridgerator to help me in emergency situations.

Sometimes I make a pizza, stuffed peppers or some kind of crockpot meal.  Whatever, I choose, I make sure it is something that I can simply heat up and serve. Running through the door 10 minutes before everyone wants dinner is a common occurrence in my home. Planning ahead has saved me many times.

#2 Bring snacks along

These days the gluten free food at the grocery store has really come along way. If you are not going to bake it yourself, there are some tolerable snack items to choose from. If nothing else, you can always eat a banana or an apple.

Non-perishable items are also great for on the go snacks. Right now my favorites are  Nick’s 100% Grass fed beef sticks, they are filling, easy and delicious.

I will often make my own muffins and pancakes as a snack for the kids as well. Gluten free pancakes are a little more firm so they work well tossed in a ziplock quart bag. Having a snack on hand has helped me and the boys so much.

#3 Don’t just assume that food is gluten free

It  has always been really hard for me to buy something that is not “certified gluten free” and trust that it has not been cross contaminated. There are a lot of organic and all natural products in which the ingredients look safe, but because the company does not spend the money to test and certify the product, there is no guarantee that the product is indeed gluten free.

Rice and oats are two great examples of products that are often not certified gluten free. The ingredients may list just whole grain rice or oats, but if it’s not certified, it is likely that these grains have been processed in a facility that also processes grains that contain gluten. This poses a risk that your grains will be cross contaminated even though they are naturally supposed to be gluten free.

See what I mean? We will talk more about this and “hidden” gluten in more detail later.

There are so many more things I learned along the way. As I sit here trying to organize all the thoughts from my journey, I thought these were some of the things that could really help you quickly.

Does some of this resonate with you?

What are some things you do to help you stay gluten free?