How to Order When Your Client With Celiac Disease Is Dining Out
One of the most common culprits of eating gluten as a person with celiac disease is eating meals when away from home.
Considering only a small amount of gluten can trigger symptoms, it’s important that your clients are aware of cross-contamination when dining out. For example, if they’re choosing fried food at a restaurant, remind them to ask the cook if the oil they use contains gluten.
Also, advise your clients with celiac disease to call the restaurant in advance to see if they have any gluten-free options available. When they’re ordering, clients should emphasize to the server how harmful it can be to their health if they accidentally consume gluten.
Many restaurants that offer gluten-free options advise people with celiac disease to eat with caution.
Encourage clients to make it a habit to ask detailed questions about the ingredients and the way food is prepared anytime they’re eating out.
Most, if not all restaurants are extremely accommodating, so clients should have no issue with dining out as long as they point out their gluten intolerance to the cook, server, or manager.
How to Maintain Healthy Nutrient Levels With Celiac Disease
One common obstacle that people with celiac disease face is nutrient deficiencies.
When people with celiac disease accidentally consume gluten, the inflammatory reaction can influence how they absorb nutrients. This means, even if they’re eating nutrient-dense foods, their body can’t properly digest it.
In addition, eating gluten-free is a restrictive diet. Foods that contain gluten also contain essential micronutrients. A proper diet plan for clients with celiac disease should include various gluten-free, nutrient-dense foods to ensure they are getting optimal levels of vitamins and minerals.
People with celiac disease can be deficient in a range of micronutrients; the most common ones include vitamin B12, calcium, iron, and vitamin D.
Here are a few great food sources to help your clients get ample amounts of these essential vitamins and minerals:
- Vitamin D – Fortified dairy such as yogurt or milk, fortified nondairy such as soy or almond, sardines, eggs, and salmon
- Calcium – Dairy, kale, bok choy, tofu, oranges, dried figs, and fortified orange juice
- B Vitamins – Beans, lentils, spinach, mushrooms, chicken, asparagus, lentils, broccoli, and sunflower seeds
- Iron – Beef, white beans, dark chocolate, lentils, tofu, cashews, chickpeas, and spinach
- Zinc – Lobster, dark meat chicken, cashews, and beef
Consider Recommending a Multivitamin to Take With Celiac Disease
If you suspect your client isn’t getting essential vitamins from whole-food sources, consider recommending a multivitamin or a specific supplement. When working with a client with celiac disease, pay close attention to energy levels and signs of fatigue, as well as emotional and physical well-being. In many cases, people with celiac disease who have a nutrient deficiency are commonly tired and also exhibit feelings of being cold.
There are a variety of nutritional deficiencies associated with celiac disease. The most common deficiencies include fiber, iron, calcium, magnesium, zinc, folate, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin B12, and vitamin D.
Keep in mind that once clients restore their nutrient levels and their intestines are functioning properly again, they likely won’t need to take a supplement with a specific vitamin or mineral.
Foods Your Client Can Eat While Managing Celiac Disease
Your client may feel overwhelmed by the list of foods that contain gluten. After all, many of the tasty carbohydrates we’re all so used to having are on that list. Luckily, there’s a wide selection of tasty, nutrient-dense gluten-free options to choose from.
Here is a list of gluten-free foods to incorporate into your client’s diet plan:
- Eggs
- Meat
- Fish
- Corn
- Potato and rice flour
- Tapioca
- Soy
- Sorghum
- Quinoa
- Millet
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Dairy products (be sure to check the label)
- Flax
- Rice
- Nut flours
- Cassava
- Beans and legumes
Side note: Dietitians have advised against oats in the past if you have celiac disease. But new research shows that oats in moderation may be safe to eat as long as they didn’t come in contact with wheat during processing.
Gluten-Free Substitutes
With the increased awareness behind celiac disease, many food products that contain gluten have gluten-free alternatives, which make it much easier for your clients while shopping.
As a general rule, traditional wheat products such as bread, crackers, pasta, and other baked goods are not gluten-free. However, various gluten-free options use alternative flours.
Here are the most common gluten-free substitutes your clients will see at their local health food store:
- Cereal – Encourage your clients to always check for the “gluten-free” label before purchasing gluten-free cereal. It’s important to also check the nutrition label because some ingredients may contain malt flavoring or extract, which contains gluten.
- Sauces and soups – One of the biggest sources of hidden gluten, soups and sauces use wheat as a thickener. Make sure your client pays close attention to canned foods, especially those that are cream-based.
- Alcohol – Some types of wine and most beers contain gluten. According to the National Institutes of Health's Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign, distilled alcohol is inherently gluten-free. This includes gin, vodka, scotch whiskey, and rye whiskey. Although whiskeys are derived from wheat, barley, or rye, the distilling process removes the gluten proteins.
Gluten-Free Labels and Shopping at the Grocery Store
When you’re creating a nutrition plan for clients with celiac disease, giving them sound advice while grocery shopping is crucial.
Here are a few critical factors and helpful tips to discuss with your client:
- Read food labels carefully. Frozen, canned, and processed foods specifically are notorious for having gluten, even if it’s a food that’s otherwise gluten-free.
- Be on the search for the “gluten-free” label. By law, foods with this label must contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten, which is well below the threshold to cause symptoms in people with celiac disease. If clients are eating a lot of packaged gluten-free products, they could end up ingesting a lot of gluten. It’s always best to recommend sticking with naturally gluten-free foods.
- Foods labeled gluten-free are more expensive. If your clients are on a budget, advise them to shop for natural food sources that are gluten-free. A great tip to recommend is to stick to the outer parts of the grocery store. A large portion of foods containing gluten is typically placed in the center because they don’t need to be refrigerated or frozen.
- Protein and fats are almost always gluten-free. Clients who are relatively new to dieting can easily find a large selection of gluten-free foods by sticking to healthy protein and fat sources. Advise your clients to shop for healthy proteins and fats, such as meat, fish, eggs, and avocados, before resorting to searching for food with the “gluten-free” label.
Helping Your Clients With Celiac Disease Requires Careful Planning and Monitoring
When a client is first diagnosed with celiac disease, it can feel very overwhelming. The standard Western diet is full of foods high in gluten. Processed carbohydrates such as chips, alcoholic beverages, and fast food are typically loaded with gluten.
But that doesn’t mean your client with celiac disease must resort to an extremely restrictive, gluten-free diet. As we’ve shown in this article, there are tons of delicious, nutrient-dense food sources to choose from.
Sticking to healthy, naturally gluten-free food sources and giving them a detailed list of nutrient-dense options is a great way to improve the health and well-being of your clients with celiac disease.
The information in this article is not to be considered medical advice. Please do not make any changes to your lifestyle without discussing it with your doctor.
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