Healthy Gluten Free Consulting For Businesses

By Claudine Hodges


Food allergies have become a big issue and sometimes it seems like they are just a trend or a lifestyle choice. However, that is not the case, allergies are potentially lethal and can cause long term damage to a person's health. In the quest for sufferers to be healthy gluten free consulting can offer a range of services to improve lifestyle. It is also useful for those in the food industry who want to train their staff in gluten issues.

Recent research has shed new light on the problem and shown that it can be extremely detrimental to health for those whose bodies cannot process it. Gluten causes inflammation of the stomach and gut and possible even the cardiovascualr system. Over the years the toll exacted by the inflammation can be very serious. One study estimated that people with gluten intolerance have higher rates of heart disease and cancer than those who do not. On a daily basis the symptoms can be crippling making the person feel ill and suffer headaches, nausea, sickness, diarrhoeia and many other symptoms.

Recently a piece of research was done to see if the incidence of intolerance to gluten has increased as a proportion of the population. The team analysed blood samples from twenty thousand subjects. Half the sample were taken fifty years ago and the other half were taken recently. They found elevated TTG antibodies had increased by four hundred percent in that fifty year period. This is big news for anyone working in health and for the food industry.

Avoiding gluten is actually quite difficult as wheat is a versatile ingredient and is used in many ways. It crops up in surprising places such as ice creams, chocolate as it is used as a thickener by industrial food processors. It even appears in oats. This is because of cross-contamination. Oats do not actually contain gluten but they are often contaminated in factories.

Manufacturers of food often contaminate other products such as oats in the production and packaging process. Contamination also happens in restaurant kitchens. For this reason it is a good idea to have a specialist analyse kitchen practices and design safe procedures. Separate chopping boards, utensils, oils, storage and perhaps even a totally separate preparation area may be necessary.

Staff training is also important. Kitchen staff will need to learn about how to prepare and check ingredients and avoid contamination. Consultants can make sure that procedures comply with local regulations. They can also help with menu and recipe design. Producing high quality baked goods is not always straightforward. For example, different flours and additives such as xantham gum are needed to make bread.

For restaurants, caterers and professional cooks they offer classes on the history of the problem, food production and wheat substitutes. They can do in-house staff training to show kitchen teams how to avoid cross contamination. Waiting staff also need to learn about the issue to be able to communicate effectively with customers. A consultant can teach them which questions to ask and how to deal with queries.

In recent decades the incidence of gluten intolerance has been rising and many doctors and researcher fear the problem is massively under diagnosed. This means that in future increasing numbers of people will have to avoid it. Whether it is affecting you or your clients a consultant can help you understand this complex issue to be sure that healthy practice are followed.




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