Trends in lifestyle and diet come and go. While diet programs seem to become very popular, then fade away, recently we have been hearing quite a lot about gluten free diets. Often low carb diets and gluten free diets seem to be spoken about as if they are one and the same.
Yet, gluten free and low carb are not the same.
Gluten is a combination of two proteins and is responsible for bread’s elasticity. Gluten is found in cereal grains, including wheat and whole grain breads. Gluten causes allergy-like symptoms in people who experience gluten sensitivities. For people who are ‘allergic’ to the gluten in their diet, they often suffer from irritable bowel syndrome, achy joints, skin problems, and/or digestive upsets.
When you eliminate gluten from your diet, you do so by eliminating certain high carb foods, especially those containing wheat. But, guess what? Food companies have come up with replacements for these products; namely lots of “gluten free” foods that you can incorporate into your daily food intake. Many of these replacements are made from rice and corn and have carbohydrate levels that are just as high or are even higher than the original foods.
By buying all of these packaged gluten free products you are probably consuming just as many processed carbohydrates as you would with wheat based products.
Low carb, on the other hand, concentrates on foods that are natural and low in sugar including some produce, dairy, meats, poultry, fish, eggs, high protein flours. A low carb diet can help you reduce intake of foods that are high in sugar and starches, which have been shown to aid in weight gain. Low carb diets keep the insulin levels in your body down, hence, with less insulin, you burn more fat. But, a strictly gluten free diet may not achieve the weight loss you’re looking for.
Yes, low carb eating can sometimes be gluten free, but not always. When you start adding in high carb processed foods such as conventional breads, rice, corn, sauces and salad dressing products, that’s when you start to running into trouble. LC Foods exists to provide healthy alternatives to these products! All of LC Foods’ gluten free products are ALSO low carb. They are based in healthy coconut, tapioca and almond flours, giving you a high protein, high fiber and most importantly… a low carb product!
If you eliminate gluten from your diet, you may be successful in doing so through a low carb diet, but you should keep in mind that gluten free does not always mean low carb. It’s best to read the labels, and do some additional research, if you are trying to reduce carbohydrates or avoid gluten.