At least one in every 133 Americans has celiac disease or gluten intolerance, according to Celiac.com. If you have celiac disease, eating foods that contain gluten damages the villi in your intestines. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. But gluten can show up in some unexpected places; the best way to be sure you're avoiding it is to get used to reading labels carefully. Obviously, anything clearly labeled as gluten-free should be safe. But there are plenty of non-labeled foods you can eat, too.
Vegetables
All vegetables are gluten-free, so you can have as many fresh, dried or cooked vegetables as you want when on a gluten-free diet. If you're extremely sensitive to gluten, however, you should still be wary of processed vegetable products, like superfood bars, that may contain wheat, barley and other sources of gluten. Foods that were processed in a facility that processes gluten-containing products may be cross-contaminated with gluten from the processing equipment.
Fruits
All fruits are gluten-free. But, again, be wary of cereal bars and other products that contain wheat and other sources of gluten.
Meat and Fish
All meat and fish are gluten-free, but you should beware meat marinated in soy sauce or teriyaki sauce; unless the soy or teriyaki sauce is clearly marked as gluten-free, it probably contains wheat. Other things to look out for include breading or bread crumbs mixed into prepared meats or fish, like crab or salmon cakes, or breaded halibut.
Nuts, Beans and Seeds
All nuts, beans and seeds are gluten-free. But beware tamari-treated nuts. Tamari is mainly derived from salty, fermented soybeans, but some varieties of tamari contain wheat and thus gluten as well. Assume that anything with tamari in it has wheat, unless it's clearly labeled as gluten-free.
Grains
Wheat, rye and barley are the three major grains known to contain gluten. There is some debate about whether oats are safe or not for celiac sufferers. Oats are frequently processed on the same equipment as wheat, which also introduces the possibility of cross-contamination. Also avoid spelt, triticale and kamut, which are varieties of wheat and also contain gluten.
There are, however, a number of grains that are generally considered safe for celiacs. These include rice, corn, millet, amaranth and buckwheat, which despite the similarity in names is an entirely different grain from wheat.
Gluten-free Pasta
Much conventional pasta is made from wheat, which contains gluten. Avoid pasta with durum or semolina in the ingredients; both are forms of wheat. But you can eat rice or quinoa pasta.
