Here is a useful bit that I wish I had known about from the beginning: In Canada, food manufacturers are legally obligated to disclose gluten ingredients in pre-packaged foods.
From the Pepsico Health & Wellness newsletter:
"In August 2012, Health Canada implemented new enhanced labelling regulations for specific priority food allergens, gluten sources and added sulphites in pre-packaged foods sold in Canada." (emphasis added)
However, food makers are not obligated to have a statement regarding the possible "inadvertent" presence of gluten in foods:
"According to Health Canada, a food allergen precautionary statement is a declaration of the possible inadvertent presence of an allergen in a food. These statements may be made on food labels on a voluntary basis and are not regulated by Health Canada or part of the new labelling regulations. " (emphasis added)
You can find confirmation and additional information on this on the Health Canada website.
Therefore, in Canada, it is a matter of discretion for manufacturers regarding just how clearly they disclose the potential presence of gluten. Obviously various companies might take different positions.
This itself different than the USA. In the USA, "major food allergens" as defined by the FDA must be disclosed. This list includes wheat, but not barley, rye, or oats. Companies are, therefore, free to not disclose barley, rye, or oats as secondary ingredients or potential cross-contaminants if they choose not to.
Fortunately, there are several major brands that do voluntarily disclose the potential presence of gluten. Except - which ones?
Gizmodo has this somewhat handy-dandy graphic showing that most of the major brands are owned by just a handful of parent companies. While some might be against this, it certainly makes things simpler when determining their policy and/or position on gluten labeling in food.
So far, I have been able to find the following indications that various brands are or are not intending to clearly mark their foods for the presence or possible presence of gluten.
Note: I have not personally confirmed these with any of the companies involved. Their "reputation" is as reported by others, and not experienced by me. Use this information at your own risk.
Kraft Canada: Kraft has a reputation for clear disclosure. Their statement:
"Kraft Canada ensures that any priority allergens, sulphites and gluten sources that are present in the formula, are listed in the ingredient line. In addition, many products have a separate CONTAINS statement immediately following the ingredient line restating priority allergen(s), sulphites and gluten sources present in the product. Our product formulas do change, so it is important that you read the label every time to ensure that a product is right for you. "
My experience thus far is that Kraft is very good at marking potential gluten content. List of Kraft brands here.
Nestle: Their email to Abisaac Saraga is a little confusing since it simultaneously says they label for nine priority allergens - none of which are gluten - while Health Canada has actually identified twelve (12) plus gluten. But the email does initially say:
"If a priority food allergen, such as gluten, is not mentioned on the ingredients list or in the warning label on the product package then you can be assured it is not in the product."
From this I would expect they mean that gluten will be marked it if can be present.
P&G / Proctor & Gamble: Their statement:
"If wheat and/or gluten aren't directly added to a product by us, these ingredients won't be listed on our packages. Like many companies, we often purchase the scents for fragranced products from outside suppliers, and the components of these substances are proprietary information belonging to those companies. Therefore it's possible that a very small amount (generally parts per million) of gluten may be present. " (Source)
Unilever: Unilever has a good reputation for clear disclosure. Their statement:
"Common ingredients that may contain gluten are rye, wheat, oats and barley, and noodles and pasta prepared with any of the previously mentioned grains. HVP, TVP, flavorings, are likely to contribute gluten as well, however, if they contain any gluten, the source would always be listed in the ingredient statements.
Since product formulations change from time to time, we do not have a printed list of products that identifies those products that contain specific allergens or gluten. The best advice we can give you is to check the ingredient list on the label." (Source) List of Unilever brands here.
Pepsico: I cannot find evidence of any global allergen policy at Pepsico. They did say:
"The Pepsi- Cola Company said there is no gluten in any carbonated soft drink produced by the company in North America." (Source)
Coca-Cola: "Diana Garza Ciarlante, a spokeswoman for the Coca- Cola Company, said the caramel color used in Coke products is derived from either corn or cane sugar. If an ingredient contains wheat, barley or rye it is labeled as such in the ingredient statement.
Consumers can also check the gluten- free status of Coke products by calling the 1–800 number on the product’s package." (Source)
Sunday, July 17, 2016
Friday, July 1, 2016
Free business-card-sized gluten-free reference cards
I have difficulty believing that anyone would charge $30 for a set of cards.
I didn't even like those cards, so I made my own. As this was not as simple as it sounds, here my GF reference cards, free for use by anyone.
These cards are for small children and aimed at teachers, birthday party parents, daycare and day camp providers, friends and family and other people who need an immediate, basic and easy-to-follow understanding of gluten-free do's and don'ts. They are obviously not all-encompassing.
I printed these on Avery "Clean Edge" business cards, which you run through your own laser or inkjet. You will have to adjust the template for your own printer.
Be warned, however, that no matter what you do, many of the cards will probably not register correctly, and some may be skewed. Expect a lot of rejected or imperfect cards.
If you are a perfectionist, my suggestion is to take this artwork and go to someplace like Vistaprint, who will print you out some business cards for free. It's way more reliable than DIY cards.
After culling out the rejects, I laminated the "good" cards. I used a Purple Cows lamination machine that I picked up cheaply from the USA, plus these business card pouches from Universal. The pouches work just fine and are much less expensive than most, but if you don't need so many feel free to use whichever brand you like.
Notes:
- These cards were created with the free Paint.NET program. The original Paint.NET files are below. They are layered and include him/her and she/he text, so you can customize it for boys or girls.
- This artwork is big enough to print letter or A4 size, if you want to.
- You can get free templates for all Avery products; use them to lay out the artwork on the business card stock.
- Make your artwork a little smaller than the business card, to allow for skew and misalignments. I printed mine 3.3" x 1.87".
- Use the Word cell shading and page background options to fill all the blank space with the same color as the card borders, to help reduce the effects of printer misalignment. These cards use the following color: HSV: 184 / 227 / 192 (RGB: 21/182/192, hex #15B6C0).
- The text on the cards is all Tahoma. Most is 72 pt, larger is 96 pt, smaller is 48 pt.
Links:
- Paint.NET original file, front: Click here
- Paint.NET original file, back: Click here
- JPG of card front: Click here, or see below
- JPG of card back: Click here, or see below
- Word template for Avery 55871: Click here
Disclaimer: I receive no compensation from any brands mentioned here. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. I make no warranty as to the accuracy of any of the information, use entirely at your own risk.
I didn't even like those cards, so I made my own. As this was not as simple as it sounds, here my GF reference cards, free for use by anyone.
These cards are for small children and aimed at teachers, birthday party parents, daycare and day camp providers, friends and family and other people who need an immediate, basic and easy-to-follow understanding of gluten-free do's and don'ts. They are obviously not all-encompassing.
I printed these on Avery "Clean Edge" business cards, which you run through your own laser or inkjet. You will have to adjust the template for your own printer.
Be warned, however, that no matter what you do, many of the cards will probably not register correctly, and some may be skewed. Expect a lot of rejected or imperfect cards.
If you are a perfectionist, my suggestion is to take this artwork and go to someplace like Vistaprint, who will print you out some business cards for free. It's way more reliable than DIY cards.
After culling out the rejects, I laminated the "good" cards. I used a Purple Cows lamination machine that I picked up cheaply from the USA, plus these business card pouches from Universal. The pouches work just fine and are much less expensive than most, but if you don't need so many feel free to use whichever brand you like.
Notes:
- These cards were created with the free Paint.NET program. The original Paint.NET files are below. They are layered and include him/her and she/he text, so you can customize it for boys or girls.
- This artwork is big enough to print letter or A4 size, if you want to.
- You can get free templates for all Avery products; use them to lay out the artwork on the business card stock.
- Make your artwork a little smaller than the business card, to allow for skew and misalignments. I printed mine 3.3" x 1.87".
- Use the Word cell shading and page background options to fill all the blank space with the same color as the card borders, to help reduce the effects of printer misalignment. These cards use the following color: HSV: 184 / 227 / 192 (RGB: 21/182/192, hex #15B6C0).
- The text on the cards is all Tahoma. Most is 72 pt, larger is 96 pt, smaller is 48 pt.
Links:
- Paint.NET original file, front: Click here
- Paint.NET original file, back: Click here
- JPG of card front: Click here, or see below
- JPG of card back: Click here, or see below
- Word template for Avery 55871: Click here
 |
| Click for full-size original |
 | ||||
| Click for full-size original |
Disclaimer: I receive no compensation from any brands mentioned here. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners. I make no warranty as to the accuracy of any of the information, use entirely at your own risk.
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Review: WOW Lemon Cookies and Glutino Chocolate Chip Cookies
I'm not typically much on the typical store-bought cookies of any kind. Compared to Subway cookies (my favorite!) they are always dry and rather unsatisfying.
However, on the scale of pre-made cookies you buy in a bag, the Glutino ones are not bad. They are, if anything, a little extra dry, but are probably only a little below average for this kind of cookie. They do have lots of chocolate chips in them, which helps.
My son, who is only 5, likes these just as much as any cookie. But he's 5 and a five-year old loves all cookies. So he's mostly been eating these - he's not gotten the whole "special foods only for big sister" thing yet, so it helps keep the peace.
My daughter is not enamored of the Glutinos, preferring the Wow Lemon Cookies instead, and I don't blame her. The Wow cookies are really quite excellent, although they are quite expensive if you buy them at regular price. They are soft, smell and feel good, and taste really good too. My daughter quite loves her lemon cookies now!
I prefer the Peanut Butter ones - enough so that I find myself buying them instead of "regular" cookies, as long as they are on sale. As my daughter doesn't like PB, I can buy them with the pretense they're for her, but eat them myself. They're not Subway, but they're still awfully good :-) I don't think my wife has realized I've gone through a whole bag already!
They are definitely good but since I have other options, I would probably not buy them >for myself< at regular price. I would be more likely to buy them full price for my daughter, though, as she has limited cookie options that she likes.
I don't know if the brand name is Wow, WOW, Wow! or WOW! But whatever it is, it is a pretty good cookie. As far as cookies deserve a "Wow!" these ones do.
However, on the scale of pre-made cookies you buy in a bag, the Glutino ones are not bad. They are, if anything, a little extra dry, but are probably only a little below average for this kind of cookie. They do have lots of chocolate chips in them, which helps.
My son, who is only 5, likes these just as much as any cookie. But he's 5 and a five-year old loves all cookies. So he's mostly been eating these - he's not gotten the whole "special foods only for big sister" thing yet, so it helps keep the peace.
My daughter is not enamored of the Glutinos, preferring the Wow Lemon Cookies instead, and I don't blame her. The Wow cookies are really quite excellent, although they are quite expensive if you buy them at regular price. They are soft, smell and feel good, and taste really good too. My daughter quite loves her lemon cookies now!
I prefer the Peanut Butter ones - enough so that I find myself buying them instead of "regular" cookies, as long as they are on sale. As my daughter doesn't like PB, I can buy them with the pretense they're for her, but eat them myself. They're not Subway, but they're still awfully good :-) I don't think my wife has realized I've gone through a whole bag already!
They are definitely good but since I have other options, I would probably not buy them >for myself< at regular price. I would be more likely to buy them full price for my daughter, though, as she has limited cookie options that she likes.
I don't know if the brand name is Wow, WOW, Wow! or WOW! But whatever it is, it is a pretty good cookie. As far as cookies deserve a "Wow!" these ones do.
Saturday, June 18, 2016
Gluten-free Costco (May 2016)
I recently had occasion to go through Costco looking for gluten-free items. I took photos of them all. The slide show is available here for the convenience of anyone interested.
Notes:
- Always read labels and avoid anything that you are uncertain of.
- Photos do not include items that are "obviously" GF, such as 100% juice products, simple dairy, produce, etc.
- This is for Costco in Western Canada. I expect most items will be available in most markets - but it's Costco, so YMMV.
- It is an unfortunate reality that food items vary between the USA and Canada. Some items here may not be GF in certain markets.
- I have confirmed in each case that the manufacturers claims GF status. However, I am not celiac nor gluten intolerant and have not consumed any of these items as part of a GF diet. I can, however, say the turkey breakfast sausages are pretty good. :-)
- Costco is supposed to carry Udi's GF bread - or, at least, some kind of GF bread. I did not see any, but a friend tells me they usually have it.
Notes:
- Always read labels and avoid anything that you are uncertain of.
- Photos do not include items that are "obviously" GF, such as 100% juice products, simple dairy, produce, etc.
- This is for Costco in Western Canada. I expect most items will be available in most markets - but it's Costco, so YMMV.
- It is an unfortunate reality that food items vary between the USA and Canada. Some items here may not be GF in certain markets.
- I have confirmed in each case that the manufacturers claims GF status. However, I am not celiac nor gluten intolerant and have not consumed any of these items as part of a GF diet. I can, however, say the turkey breakfast sausages are pretty good. :-)
- Costco is supposed to carry Udi's GF bread - or, at least, some kind of GF bread. I did not see any, but a friend tells me they usually have it.
Saturday, June 11, 2016
Practical things you will probably want to know when starting out being gluten-free
See standard information concerning this blog here.
Like so many other parents with newly-diagnosed celiac children, I spent a lot of time reading about how to properly feed someone with celiac disease.
Information on the diet itself is very simple to find, while finding products is merely a matter of trawling through the grocery store. But what I could not find - for the most part - was any practical advice on exactly how to cope with gluten-free on a daily basis.
What I did find out there on the net was dire. I will not link to the specific sites, but during my research I found the following recommendations from various people:
- Wash hands before eating
- The pantry, kitchen, etc. must be scrubbed clean of all gluten
- Clean obsessively
- Use bleach or strong cleaners to ensure surfaces are gluten-free
- Read all the ingredients in foods, every time
- Foods prepared in facilities that have non-gluten-free lines, or on shared equipment, is not safe
- Foods might have "hidden" or unexpected gluten in them that are not declared on the ingredients list
- Prepare GF foods in a separate area from non-GF foods
- Keep GF dishes, cutlery, etc. in a separate area from other dishware
- Dishwashers are not necessarily adequate in cleaning dishware of gluten
- When changing over to gluten-free, replace the following items:
- Toasters and toaster ovens
- Non-stick pans
- Plastic and wooden utensils
- Plastic and wooden cutting boards
- Colanders
- Keep GF foods separate from regular foods
- Keep separate containers of condiments specifically for GF eaters, to avoid cross-contamination- Check or avoid foods prepared by friends and relatives.
- Avoid buffets at restaurants, resorts and hotels.
- Talk to the server / manager at restaurants, every time.
- Verify that your plate is GF when it is delivered to your table, every time
- Avoid takeout like the plague
- Avoid everything at airports, coffee shops, etc
Most of these are predicated on the following assumptions:
- Reactions can occur from even minute doses of gluten.
- Amounts of gluten sufficient to cause a reaction may be invisible to the naked eye.
- Gluten is sticky / gluey, and difficult to clean up.
I, of course, started fearing the worst and began preparing separate areas for my daughters dishes, glasses, toaster, and so forth. But my wife, bless her, figured most of this was a lot of bollucks, pointing out that non-GF and GF foods, dishes, cookware and dishware co-exist quite readily in many restaurants, and that people with seafood allergies can often navigate restaurants and buffet lines without difficulty.
Of course, since neither of us are celiac and have utterly no experience, there was no way for us to know for sure.
So I decided to go to a reliable source - an actual person who has had celiac her entire life.
I obviously cannot identify my contact by name, so I'll call her Kate.
Qualifications: Kate was diagnosed with celiac when she was 2. She was colicky, never happy, and was not growing well. She never had an endoscopy because of her age, but putting her on a gluten-free diet so obviously improved her condition that celiac disease was obvious. She has, therefore, lived her entire life on a gluten-free diet.
During her childhood, Kate went camping, to summer camp and to Disneyland. When she was older she backpacked in Europe and has gone traveling many times. She stated that she rarely gets exposed, even when traveling.
Kate does not know her tolerance for gluten and could not identify a "dose" at which she will become symptomatic. However, her symptoms are very severe and quite unmistakable.
Kate is now a middle-aged professional and is married. Her hubby is not celiac, so they co-exist with gluten and gluten-free diets in the same household. He supports her in keeping her from being exposed and overall, they are very successful.
Disclaimer: Again, read standard stuff here.
I'm not a medical professional nor a celiac; I claim no special knowledge. This is just my understanding of what I was told from someone who should know. I believe this information is accurate but this is, at best, the experience of a single individual.
There is, of course, little doubt that the sensitivity of various people to gluten varies enormously. There is no way to quantify this, and so what works for this person may or may not work for anyone else. It may or may not work for you, and I take no responsibility if it doesn't!
Note that, as a rule, you should NEVER take ANYTHING you read on the net as gospel - not even this blog. Healthy skepticism is the hallmark of critical thinking.
From this, EVERYTHING you read should be suspect, and you should (ideally) have independent confirmation before you decide that any given "fact" is correct. You should also never take the opinion of a single (unqualified) individual as correct without similar verification.
Regardless, talking to Kate was the most reliable benchmark I could find about the do's and don'ts of beginning a gluten-free lifestyle. After all, if anyone is an expert, it will be her - not me.
I'm going to break this down according to the specific items listed above, but I'll sum up a few basic principles first:
- Clean is clean. If you have clean counters, cutlery, etc, you don't need to worry about it being "extra" clean. There will be no mysterious, invisible residues or tiny trapped particles waiting to "gluten" you.
- Gluten is basically like dirt / dust. In the vast majority of cases, you can see potential problems. For example, you can see flour, crumbs, and so forth on a table or food particles stuck on a fork. Wiping it down or washing in the sink will do just fine.
- Be mindful, not paranoid. Clean counters and such beforehand and you will be fine.
These are obviously generalizations, but helpful ones.
Here's the specifics as I understand them:
1. Wash hands before eating: YES. You should always wash before eating, just in case. Many people do this regardless so this should be no big deal.
I imagine that at parks and the like, washing with paper towels and water will be OK. This goes back to the idea that crumbs are crumbs, and you can get rid of them.
2. The pantry, kitchen, etc. must be scrubbed clean of all gluten: NO. Kate and hubby do not obsess over this. Obviously you need to ensure that your GF foods do not come in contact with any gluten, but that is not the same thing.
Certainly it is prudent to clean out your drawers and cabinetry to get the crumbs out, to avoid having to re-clean all your implements on each use. I know our drawers were loaded with wheat crumbs. But once this is done and everything is clean, they will stay (reasonably) clean for a long while.
Wiping down the counters before food prep is fine. Use soap and water, or water alone if it's a light job. This will be enough to get any gluten off.
You can also use clean cutting boards, dishes, etc. to provide clean surfaces for keeping your GF utensils, cooking implements and so forth appropriately clean while cooking. If you accidentally place a utensil on the "wrong" surface, a quick rinse or scrub is enough to recover it.
This applies when staying with friends or relatives as well. A simple wash and wipe-down is sufficient to ensure that items are free of gluten - you do not need to pretend their kitchen is radioactive and banish yourself to a small table in the corner that has been scrubbed within an inch of it's life.
3. Use bleach or strong cleaners to ensure surfaces are gluten-free: NO. Wiping down the counters is good enough; cleaners are not necessary except as required to ensure surfaces are appropriately clean.
Bleach has no effect on gluten and is rather useless (and stinky). Gluten is, basically, a solid, and not a germ or virus. Bleach will neither "kill" it nor destroy it, meaning your only option is to remove it.
4. Clean obsessively: NO, see #2 above. You obviously have to be mindful, but you do not need to fret over every crumb or particle that might exist in the corners or on the floor. Crumbs cannot jump up to your counter or into your food. A quick scrub of countertops is fine to ensure they're clean.
The obvious exception will be in kitchens where baking occurs. Flour is finely divided and can disperse in air over a surprisingly wide area. In such instances a more diligent clean may be in order.
I will note that Kate helped her mother bake and prepare fresh, wheat-based pasta when she was a child. (!) She never had any issues as long as she washed her hands afterwards.
5. Read all the ingredients in foods, every time: YES. Foods do change, and identically-named products in different parts of the world may be different.
6. Foods prepared in facilities that have non-gluten-free lines, or on shared equipment, is not safe: NO. Kate has never had any issues with food as long as they do not have any intentional gluten-containing ingredients.
This obviously leaves aside products that have warnings such as "May contain wheat". Kate is actually not a big fan of these warnings since some of the products she has been successfully eating for years suddenly started having "may contain" warnings for no apparent reason. She still successfully eats these products based on her past experience, but has to avoid new products that have these warnings out of prudence, knowing full well that they might be perfectly OK.
(WARNING: The ability to consume foods prepared in mixed facilities obviously dependent upon the sensitivity of the individual. I have no doubt that certain individuals may have difficulty with cross-contamination from shared facilities. My personal opinion is that these people are in the minority, but that does not mean that this effect does not exist. So please be cautious at first.)
7. Foods might have "hidden" or unexpected gluten in them that are not declared on the ingredients list: NO. Kate has never gotten "glutened" from a product that had no gluten ingredients listed - see #6 above.
8. Prepare GF foods in a separate area from non-GF foods: NO. Kate and hubby prepare foods in the same kitchen. Wiping down or cleaning counters is sufficient to ensure she doesn't get exposed. In some cases, she said even just brushing off the crumbs was fine!
9. Keep GF dishes, cutlery, etc. in a separate area from other dishware: NO. Clean is clean and dishes out of the dishwasher or sink are perfectly OK for her. If in any doubt, a rinse or quick wipe takes care of it.
10. Dishwashers are not necessarily adequate in cleaning dishware of gluten: NO. Clean enough is clean enough; she has never had any issue with her dishwasher not getting dishes clean enough.
That, of course, is an oversimplification - all dishwashers sometimes have problems with getting dishes perfectly clean. But any issues, such as stuck-on food, are obvious and can be corrected in the usual ways.
There is certainly nothing wrong with using the sani-rise cycle, if you want to.
11. When changing over to gluten-free, replace the following items:
A. Toasters: YES, with caveats. Kate and family shared a toaster when she was little - something everyone swears in a no-no! - but the toaster was kept clean and cleaned after every use. Having a separate toaster eliminates this requirement and may be simpler overall.
B. Toaster ovens: NO. Cleaning the rack or using aluminum foil over the rack / tray is fine. Having a separate, small toaster oven instead of a dedicated GF toaster is also an option.
C. Non-stick pans: NO. Clean is clean, and Kate shares the pans with her hubby. When preparing different kids of food, they simply wash the pan in between to eliminate any contamination. This works fine and they have no concerns with gluten remaining in scratches or imperfections in the pan surface.
D. Plastic and wooden utensils: NO. Clean is clean and Kate has never known gluten to become trapped on the surface of these items.
Of course, lots of implements get beat up over time, so maybe they're due for replacement anyway. But don't toss them just because they touched flour once in their life.
E. Plastic and wooden cutting boards: NO. They share cutting boards without difficulty by cleaning in between uses. Again, regular soap and water is fine.
F. Colanders: NO. This might not apply to very fine-mesh plastic colanders, but certainly stainless steel metal colanders can be cleaned just fine.
12. Keep GF foods separate from regular foods: NO. Kate and hubby share a pantry.
13. Keep GF items on the top shelf of a fridge, where crumbs cannot fall on to them: NO. This has never been an issue.
14. Keep separate containers of condiments specifically for GF eaters, to avoid cross-contamination: NO. Kate and family shared jars and tubs by scooping first with a clean utensil, then spreading separately. Which is a good trick to save space in your fridge and avoiding having to buy everything twice.
Do note that while spreading, wheat crumbs can fly off unpredictably.
If you do accidentally contaminate a gluten-free jar, you can probably scoop out the "bad" part of the food with a spoon
15. Check or avoid foods prepared by friends and relatives: YES. Even well-meaning relatives can accidentally pick up the wrong product or use the wrong ingredient, especially with sneaky items like soy sauce. But once they understand what it's all about, they can usually do just fine.
16. Avoid buffets at restaurants, resorts and hotels: NO, but you do need to do one or both of the following:
- Check with the kitchen / chef to see what items were prepared without gluten, and/or
- Stick only with foods that are naturally gluten-free, such as plain meats, fruit, and dairy.
As a rule, she avoids all sauces, condiments and pre-processed items, along with the baked items (obviously). She notes that over time she has gotten a pretty good sense of what is safe and what is not.
Kate has also never had a "glutening" from cross-contamination of serving utensils at a buffet or restaurant. She does admit this is a risk, but it's a risk she's willing to take (occasionally).
(I will also note that I have a relative who has a shellfish allergy that is life-threatening. Despite this, he does occasionally brave family dinners and potlucks. This would not be a big deal except the family is primarily Asian, which means lots of seafood. Certainly everyone knows to not mix utensils between dishes, but if he can do it, there is a reasonable possibility that others can do similar.)
Note that Kate has been to resorts in Mexico several times, and has been able to eat at buffets each time while there. But she has also traveled where she will bring or shop for her own food and prepare it in the kitchenette in the hotel suite.
17. Talk to the server / manager at restaurants, every time: YES. If she doesn't get satisfactory answers or does get "bad vibes", they will go elsewhere. She admits that eating out is a risk and not everyone "gets it". She has also had the occasional problem, which again goes to the fact that eating out is a risk (though it may be an acceptable risk).
She notes that she has sometimes needed to go "off menu" in order to eat at some restaurants. The resulting food can be plain and expensive, but may be better than having to go elsewhere. This seems to be especially true when she's in a group, both for social reasons and because restaurants will be more accommodating for larger groups / orders.
18. Verify that your plate is GF when it is delivered to your table, every time: YES. She did have one incident where she went to the "usual" place and ordered the "usual", but it was prepared differently. Mistakes and changes happen - don't rely on things staying the same.
19. Avoid takeout like the plague: NO. If you find a supportive restaurant you can eat takeout food. Just be certain they "get it". If in doubt, don't order, and find another place.
20. Avoid everything at airports, coffee shops, etc: NO. Just read the ingredients and select items that you can have. Though there will be many things you can't eat, there will be items you can. Besides, you can always bring your own foods, which is probably less risky.
So there it is: some hopefully practical advice on how to set up and maintain a gluten-free home and life. Your mileage may vary, but I believe this will start as a reasonable baseline.
I personally found this information both helpful and reassuring; I hope it helps someone else out there as well.
Like so many other parents with newly-diagnosed celiac children, I spent a lot of time reading about how to properly feed someone with celiac disease.
Information on the diet itself is very simple to find, while finding products is merely a matter of trawling through the grocery store. But what I could not find - for the most part - was any practical advice on exactly how to cope with gluten-free on a daily basis.
What I did find out there on the net was dire. I will not link to the specific sites, but during my research I found the following recommendations from various people:
- Wash hands before eating
- The pantry, kitchen, etc. must be scrubbed clean of all gluten
- Clean obsessively
- Use bleach or strong cleaners to ensure surfaces are gluten-free
- Read all the ingredients in foods, every time
- Foods prepared in facilities that have non-gluten-free lines, or on shared equipment, is not safe
- Foods might have "hidden" or unexpected gluten in them that are not declared on the ingredients list
- Prepare GF foods in a separate area from non-GF foods
- Keep GF dishes, cutlery, etc. in a separate area from other dishware
- Dishwashers are not necessarily adequate in cleaning dishware of gluten
- When changing over to gluten-free, replace the following items:
- Toasters and toaster ovens
- Non-stick pans
- Plastic and wooden utensils
- Plastic and wooden cutting boards
- Colanders
- Keep GF foods separate from regular foods
- Keep separate containers of condiments specifically for GF eaters, to avoid cross-contamination- Check or avoid foods prepared by friends and relatives.
- Avoid buffets at restaurants, resorts and hotels.
- Talk to the server / manager at restaurants, every time.
- Verify that your plate is GF when it is delivered to your table, every time
- Avoid takeout like the plague
- Avoid everything at airports, coffee shops, etc
Most of these are predicated on the following assumptions:
- Reactions can occur from even minute doses of gluten.
- Amounts of gluten sufficient to cause a reaction may be invisible to the naked eye.
- Gluten is sticky / gluey, and difficult to clean up.
I, of course, started fearing the worst and began preparing separate areas for my daughters dishes, glasses, toaster, and so forth. But my wife, bless her, figured most of this was a lot of bollucks, pointing out that non-GF and GF foods, dishes, cookware and dishware co-exist quite readily in many restaurants, and that people with seafood allergies can often navigate restaurants and buffet lines without difficulty.
Of course, since neither of us are celiac and have utterly no experience, there was no way for us to know for sure.
So I decided to go to a reliable source - an actual person who has had celiac her entire life.
I obviously cannot identify my contact by name, so I'll call her Kate.
Qualifications: Kate was diagnosed with celiac when she was 2. She was colicky, never happy, and was not growing well. She never had an endoscopy because of her age, but putting her on a gluten-free diet so obviously improved her condition that celiac disease was obvious. She has, therefore, lived her entire life on a gluten-free diet.
During her childhood, Kate went camping, to summer camp and to Disneyland. When she was older she backpacked in Europe and has gone traveling many times. She stated that she rarely gets exposed, even when traveling.
Kate does not know her tolerance for gluten and could not identify a "dose" at which she will become symptomatic. However, her symptoms are very severe and quite unmistakable.
Kate is now a middle-aged professional and is married. Her hubby is not celiac, so they co-exist with gluten and gluten-free diets in the same household. He supports her in keeping her from being exposed and overall, they are very successful.
Disclaimer: Again, read standard stuff here.
I'm not a medical professional nor a celiac; I claim no special knowledge. This is just my understanding of what I was told from someone who should know. I believe this information is accurate but this is, at best, the experience of a single individual.
There is, of course, little doubt that the sensitivity of various people to gluten varies enormously. There is no way to quantify this, and so what works for this person may or may not work for anyone else. It may or may not work for you, and I take no responsibility if it doesn't!
Note that, as a rule, you should NEVER take ANYTHING you read on the net as gospel - not even this blog. Healthy skepticism is the hallmark of critical thinking.
From this, EVERYTHING you read should be suspect, and you should (ideally) have independent confirmation before you decide that any given "fact" is correct. You should also never take the opinion of a single (unqualified) individual as correct without similar verification.
Regardless, talking to Kate was the most reliable benchmark I could find about the do's and don'ts of beginning a gluten-free lifestyle. After all, if anyone is an expert, it will be her - not me.
I'm going to break this down according to the specific items listed above, but I'll sum up a few basic principles first:
- Clean is clean. If you have clean counters, cutlery, etc, you don't need to worry about it being "extra" clean. There will be no mysterious, invisible residues or tiny trapped particles waiting to "gluten" you.
- Gluten is basically like dirt / dust. In the vast majority of cases, you can see potential problems. For example, you can see flour, crumbs, and so forth on a table or food particles stuck on a fork. Wiping it down or washing in the sink will do just fine.
- Be mindful, not paranoid. Clean counters and such beforehand and you will be fine.
These are obviously generalizations, but helpful ones.
Here's the specifics as I understand them:
1. Wash hands before eating: YES. You should always wash before eating, just in case. Many people do this regardless so this should be no big deal.
I imagine that at parks and the like, washing with paper towels and water will be OK. This goes back to the idea that crumbs are crumbs, and you can get rid of them.
2. The pantry, kitchen, etc. must be scrubbed clean of all gluten: NO. Kate and hubby do not obsess over this. Obviously you need to ensure that your GF foods do not come in contact with any gluten, but that is not the same thing.
Certainly it is prudent to clean out your drawers and cabinetry to get the crumbs out, to avoid having to re-clean all your implements on each use. I know our drawers were loaded with wheat crumbs. But once this is done and everything is clean, they will stay (reasonably) clean for a long while.
Wiping down the counters before food prep is fine. Use soap and water, or water alone if it's a light job. This will be enough to get any gluten off.
You can also use clean cutting boards, dishes, etc. to provide clean surfaces for keeping your GF utensils, cooking implements and so forth appropriately clean while cooking. If you accidentally place a utensil on the "wrong" surface, a quick rinse or scrub is enough to recover it.
This applies when staying with friends or relatives as well. A simple wash and wipe-down is sufficient to ensure that items are free of gluten - you do not need to pretend their kitchen is radioactive and banish yourself to a small table in the corner that has been scrubbed within an inch of it's life.
3. Use bleach or strong cleaners to ensure surfaces are gluten-free: NO. Wiping down the counters is good enough; cleaners are not necessary except as required to ensure surfaces are appropriately clean.
Bleach has no effect on gluten and is rather useless (and stinky). Gluten is, basically, a solid, and not a germ or virus. Bleach will neither "kill" it nor destroy it, meaning your only option is to remove it.
4. Clean obsessively: NO, see #2 above. You obviously have to be mindful, but you do not need to fret over every crumb or particle that might exist in the corners or on the floor. Crumbs cannot jump up to your counter or into your food. A quick scrub of countertops is fine to ensure they're clean.
The obvious exception will be in kitchens where baking occurs. Flour is finely divided and can disperse in air over a surprisingly wide area. In such instances a more diligent clean may be in order.
I will note that Kate helped her mother bake and prepare fresh, wheat-based pasta when she was a child. (!) She never had any issues as long as she washed her hands afterwards.
5. Read all the ingredients in foods, every time: YES. Foods do change, and identically-named products in different parts of the world may be different.
6. Foods prepared in facilities that have non-gluten-free lines, or on shared equipment, is not safe: NO. Kate has never had any issues with food as long as they do not have any intentional gluten-containing ingredients.
This obviously leaves aside products that have warnings such as "May contain wheat". Kate is actually not a big fan of these warnings since some of the products she has been successfully eating for years suddenly started having "may contain" warnings for no apparent reason. She still successfully eats these products based on her past experience, but has to avoid new products that have these warnings out of prudence, knowing full well that they might be perfectly OK.
(WARNING: The ability to consume foods prepared in mixed facilities obviously dependent upon the sensitivity of the individual. I have no doubt that certain individuals may have difficulty with cross-contamination from shared facilities. My personal opinion is that these people are in the minority, but that does not mean that this effect does not exist. So please be cautious at first.)
7. Foods might have "hidden" or unexpected gluten in them that are not declared on the ingredients list: NO. Kate has never gotten "glutened" from a product that had no gluten ingredients listed - see #6 above.
8. Prepare GF foods in a separate area from non-GF foods: NO. Kate and hubby prepare foods in the same kitchen. Wiping down or cleaning counters is sufficient to ensure she doesn't get exposed. In some cases, she said even just brushing off the crumbs was fine!
9. Keep GF dishes, cutlery, etc. in a separate area from other dishware: NO. Clean is clean and dishes out of the dishwasher or sink are perfectly OK for her. If in any doubt, a rinse or quick wipe takes care of it.
10. Dishwashers are not necessarily adequate in cleaning dishware of gluten: NO. Clean enough is clean enough; she has never had any issue with her dishwasher not getting dishes clean enough.
That, of course, is an oversimplification - all dishwashers sometimes have problems with getting dishes perfectly clean. But any issues, such as stuck-on food, are obvious and can be corrected in the usual ways.
There is certainly nothing wrong with using the sani-rise cycle, if you want to.
11. When changing over to gluten-free, replace the following items:
A. Toasters: YES, with caveats. Kate and family shared a toaster when she was little - something everyone swears in a no-no! - but the toaster was kept clean and cleaned after every use. Having a separate toaster eliminates this requirement and may be simpler overall.
B. Toaster ovens: NO. Cleaning the rack or using aluminum foil over the rack / tray is fine. Having a separate, small toaster oven instead of a dedicated GF toaster is also an option.
C. Non-stick pans: NO. Clean is clean, and Kate shares the pans with her hubby. When preparing different kids of food, they simply wash the pan in between to eliminate any contamination. This works fine and they have no concerns with gluten remaining in scratches or imperfections in the pan surface.
D. Plastic and wooden utensils: NO. Clean is clean and Kate has never known gluten to become trapped on the surface of these items.
Of course, lots of implements get beat up over time, so maybe they're due for replacement anyway. But don't toss them just because they touched flour once in their life.
E. Plastic and wooden cutting boards: NO. They share cutting boards without difficulty by cleaning in between uses. Again, regular soap and water is fine.
F. Colanders: NO. This might not apply to very fine-mesh plastic colanders, but certainly stainless steel metal colanders can be cleaned just fine.
12. Keep GF foods separate from regular foods: NO. Kate and hubby share a pantry.
13. Keep GF items on the top shelf of a fridge, where crumbs cannot fall on to them: NO. This has never been an issue.
14. Keep separate containers of condiments specifically for GF eaters, to avoid cross-contamination: NO. Kate and family shared jars and tubs by scooping first with a clean utensil, then spreading separately. Which is a good trick to save space in your fridge and avoiding having to buy everything twice.
Do note that while spreading, wheat crumbs can fly off unpredictably.
If you do accidentally contaminate a gluten-free jar, you can probably scoop out the "bad" part of the food with a spoon
15. Check or avoid foods prepared by friends and relatives: YES. Even well-meaning relatives can accidentally pick up the wrong product or use the wrong ingredient, especially with sneaky items like soy sauce. But once they understand what it's all about, they can usually do just fine.
16. Avoid buffets at restaurants, resorts and hotels: NO, but you do need to do one or both of the following:
- Check with the kitchen / chef to see what items were prepared without gluten, and/or
- Stick only with foods that are naturally gluten-free, such as plain meats, fruit, and dairy.
As a rule, she avoids all sauces, condiments and pre-processed items, along with the baked items (obviously). She notes that over time she has gotten a pretty good sense of what is safe and what is not.
Kate has also never had a "glutening" from cross-contamination of serving utensils at a buffet or restaurant. She does admit this is a risk, but it's a risk she's willing to take (occasionally).
(I will also note that I have a relative who has a shellfish allergy that is life-threatening. Despite this, he does occasionally brave family dinners and potlucks. This would not be a big deal except the family is primarily Asian, which means lots of seafood. Certainly everyone knows to not mix utensils between dishes, but if he can do it, there is a reasonable possibility that others can do similar.)
Note that Kate has been to resorts in Mexico several times, and has been able to eat at buffets each time while there. But she has also traveled where she will bring or shop for her own food and prepare it in the kitchenette in the hotel suite.
17. Talk to the server / manager at restaurants, every time: YES. If she doesn't get satisfactory answers or does get "bad vibes", they will go elsewhere. She admits that eating out is a risk and not everyone "gets it". She has also had the occasional problem, which again goes to the fact that eating out is a risk (though it may be an acceptable risk).
She notes that she has sometimes needed to go "off menu" in order to eat at some restaurants. The resulting food can be plain and expensive, but may be better than having to go elsewhere. This seems to be especially true when she's in a group, both for social reasons and because restaurants will be more accommodating for larger groups / orders.
18. Verify that your plate is GF when it is delivered to your table, every time: YES. She did have one incident where she went to the "usual" place and ordered the "usual", but it was prepared differently. Mistakes and changes happen - don't rely on things staying the same.
19. Avoid takeout like the plague: NO. If you find a supportive restaurant you can eat takeout food. Just be certain they "get it". If in doubt, don't order, and find another place.
20. Avoid everything at airports, coffee shops, etc: NO. Just read the ingredients and select items that you can have. Though there will be many things you can't eat, there will be items you can. Besides, you can always bring your own foods, which is probably less risky.
So there it is: some hopefully practical advice on how to set up and maintain a gluten-free home and life. Your mileage may vary, but I believe this will start as a reasonable baseline.
I personally found this information both helpful and reassuring; I hope it helps someone else out there as well.
President's Choice Banana Bread vs. Ener-G Banana Loaf
As it turns out, this matchup was not really a fair competition.
The reason is because the Ener-G "Banana Loaf" is not really banana bread. It's more like white sandwich bread that happens to have banana as one of the ingredients.
Having said that:
The PC Banana Bread is pretty good, in our opinion. Nothing wrong with it at all, it tastes just as you'd expect. It's a winner.
The Ener-G Banana Loaf, however, was not. It doesn't taste like anything I've ever tasted before and I would not call it good. My daughter and I each had a couple of halfhearted bites and that was that. I would not recommend this product.
I have not tried any of the other Ener-G products so I do not know how they taste (yet).
Next time we go camping I will definitely be bringing a PC gluten-free banana bread with us.
The reason is because the Ener-G "Banana Loaf" is not really banana bread. It's more like white sandwich bread that happens to have banana as one of the ingredients.
Having said that:
The PC Banana Bread is pretty good, in our opinion. Nothing wrong with it at all, it tastes just as you'd expect. It's a winner.
The Ener-G Banana Loaf, however, was not. It doesn't taste like anything I've ever tasted before and I would not call it good. My daughter and I each had a couple of halfhearted bites and that was that. I would not recommend this product.
I have not tried any of the other Ener-G products so I do not know how they taste (yet).
Next time we go camping I will definitely be bringing a PC gluten-free banana bread with us.
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
GF hamburger buns: Care Bakery vs. Udi's white buns
Both of these were available at Co-Op. Both are frozen. You get 4 buns each. The Care buns are larger and taller.
Both were "white" versions. Udi's had a whole grain version but Care did not, and I thought it would be unfair to compare whole grain vs. white. (Normally, we would do whole grain, but fair is fair.)
Test: Thawed but not toasted for daughter; toasted on the BBQ for me. PC Angus burgers with the usual fixins'.
Verdict: They were both quite good, but Udi's edged out Care. My daughter didn't have a preference. To me, the Care was a little spongy.
This was because the Care buns had more air in them, which some might find a plus. And they are bigger and wider than Udi's, though much of this is also air. I would eat Care buns without any real complaints.
Based on results so far, I would say that any family just starting out in gluten-free could probably do worse than start with Udi's bakery products. They are not necessarily the cheapest, but they seem consistently good to us. This might be especially helpful for picky eaters or those already used to a traditional diet.
Both were "white" versions. Udi's had a whole grain version but Care did not, and I thought it would be unfair to compare whole grain vs. white. (Normally, we would do whole grain, but fair is fair.)
Test: Thawed but not toasted for daughter; toasted on the BBQ for me. PC Angus burgers with the usual fixins'.
Verdict: They were both quite good, but Udi's edged out Care. My daughter didn't have a preference. To me, the Care was a little spongy.
This was because the Care buns had more air in them, which some might find a plus. And they are bigger and wider than Udi's, though much of this is also air. I would eat Care buns without any real complaints.
Based on results so far, I would say that any family just starting out in gluten-free could probably do worse than start with Udi's bakery products. They are not necessarily the cheapest, but they seem consistently good to us. This might be especially helpful for picky eaters or those already used to a traditional diet.
Gluten-free bread: Udi's Whole Grain Loaf vs. Glutino Mutigrain
Both of these products are available (frozen) at Superstore.
Test: Slices were warmed until dry in a toaster oven, but not toasted. Nutella and banana for my daughter, turkey, mayo and mustard for me.
Verdict: Near-tie. They are different from each other but both good. My daughter preferred the Udi's, but I actually ate both samples together. I suppose, given a choice, I'd do Udi's, but Glutino would still be perfectly acceptable.
"Whole Grain" aside, the Udi's is a bit more like white bread. The crusts are bit stiff; slices are ever-so-slightly smaller. But it does taste good. A little dry, possibly, or maybe slightly powdery.
The Glutino tasted good as well, but a bit more like corn bread to me. It is a little more grainy after chewing, like fresh corn bread is. (Maybe it is corn bread! I didn't look.) So I would say it tastes closer to 60% whole wheat bread than Udi's. If that's a taste you like, possibly this one is for you.
Udi's was $7 for 340g, Glutino was $6 for 400g. YMMV.
So far that is two hits for Udi's - bread and hot dog buns. It's beat President's Choice (buns) and Glutino (bread). I hope to pick up some alternative hamburger buns to give Udi's another challenge.
Lunch is over, back to work.
Test: Slices were warmed until dry in a toaster oven, but not toasted. Nutella and banana for my daughter, turkey, mayo and mustard for me.
Verdict: Near-tie. They are different from each other but both good. My daughter preferred the Udi's, but I actually ate both samples together. I suppose, given a choice, I'd do Udi's, but Glutino would still be perfectly acceptable.
"Whole Grain" aside, the Udi's is a bit more like white bread. The crusts are bit stiff; slices are ever-so-slightly smaller. But it does taste good. A little dry, possibly, or maybe slightly powdery.
The Glutino tasted good as well, but a bit more like corn bread to me. It is a little more grainy after chewing, like fresh corn bread is. (Maybe it is corn bread! I didn't look.) So I would say it tastes closer to 60% whole wheat bread than Udi's. If that's a taste you like, possibly this one is for you.
Udi's was $7 for 340g, Glutino was $6 for 400g. YMMV.
So far that is two hits for Udi's - bread and hot dog buns. It's beat President's Choice (buns) and Glutino (bread). I hope to pick up some alternative hamburger buns to give Udi's another challenge.
Lunch is over, back to work.
Tuesday, June 7, 2016
GF hot dog buns - Udi's vs. President's Choice
See my standard review terms here.
Udi's vs. PC. Both can be purchased at Superstore, so we taste-tested them side by side with Schneider's Naturals hot dogs from the BBQ, plus the usual fixins'. Both bun types were toasted slightly on the grill alongside the hot dogs, because that is what I do. :-) I tried to get them even.
Verdict: Udi's were preferred by everyone. My wife even tried them both and agreed that though the PC version was tolerable, they had a strange consistency. It's hard to pin down, so I won't try, except to say that the "chew" was not quite what we wanted. Even after toasting, the PC buns were just a little mushy.
Alternatively, some might find the whole grain-y taste of the PC buns a bit more appealing. They were more like 60% whole wheat buns in flavor, or at least a bit more than the Udi's. So if you prefer something more like whole wheat buns, maybe the PCs are worth a try.
Notes:
- The Udi's are frozen. They can be a bit slow to thaw and may initially seem unusually hard. However, after thawing and toasting, they were just fine. I doubt anyone would notice them at all if you didn't say anything.
- The Udi's are smaller than the PC. Udi's is about right for a "regular" hot dog. PC will be a bit large, meaning you'll get an initial bite of bun unless you use extra-big franks.
- You get 4 buns in the PC package, 6 in Udi's.
- The PCs will not keep terribly well - they are even worse than traditional fresh buns, and will go hard pretty quick. Fridge storage might help slightly, but I imagine you'd have to freeze them for anything past a couple of days. The Udi's are already frozen so no worries on that front.
Udi's vs. PC. Both can be purchased at Superstore, so we taste-tested them side by side with Schneider's Naturals hot dogs from the BBQ, plus the usual fixins'. Both bun types were toasted slightly on the grill alongside the hot dogs, because that is what I do. :-) I tried to get them even.
Verdict: Udi's were preferred by everyone. My wife even tried them both and agreed that though the PC version was tolerable, they had a strange consistency. It's hard to pin down, so I won't try, except to say that the "chew" was not quite what we wanted. Even after toasting, the PC buns were just a little mushy.
Alternatively, some might find the whole grain-y taste of the PC buns a bit more appealing. They were more like 60% whole wheat buns in flavor, or at least a bit more than the Udi's. So if you prefer something more like whole wheat buns, maybe the PCs are worth a try.
Notes:
- The Udi's are frozen. They can be a bit slow to thaw and may initially seem unusually hard. However, after thawing and toasting, they were just fine. I doubt anyone would notice them at all if you didn't say anything.
- The Udi's are smaller than the PC. Udi's is about right for a "regular" hot dog. PC will be a bit large, meaning you'll get an initial bite of bun unless you use extra-big franks.
- You get 4 buns in the PC package, 6 in Udi's.
- The PCs will not keep terribly well - they are even worse than traditional fresh buns, and will go hard pretty quick. Fridge storage might help slightly, but I imagine you'd have to freeze them for anything past a couple of days. The Udi's are already frozen so no worries on that front.
Monday, June 6, 2016
Gluten-free acetaminophen (Children's Tylenol)
Note: I am not a doctor or pharmacist, nor do I work for Johnson & Johnson. The following is only my opinion, use at your own risk.
I have been going crazy trying to determine if the Children's Tylenol Suspension I have been given my daughter is gluten-free or not.
The short answer is YES, I think so. However, Johnson & Johnson does not certify Tylenol as gluten-free, so there is a risk of cross-contamination.
The following Children's Tylenol Suspension products in Canada should be GF:
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The product in question was Children's Tylenol Suspension, "Berry" flavor. Circa 2016.
Tylenol used to publish a GF list. However, this list was retracted, so all of the information out there is out of date. Some dates to 2003, which is a long time for a product to NOT change.
This historical list stated that the "Grape" flavor was gluten-free. Ours was "Berry, Dye-Free" flavor. Tylenol Canada listed Berry, Banana Berry, Grape, Cherry, and Bubble Gum flavors, but there are others available such as "Cherry Blast", "Banana Berry Twist", and "Grape Punch". Are these different? Who knows?
Tylenol USA showed only "Cherry Blast" and "Grape". But we probably all know by now that there are several known cases where USA products differ from their identically-named Canadian versions. So when you get a Canadian product that has a single word different in the name, is it the same or not?
Of course, I couldn't readily find the original "Grape" flavor. And I didn't know if the two bottles of "Berry" are OK to use or not.
Here's how I worked it out:
First, I compared the Costco "gluten-free" Grape Punch ingredients list with the official Johnson & Johnson Grape formulation for Canada. They are identical. So Grape = Grape Punch.
Next, I looked at their ingredients. Nothing screams "gluten" in them, except for the generic "flavor".
So, since Costco claims "Grape Punch" is gluten-free, and it was identical to J&J "Grape" which was gluten-free, both are likely gluten free. So for the purposes of discussion I'm assuming the Grape / Grape Punch flavors are GF.
I then compared the ingredients of Canadian "Grape" and all the other flavors (see official page here). Since "Grape" is GF, any ingredients in "Grape" are safe, so I discounted them. This left the following unique ingredients in the other flavors:
- FD&C red no.40
- sodium citrate
- sucralose
- sucrose
None of these inherently have gluten. So leaving cross-contamination / shared line issues aside, none should make the Tylenol non-GF.
Finally, I looked at the other flavors:
- Grape = Grape Punch
- Banana Berry = Banana Berry Twist
- Bubble Gum = Bubble Gum Burst
From this, and barring cross-contamination issues, the following Children's Tylenol Suspension products in Canada should be GF:
Here is the original Costco (Canada) information on these products. I have reproduced it here in case it disappears; original page is here.
According to Costco (Canada), the following Tylenol products are gluten-free. I doubt this is certified in any way, and I further doubt Johnson & Johnson is actually going to stand by this claim. At best, I expect they will state they are not using any gluten-containing ingredients, but will not stipulate no shared lines or equipment.
Similarly, I have not found any reports of kids getting "glutened" from taking Tylenol products. So take this for whatever this is worth.
From Costco:
According to Costco (Canada), all of the items below are gluten-free:
Caplets
Regular Strength 325 mg
Each elongated, capsule-shaped white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" on one side and "325" on the other side, contains acetaminophen 325 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, polyethylene glycol, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extra Strength 500 mg
Each elongated, capsule-shaped white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" on one side and "500" on the other side, contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, polyethylene glycol, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Gelcaps
Extra Strength 500 mg ("Rapid Release")
Each solid, capsule-shaped tablet, coated with red gelatin on one end, blue gelatin on the other end, a gray band between the two gelatin-coated ends, printed "TY" on one gelatin-coated end and "500" on the other gelatin-coated end, contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, corn starch, FD&C Yellow No. 10, edetate calcium disodium, FD&C Blue No. 1, FD&C Red No. 40, gelatin, hypromellose, iron oxide black, iron oxide red, iron oxide yellow, magnesium stearate, methylparaben, polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, propylparaben, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium propionate, sodium starch glycolate, and titanium dioxide. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extended Release
ARTHRITIS PAIN 650 mg
Each elongated, white extended release tablet, engraved "TYLENOL ER" on one side, contains acetaminophen 650 mg (325 mg immediate release acetaminophen and 325 mg delayed release acetaminophen in a slow dissolving matrix). Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, titanium dioxide, and triacetin. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Muscle Aches & Body Pain
Each elongated, white extended release tablet, engraved ''TYLENOL ER'' on one side, contains acetaminophen 650 mg (325 mg immediate release acetaminophen and 325 mg delayed release acetaminophen in a slow dissolving matrix). Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, titanium dioxide, and triacetin. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Tablets
Regular Strength 325 mg
Each round, white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" one side and "325" the other side, contains acetaminophen 325 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, magnesium stearate, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extra Strength 500 mg ("eZ TABS")
Each round, red, sweet-coated tablet, printed with "TYLENOL 500", contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 6, hypromellose, iron oxide black, polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, stearic acid, sucralose, and titanium dioxide. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children
Tablets
Children's Tylenol
This medication is available as a 80 mg tablet.
Junior Strength 160 mg
This medication is available as a 160 mg tablet.
Junior Strength Fastmelts 160 mg
This medication is available as a 160 mg tablet.
Bubblegum Burst Flavour
Each pink, 5/8" round troche tablet with characteristic bubblegum odour, debossed with "TY" over "160" on one side, contains acetaminophen 160 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose acetate, citric acid, FD&C Red No. 7, dextrose, flavour, magnesium stearate, povidone, and sucralose. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Grape Punch Flavour
Each purple, 5/8" round troche tablet with characteristic grape odour, debossed with "TY" over "160" on one side, contains acetaminophen 160 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose acetate, citric acid, FD&C Red No. 7, FD&C Red No. 30, dextrose, FD&C Blue No. 1, flavour, magnesium stearate, povidone, and sucralose. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Suspension
Note: Per the analysis given at the top of this post, all of these suspensions are naturally GF, as are . J&J does not certify as such, so cross-contamination is still a potential issue.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Banana Berry Twist)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a pink liquid vehicle with a strawberry-banana flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Bubblegum Burst)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a dark pink liquid vehicle with a bubble gum-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 33, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Grape Punch)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a purple liquid vehicle with a grape-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 33, FD&C Blue No. 1, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
[Note: the USA versions have different non-medicinal ingredients, so the Canadian and USA versions should not be considered identical. See the USA versions of Children's Tylenol here.]
Suspension Drops
Infants' 80 mg/mL (Cherry)
Each mL contains acetaminophen 80 mg in a red liquid vehicle with a cherry-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Infants' 80mg/mL (Dye Free White Grape)
Each mL contains acetaminophen 80 mg in a white to off-white liquid vehicle with a grape-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
I have been going crazy trying to determine if the Children's Tylenol Suspension I have been given my daughter is gluten-free or not.
The short answer is YES, I think so. However, Johnson & Johnson does not certify Tylenol as gluten-free, so there is a risk of cross-contamination.
The following Children's Tylenol Suspension products in Canada should be GF:
- Grape
- Grape Punch
- Banana Berry
- Banana Berry Twist
- Dye-free Berry
- Cherry
- Bubble Gum
- Bubble Gum Burst
-------------
The product in question was Children's Tylenol Suspension, "Berry" flavor. Circa 2016.
Tylenol used to publish a GF list. However, this list was retracted, so all of the information out there is out of date. Some dates to 2003, which is a long time for a product to NOT change.
This historical list stated that the "Grape" flavor was gluten-free. Ours was "Berry, Dye-Free" flavor. Tylenol Canada listed Berry, Banana Berry, Grape, Cherry, and Bubble Gum flavors, but there are others available such as "Cherry Blast", "Banana Berry Twist", and "Grape Punch". Are these different? Who knows?
Tylenol USA showed only "Cherry Blast" and "Grape". But we probably all know by now that there are several known cases where USA products differ from their identically-named Canadian versions. So when you get a Canadian product that has a single word different in the name, is it the same or not?
Of course, I couldn't readily find the original "Grape" flavor. And I didn't know if the two bottles of "Berry" are OK to use or not.
Here's how I worked it out:
First, I compared the Costco "gluten-free" Grape Punch ingredients list with the official Johnson & Johnson Grape formulation for Canada. They are identical. So Grape = Grape Punch.
Next, I looked at their ingredients. Nothing screams "gluten" in them, except for the generic "flavor".
So, since Costco claims "Grape Punch" is gluten-free, and it was identical to J&J "Grape" which was gluten-free, both are likely gluten free. So for the purposes of discussion I'm assuming the Grape / Grape Punch flavors are GF.
I then compared the ingredients of Canadian "Grape" and all the other flavors (see official page here). Since "Grape" is GF, any ingredients in "Grape" are safe, so I discounted them. This left the following unique ingredients in the other flavors:
- FD&C red no.40
- sodium citrate
- sucralose
- sucrose
None of these inherently have gluten. So leaving cross-contamination / shared line issues aside, none should make the Tylenol non-GF.
Finally, I looked at the other flavors:
- Grape = Grape Punch
- Banana Berry = Banana Berry Twist
- Bubble Gum = Bubble Gum Burst
From this, and barring cross-contamination issues, the following Children's Tylenol Suspension products in Canada should be GF:
- Grape / Grape Punch
- Banana Berry / Banana Berry Twist
- Dye-free Berry
- Cherry
- Bubble Gum / Bubble Gum Burst
Here is the original Costco (Canada) information on these products. I have reproduced it here in case it disappears; original page is here.
According to Costco (Canada), the following Tylenol products are gluten-free. I doubt this is certified in any way, and I further doubt Johnson & Johnson is actually going to stand by this claim. At best, I expect they will state they are not using any gluten-containing ingredients, but will not stipulate no shared lines or equipment.
Similarly, I have not found any reports of kids getting "glutened" from taking Tylenol products. So take this for whatever this is worth.
From Costco:
According to Costco (Canada), all of the items below are gluten-free:
Caplets
Regular Strength 325 mg
Each elongated, capsule-shaped white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" on one side and "325" on the other side, contains acetaminophen 325 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, polyethylene glycol, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extra Strength 500 mg
Each elongated, capsule-shaped white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" on one side and "500" on the other side, contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, polyethylene glycol, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Gelcaps
Extra Strength 500 mg ("Rapid Release")
Each solid, capsule-shaped tablet, coated with red gelatin on one end, blue gelatin on the other end, a gray band between the two gelatin-coated ends, printed "TY" on one gelatin-coated end and "500" on the other gelatin-coated end, contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, corn starch, FD&C Yellow No. 10, edetate calcium disodium, FD&C Blue No. 1, FD&C Red No. 40, gelatin, hypromellose, iron oxide black, iron oxide red, iron oxide yellow, magnesium stearate, methylparaben, polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, propylparaben, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium propionate, sodium starch glycolate, and titanium dioxide. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extended Release
ARTHRITIS PAIN 650 mg
Each elongated, white extended release tablet, engraved "TYLENOL ER" on one side, contains acetaminophen 650 mg (325 mg immediate release acetaminophen and 325 mg delayed release acetaminophen in a slow dissolving matrix). Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, titanium dioxide, and triacetin. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Muscle Aches & Body Pain
Each elongated, white extended release tablet, engraved ''TYLENOL ER'' on one side, contains acetaminophen 650 mg (325 mg immediate release acetaminophen and 325 mg delayed release acetaminophen in a slow dissolving matrix). Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, hydroxyethyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, titanium dioxide, and triacetin. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Tablets
Regular Strength 325 mg
Each round, white tablet, engraved "TYLENOL" one side and "325" the other side, contains acetaminophen 325 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose, cornstarch, magnesium stearate, and sodium starch glycolate. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Extra Strength 500 mg ("eZ TABS")
Each round, red, sweet-coated tablet, printed with "TYLENOL 500", contains acetaminophen 500 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: carnauba wax, cellulose, cornstarch, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 6, hypromellose, iron oxide black, polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, povidone, sodium starch glycolate, stearic acid, sucralose, and titanium dioxide. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children
Tablets
Children's Tylenol
This medication is available as a 80 mg tablet.
Junior Strength 160 mg
This medication is available as a 160 mg tablet.
Junior Strength Fastmelts 160 mg
This medication is available as a 160 mg tablet.
Bubblegum Burst Flavour
Each pink, 5/8" round troche tablet with characteristic bubblegum odour, debossed with "TY" over "160" on one side, contains acetaminophen 160 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose acetate, citric acid, FD&C Red No. 7, dextrose, flavour, magnesium stearate, povidone, and sucralose. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Grape Punch Flavour
Each purple, 5/8" round troche tablet with characteristic grape odour, debossed with "TY" over "160" on one side, contains acetaminophen 160 mg. Nonmedicinal ingredients: cellulose acetate, citric acid, FD&C Red No. 7, FD&C Red No. 30, dextrose, FD&C Blue No. 1, flavour, magnesium stearate, povidone, and sucralose. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Suspension
Note: Per the analysis given at the top of this post, all of these suspensions are naturally GF, as are . J&J does not certify as such, so cross-contamination is still a potential issue.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Banana Berry Twist)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a pink liquid vehicle with a strawberry-banana flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Bubblegum Burst)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a dark pink liquid vehicle with a bubble gum-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 33, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Children's 160 mg/5 mL (Grape Punch)
Each 5 mL contains acetaminophen 160 mg in a purple liquid vehicle with a grape-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 33, FD&C Blue No. 1, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
[Note: the USA versions have different non-medicinal ingredients, so the Canadian and USA versions should not be considered identical. See the USA versions of Children's Tylenol here.]
Suspension Drops
Infants' 80 mg/mL (Cherry)
Each mL contains acetaminophen 80 mg in a red liquid vehicle with a cherry-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, FD&C Red No. 40, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Infants' 80mg/mL (Dye Free White Grape)
Each mL contains acetaminophen 80 mg in a white to off-white liquid vehicle with a grape-flavoured taste. Nonmedicinal ingredients: butylparaben, carboxymethylcellulose sodium, cellulose, citric acid, corn syrup, flavour, glycerin, propylene glycol, purified water, sodium benzoate, sorbitol, and xanthan gum. Gluten-, lactose-, and tartrazine-free.
Sunday, June 5, 2016
GF Pancakes - Bob's Red Mill vs. Bisquick Gluten-Free Baking Mixes
See my standard ground rules for reviews here.
Pancakes are always a favorite with my kids. As we transition to a GF diet, as well as GF camping, I wanted my pancakes. Time to experiment.
A (very) quick trip to the store netted only two mixes:
- Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Biscuit And Baking Mix (680g)
- Bisquick Gluten Free Variety Baking Mix (454g)
I am aware that Bob's has a dedicated pancake mix; I could not find it for this review.
I am also aware that Bob's "recently" changed their recipe. I do not know if the one we tried was the "old" or "new".
Per a "trick" on the net, I mixed the Bisquick with ONLY the milk and let it sit for 15 minutes before cooking. I did not try it the other way so I don't know if it made a difference or not. If I ever find out, I will try and update.
Verdict: Both my daughter and I preferred the Bisquick mix. The Bob's was by no means bad, but it did have a slightly odd taste that I could not identify. The Bisquick was neutral and had a good consistency; definitely not "heavy" or gritty. If you didn't say anything, I doubt most would identify it as GF.
The Bisquick was rather thick, so I didn't pour it into the pan so much as squash it. But this worked fine and the result was worth it.
Do watch the cakes while they cook. The mix does not bubble well, so it's hard to use that as a guideline. A slightly lower heat might also be in order; you'll have to experiment.
It is an expensive mix, and each box makes perhaps 15 pancakes, as a guess. There are no estimates on the box, which is a pity for comparison shoppers. I'm guessing that's half because it's a multipurpose mix and half because the manufacturer doesn't want you to know how little you're actually getting. (I do not blame them, however - it's up to the consumer to decide if the product is worth it or not.)
Until we find a less expensive mix, I expect this will be our GF go-to for pancakes from now on.
Pancakes are always a favorite with my kids. As we transition to a GF diet, as well as GF camping, I wanted my pancakes. Time to experiment.
A (very) quick trip to the store netted only two mixes:
- Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Biscuit And Baking Mix (680g)
- Bisquick Gluten Free Variety Baking Mix (454g)
I am aware that Bob's has a dedicated pancake mix; I could not find it for this review.
I am also aware that Bob's "recently" changed their recipe. I do not know if the one we tried was the "old" or "new".
Per a "trick" on the net, I mixed the Bisquick with ONLY the milk and let it sit for 15 minutes before cooking. I did not try it the other way so I don't know if it made a difference or not. If I ever find out, I will try and update.
Verdict: Both my daughter and I preferred the Bisquick mix. The Bob's was by no means bad, but it did have a slightly odd taste that I could not identify. The Bisquick was neutral and had a good consistency; definitely not "heavy" or gritty. If you didn't say anything, I doubt most would identify it as GF.
The Bisquick was rather thick, so I didn't pour it into the pan so much as squash it. But this worked fine and the result was worth it.
Do watch the cakes while they cook. The mix does not bubble well, so it's hard to use that as a guideline. A slightly lower heat might also be in order; you'll have to experiment.
It is an expensive mix, and each box makes perhaps 15 pancakes, as a guess. There are no estimates on the box, which is a pity for comparison shoppers. I'm guessing that's half because it's a multipurpose mix and half because the manufacturer doesn't want you to know how little you're actually getting. (I do not blame them, however - it's up to the consumer to decide if the product is worth it or not.)
Until we find a less expensive mix, I expect this will be our GF go-to for pancakes from now on.
Things to know about my reviews
Here are some things to know concerning all my reviews:
I am not celiac, and am therefore free to eat a "regular" diet. So I know what non-gluten-free tastes like.
My daughter has been recently diagnosed. Up until now she has been eating non-GF. This will change but, for now, she also knows what "regular" food tastes like. So it is important that she likes the foods we buy.
Despite the above, I attempt to not compare GF foods against non-GF foods. This is because I think finding identical products is futile. So I do not taste test or deliberately make comparisons against regular products.
To take an example, many "diet" foods are not the same as their "regular" counterparts. In some cases, near-equivalency is possible; in some it is not. Sometimes makers of "diet" foods come up with something new instead - something that is not the same, but stands on it's own merits. I expect this will be the case for some gluten-free foods as well.
So, I am concerned about is if the GF foods are good in their own right, and if my daughter likes them. That's the goal here.
It is a bonus if my son and I like the foods too. When we go camping, we go all gluten-free, for simplicity. If he and I do not also like the foods, we will be a bit SOL on these trips. So we'll all enjoy together or suffer together, as it were.
Having said that, comparisons against "regular" products are something of an inevitability sometimes. We like what we like.
I also do not attempt to compare nutritional value. Part of this is I'm not terribly qualified to do so, having only a layman's understanding of such things. Part is because I don't have the time. Part is because I don't care so much - I figure that any nutrition we don't eat is not really relevant. (This is a simplistic approach, I know, but fine-tuning can happen later.)
I am fortunate that we are well enough off such that we can afford to experiment. That is, I don't mind buying two or three GF items, trying them all, and tossing what we don't like. Some people don't have this luxury so I'm publishing my experiences. Also because some GF information out there is dated.
I am unfortunate to live in Western Canada. Availability of GF foods here is restricted compared to other locations.
Individual tastes will obviously vary and what works for us may not work for you. It's impossible for everyone to like everything, but Amazon reviews provide a good starting benchmark.
Legal: My opinions are my own. My opinions do not and are not intended to be taken as representing anyone or any organization other than myself. I do not work and have never worked for for any of the companies I review. I pay for all products myself; I do not get free samples, discounts or any other consideration or compensation from any brand, company, organization or individual in connection with my reviews or posts.
I am not celiac, and am therefore free to eat a "regular" diet. So I know what non-gluten-free tastes like.
My daughter has been recently diagnosed. Up until now she has been eating non-GF. This will change but, for now, she also knows what "regular" food tastes like. So it is important that she likes the foods we buy.
Despite the above, I attempt to not compare GF foods against non-GF foods. This is because I think finding identical products is futile. So I do not taste test or deliberately make comparisons against regular products.
To take an example, many "diet" foods are not the same as their "regular" counterparts. In some cases, near-equivalency is possible; in some it is not. Sometimes makers of "diet" foods come up with something new instead - something that is not the same, but stands on it's own merits. I expect this will be the case for some gluten-free foods as well.
So, I am concerned about is if the GF foods are good in their own right, and if my daughter likes them. That's the goal here.
It is a bonus if my son and I like the foods too. When we go camping, we go all gluten-free, for simplicity. If he and I do not also like the foods, we will be a bit SOL on these trips. So we'll all enjoy together or suffer together, as it were.
Having said that, comparisons against "regular" products are something of an inevitability sometimes. We like what we like.
I also do not attempt to compare nutritional value. Part of this is I'm not terribly qualified to do so, having only a layman's understanding of such things. Part is because I don't have the time. Part is because I don't care so much - I figure that any nutrition we don't eat is not really relevant. (This is a simplistic approach, I know, but fine-tuning can happen later.)
I am fortunate that we are well enough off such that we can afford to experiment. That is, I don't mind buying two or three GF items, trying them all, and tossing what we don't like. Some people don't have this luxury so I'm publishing my experiences. Also because some GF information out there is dated.
I am unfortunate to live in Western Canada. Availability of GF foods here is restricted compared to other locations.
Individual tastes will obviously vary and what works for us may not work for you. It's impossible for everyone to like everything, but Amazon reviews provide a good starting benchmark.
Legal: My opinions are my own. My opinions do not and are not intended to be taken as representing anyone or any organization other than myself. I do not work and have never worked for for any of the companies I review. I pay for all products myself; I do not get free samples, discounts or any other consideration or compensation from any brand, company, organization or individual in connection with my reviews or posts.
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