70 Gluten Free Foods in Nigeria: Are Gluten Rich Diets Really Avoidable? Are they for everybody? Are they beneficial? List of gluten free foods in Nigeria.
What is gluten exactly? It’s a protein found in certain grains. Many of us are exposed to the term ‘gluten free’ to be healthier and have as a better alternative to gluten containing products. However, this is not true.🌾
Do we actually know why people follow gluten free diets? Gluten-free diet includes restriction of gluten, a mixture of proteins found in wheat, barley, rye, and oats because few people are intolerant to it and have ‘Celiac Disease’ .
You need an intolerance to go gluten free, which is associated with celiac disease. This is an autoimmune condition whereby your body starts attacking itself when exposed to gluten, causing inflammation. Therefore, it’s important to get it checked out by a doctor if you do think you have related symptoms.
The common gastrointestinal symptoms od celiac disease are: belching, diarrhoea, fat in stool, heartburn, indigestion, nausea, vomiting, or flatulence, constipation, recurrent abdominal pains and so on. Persons living with celiac disease or celiac sprue experience a resurgence of these symptoms whenever they take gluten rich meals.
It is different from Inflammatory Bowel Syndrome (IBS). 1% of people have the disease and only 30% are actually diagnosed. So yes, there is a possibility you could have an intolerance and not realise it. This is not to scare you remember, just to make you aware!!
The reason some people may lose weight on a gluten free diet to start with is due to choosing foods with lower carb content, as it can be found in a lot of sweet snacks. As a result, it can lead to eating less or reducing energy intake.🤓
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Don’t be fooled though!! Choosing foods that are gluten free will result in reduced protein, along with calcium and iron (a lot of cereals and flour products have them fortified in already and gluten free doesn’t). So, can lead to nutrient deficiencies if you don’t plan your diet effectively.
Gluten is very contagious whereby you shouldn’t even share the same toaster. So, be careful if you’re selling a combination of foods with wheat, rye and barley. Oats don’t contain gluten, but the reason for gluten free oats is due to possible contamination in production.
Therefore, you could be wasting a lot of money if you’re buying these products simply because you think they’re healthier. I’m sure you’re aware of how expensive gluten free foods are!👎
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Try taking wheat out to start, as that can be the factor to cause bloating and gas – associated with IBS, which is different from celiac disease.👏
I hope this is understandable? However, below are the:
List of gluten free Nigerian foods:
➡️Avocados
➡️Milk
➡️Bananas
➡️Olive oil
➡️Millet
➡️Asparagus
➡️Coconut oil
➡️Tapioca
➡️Nuts
➡️Tomatoes
➡️Grapefruit
➡️Green Beans
➡️Cocoa
➡️Cucumber
➡️Edible Mushrooms
➡️Eba – Garri
➡️Dates
➡️Kiwi
➡️Fufu
➡️Lemons
➡️Limes
➡️Papaya (pawpaw)
➡️Plantains
➡️Water lemons
➡️Vegetables
➡️Eggplant
➡️Guava
➡️Lettuce
➡️Onions
➡️Garlic
➡️Cabbage
➡️Beans
➡️Honey
➡️Seeds
➡️Potatoes
➡️Brown rice
➡️Almond flour
➡️Flax-seed
➡️Turkey
➡️Oats (must be certified gluten free)
➡️Egusi soup, vegetable soups, okra soup (luckily, most Nigerian soups are gluten free)
Vegetables
➡️Fruits
➡️Amala
➡️Meats
➡️Chicken (that is not breaded)
➡️Fish (that is not breaded)
➡️Pounded yam
➡️Fufu
➡️groudnuts
➡️Cashew nuts
➡️Walnuts
➡️Pulses
➡️Butter
➡️Cooking oils
➡️Margarine
➡️Buckwheat
➡️Corn flour
➡️maize
➡️sago
➡️arrowroot
➡️Potato flour
➡️Natural yogurt
➡️Yam
➡️Rice
➡️Amala
➡️Ewedu
➡️Locust beans (dawadawa)
List of Nigerian Foods Rich in Gluten and can trigger the worsening of celiac disease – Avoid these foods if possible.
You should avoid them if you have celiac disease, gluten sensitivity or inflammatory bowel disease.
➡️Semolina/Semovita/Semo
➡️Pastries eg. spaghetti and macaroni (unless marked gluten free)
➡️Wheat
➡️Cookies/biscuits(unless marked gluten free)
➡️Cupcakes (unless marked gluten free)
➡️Bread (unless marked gluten free)
➡️Pasta (unless marked gluten free)
➡️Indomie noodules
➡️Flour
➡️Malt drink (Amstel, Maltina, Dubic etc)
➡️Barley
➡️Wheat germ
➡️Buns
➡️Rye
➡️Bulgar
➡️Shawarma
➡️Couscous
➡️Farina
Sausages
➡️French fries
➡️Processed cheese
➡️Mayonnaise
➡️Ketchup
➡️Malt vinegar
➡️Soy sauce
➡️Non-dairy creamer
➡️Bacon
➡️Hot dogs
➡️Ice cream
➡️Syrups
➡️Wheat grass
➡️Beer
➡️cereals ( unless marked gluten free)
Can you really avoid these foods? Please do not use gluten free diets as your weight loss regimen. It will backfire! Gluten free foods does not mean they are healthier foods. It only means they are suitable for a particular group of people with a medical condition called celiac disease. Dont get it twisted.
Sources:
1. RISE – Nutrition, Wellbeing & Movement
2. Further reading on Celiac Disease: Mayoclinic
