Nutrition Fundamentals Blog #2
Hello people! For this second and last entry in the Nutrition Fundamentals course we shall research and answer a few questions related to the assignment sheet's Option 3: Nutrition and Special Diets. Without further ado, let's see what we can discover about the topic!
Option 3: Nutrition and Special Diets
1) What is a gluten-free diet? What is celiac disease?
Before being able to answer the question, it is preferable to explain what gluten is.
According to Health Canada (2020), it turns out gluten is not a single substance but encompasses "a group of related proteins known as prolamins and glutenins found in wheat, rye and barley" (para. 1). It is interesting to know that the bulk of the gluten is found in the endosperm of an individual grain, as shown in the illustration below:
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| (Celiac Kids Connection, n.d.) |
[Note: Although corn and oats also contain prolamins and glutenins, the latter are different to those found in wheat, rye and barley, and as a result, the two grains can be part of a gluten-free diet (Celiac Kids Connection, n.d.)]
A gluten-free diet therefore avoids all grains and products derived from wheat, rye and barley, as demonstrated in the chart below:
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| (Jules, n.d.) |
Celiac disease, on the other hand, is an autoimmune disease present in genetically disposed people where absorption of gluten leads to an attack from the immune system towards the small intestine (Celiac Disease Foundation, n.d.). This in turn damages the villi, which are protusions found in the lining of the small intestine that help in nutrient absorption, as shown below:
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| (Celiac Disease Foundation, n.d.) |
If left untreated, celiac disease can lead to nutrient deficiency and a plethora of other ailments and other autoimmune conditions, exemplified by the fact it is estimated up to 69% of the celiac population in the United States suffers from anemia (Celiac Disease, Foundation, n.d.).
Symptoms that manifest after a celiac sufferer ingests gluten are divided into classical (diarrhea, abdominal pain, weight loss) and non-classical (anemia, osteoporosis, oral ulcers, infertility, neurological issues) (Canadian Celiac Association, n.d.-a), as well as other long-term conditions:
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| (© Designua | Dreamstime.com, 2017) |
Finally, no treatment exists for celiac disease. The only remedy for those afflicted by this condition is constant monitoring of what they eat and a lifelong avoidance of gluten in their environment, as the latter can be found in medicines and beauty products (Canadian Celiac Association, n.d.-b).
2) What are some reasons people decide to follow a gluten-free diet? In your opinion, what were some challenges they face in following the diet?
The first and obvious reason to follow a gluten-free diet is to avoid discomfort and negative health impacts by sufferers of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. As we discussed in the previous question, they need to constantly monitor their entire environment as gluten can be present and can cause harm to them even in non-food sources.
The second group includes people who are not affected by any gluten-related condition, but follow a gluten-free diet for prospective health benefits. Due to misunderstanding in popular culture, gluten is often used as a synonym for "carbs", so by avoiding it some people hope to lose weight, not realising carbohydrate sources such as rice, corn and potatoes are safe to eat as part of a gluten-free diet. For instance, a colleague of mine recently asked for us to cook her hamburger using a gluten-free bun because "gluten makes you bloated, right"? A temporary gluten-free diet can also be prescribed by one's doctor when a patient suffers from digestive issues and a likely source has not been diagnosed yet.
The main difficulty in following a gluten-free diet is that gluten is present in a myriad of foods, especially processed ones, and other non-food sources. Just as with allergies, this means sufferers need to read the labels of everything they consume and check with service staff every time they eat at a restaurant, not only for main ingredients but also cooking procedures (ie cooking fries in a fryer that is also used for breaded products). Secondly, specific gluten-free products are more expensive than traditional ones. The prevalence of gluten in processed foods means those avoiding gluten are better off cooking everything from scratch, which can become time-consuming and strenuous. Finally, it bears repeating how it can seem their entire lives need to be engineered around avoiding gluten: pets eating pet food that contains gluten can harm their owners by cross-contaminating surfaces and licking them, which might prompt the latter to put their pets on a gluten-free diet as well (Goerner, 2019).
3) What does research show about benefits (if any) of following a gluten-free diet when you do not have celiac disease?
There is no conclusive evidence that following a gluten-free diet when one does not need to do so yields any kind of positive result. If anything, there is a risk of nutrient deficiency due to not compensating for nutrients present in gluten-containing food and of a pricier trip to the supermarket (Mayo Clinic, 2021). Some individuals report better digestive health and increased levels of energy, but these are considered anecdotal testimonies. There is some research, however, that indicates a gluten-free diet for individuals suffering from both celiac disease and epilepsy can see their seizures reduced when consuming a gluten-free diet (qtd. in Whiteman, 2020).
4) In your experience in the culinary industry, what are some common food allergies that you may encounter with your clients in Canada?
As a reminder, the ten priority allergens selected by Health Canada (2020) include:
- Eggs
- Milk
- Mustard
- Peanuts
- Crustaceans and molluscs
- Fish
- Sesame seeds
- Soy
- Sulphites
- Tree nuts
- Wheat and triticale
5) If you ever have or will ever experience a client with one or more food allergies, how would you handle the situation? How would you ensure the food being prepared does not have the food allergen(s)?
I believe that in the case where a client has more than one allergy, it is preferable to take the time to properly assess what their requirements are and go over the ingredients present in the dish several times to ensure we have not forgotten anything. The customer knows better than anyone else where their allergen might hide in plain sight (think wheat in soy sauce or soy in chocolate), so waitstaff should not be embarassed to ask them several questions and even talk them through the recipe.
Moreover, I would encourage those preparing the dish to focus on preventing cross-contamination and not speed of service; indeed, it is when we are rushed and stressed that we make careless mistakes. In addition, all cooking staff should have been trained in sanitary principles, such as not reusing utensils that have been in contact with peanut butter for example.
When it comes to processed ingredients, obviously the cookstaff will need to read labels accurately.
Finally, something I get crossed with my colleagues about is not sticking to a recipe, which is one of the main tenets of the Food Sanitation course we all had to go through. Indeed, desscriptions of menu items are given so that customers not only get enticed by them, but also so that they can assess what they are able to safely eat. If someone orders a mac'n cheese, they should not have to anticipate the cook will put mustard in it when it does not say so in the menu because he feels like it; sticking to what is advertised is wiser than possibly endangering someone else's life for the sake of personal culinary creativity.
6) Provide a personal recipe, in standard recipe format, that is gluten-free and avoids the current top 10 allergens listed by Health Canada. The recipe can be sweet or savoury. Provide photos of your process with a) raw ingredients b) the cooking process c) finished product.
While this recipe is inspired by the Allergen Friendly Pancakes realised by the YouTuber Laura Fuentes (2015), it has been modified to be entirely devoid of the aforementionned ten priority allergens listed by Health Canada.
Coconut Flour Pancakes with Blueberry Coulis
- 2 cups coconut flour
- 3 cups coconut milk
- 1 tbs honey
- 1 cup frozen blueberries
- 3 tbs sugar
- 1 splash of lemon or lime juice
- 1/3 cup water
- Vegetable oil
7) Reflect on your experience of creating this recipe. Did you learn a new culinary skill? What were some challenges in creating this recipe? Would you make this recipe again?
This recipe did not turn out the way I thought it would: gluten-free baking products are notoriously tricky to make as gluten is the glue that binds them together and its absence generate end products that fall apart. Gluten-free baked goods often result of the combination of several components (rice flour, cornstarch, xanthan gum etc) to obtain something that will still have much lesser elasticity than traditional pastries.
In this instance, the "pancakes" (more like sand castles if you ask me) would crumble away by merely being touched, which was not the case in Fuentes' recipe; I suppose this is due to the fact although she used gluten-free flour, it was made from wheat. Being similar to all-purpose flour, this might explain why her pancakes held their shape.
At best, the coconut flour should be toasted like farofa (a Brazilian side dish consisting of toasted cassava flour) or used as breading instead of panko. Since it is healthy, it would be a shame to bypass it completely, however so far it does not look like an ingredient you would use on its own. So better to sprinkle a few teaspoons in smoothies, porridge or baked goods that are based on "normal" flour.
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| Coconut flour is high in fibre: only 2 tablespoons cover 20% of your daily fiber needs, 10 tablespoons and you are set! |
The blueberry coulis was good, but too liquid. Also, the dish was not visually appealing, as the dark blue of the berries made it look like this dish was a culinary representation of an oil spill.
Secondly, what a nightmare it is to figure out a recipe that avoids all allergens! In the pancakes' case, the lack of binding power in the coconut flour could have been compensated by eggs or milk, however if not allowed to use them, the options become limited. Usual dairy replacements, like soy or almond milks, are also not allowed to be used because they are made from priority allergens.
There are of course several dishes that can be served which avoid all 10 allergens, however they would probably consist of "whole foods" like a carb (rice, corn, potato, buckwheat) or legume (chickpeas, black beans, red lentils) with meat (beef, chicken, pork, lamb) and a vegetable (zucchini, tomato, salad, albeit with a mustard-free vinaigrette). More elaborate creations like those found in baking would be a challenge, as baking still relies on the trinity of butter, flour and eggs.
Overall, no, I would not want to do this recipe again, and obviously this was an exercise designed to apply allergy prevention principles to cooking, as I doubt most cooks will ever face a customer that pretty much cannot eat anything. However, it is a useful and important skill to be able to create tasty dishes successfully when one has to avoid or do without a specific ingredient.
Works Cited
Canadian Celiac Association. (n.d-a.). Celiac Disease. https://www.celiac.ca/gluten-related-disorders/celiac-disease/
Canadian Celiac Association. (n.d.-b). Gluten in Lotions/Cosmetics. https://www.celiac.ca/living-gluten-free/gluten-and-lotions/
Celiac Disease Foundation. (n.d.). What is Celiac Disease? https://celiac.org/about-celiac-disease/what-is-celiac-disease/
Celiac Kids Connection. (n.d.-b). What Is Gluten? https://www.celiackidsconnection.org/2018/05/06/what-is-gluten/
Fuentes, L. [MOMables - Laura Fuentes]. (2015, July 6). Allergy Friendly Pancakes: Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LexTnUKqTqU
Goerner, L. (2019, July 1). If I’m Gluten Free, Should My Dog Be, Too? Gluten-Free Living. https://www.glutenfreeliving.com/blog/if-im-gluten-free-should-my-dog-be-too/
Health Canada. (2020, September 17). Gluten – A group of proteins that people with gluten-related disorders should avoid. Canada.ca. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-nutrition/reports-publications/food-safety/gluten-pamphlet.html
Mayo Clinic. (2021, March 18). Gluten-free diet. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/gluten-free-diet/art-20048530
Whiteman, H. (2020, December 17). Is a gluten-free diet good for your health? Medical News Today. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/288406#when-is-gluten-bad
Images Cited
© Designua, Dreamstime.com. (2017, March 13). Celiac Disease Symptoms Checklist [Illustration]. University Health News. https://universityhealthnews.com/daily/gluten-free-food-allergies/celiac-disease-symptoms/
Celiac Disease Foundation. (n.d.). What is Celiac Disease? https://celiac.org/about-celiac-disease/what-is-celiac-disease/
Celiac Kids Connection. (n.d.-b). What Is Gluten? [Illustration]. Celiac Kids Connection. https://www.celiackidsconnection.org/2018/05/06/what-is-gluten/
Health Canada. (2020, June 15). Allergens and gluten sources labelling. Government of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/food-allergies-intolerances/avoiding-allergens-food/allergen-labelling.html
Shepard, J. (n.d.). Going Gluten Free: 7 First Steps [Chart]. GfJules. https://gfjules.com/going-gluten-free/
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