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 People who are new to Celiac disease or who have experienced first hand the difficulty of eating a gluten free diet may see this page and think it's impossible to be vegetarian or vegan along with a gluten free diet. However, there are a lot of great things you can eat that are animal friendly and also gluten free. If you're a current vegetarian or vegan you'll be happy to know that maintaining your diet is possible in cooperation with Celiac disease! There are all kinds of vegetarian and vegan dishes and foods you can still eat that are gluten free. Fruits, vegetables, gluten free pastas, gluten free pizzas, salads, Indian food, Thai food, Mexican food, there is a whole variety of things to choose from.
The resources are limited in comparison to what is out there for normal Celiacs, but there are several online resources for vegetarians and vegans who have Celiac disease. One of the most thorough and easily navigable is Vegiac.com, which is an online community exclusively for vegetarians and vegans who have Celiac disease . It's a growing community and well worth a look!
You can also find a variety of different "blogs", or online journals, of people who are either vegetarian or vegan who are living with Celiac disease. These may also be highly valuable tools for finding recipes and ideas with coping with what maybe relatively new dietary restrictions for you. Here are a few to get you started: The Gluten Free Vegan Blog, Gluten-Free Bay, I Am Gluten Free.
A good thing to note is how with the awareness of such things as gluten in the diet, manufacturers who make gluten free products often make them with other dietary rescritions taken into consideration. For instance companies frequently advertise what their products do not contain, like soy, animal products, corn, etc. This helps when shopping for vegetarian or vegan gluten free products.
There are many advantages to a vegetarian or vegan Celiac disease diet.
- Easier to eat gluten free since the majority of your foods are naturally gluten free (fruits/vegetables)
- High fiber intake
- Great source of vitamins, nutrients and phytochemicals
- A lot less "bad" fats (saturated and trans fats)
- Lower risk of cancer & disease
- Lower blood pressure
If you're thinking, "I wanna be a gluten free vegetarian/vegan, what should I be eating?" Well, great question.
If you're goal is to be a vegetarian you might want to keep some of the following in mind when thinking of foods to eat.
- Fruits (as a snack, part of a meal)
- Nuts/legumes (almonds, beans, etc.)
- Dairy (milk, cheeses)
- Vegetables (salads, on top of gluten free pizzas, stirred into pasta)
- Pasta (only pasta made from rice, potato, non-wheat flours!)
- Soy products (soy milk, tofu, soy cheese, etc. These are all high in protein!)
If you're goal is to be a vegan you should follow the same list as above only minus the Dairy products and any other animal products.
Good luck to you! If you need any help check out the forums at Vegiac.com !
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Vegetarian/Vegan Diets 
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