I don't know when exactly it started but it's been going on since long before this baby boomer was born. I'm guessing that our story begins at the turn of the last century, around 1900, when the industrial factory-farming machine was born. Right from the cradle they launched a campaign to separate food from the farm and cooking from the kitchen.
This began with advertising campaigns based on a culture of want. By making us want what we didn't have, their campaigns have managed to spin most of the world off it's emotional axis. Developing in us a desire for perceived convenience was key, also a craving for the "big three", as I call them: fat, salt and sugar. By producing foods overly saturated with the "big three", they have effectively destroyed our ability to taste anything else.
This is also where the food industry's giant carbon-footprint stems from. They have evolved us into a culture of waste, by overly complicating the process of producing and over-packaging this dream. These manufactured cravings and desires have been the fuel of their engine ever since. We have been eager to consume foods which have made us overweight, sick, addicted and emotionally unstable.
So how does this little history lesson all relate to gluten-free eating you may ask, well I'll tell you. At first when people were diagnosed with gluten intolerance they immediately had to learn how to feed themselves. This in most cases, unless you were rich enough to have someone else do your cooking for you, meant learning how to cook. There was not much convenience food to be had. The really scary thing to me is that, with approximately 1 in 150 people in the U.S. suffering from either full blown Celiac disease or seriously debilitating gluten-intolerance, the industrial food complex has targeted us as their next, new exploding market. I am shocked by how quickly the shelves in my local supermarket are filling with gluten-free products whose ingredient list you need a degree in science to understand. Just because the label says gluten-free, does not mean it's good for you. Opportunistic food giants banking on our laziness, are ready to pounce. They are planning to make billions of dollars from our inability or lack of desire to simply cook for ourselves. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying don't by any pre-packaged gluten-free products. I am saying, be careful what you buy, look for short ingredient lists that do not rely too heavily on corn thickeners and all sorts of starches. Be sensible, eat mostly fresh, well-prepared real food supplemented, if you like, by gluten-free convenience foods like crackers, pizza crust etc.
Do not let carbon-guzzling food manufacturers carjack your food regimen by luring you into to the back seat while they drive your cravings. Becoming gluten-free is not a jail-sentence but a blessed opportunity to take back your food, take back your life, take back your taste buds, take back your health. I heartily encourage all my gluten-free readers to learn to experience the satisfying joys of cooking for yourselves and your families, you won't regret it.
Find out about local CSA's, locate a nearby farmer's market, go shopping and get cooking. It's really easy, if you just resolve to do it. Thanks for listening, have a beautiful gluten-free day!
