Navigating a gluten-free diet isn’t easy. You need to plan meals ahead, scan food labels for gluten-containing ingredients, and check if restaurants can safely cater for you.
For many, the repercussions for ingesting even the smallest amounts of gluten can be huge. Gluten intolerance can cause abdominal discomfort, sickness, and an upset stomach. For anyone with celiac disease, even a single crumb of bread could trigger long-term illness, thanks to an autoimmune response to the gluten protein.
What you need is a pocket guide to help you manage your gluten-free lifestyle. Here are four handy apps to get you started:
1. Find Me Gluten Free
Boasting a 4.5 stars rating, Find Me Gluten Free is a reliable eat-out guide for anyone following a gluten-free diet.
You can use the app to find restaurants, bars, cafes, and grocery stores that cater for gluten-free diets. Browse your local area, enter a specific address, or search locations around the world to find gluten-free eateries that are suitable for you.
The app is powered by ratings and reviews of other gluten-free users, so you can get first-hand advice on how safe (and tasty!) a restaurant or meal is.
To use the features of Find Me Gluten Free, you just need to sign up with your email address, Google, or Facebook account. During sign-up, you have the option to label yourself as Celiac, Not Celiac, or Not Sure to help provide the most useful results for your needs.
Find Me Gluten Free allows you to view menus (including any gluten-free features at each restaurant), contact, or get directions for each listed gluten-free business.
The app also includes a handy dining card—ideal for showing to waiters who may not be as familiar with a gluten-free diet as you are. The dining card explains that you cannot tolerate gluten, which foods gluten is found in, and what you can eat.
Know of a gluten-free eatery that isn’t in the Find Me Gluten Free directory? You can contact the developer to request its addition to the app, helping out your fellow gluten-free eaters.
Download: Find Me Gluten Free for Android | iOS (Free, in-app purchases available)
2. The Gluten Free Scanner
Have you ever found yourself desperately scanning the ingredients of every food packet in a grocery store for traces of gluten? When you need to check ingredients quickly, you’ll want to use The Gluten Free Scanner—an app that tells you in an instant whether your food contains gluten or not.
To use The Gluten Free Scanner, simply open the app and grant it permission to access your camera. You can then scan the barcodes on any food package to see if it contains gluten, using the in-app barcode scanner. All of your scanned products are stored in the history tab, so you can look back through your foods for a quick reminder of what is safe to eat.
The Gluten Free Scanner is also a handy tool to recommend to any friends or family members who are planning on catering for you and perhaps need a little guidance on safe-to-eat foods.
The database of food and drink products on The Gluten Free Scanner is managed by a team of registered dietitians, nutritionists, and researchers. With this in mind, you can be assured that the accuracy of products on the database is reliable.
If a barcode number you are scanning isn't found in the database, you can leave feedback to request the addition of the product to the app.
It’s worth noting that you can only scan items on the free version of The Gluten Free Scanner. If you want to search for products by name, brand, or category, you'll need to purchase the full version of the app.
Download: The Gluten Free Scanner for Android | iOS (Free, premium version available)
3. Celiac Disease Wheat & Gluten
Whether you’re looking for general advice on a gluten-free diet or specific information on celiac disease, it's worth checking out the Celiac Disease Wheat & Gluten app.
Functioning as a useful guide for those who suffer from celiac disease, Celiac Disease Wheat & Gluten includes vital information about celiac disease. You can learn about what the symptoms are, how to get diagnosed, and how to manage celiac disease by following a gluten-free diet.
You'll also find information on how to avoid weight gain or how to achieve weight gain if you have celiac disease. (You can use the app's BMI calculator to help determine this.)
Although there is plenty of advice directed for celiac suffers on the app, it can still be used by anyone who has a sensitivity to gluten-containing grains. Check out the handy Foods to Eat and Foods to Avoid lists to help navigate your gluten-free diet.
Even if you’re confident you know which foods contain gluten, the Common Gluten Containing Products page may highlight other gluten-containing foods you weren’t aware of, such as bulgur wheat, couscous, or farina.
Additional features can be unlocked with a paid pro version of the app, including a diet plan and home remedies for celiac disease. You can also order a diet chart or consult a dietician through the app.
Download: Celiac Disease Wheat & Gluten for Android (Free, in-app purchases available)
4. Eat! Gluten-Free
Developed by the reputable non-profit Celiac Disease Foundation, Eat! Gluten-Free is a trustworthy app you can use as a one-stop-shop for all your gluten-free needs.
Organized into easy-to-navigate tabs, Eat! Gluten-Free is straightforward to use and full of helpful resources to help you manage your gluten-free diet. You can navigate through gluten-free products and companies, find and contact gluten-free services and celiac disease organizations, and discover gluten-free recipes.
You can browse the vast directory of recipes by searching by course, type of cuisine, or ingredients. You can also create a handy shopping list (linked to Amazon.com for easy purchasing), and make a list to save your favorite gluten-free recipes, products, and services.
You'll also find plenty of links to the Celiac Disease Foundation's useful website resources, including gluten-free meal plans, a celiac practitioner directory, and further information on celiac disease.
Download: Eat! Gluten-Free for Android | iOS (Free)
Is It Gluten You’re Looking For?
If you’re not sure if gluten is the culprit for your dietary symptoms, there are plenty of other apps that help you deal with food allergies. If you think you might have a food allergy or intolerance, it’s a good idea to speak with your doctor before you cut out any foods from your diet.