Nerea Segura and Nerea Ojuel face the biggest difficulties of daily living when they eat something out of the house. Both are celiac, that is, both have permanent gluten intolerance. “They say that in many places they have gluten-free dishes or pintxos, but it is not usually a great deal. If my friends suddenly tell me that they eat on the street, problems arise, because I have to be very careful about what I like,” Segura stressed. He is also a dietitian and explains that when eating something with gluten, celiacs may have two reactions: On the one hand, those who have symptoms and on the other, those who do not have symptoms, 7 out of 8 belong to this group. “People who have symptoms will easily know that they have eaten gluten as soon as digestion occurs, while asymptomatic people do not, but the injury will do exactly the same.”

Ojuel explains that in these cases, in 30 minutes, he learns because he has symptoms. The most common symptoms are diarrhea and nausea. Both have pointed out that in recent years the supply of restaurants has increased considerably, which has made it much easier for them to do so. “10 years ago, when he said he was celiac, he had to give more explanations, now, many times, they know what he is and therefore what to offer,” says Ojuel. Both are of the opinion that training in restaurants and bars in Euskal Herria is increasing, despite the fact that on many occasions they are seen as cojo.

There is a chef who knows the subject well, as is the case of Juani Paniagua. Similar experiences made when 6 years ago he opened the Orobione restaurant in Lazkao (Gipuzkoa), it was clear from the beginning that he was going to have enough for celiacs in the restaurant as for the rest. “4 years earlier I was diagnosed with celiac disease. Seeing the difficulty I had to eat on the street, I was very clear. I went out with my friends or my family and I couldn't go anywhere for fear of polluting." Everything does in the restaurant itself and, for example, prepares gluten-free croquettes that already have. All the sauces you use are also gluten-free. “People are amazed because here they find everything.”

He has always worked in hospitality and expects things to have changed in recent years: “I’ve worked in very good places and I’ve been very angry about this issue. An anecdote comes to mind, when I saw that I was working at a wedding in a well-known restaurant in San Sebastian, when I told the cook that there was a risk of contagion of a celiac person, and he told me that at weddings people don't pay attention to regimes. I went to see the celiac and told him to talk to me before eating anything.” In recent days he has been in Madrid and when asked if they had a menu for celiacs they answered: “Oh, yeah, what could you not eat?” He believes there is a lack of awareness and interest. “For me, they can prepare a gluten-free meal, but it’s not only that, for me if before making fried potatoes they have fried something with gluten in that place, they contaminate me.” He insists that everything must be cleaned beforehand, that care must be taken with cross-contamination and that he is terribly afraid of what is done in kitchens.

A fashionable diet for many, essential for celiac

There are more and more gluten-free products. Also, gluten-free diets have become fashionable, as an easy way to lose weight. But the dietitian Segura explains that this is not the case. “It’s silly. Hollywood actors started eating this way, arguing that gluten-free eating slimmed down, and that idea has spread.” He has explained to us how they eat in the United States, the role of pizzas and hamburgers in their diet, and that given that they can't eat in the celiac diet, it can be an incentive, in short, because it leads you to eat more vegetables. On the contrary, changes in our environment are not beneficial to the dietitian. “If we change the common bread for a gluten-free bread, for example, we will see that celiac products are nutritionally much worse, have more fat, more sugar, so it is not the best way to lose weight.”

Celiacs have more problems with treated foods, so try to avoid them, as the presence of gluten in processed foods is frequent. Gluten is also used in some products to enhance flavours. The son of Bea Manzanares, Aiur, nineteen months old, is a native of Celia. Tests conducted over the past four months have led to the conclusion that death is inevitable. Now it will be they who do the tests to find out if, like their child, the rest of the family are celiac. Although the most common thing is that symptoms appear in childhood, there are those who spend almost their entire lives without symptoms and manifest themselves in old age. Manzanares, who has just entered the celiac world, has been particularly surprised by the price of celiac food.

Three or four times more expensive

“It’s very expensive. Especially bread. If Bimbo’s bread costs a euro, it costs about 4 gluten-free, and is usually lower if the former is 1 kg, the latter is only 400gr,” Manzanares explains. He adds that buying gluten-free bread is a problem because they do not find fresh bread.

All of them have highlighted that in most supermarkets you can find gluten-free foods. There are more and more products on the market, and although it is expensive, the dietitian Segura believes that he has taken the path of normalcy. As for the price, Ojuel explains that being celiac in buying a month can mean spending more than a hundred euros. According to the available data, the average annual food expenditure is EUR 1,200 more. “You always have to be looking at what to buy and what not to buy,” Ojuel added.

Currently, according to European regulations, gluten products must be labelled. That has been one more step for celiacs in the words of Segura. “From the beginning you know if you have gluten or not, you have been forced to explain it clearly on the label and that helps us a lot.” He adds that gluten is used in many products, as it is a stabilizer that can be present in preservatives, dyes or thickeners, for example. As for labels with registration code, he has also given us a warning: “Sometimes they can have gluten, you have to be careful about it.” As far as prices are concerned, he added that biscuits and pasta are the most expensive and, in his view, by failing to buy them they would bring down the budget of the basket, he is in favour of making that effort.

Tag Lights and Shadows

The cook Paniagua says you have to look at the labels well. The products that give you the most confidence are those that have the FACE stamp. In other words, they are supervised by the Spanish Celiac Association. In the case of those who have a ray on wheat, the authors say it is gluten free, but associations are not supervised. And finally, there are those who say they don't have wheat and they shouldn't have gluten on their own, but they can have it. They're the main source of trouble for celiacs. “Although the product does not contain gluten, at the place where it is packaged, for example, they can pack products that already have gluten, so the product may be contaminated.” It is likely that the influence of this will be noted soon after by many celiacs; Paniagua explains that he would have nausea, seizures and diarrhea below.

On the other hand, we have been surprised that the dietitian Segura, lately, due to fashion, in many products of “gluten-free” supermarkets, even in which there is no need to explain. “I’ve seen bottles of water and/or oil with that label, and it’s clear they don’t have gluten because they’ve never had it.” Fashion has also benefited celiacs, as labels are clearer and information has changed a lot in recent years. “I had to go with a book 10 years ago to know what to eat and what not, in recent years, as the number of people diagnosed increases, we all find information easier,” added Ojuel.

She was diagnosed with about a year, but she was barely twice “about to go to the other world”, there we have also seen the change in the words of the protagonist. The time when Ojuel was admitted has had nothing to do with the diagnosis of Manzanares' son. However, the latter has reminded us that at first the mother was considered hysterical by the doctor and due to her heaviness they were able to perform blood tests on her child.

The subject that the celiac introduces from the very beginning is that you have to be “heavy” to avoid problems; learn to live in a constant struggle.