Quick tips for new players.

Believe it or not, if you're gluten intolerant, there is still a lot of of food out there for you. And if you're gluten intolerant and vegetarian, there's still plenty of food available. These days the awareness is higher than it used to be and at least in Australia new food packaging laws require known allergens to be listed on all packaging, which takes some (but not all) of the guess work out.

That said, your Grandmothers and Mother were all right: fresh is best, and you can pretty much eat fresh fruit and vegetables, eggs, and meat without worrying about gluten intake.

Exceptions to this include some processed meats. You know those really convenient small portion packs of ham and chicken and pastrami and turkey? Check the ingredients list. Those seemingly benign 'quick and easy' options often contain stuff you don't want to eat, including wheat gluten and other Wheat or Barley derivatives like dextrose and maltodextrin. Read everything if you want to stay well.

Shopping for staples is another common trap. Before you take on the breakfast cereal aisle, know that most mainstream breakfast cereals are made with wheat or at the very least, wheat based deriviatives and even those like Corn Flakes and Rice Bubbles will have our friend Maltodextrin from wheat or Barley included. Read everything carefully if you want to stay well.

As most mainstream breads are made from Wheat or Rye or Barley flours, they're also a no-go zone. There are a number of wheat and gluten free breads out now, some of them as near to inedible as you can get and a few that are really pretty good. My current favourite is stocked at Coles and is made by Moores Handmade Specialty Breads. It's a Gluten Free, Wheat Free, Yeast Free Wholegrain Low GI loaf and it tastes GREAT. It handles pretty well, toasting more like wheat-based breads than any other gluten free bread I've found and until it's a couple of days old, it holds together pretty well, making it suitable for sandwiches. It's still delicate as most Gluten free breads are, but is the best option I've found so far. A close second is the Country Life Bakery Gluten Free Multigrain loaf and their Fruit loaf which is a personal favourite as it has no added sugar (last time I looked). Performance is pretty close to the Moores multigrain loaf but it's a little more delicate and seems to need double toasting time.

Looking for Pasta? Simple, quick and cheap alternatives include asian rice noodles - they come in a variety of sizes and shapes and even in vermicilli style. They take less than 5 mins to cook and are a very quick easy answer as a snack, or can easily be made into a balanced meal with freshly chopped vegies and or meat or egg. If you'd prefer more traditional pasta, try Freedom Foods Gluten Free pasta. Alternatively Orgran foods make gluten free wheat free vegan pastas and San Remo now also has a fantastic gluten free range.