When someone is declared yeast intolerant one of the first things to come off the menu is bread followed by products that contain white flour like biscuits, cake and crackers. This doesn't have to be the end of your toast in the morning or sandwich for lunch. There are a multitude of recipes available to make wheat free cakes and bread to help you carry on much as normal.

When we look at white flour products we think of the white sliced loaf from the supermarket, doughnuts from your local shop and an assortment of biscuits, crackers and cakes. The main problem with these products they all contain high levels of sugar. Some because they taste better, others are profit driven. The presence of sugar automatically erases these items from a yeast free diet.

The main problem with wheat itself is the wheat germ which complements the growth of candida in the body. So we include all the wheat flours; brown, wholemeal and other variants, which are also excluded.

Wheat flour is used for bread making because of its high gluten content. Gluten is the binding agent when flour is used in bakery or sauces. Most substitute flours lack, or only have small amounts, of gluten so it may be necessary to combine different flours for taste and the appearance of the finished product. To follow we will look at the top six wheat flour substitutes generally available. Most of these contain gluten and are not recommended for a gluten free diet.

1. Amaranth flour is ground from the seeds of the Amaranth plant and is high in protein which makes it nutritious flour for baking. Also it is known as: African spinach, Chinese spinach, Indian spinach, elephant?s ear.

2. Arrowroot flour is ground from the root of the plant and is usually used for thickening soups and sauces. It is tasteless, and becomes clear when it is cooked,

3. White rice flour is milled from polished white rice so it is bland in taste, and not very nutritious. The flour is ideal for recipes that require a light texture, for example dumplings or batters.

4. Brown rice flour is heavier than, white rice flour. It is milled from unpolished brown rice so it has a higher fiber count and is more nutritional. Because it is a heavier type flour it is usually combined with other flours. Bulk buying of rice flour is not recommended because it readily absorbs moisture from the air giving it a short shelf life.

5. Cornflour is ground from corn into a fine white powder, and is usually used for thickening recipes and sauces. Because of its light texture it works well mixed with other flours for pancakes and batters. Some types of cornflour are ground from wheat but should be clearly marked.

6. Sorghum flour is a relatively new type of flour on the market but should be available in ethnic food stores. It is ground from sorghum grain, which is similar to millet and is usually used to make porridge or unleavened breads. It is an important part of the staple diet in Africa and India.

There are plenty of other types of flour on the market regarded as wheat free and they all have different attributes. Unfortunately none of them seem to match up to wheat flour to be able to make good textured bread.

There are also other kinds of flours that come from a variant of wheat and might not be so easily recognizable. These include bulgar flour, durum flour, semolina flour and granary flour. Also be aware of generic names like cake flour and sauce flour, these generally will contain wheat flour.