This is the time of year when parents are planning their summer activities and for those kids on the gluten-free diet those plans include attending a gluten-free camp. There are a number of gluten-free camps out there who are in need of volunteers to perform a variety of tasks.
They camps lists below are looking for volunteers to work six hour shifts in the kitchen. If you are interested in helping make this a
The phone rings…it’s my friend calling to see if I would like to come over to dinner. Little does she know that I have just been diagnosed with Celiac disease and I’m now nervous about eating at other people’s homes…
I’m still learning what to eat and how to read labels. I feel my heart beat increase, and my palms start to sweat. “What is this weird feeling,” I ask myself. I feel like I’m going to panic…and all over a social invitation. “What’s wrong with me, this shouldn’t be a big deal. It never was before, I’ve always just done what I wanted.” Oh yeah, I remind myself, it’s because I don’t know if I will be able to eat if I go over. Maybe I just shouldn’t
“Real Food” can be defined as natural, unprocessed, traditional and nourishing foods that human have always eaten. This includes things like whole fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices, fish and seafood, and animal protein. These lie in stark contrast to our modern foods which have been grown with the use of pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, have very often been genetically modified, and had chemicals and flavorings (synthetics and other highly-addictive allergens) added.
For those living a gluten-free lifestyle, supporting “real food”, or “pro food” as it’s sometimes called, with our purchases is important because it reduces the risk of being exposed to and ingesting gluten. Processed foods — both conventional and
Currently we have a proposed government definition of the term “gluten-free” for food labeling purposes but no final rule. Under the proposed rule, a labeled gluten-free food has to contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten. When the final rule is released this number could stay the same, go up, or go down—a little or a lot.
The amount of gluten a labeled gluten-free food is allowed to contain is only part of the story. Another part is testing. The FDA stated in its proposed rule that it is tentatively considering using the standard sandwich R5 ELISA and the Morinaga wheat protein ELISA to test food products for gluten when necessary to assess misbranding. In contrast, FDA did not include the omega-gliadin (Skerritt) ELISA among the methods it was considering. One of the limitations discussed in the scientific literature regarding this ELISA is its underestimation of barley protein.
At the present time the R5 ELISA (Ridascreen Gliadin R7001) is widely regarded as the best available validated ELISA for assessing final food product for gluten. In my opinion, all labeled gluten-free foods should be periodically tested using
Have you checked out Gluten Free Works yet? You really should. Founded by Cleo and John Libonati, it is dedicated to “helping people get well, look good and stay healthy living gluten free.” And right now, they’ve got some very sweet Valentine’s info posted.
There’s a gluten-free brownie recipe, gluten-free strawberry heart rice crispie bar recipe and even a heart-shaped pizza recipe from Terri Gruss, MS, one of their regular contributors. Jen Cafferty, founder of The Gluten Free Cooking Expo, shares a starter list of
Ethan Fox never slept more than two hours at a time. He did not speak. He ran continuously, day and night, until he would collapse from exhaustion. After a short nap, he would awaken and run again.
At one year of age, Ethan was diagnosed with autism. At 20 months, after being written off by other physicians, he was placed on a gluten-free, dairy-free diet by Dr. Kenneth Bock, autism specialist and author of “What Your Family Needs To Know About Autism Spectrum Disorders.”
According to Ethan’s mother, Tracy Fox, results were seen within three days on a gluten-free, dairy-free diet. Ethan slept through the night, spoke his first words and has never had a problem since. Now age 6, he is at the top of his class at school with a 97% average…and virtually no one knows he was ever diagnosed with autism.
Valentine’s Day is quickly approaching. It is a day of flowers, candy, chocolate desserts, sugar cookies and of course dinner. If you are on the gluten-free diet it can seem daunting to bake a gluten-free dessert that is a crowd pleaser, purchase a pre-made dessert, or determine which chocolates are gluten free, so read on and revel in the amount of gluten-free Valentine’s Day information that is out there to assist you in these tasks.
In our family, we love to dip strawberries and pretzels in chocolate, but since this Examiner is dairy/soy free, we use Enjoy Life’s chocolate chips. We have also used Erewhon Cocoa Crispy cereal to make rice krispy treats and cut them into heart shapes. Our favorite cookies to make are roll-and-cut sugar cookies and then top them with
Rhonda Kane, MS, RD, Consumer Safety Officer at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), provided us with the following status report on FDA’s gluten-free food labeling rulemaking:
“FDA published a proposed rule to define the food labeling term “gluten-free” on January 23, 2007, which had a 90-day public comment period that closed on April 23, 2007. As discussed on page 2803 of the proposed rule (posted under the subheading “Gluten-Free”), FDA committed to conducting a safety assessment on gluten exposure in individuals with celiac disease. FDA conducted this safety assessment in accordance with the data quality criteria discussed in
[Editor’s Note: Kettle Cuisine has since discontinued their line of frozen soups. You can read more about their decision by clicking here.
Twenty years ago, doctors told Jerry Shafir that his baby daughter, Kate, had celiac disease.
In 2007, when the FDA recommended a standard for gluten free foods, Shafir, who owns Kettle Cuisine, applied his expertise in the soup industry and experience in the celiac disease community to develop gluten-free versions, so Kate and everyone on a gluten-free diet could enjoy the same delicious, hearty and nutritious foods that other people take for granted.
The result was an impressive line of 10 different soups, chilies and chowders, six of which we tried – and loved: New England Clam Chowder, Angus Beef Steak Chili with Beans, Tomato Soup with Garden Vegetables, Thai Curry Chicken Soup, Chicken Chili with White Beans, and Chicken Soup with Rice Noodles. The soups are 10 ounces each and serve one person.
Taste, mouth-feel, aroma and ease of preparation surpassed expectations.
Here is our review…
OTTAWA, Feb. 2 /CNW/ – Prime Minister Stephen Harper is being asked to act on the concerns of millions of Canadians with food allergies and celiac disease and listen to the advice of prominent national medical, consumer and health organizations and pass proposed federal food labelling regulations now. The Prime Minister is also encouraged to heed the results of a new public opinion poll showing close to 70% of Canadians want regulations to affect all pre-packaged food and beverages and not grant a special exemption for the beer industry.
According to Angus Reid Public Opinion, 67% of Canadians approve of the proposed rules so they apply to all food and beverage companies, while only 21% believe the government should change the proposed rules to exempt the brewery industry from