What is Celiac Disease?

Celiac Disease: an immune reaction to eating gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. Over time, the immune reaction to eating gluten creates inflammation that damages the small intestine's lining, leading to medical complications. It also prevents absorption of some nutrients (malabsorption).

• Symptoms: The classic symptom is diarrhea. Other symptoms include bloating, gas, fatigue, low blood count (anemia), and osteoporosis. Many people have no symptoms. Pain in the abdomen or joints, belching, heartburn, indigestion, nausea, vomiting, cramping, itching, lactose intolerance, skin rash, or weight loss.

• Treatment: The mainstay of treatment is a strict gluten-free diet that can help manage symptoms and promote intestinal healing.

Gluten-free Diet: A gluten-free diet is a diet that strictly excludes gluten, a mixture of proteins found in wheat and related grains, including barley, rye, oat, and all their species and hybrids.

What foods to avoid:

• Grains and their derivatives: Wheat and derivatives of wheat: wheatberries, durum, emmer, semolina, spelt, farina, farro, graham, KAMUT® khorasan wheat, and einkorn wheat. Malt in various forms including: malted barley flour, malted milk or milkshakes, malt extract, malt syrup, malt flavoring, malt vinegar. Brewer's yeas. Wheat Starch that has not been processed to remove the presence of gluten to below 20ppm and adhere to the FDA Labeling Law.

• Common foods: pasta, noodles, breads and pastries, crackers, baked goods, cereal & granola, breakfast foods, beading and coating mixes, croutons, sauces & gravies, flour tortillas, beer,

This is exactly why it was so difficult for me to come to terms with my new diet and why I lost all joy with food. Don't get discouraged when you see the list because I was able to get out of my funk. And I know all of you out there can too!

• Foods that may contain gluten: (These foods must be verified by reading the label or checking with the manufacturer/kitchen staff.) Energy bars/granola bars, french fries, potato chips, processed lunch meats, candy and candy bars, soup, multi-grain or "artisan" tortilla chips or tortillas, salad dressings and marinades, starch and dextrin, brown rice syrup, meat substitutes, soy sauce, self-basting poultry, pre-seasoned meats, cheesecake filling, eggs served at restaurants. (Some restaurants put pancake batter in their scrambled eggs and omelets, but on their own, eggs are naturally gluten-free.)

Possible Accidental Ingestion of These Items:

• Lipstick, lipgloss, lip balm

• Communion wafers

• Herbal or nutritional supplements

• Drugs and over-the-counter medications (Because of my lactose intolerance I had to switch out one of my prescribed medications because of the outer film that changed to being manufactured with a product of lactose.)

• Vitamins and supplements

• Wheat-based Play-dough

What foods to choose:

• Fruits and vegetables

• Beans and lentils

• Nuts and seeds

• Eggs

• Fresh meat and fish

• Dairy products (If you're only allergic to gluten, make sure to double check by reading the label)

• Amaranth

• Buckwheat

• Corn

• Rice and potato flour

• Flax

• Millet

• Quinoa

• Rice

• Sorghum

• Soy

• Tapioca

• Teff

Fun Facts:

• At least one study indicates that people who are more careful in following the gluten-free diet may have a lower risk for early death.

• According to the FDA, if a food contains wheat starch, it may only be labeled gluten-free if that product has been processed to remove gluten, and tests to below 20 parts per million of gluten. With the enactment of this law on August 5th, 2014, individuals with celiac disease or gluten intolerance can be assured that a food containing wheat starch and labeled gluten-free contains no more than 20ppm of gluten. If a product labeled gluten-free contains wheat starch in the ingredient list, it must be followed by an asterisk explaining that the wheat has been processed sufficiently to adhere to the FDA requirements for gluten-free labeling.

• Products labeled wheat-free are not necessarily gluten-free. They may still contain spelt (a form of wheat), rye, or barley-based ingredients that are not gluten-free. To confirm if something is gluten-free, be sure to refer to the product’s ingredient list.