Miley Cyrus' Lactose "Allergy"

There are days when I long for the time when nobody knew what lactose intolerance was. Sure, that era was terrible, but no information is higher on the scale than bad information. Today lactose intolerance is an all-purpose joke that the ignorant trot out when they have nothing better to say.

Miley Cyrus is now nineteen, which means she's old enough to know better and old enough to take responsibility for her words.



Images like the above have appeared on the net, which show Cyrus as being disturbingly thin. Naturally, rumors about her having an eating disorder or anorexia sprang up. That's a serious subject and worthy of a serious response. Could be we so lucky? No, of course not.

Here's her actual twitter posts:



I hope I don't need to remind anyone reading this that lactose intolerance is not an allergy - it is, in fact, totally different in almost every way from true milk protein allergies. Gluten intolerance, more properly called celiac disease, isn't a real allergy either. Both are effects of food not being digested properly rather than immune system responses.

You, and by you I mean everybody out there within reach of a normal supermarket, can thrive on a complete, healthfilled, calorie-laden, and satisfying diet even if you can't have gluten or lactose, although the earliest parts of the transition period may be rough until you learn how to adapt. Glucose and lactose intolerances should never be excuses for poor nutrition, bad food habits, or losing excess weight.

Can Ms Cyrus make things even worse? You'd think not, and you'd be wrong. Among her many tweets was one showing her holding a bag of burgers from the popular California chain Carl's Jr. Her caption: "I can’t eat it. So I’m just gonna smell the shittttt out of it! My mouth is LITERALLY watering."

That's an eating disorder. That's the definition of an eating disorder. Or else that's stupidity of a magnitude that not even spoiled pop princesses should ever be allowed to get away with.

Me, I vote both.

What Causes a Wheat Allergy?

A welcome back to Christian Nordqvist, writer for MedicalNewsToday.com, whose excellent and comprehensive articles on various subjects of interest and concern to your readers I take delight in linking to.

His most recent article is What Causes a Wheat Allergy?.

People with a wheat allergy have an abnormal immune system response to at least one of the proteins that exist in wheat. It is one of the most common childhood food allergies, but may affect adults as well. The person with a wheat allergy has developed a specific antibody to a wheat protein, and sometimes more than one.

People with wheat allergies can respond with a variety of possible signs and symptoms, including breathing difficulties, nausea, hives, bloated stomach and an inability to focus. With some people the consumption of wheat and wheat products may result in anaphylaxis - a life-threatening allergic response.

The allergic reaction involves IgE (immunoglobulin) antibodies to at least one of the following proteins found in wheat:

• Albumin
• Globulin
• Gliadin
• Glutenin (gluten)

Most allergic reactions involve albumin and globulin. Allergy to gliadin and gluten are less common. Gluten allergy is often confused with Celiac disease or some other digestive disorders.

Some people have an allergic reaction when they inhale wheat flour, while others need to eat it in order to experience symptoms. An allergic reaction can occur within minutes or sometimes hours of either consuming or inhaling wheat.

Previous posts:

All About Diarrhea

Sugars and Carbohydrates

Bowel Incontinence

No Gluten in Blue Cheese

As a self-educated expert I depend upon the knowledge of others, so if they're wrong I'm wrong. That forces me to have a highly developed detector for anything that sounds even slightly off. I always doublecheck those claims before I accept them.

You'd think that celebrities intruding into the field would have highly paid people to do that work for them. Far too great a percentage of the time, they amass information rather than rigorously filtering it.

Case in point: The View correspondent Elizabeth Hasselbeck and Oprah favorite Dr. Idiot Oz. Oz had Hasselbeck on his show to discuss gluten-free eating, because, wonders of wonders, she has a book out. But neither one of them seems to have done their homework.

On Chicago Now.com, Patricia Biesen wondered:

This week Dr. Oz devoted a show to celiac disease featuring Elizabeth Hasselbeck. For the record, the only thing I have in common with Ms. Hasselbeck is that we both avoid wheat in our diets. A lot of GF experts don't agree completely with her book, The G-Free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide as she claims certain foods like blue cheese contain gluten. I'm not sure how moldy cheese can contain gluten but judge for yourself.

The link goes to Dr. Oz's website, which claims:

Gluten can also hide in other foods and food products like bacon bits, blue cheese, beer, flavored coffee, licorice and soy sauce.

So what do real gluten-free experts say?

I just happen to have in front of me the new issue of Gluten-Free Living. And they have an article specifically about blue cheese, which says:

You have probably heard or read that clue cheese is off limits for celiacs because moldy bread is used to produce the blue veins. That's how it was done in the past. But there is reason to believe that the process has been supplanted by one that relies on lab-grown cultures. ...

[T]he Canadian Celiac Association did extensive testing on several types of blue cheese. They used three types of tests on five samples of different blue cheeses, testing each sample three times. In all cases, no detectable gluten was found. ...

So, the facts are in on blue cheese. It would be safe for those on a gluten-free diet even when the mold the produces it has been grown on bread.

Blue cheese is often cited as one of the relatively low-lactose cheese varieties as well. That means it can be on both diets' lists, though obviously not if you're allergic to dairy protein.

Try also to be allergic to what celebrities say. Take the word of those of us who anonymously toil to get the real information and the correct facts out to you.

The Everything® Gluten-Free Cookbook

When I was checking out The Everything Lactose-Free Cookbook for yesterday's post, I discovered that the same publisher had several years earlier published a similar volume, The Everything® Gluten-Free Cookbook: 300 appetizing recipes tailored to you needs! by Rick Marx and Nancy T. Maar.

Product Description
If you're one of the millions of people affected by Celiac Disease or a gluten/wheat allergy, The Everything® Gluten-Free Cookbook is your complete resource for great-tasting, gluten-free meals. Complete with 300 recipes especially created with your needs in mind, you'll find many options for healthy, tasty eating. From pasta casseroles and creamy soups to cakes, cobblers, and vegetarian fare, The Everything® Gluten-Free Cookbook offers instructions on preparing meals perfect for family dinners and special occasions.

Features recipes for:
Yellow Squash and Apple Soup
Shrimp and Lobster Salad
Spicy Cornbread Stuffed with Chilies
Curried Lamb Grilled on Skewers
Turkey and Fruit with Wild Rice
Chocolate Mint Swirl Cheesecake with Chocolate Nut Crust

In addition to these mouth-watering meals, you'll also find resources for buying gluten-free ingredients, suggestions for parent-approved kids' snacks, and entertaining tips for sit-down dinners, children's birthday parties, and more. Whether you're planning everyday meals or cooking for a crowd, The Everything® Gluten-Free Cookbook is packed with a flavorful variety of foods to tantalize your taste buds and fit your dietary needs!

About the Authors
Rick Marx is the author of The Everything® Grilling Cookbook. He currently edits two monthly magazines, The Westchester County Times and The Fairfield County Times, serving audiences in New York and Connecticut, respectively. Informally known as "The Grillmaster," he was featured on CNBC and The Discovery Channel for his "everyman" attitude and facility behind the grill. He resides in Katonah, NY.

Nancy T. Maar has written about food, health and nutrition for more than twenty years. She has written for magazines and newspapers on food, events, business, and restaurants.

I didn't have a chance to check this cookbook out personally so I do know if there are similar quirks inside like those of the Everything Lactose-Free Cookbook. But I warn you to check out every cookbook carefully before you buy because each and every one has some quirks, flaws, and idiosyncrasies.

Adams Media paperback
304 pages
List price: $15.95

Judge Rules Out Class Action in McDonald's Suit

The law is for people with long memories. Most of you probably don't remember a post I made three full years ago, Dairy Derivatives in McDonald's Fries.

To remind you, here's the beginning of that post.

McDonald's has always claimed that it had no dairy in its fries. Good.

McDonald's has decided to disclose the presence of common allergens in its foods in response to the new labeling laws even though it doesn't legally have to. Good.

Oops. It turns out that they've slapped a milk label on those dairy-free fries. Bad.

Here's the story as it is being reported by the Associated Press.

McDonald’s director of global nutrition, Cathy Kapica, said its potato suppliers remove all wheat and dairy proteins, such as gluten, which can cause allergic reactions. But the flavoring agent in the cooking oil is a derivative of wheat and dairy ingredients, and the company decided to note their presence because of the FDA’s stipulation that potential allergens be disclosed.

It took all of three days for the first lawsuit to be filed.
McDonald's Sued Over Fries Announcement.

In that one I said:

No doubt some federal judge will put these into a class-action lawsuit somewhere down the line. At that time we'll find out a lot more info about what was in those fries and whether they ever held any danger for the milk allergic.

Since then the various people suing McDonald's did try to get a class action going against the company. But they didn't success. Today U.S. District Judge Elaine Bucklo called the proposed class "too broad" and "unmanageable."

The story, as reported by Bridgett Freeland of the Courthouse News Service, said that:

The putative class claimed that McDonald's failed to properly list allergen information for its french fries and hash browns until February 2006, when it adjusted the nutritional facts to reflect that the products were partially fried by the supplier in an oil containing small amounts of wheat bran and casein. McDonald's had previously stated that the products were gluten- and dairy-free.

Judge Bucklo wrote that the proposed class was "over-inclusive:" anyone who purchased the fried potatoes from McDonald's between Feb. 27, 2002 and Feb. 7, 2006, and who had been diagnosed with "celiac disease, galactosemia, autism and/or wheat, gluten or dairy allergies," regardless of whether they bought the products in the belief that they were allergen-free.

Bucklo wrote that there appears to be no physical harm caused by the consumption of these products among the named plaintiffs, and that if there is such evidence, delving into such proof would be far too time-consuming for such nominally priced items.

I'm assuming that individual suits can continue, but if there is no proof of physical harm then they have a greatly diminished chance.

In the meantime McDonald's has greatly improved its nutrition labeling. This is what it now gives for French Fries.

Potatoes, vegetable oil (canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivatives]*), citric acid (preservative), dextrose, sodium acid pyrophosphate (maintain color), salt. Prepared in vegetable oil ((may contain one of the following: Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to preserve freshness), dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent). *
CONTAINS: WHEAT AND MILK (Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients).

You can search for labeling of individual foods at their Nutrition Info page.

Zeroing In On Gluten

An article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Zeroing in on Gluten, offers a good basic overview on the subject of celiac disease, the better and more modern name for gluten intolerance.

An estimated 3 million Americans have celiac disease. The medical community doesn't define celiac disease as an allergy but an autoimmune disorder in which nutrients aren't properly absorbed in the small intestine. The culprit is gluten, a variety of grain-based sticky protein found in a vast array of natural and manufactured ingredients and food products -- including wheat, barley and rye flours that provide the tender, elastic texture in that slice of bread.

It is estimated that the condition affects one in every 130 people worldwide, and it is undiagnosed in about 90 percent of Americans who have it.

Normally, nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine, which is lined with tiny fingerlike projections called villi. Villi add to the intestine's surface area, increasing its ability to absorb nutrients. But in celiac disease, gluten appears to flatten the villi and damage them, reducing the body's ability to take in nutrients properly. Inflammation of the intestine results.

Celiacs don't only suffer discomfort or serious pain when they consume gluten. The condition can lead to a wide range of symptoms and ailments, says Dr. Lori Mahajan, a pediatric gastroenterologist at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital.

"When infants and children develop celiac disease, it's typically when solid foods are introduced," she says. "They can exhibit abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, bloating and gassiness. They can test positive for anemia. In older kids, there may be delayed puberty, or elevated liver enzymes, which can be misdiagnosed as hepatitis. Type 1 diabetes can occur."

...

In adults, common symptoms can include abdominal distention -- a "bloated" feeling -- and intestinal discomfort ranging from bouts of flatulence to chronic severe pain. Weight loss can accompany the disease because of the body's inability to absorb nutrients, and fatigue and exhaustion often result.

"If the villi have fallen off the intestinal walls, you can't easily absorb carbohydrates," Mahajan says. Milk sugars become a problem for the patient who becomes lactose intolerant, which can be misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome, she says.

Wheat- and Gluten-Free Baking

Add to the many stories I've posted about dairy allergic teenagers creating their own cookbooks from the recipes they developed themselves a gluten-free variation, with a twist.

The twist is a big one. A boy rather than a girl did the baking. And the boy is the younger brother of the celiac sibling.

That's the story Bonnie S. Benwick gave in the Washington Post. The boy in question is now 17-year-old Michael H. Perlman. His sister, Jordan, didn't get the cooking gene. He did.

The cookbook is professionally designed, with notes on ingredients and, unexpectedly, food-related quotes from Don Quixote and Shakespeare. Mike calls it "Cookies for Breakfast: A Teen's Not So Bad Guide to Wheat and Gluten-Free Baking," just because it sounds appealing. Proofing recipes turns out to be tedious, difficult work.

Proofing anything is, kid. Believe me.

You can check out his website at www.cookiesforbreakfastcookbook.com/.

Three Reasons to Avoid Wheat

Naomi Coleman of the The Daily Mail tries to sort out the various ways that wheat and gluten can affect systems. Here's a shortened version.

What is gluten intolerance?

Gluten intolerance - otherwise known as coeliac disease - is an inflammatory condition of the digestive tract, caused by gluten - a protein found in wheat, rye, barley and oats. It is not a contagious illness but is often genetic.

Coeliac disease affects one person in every thousand. Most people are diagnosed between the ages of 30 and 45. Classic symptoms include lethargy, weight loss, vomiting and diarrhoea.

The condition causes Gluten to damage the lining of the small intestine which greatly reduces the ability of the gut to absorb adequate nutrients from food. In the worst cases, this can lead to severe malnutrition. ... The only treatment available to sufferers of Coeliac disease is a gluten-free diet.

What is a wheat allergy?

A sensitivity or allergy to wheat can produce a variety of symptoms in the body such as sneezing itching, rashes, watery eyes, runny nose, coughing, hay fever, headaches, nausea, digestive problems, swollen limbs or general aches and pains.

When someone is allergic to a certain food, their immune system reacts as if the food were an invader and produces antibodies. ...

Unlike classic allergies, if you are allergic to wheat you will usually be allergic to more than one food. On average, sufferers react to four or five different foods.

Sufferers are advised to eliminate wheat from their diet altogether and replace with rice, corn, millet, buckwheat or potatoes.

What is wheat intolerance?

Wheat intolerance does not involve an immune response. The reasons why people suffer from wheat intolerance are not entirely understood. Some experts believe it occurs when some people are short of the enzymes necessary for the proper digestion of wheat.

Symptoms of wheat intolerance can include bloating, headaches and joint pains. ...

The only proper diagnosis for wheat intolerance is a test called a food challenge, carried out in a hospital. The patient is blindfolded and tested for wheat under controlled conditions.

The patient is then monitored over three days to see if they develop any symptoms. Depending on which foods they react to, a food elimination programme is carried out under strict supervision.

International Study on Special Diets Published

Last year, many websites that promote a gluten-free or allergy-sensitive diet encourages their readers to take part in a survey of experiences while eating out or traveling.

The final study, titled Understanding Gluten and Allergen-Free Experiences of Guests & Hospitality Worldwide, summarizes the findings from over 2700 customers and businesses in 35 countries.

The reports states, not surprisingly, that 80% of of those with food allergies or celiac disease eat out less because of concerns with foods they haven't prepared or vetted themselves.

The full report will cost you $380. However you can get a free executive summary at www.allergyfreepassport.com or at www.glutenfreepassport.com. A related site, www.glutenfreeonthego.com, provides access to "the world's largest directory of gluten-free establishments."

Gluten-Free Girl Writes a Cookbook

Next month always comes around, doesn't it?

Last month I posted Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Cookbook in which I wrote:

Sullivan's article also lists several good resources for allergy information on the net. I've listed many of them before, but it's always good to have them in one place.

Glutenfreegirl.com, written by local blogger Shauna James Ahern, is an entertaining and insightful look at living the good life without gluten. (Ahern's book, "Gluten-Free Girl: How I Found the Food That Loves Me Back ... & How You Can Too" will be published by Wiley in October.)

Well, it's now October and Ahern's book is available. Gluten-Free Girl: How I Found the Food That Loves Me Back...And How You Can Too was published by Wiley with a list price of $24.95.

Book Description
A delightful memoir of learning to eat superbly while remaining gluten free.”- Newsweek magazine

"Give yourself a treat! Gluten-Free Girl offers delectable tips on dining and living with zest–gluten-free. This is a story for anyone who is interested in changing his or her life from the inside out!"–Alice Bast, executive director National Foundation for Celiac Awareness

“Shauna's food, the ignition of healthy with delicious, explodes with flavor—proof positive that people who choose to eat gluten-free can do it with passion, perfection, and power.” –John La Puma, MD, New York Times bestselling co-author of The RealAge Diet and Cooking the RealAge Way

“A breakthrough first book by a gifted writer not at all what I expected from a story about living with celiac disease. Foodies everywhere will love this book. Celiacs will make it their bible.” —Linda Carucci, author of Cooking School Secrets for Real World Cooks and IACP Cooking Teacher of the Year, 2002

An entire generation was raised to believe that cooking meant opening a box, ripping off the plastic wrap, adding water, or popping it in the microwave. Gluten-Free Girl, with its gluten-free healthful approach, seeks to bring a love of eating back to our diets. Living gluten-free means having to give up traditional bread, beer, pasta, as well as the foods where gluten likes to hide—such as store-bought ice cream, chocolate bars, even nuts that might have been dusted with flour. However, Gluten-Free Girl shows readers how to say yes to the foods they can eat. Written by award-winning blogger Shauna James, who became a interested in food once she was diagnosed with celiac disease and went gluten-free, Gluten-Free Girl is filled with funny accounts of the author’s own life including wholesome, delicious recipes, this book will guide readers to the simple pleasures of real, healthful food. Includes dozens of recipes like salmon with blackberry sauce, sorghum bread, and lemon olive oil cookies as well as resources for those living gluten-free.

You can find the book in my Milk Free Bookstore on the Wheat- and Gluten-Free Books page.

Cooking for a Healthy Lifestyle

Pam Wertz of the St. Joseph Institute Spa & Resort emailed me to let me of their book of gluten-free recipes, Cooking for a Healthy Lifestyle, by Jenny Sheetz and Lauren Matosziuk.



Jenny Sheetz says on their website that:

All of my life I have enjoyed cooking and sampling a wide variety of foods.

I developed a taste for different types of food, taking delight in each one. When I discovered that I was unable to eat wheat and other gluten-grains, my life changed dramatically.

The more I changed my life-style, the more I discovered the need for further change. Eliminating gluten-grains was not the complete answer for me. Ultimately, I had to eliminate all grains from my diet.

In a society where foods are based on grain products that was quite a challenge! Since meeting challenges is an area of specialty for me, I decided to meet this one head on. We developed a test kitchen in our home. My daughter, Lauren, and I decided to re-create the tastes we had come to know and love. This cookbook is the result of our efforts.

My hope is that this book will help you find a more convenient life-style that allows you to enjoy meals as a family without having to prepare separate dishes for those who have food allergies.

You can order the book from their order page.

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Blog

One of the Gaggle of Girls on the North Shore has a family with gluten and casein allergy issues.

She's just posted part 1 in a series: "Starting to eat a Restricted Diet."

If you are just starting a restricted diet, everything looks overwhelming. That’s why most people suggest following a simple diet - protein, starch, vegetable, fruit. Roasted chicken served with sweet potato and roasted vegetables is safe for most restricted diets (drizzle olive oil & kosher salt on the chicken & vegetables), as is a grilled steak, salad, and hand-cut steak fries. For a vegetarian option, a nice lentil soup or tofu stir fry (watch out for wheat in the soy sauce, though!) is also easy and safe for most restricted diets.

...

Most food can be made safe for your diet - you just have to try.

No Likelihood of Reactions from Whey-Based Distillates

The European Food Standards Authority (EFSA) has a series of standards in place, much like the U.S. labelling laws, that require listing the presence of possible allergens in food. However, they left an out for manufacturers. Derivatives made from ingredients required to be listed won a temporary exemption from labeling if they had not been scientifically established to cause adverse reactions. That temporary exemption expires in November of 2007.

Medical studies had to be submitted if the exemption was to be allowed to be permanent. The EFSA was charged with conducting those studies.

An article by Jess Halliday on NutraIngredients.com details the results of those studies.

Of importance to us are the following results:

EFSA said that although the analytical evidence was derived from experiments predominantly using almonds, the panel deemed an allergic reaction to be "unlikely", on the grounds that during a properly controlled distillation process proteins and peptides are not carried over into the distillate at levels over 1mg/litre.

A similar opinion was handed down for distillates made from milk-derived whey - such as gin, pastis, ouzo, anis, vodka and other spirits - since proteins and peptides are not seen to be carried over into the distillate at levels above 0.5mg/litre and lactose was not seen to be carried over at levels above 0.4mg/litre.

... [And] the Association des Amidonneries de Céréales (AAC) received the "unlikely" verdict on its two submissions on wheat starch hydrolysates, one of which concerned maltodextrins in coelic disease and wheat allergy, and the other the potential effects of wheat-based glucose syrups in celiac disease and wheat allergy.

GoDairyFree's Product Lists Updated

Alsia Fleming, of GoDairyFree.org, has updated her product lists.

She says:

Regardless of the reason, millions of milk-free consumers are left wondering, “What CAN I eat?” Luckily, one entrepreneurial company has spent months compiling the solution. Go Dairy Free (http://www.godairyfree.org) has just released their second annual Non-Dairy Product Lists. The complete listing boasts thousands of products, with many available in a variety of flavors. Going well beyond the basics, each list includes the following:

• More Than Non-Dairy – Contrary to what the name might imply, milk isn’t the only sensitivity covered in these extensive lists. There are separate product lists and special diet columns specifically for no gluten, no soy, vegan (no eggs, dairy, meat, or fish, with special notations for honey), dedicated dairy-free equipment, and kosher certified. One dietary consideration often warrants another. Many dairy-free consumers with lactose intolerance or food allergies may find themselves taking on a gluten-free lifestyle, for example. These product lists aim to suit additional dietary considerations whenever possible.

• Comprehensive – From cereals to baking mixes, to milk alternatives, the people at Go Dairy Free have scoured every aisle to help fill special diet cupboards and refrigerators. Their shopping trips have covered both mainstream grocers and natural food grocers, identifying only those foods that are dairy ingredient-free (including casein, lactose, and whey).

• Trans Fat Free – In an effort to promote health and natural food when making a special diet transition, Go Dairy Free has followed the mission to make their listings free of hydrogenated oils (trans fats) and high fructose corn syrup.

• Active Links – Questions on the products? The individual listings have active links allowing consumers to click right through to the company’s website to obtain more information.

Go Dairy Free released their first product lists in 2006, though the updated 2007 roster has two new members. A separate consumer company contact list is now available with well over 500 manufacturers, company websites, and consumer email and phone lines. Also, a new nut-free product list has been added, complete with its own company contact list to verify ingredients and manufacturing processes.

The products lists are not free, averaging about $10 each.

Doctors: Learn to Diagnose Celiac Disease!

Once a rare and virtually unknown disease in the U.S. celiac disease, or gluten intolerance, has become fairly well known and understood. Even better, there are many resources available for dealing with it, including many foods that are gluten-free as well as lactose-free. The lactose-free foods part is necessary because celiac disease destroys the villi, the tiny projections on the insides of the intestines where the lactase enzyme is made.

I've covered this topic in several recent posts, including Gluten-Free, Casein-Free (GFCF) Diet Helps Autistic Children, The Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP), and New Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diet Cookbook.

Apparently, celiac disease, or as they spell it coeliac disease, is not as well known in the U.K.

It's absolutely chilling to read Family's battle to have disease diagnosed by Lucia Clifford on the Warwick Today website.

To see her now, Summer Wareing is like any other active five-year-old.

She began to suffer with the symptoms of coeliac disease, but doctors put her ill health down to a reaction to her recent MMR booster.

Summer continued to suffer with severe diarrhoea and her condition was so bad, her mum Ruth took her to the doctor every couple of weeks. She was told to stop being 'neurotic' and that children pick up all manor of bugs.

As the weeks passed, the three-year old was losing more and more weight and had her tummy had become extremely bloated.

Ruth, of Burton Green, said: "After one particularly bad night, I took Summer to our local A and E department where the doctor just laughed and said: "It's the weekend, what do you want me to do about it?"

...

Out of sheer desperation, they turned to private medical care. However, even this was not straightforward and the family had to persist before Summer finally had a blood test for coeliac disease.

When the results came back positive, her family were just relieved to finally have an answer, a diagnosis. However, unfortunately they couldn't begin to help their daughter by starting her on a gluten-free diet until she had had a biopsy to confirm the diagnosis. By the time biopsy was performed, Summer had no villi left in her intestines, which had led to an intolerance to lactose and she weighed less than when she was 18 months old.

Ruth added: "Trying to feed her on a gluten-free diet was a nightmare, she had become so afraid of food, all she knew was that when she ate her tummy hurt. Her doctors told me she was becoming a fussy eater and that we were making her worse because we were being sympathetic to her."

Eventually Summer did begin to trust again and did begin to eat but it wasn't easy trying to find gluten-free foods, while also omitting milk (due to her lactose intolerance), that would entice a three-year old.

Now five years old, Summer is thriving and according to her mum 'has way too much energy'.

It's hard to know whether this is an indictment of Britain's National Health Service (NHS), or just a general lack of knowledge among U.K. doctors.

Either way, the government doesn't come out very well.

People diagnosed with coeliac disease can be prescribed an NHS prescription for basic food including bread, pasta and flour.

Due to current funding considerations within the NHS, some PCTs have sought to restrict or stop prescriptions for gluten-free foods. Due to the comparatively high cost of gluten-free food for many people on lower incomes the prescriptions are essential to ensure they maintain a healthy diet. Coeliac UK has opposed measures to restrict prescriptions where it effects staple foods.

Coeliac UK is "the charity for people with coeliac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis*." Looks to be lots of good information and lists of gluten-free food on the site.

And try to make doctors aware of the problem so that no future Summers are so dark and stormy.


*"Dermatitis Herpetiformis (DH) is an important associated disorder or complication of celiac disease which is manifested in the form of a skin rash. There is strong evidence that the changes in the intestinal mucosa and the immunologic findings in the majority of patients diagnosed with DH are identical with those found in celiac disease. Gluten has been found to have a close relationship with this skin rash. DH is often referred to as "celiac disease of the skin" while CD is referred to as "celiac disease of the gut."
from the Celiac Sprue Association.

New Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diet Cookbook

I don't know why I didn't catch this when I posted Gluten-Free, Casein-Free (GFCF) Diet Helps Autistic Children a week ago, but a major new cookbook on the GFCF diet has been published.

The Kid-Friendly ADHD and Autism Cookbook: The Ultimate Guide to the Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diet, by Pamela Compart and Dana Laake came out late last year. It retails for $24.95, but is cheaper at Amazon and I'm sure other locations.

Book Description
The uniqueness of this book is that it not only provides gluten-free milk-free substitutes and recipes, it provides successful suggestions for feeding the picky eater. The authors share details about just how and why the diet works. The specialty ingredients are explained and extensive sources provided. There are also testimonials from the parents and from the children themselves.

About the Author
Pamela Compart, M.D., is a developmental pediatrician and a functional medicine physician. She is the founder and director of HeartLight Healing Arts, Inc., which is an integrated health care center providing comprehensive traditional and complementary medicine services for children and adults. Dana Laake, RDH, MS, LDN is a licensed nutritionist, talk show host, and educator. Through her practice, Dana Laake Nutrition, she provides preventive and therapeutic medical nutrition services to adults and children.

The reviews on Amazon are good, so this should be another major resource for those parents facing this challenging problem.

The Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP)

Oh, wait, I didn't want to give you the impression that Big Momma's Boy in the last post was unique. It just popped up at the right time.

The Gluten Intolerance group has a whole website devoted to its Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP). They have 893 restaurants listed. You can do a search by location, restaurant name or cuisine at their search page.

Typing Rochester, NY into search brought back ... The Outback Steak House.

Yes, I'm confused too. But GFRAP is a program that works with restaurants according to the following standards:

Levels of Participation chosen by GFRAP Restaurants:

The basic program level includes a complete packet of education and training materials, a review of the restaurant’s GF menus, and the assistance of a Resource Person to answer questions.


The advanced level includes 1-star level materials as well as intensive assistance in menu review by qualified nutrition experts.

The specialized level includes 1-star level materials, intensive assistance in menu review by qualified nutrition experts, and a comprehensive restaurant training program approved by GFRAP.

Outback is a two-star program participant, apparently for the whole chain, given how many hits appear when I search on Outback Steak House.

Despite a Country box, search is limited to the United States.

I've listed other gluten-free restaurants when they pop up in newspaper searches, and you can of course find many by using Google or another search engine to narrow your focus.

Going Gluten-Free at Big Mamma's Boy

As a follow-up to yesterday's post about the gluten-free, casein-free diet, a tribute to one of the few restaurants that make eating out with such restrictions a breeze.

At BlogTO in Toronto, Tim posted a restaurant review of Big Mamma's Boy.



Hopw often do you even see Gluten Free spcialities on a big sign outside the building?

Big Mamma's Boy, 554 Parliament Street, 416-927-1593

Don't Mock These Mock Desserts

Times used to be hard. Yeah, I'm sure you're tired of hearing your parents or grandparents or even great-grandparents telling you about how tough a time they had growing up. Well, tough. They're right. Times used to be much harder.

In the Great Depression people often didn't have money for even the most basic foods. When World War II followed, they finally had the money but those foods were strictly rationed. Irony abounded.

Today the irony lies in the fact that we're surrounded by mountains of food and barrels full of money, but our bodies have betrayed us by saying, "no dairy for you."

Back in the old days, inventive chefs and mothers of all descriptions did what they could to make palatable substitutes for the foods that weren't available.

This tradition lives on in dairy-free -- or gluten-free or corn-free or meat-free or whatever -- recipes that strive to give you as close a version of the original as ingenuity can contrive.

Marcy Goldman at CountryLife.net has collected a bunch of these recipes at that link.

• Flour-Free Crisp Oatmeal Cookies
• Mock Chocolate Cheesecake
• Dairy Free Mock Banana Orange Cheesecake
• Mock Mousse (Frozen Rhubarb Fool)
• Vegetarian Lasagna
• Vegetarian Mock French Pate
• Vegetarian Chopped Liver
• Mock Lobster Salad or Poor Man's Lobster
• Mock Pecan Pie

Here's one just to whet your appetites.

Mock Chocolate Cheesecake
(Served right from the fridge, this tastes just like chocolate cheesecake.)

1 pound unsalted margarine*
1 cup sugar
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. strong coffee
12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, pref. Swiss
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
8 large eggs
*Make sure margarine does not contain milk solids.
[*Most semi-sweet chocolate is lactose-free. True dairy-free varieties are available at most health food stores and even large supermarkets.]


Preheat oven to 350°F.

Lightly grease and dust a 9" springform pan with cocoa. Set aside.

In a saucepan, over very low heat (or using a double boiler) melt the butter, sugar, and coffee together, stirring to blend. Remove from stove and add chocolate, stirring to melt and incorporate.

Let cool to room temperature and add in eggs, using a whisk to blend. Pour into pan.

Bake 50-55 minutes until cake is done. (If cake rises too fast, lower oven to 325°F and cook a little longer, until set).

Chill well in refrigerator before unmolding.

Serve with pureed frozen raspberries (l 10 oz. package pureed with 2 tbsp. sugar in a food processor or blender).

Good News for Gluten Sufferers - from Seaweed!

Those with gluten intolerance - who are often also lactose intolerant because the disease attacks the inside lining of the intestines with the lactase enzyme is made - know that getting gluten-free products that taste as good as those made with wheat is a struggle.

Bread is an especial problem, with the firmness and texture - as well as what is called "mouth feel" - hard to duplicate.
But according to an article, "Marigot mineral complex improves gluten-free bread texture," by Jess Halliday on the NutraIngredients-usa.com site:

Irish mineral specialist Marigot's Aquamin complex appears to have benefits beyond enhancing the mineral content of certain specialist bakery products: it has also been seen to improve the texture of gluten-free bread.

The ingredient, rich in calcium and magnesium, is derived from red seaweed Lithothamnion Coralliodides, which is harvested under licence by Marigot off the south west coast of Ireland.

It has previously been found to improve the sensory qualities in certain categories of fortified beverages, such as soy. But the new investigations, conducted independently at the Ashtown Food Research centre in Dublin, could prove the answer to a common problem for niche bakers - how to make their gluten-free bread firm.

A testing by bakery professionals was highly positive, down to the fussy details of crumb size and crust appearance.

In other good news:

While few details are revealed about their method, it is known that the product was made from plant-based ingredients and suitable for those with an intolerance to lactose and eggs.

As always, don't hold your breaths waiting for this to appear on your store shelves. This is a preliminary report from the labs. It's still some of the best news I've read on gluten-free products.