Awesome News and a Giveaway! CLOSED

In case you haven’t heard, today the FDA announced its decision to standardize gluten free labeling. The FDA’s decision mandates that all products labeled “gluten free” must contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten by August 2, 2014. Awesome, huh?!

Before now there wasn’t a threshold for how much gluten was allowed to be in a product labeled “gluten free,” so this is great news!

Click here for more specifics on the new labeling.

Today also happens to be the 9th anniversary of the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA), making this day even cooler.

Don’t you think this calls for a celebration?! Yeah, me too.

And so does Glutino (they’ve been advocating for years for a gluten free labeling law). They’re going to let me do a giveaway of 5 boxes of their yummy Toaster Pastries to celebrate!

Have you tried these things, yet? They’re quite tasty.

(Did you know, Glutino’s products currently contain less than 10 parts per million of gluten, which is well below the standard announced by the FDA? I’m quite the fan of this company.)

To enter to win 1 of the 5 boxes:

• Comment on this post
• Make sure I have a way to contact you if you win
• Giveaway closes next Friday, August 9, at midnight

Click here to read the official press release from Boulder Brands, Glutino and Udi’s about the new FDA labeling.

A Gluten Free Company that Knows What it’s Doing

As I’m sure you’ve learned, it’s hit and miss when it comes to gluten free products tasting good. Well, if you’re new to doing gluten free, let me tell you… you’ve got it easy. Back when I started living gluten free 6 1/2 years ago there were way more “misses” than “hits.” Every time I purchased a new gluten-free product it felt like I was throwing my money down the drain.

Luckily, my friend who’d been gluten free most of her life was there to help me. She gave me recipes and told me which products were the best.

She told me there was one brand I could always buy without worrying I was wasting my money. That brand was Glutino. She said they’d been around for a long time (since 1983) and knew what they were doing.

And she was right. I’ve never had a Glutino product I didn’t like.

Would you like to hear some awesome news you might not know? How about three bits of awesome news?

Of course you would.

1. Glutino acquired Gluten Free Pantry back in 2004, (I didn’t realize this until a month ago. I just knew that every Gluten Free Pantry mix I’d tried was excellent), and then in 2011 Boulder Brands (formerly Smart Balance) bought Glutino, and they recently bought Udi’s as well! I love Udi’s! That is another company that I completely trust. The point of this is to say, be on the lookout for a lot of awesomeness coming from the Boulder Brands company. They know what they’re doing, and based on the companies they’ve been acquiring, they know what’s good when it comes to gluten free. 
2. Something else great about Glutino and Udi’s products are they’re made from natural and non-GMO ingredients (they’re working with the Non-GMO Project to get verification on their products… some are already done). I believe a huge mistake many people make is they think that if a product is a special gluten-free item, it must be healthy. That’s definitely not true! You need to be selective with the gluten free products you consume, especially if your digestive system has been damaged from gluten in the past. I love that I can trust Glutino and Udi’s to taste good AND be made with quality ingredients!
3. The last bit of news is on a much smaller level, but it’s just as exciting. I’ve been asked to be a part of Glutino’s blogging community!* This is exciting for both me and you. Each month Glutino will be sending me a product to try out and I’ll get to tell you about it and give you ideas on how to use it. And even better for you: I’ll get to do some product giveaways (yay!), so be on the lookout for those.

*I want all of you to know that Glutino has always been a favorite brand of mine and that my opinion of their products hasn’t suddenly changed because of this new relationship with them. Nope. I’ve always loved what they do. The story about Glutino being the first gluten-free brand I trusted is entirely true and I am excited to learn more about the brand and their products.

Update

Sorry I’ve been missing for awhile. Here are my excuses:

• Between a cruise (with the kids) right before Christmas, Christmas, and New Years I’ve been burnt out.
• I’m trying to figure out my health issues and it’s time consuming. I think I’ve figured out what I have, but I need to figure out what to do about it. It appears that I have fibromyalgia that was caused by leaky gut syndrome and candida. I’ve been reading up on those things and working with a natural healer to figure out how to heal my body. Hopefully the fibromyalgia can be reversed. Besides gluten, I can no longer eat dairy or sugar. I haven’t been able to have egg whites for 1 1/2 years now and I’ve tried to stay away from preservatives and artificial flavors and dyes, but now it’s even more important. Figuring out new things to eat has also been time consuming.
• I, of course, have two little kids to take care of and they are BUSY! Plus a husband that I like to hang out with and a house that never stays clean.
• Prison Break. If you’ve seen it, you’ll understand. I can’t recommend it because it’s too addicting.
• The fibromyalgia makes sitting at the computer painful. Oh, and in order to heal my gut I can’t take pain killers, so I have to be careful to avoid anything that I know will hurt me.

So there you have it. Those are my main excuses. And none of them are going away anytime soon (except Prison Break… hopefully we finish that one soon ). We only have a small break in big events. February and March brings my wedding anniversary, Valentine’s, my b-day (I have a real one this year… Feb. 29th… wahoo!), my husband’s b-day, and other family members birthdays.

I guess what I’m saying is, I’m sorry for being a slacker with posting, but don’t expect me to do any better anytime soon. When I feel the blogging bug, I’ll try to take advantage of it. I really do want to continue to post my favorite recipes and gluten free tips, so be patient and know that even if I don’t post for awhile I’m not gone for good.

May: Celiac Disease Awareness Month

Picture from here

Did you know May is Celiac Disease Awareness Month?

It is.

Pretty cool, huh?

Be on the lookout for gluten free promotions at grocery stores, restaurants, and online because of this.   

Click here for a list of restaurants participating in the Chef to Plate campaign this month (Utah is on page 20).  Here's a brief description of what the 2011 Chef to Plate campaign is all about:

This is a grass-roots campaign to help spread awareness of celiac disease and gluten intolerance throughout the nation and into Canada and even Turkey this year, using restaurants that already have a gluten-free menu and have a solid working understanding of how to treat gluten-free menu orders.  We will be sending out Posters and Table Tents to these restaurants to post during the month of May (national Celiac Awareness Month). 

Watch for those posters and table tents.  The exposure is awesome!

Just a few years ago people would look at me with a blank stare as I explained that I couldn't eat flour.  They'd ask if gluten was in beans, fruit, rice, etc.  Nowadays when I tell people I have a gluten intolerance they usually know what it is, know someone who has it, and know the basics of what gluten is in.

I love it!

And months like this can make it even better.  Easier for us at restaurants.  More gluten free choices in the grocery stores with lower prices.  More undiagnosed people discovering the solution to their health problems.  And on and on.  

So be sure to take advantage of Celiac Disease Awareness Month, both by raising awareness and by taking advantage of gluten free specials you'll find.

My GF Journey: Doing tests

 I realized I haven't posted very much about my gluten free story.  I had another blog before this where I posted the story, but I didn't put it on Gluten Free in Utah.  Here is part 2 of 2 about my gluten free journey.  (You can find part 1:  Why I Went Gluten Free here): 

So once I figured out there was a good chance I had a gluten intolerance I decided I'd better stop eating gluten, but also that I should find out what my doctor had to say about it. I can't remember the exact time frames, but basically I tried to go gluten-free, messed up within a week or two, saw my doctor sometime during those 2 weeks, had blood tests done, and had the tests come back negative for celiac.

Now, you may be wondering why in the world I would do something as extreme as going gluten-free if I'm not celiac. Here are my answers:

1. I still might be. There are a lot of reasons I say that. Some are founded by medical research (done by other people, of course) and some are just what other people have told me. A few of the reasons are:
   
   • I had already started my gluten-free diet when I had my blood drawn. I don't think my doctor knew very much about celiac disease. I've come to this conclusion based on the fact that he told me it was okay that I hadn't eaten gluten for a week or two. Some sources say you need to have been eating gluten for at least 3 months prior to having your blood drawn.
   • I don't think the correct blood tests were done. There are 4 blood tests that are supposed to be done to determine if a patient has celiac disease or not and then the results have to be looked at in a certain way. Many doctors don't know enough about celiac to know the proper procedure for these tests and, like I stated above, I think my doctor is among those who don' t know enough about it.
   • Even if the blood tests were done correctly you can still receive a false negative (they say you don't have celiac, but you actually do). There are other tests that can be done that are more conclusive (I'll discuss these in another post).
   • Someone (another celiac) told me that for some people they have to have celiac for at least 9 years before it will show up positive in their blood work (and it will only show up positive if they've continued to include gluten in their diet that whole time). Don't know how true this is (she read it in some book), but I figured I'd share anyway.
     
2. I could still have a gluten intolerance. Which can cause just as many problems as celiac, but it isn't doing the damage to your intestines like it does if you have celiac. I have read that if you have an intolerance and continue to eat gluten, the intolerance can become celiac (if you have the gene for it).
   
3. Most importantly: I feel better when I don't eat gluten. Actually, that's an understatement. It's more like, I feel awful if I do eat it. Maybe I'm just crazy (like all the doctors thought) and it's all in my head and I don't have any sort of gluten intolerance at all. Maybe it's having the whole "placebo effect" on me, but hey, I feel 100 times better than I used to and that's a good enough reason for me.

My GF Journey: Why I went gluten free

I just realized I haven't posted very much about my gluten free story.  I had another blog before this where I posted the story, but I didn't put it on Gluten Free in Utah.  Here is part 1 of 2 about my gluten free journey:

I've had weird aches and pains almost as long as I can remember. It started with stomach aches and nausea, which was diagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome when I was in elementary school. I also had body aches, joint pain, headaches, and other issues. Pretty much I think half the doctors (along with friends and family) thought I was a hypochondriac. Not cool.

In the fall of 2002 I moved to Provo for college. One of my new roommates (who has become one of my best friends) had celiac disease. I didn't really know what that meant at first except that she couldn't eat wheat or flour and if she did it made her really sick.

In the summer of 2006 I was pretty fed up with feeling crummy. I always had stomach aches, headaches, body aches, fuzzy/foggy brain, blurry eye site, etc. One evening at work when I was feeling particularly "blah" and frustrated with it all I had a sudden thought- could I have celiac disease? I had learned a lot more about it from my friend throughout the years and had heard her talk to other people who had learned they were celiac and it suddenly just clicked that this could be my answer as well.

I immediately called up my friend and asked her what the symptoms of celiac disease were. She told me there are a ton (I've since found out there are at least 250) and that everyone manifests it differently. I told her my symptoms and she said they all fit celiac. After work I immediately got on the internet to figure this all out. Not only did all of my symptoms fit, but there were more that I'd never have associated with celiac disease. (Sinus infections and canker sores can also occur as a result of eating gluten if you have an intolerance to it.)

I couldn't believe it! All those years of doctors not knowing what was wrong with me (and many probably not believing anything was wrong at all) and I had figured it out! I tested it out and had some blood work done by the doctor and came to the conclusion that I definitely have a gluten intolerance, if not celiac (more on the testing later... this is already a long post).

I am so grateful for my friend! If I hadn't known her so well and learned about celiac I wouldn't have been able to self-diagnose myself. I also wouldn't have been able to get to the point I am now without her. She was (and still is) an awesome support for me in dealing with the changes the gluten-free lifestyle brings, always being there to answer my questions and give me advice. I'd like to pay her kindness forward by doing my best to support anyone else out there who is switching to the gluten-free life.

Facts and Statistics on Celiac Disease

Here are some Celiac Disease facts and statistics I find most interesting from the UChicago Celiac Disease Center:

• Undiagnosed and untreated, celiac disease can lead to the development of other autoimmune disorders, as well as osteoporosis, infertility, neurological conditions and in rare cases, cancer.
• The average length of time it takes for a symptomatic person to be diagnosed with celiac disease in the US is four years; this type of delay dramatically increases an individual’s risk of developing autoimmune disorders, neurological problems, osteoporosis and even cancer.

Prevalence of Celiac Disease in the United States:

• In average healthy people: 1 in 133
• In people with related symptoms: 1 in 56
• In people with first-degree relatives (parent, child, sibling) who are celiac: 1 in 22
• In people with second-degree relatives (aunt, uncle, cousin) who are celiac: 1 in 39
• In the landmark prevalence study on celiac disease, investigators determined that 60% of children and 41% of adults diagnosed during the study were asymptomatic (without any symptoms).
• Celiac disease affects 1% of healthy, average Americans. That means at least 3 million people in our country are living with celiac disease—97% of them are undiagnosed.

Can you believe that?! Most of the people with CD aren't even diagnosed! It's hard enough to get a diagnosis when you have the symptoms, but according to these statistics 41% of adults with CD didn't even have any symptoms when diagnosed. Crazy! There is definitely a need for more education and research about CD.
I suggest taking a look at the entire factsheet.

Also, keep in mind that these statistics are for people who have actual celiac disease. These numbers don't account for the many people with a gluten intolerance. I believe (my husband hates it when I say this) that the majority of the population would benefit from going on a gluten-free diet.