Posts Tagged ‘Gluten-Free’
Do you suffer from wheat allergies or have celiac disease?
May 6th, 2010 | 
Author: Learn to enjoy meals again with Gluten Free recipes.
If you’ve just been told that you or a family member has celiac disease, it’s likely your head is spinning with information overload and you’re in a daze of disbelief. A celiac diagnosis isn’t the worst thing but it can feel like the end of your world—at first.
I was diagnosed over ten years ago by a gastroenterologist who didn’t offer any guidance about how to live my life gluten free. Although I commend him for finally discovering the reason behind the ailments that had stumped doctors for many years, when he informed me that I had to change my lifestyle, he didn’t include instructions on how to do it. Since then, I’ve spoken to celiac groups and taught gluten-free cooking classes around the country and I can confirm my experience was not unique. People are often left with more questions than answers after their diagnosis and they can feel woefully unsupported.
Fortunately, it’s never been easier to embark on a special-diet lifestyle. Follow these tried-and-true steps to be on your way to a happier and healthier gluten-free life.
Understand Your Disease
Make a point to learn all you can about your condition. Read recently published books written by acknowledged experts and turn to websites run by national celiac organizations, noted celiac research centers and trusted publications. The Internet offers a wealth of material but some of it is erroneous or, at minimum, conflicting. Be sure to verify data and make certain your sources are reliable. As you learn more about the disease and your new lifestyle, you can explore other resources with more confidence and better scrutinize the information being proffered.
Don’t Settle
Just because you are now eating gluten free doesn’t mean that you don’t have the right to enjoy delicious meals. Trust me. I’ve tasted more than my share of just plain awful gluten-free food. Don’t buy it. Don’t order it. Don’t make it. Once you know it’s possible that your food can be just as good as (if not better than!) wheat-based foods, you’ll become adamant about wanting only the best. If we all demand better, companies and restaurants will have to respond with delicious products.
Exhale
Relax. It’s going to be all right. Your diagnosis is a life sentence, not a death sentence. You’ve been handed the opportunity to largely control your health by what you choose to put into your body. Without a prescription, you can heal yourself simply by taking charge and changing a few of your foods. Now don’t you feel better already?
Get sample recipes on our recipe page.
It is possible for you to enjoy meals again with the Gluten Free Cookbook and recipes. Enjoy!
Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake with Semi-Sweet Chocolate Icing
Ingredients:
Cake:
- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1/2 cup rice flour
- 1 cup cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 1/2 tablespoons xanthan gum
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup butter at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 3 eggs
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
Icing:
- 5 ounces chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the sorghum, tapioca, and rice flours with the cocoa powder, xanthan gum, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a large mixer bowl, cream the butter until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in the brown and white sugars; whip until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and egg yolks one at a time. Add the vanilla. On low speed, alternately combine the buttermilk with the flour mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pan.
- To make the icing, in the top of a double boiler over medium high heat, melt the chocolate chips (or use microwave). Remove from heat and cool until warm. Stir in the sour cream and vanilla; add heavy cream. Stir in additional heavy cream to make desired consistency. Once the cake is thoroughly cool, spread a thin layer of frosting over the top.
Posted in Gluten Free Recipes | 
Tags: chocolate cake, gluten free cake, gluten free recipe, Gluten-Free, recipe | 
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New Research Shows Benefits of Gluten-Free Camps for Kids with Celiac Disease
Monday February 15, 2010
Children with celiac disease who attended a gluten-free camp benefited from improvements in well-being, emotional outlook, and self-perception, according to an article scheduled to appear in the March issue of the medical journal Pediatrics. (An advance copy of the report was published online today.) Based on their results, the authors of the report concluded, “A gluten-free camp that provides an environment of unrestricted foods can at least temporarily alleviate stress and anxiety around food and social interactions.”
Dr. Mel Heyman from the University of California, San Francisco, who oversaw the project, told me, “Many of the children, especially the teenagers, commented that this camp environment provided ‘the first time in their lives that they didn’t have to worry about the foods they were eating’ – and ‘It was great knowing that all of the food provided were safe to eat.’” And finally, Dr. Heyman added, many kids wished they didn’t have “to wait until next year to have that feeling again!”
Dr. Heyman and his colleagues distributed questionnaires to 104 children with celiac disease at the beginning and the end of a week-long session at a gluten-free camp in California (Celiac Camp at Camp Arroyo). Seventy-seven children completed both of the questionnaires.
The 77 campers who completed both surveys were between the ages of 7 and 17, and most of them were girls (only 21 were boys). Overall, 70% had been on a gluten-free diet for less than four years.
All of the children enjoyed the camp, “no longer feeling different from other kids or feeling frustrated with a restricted diet,” the researchers said in their paper. A press release from the American Academy of Pediatrics, which publishes the journal Pediatrics, points out that “those still learning to adapt to a life with a gluten-free diet benefited the most by no longer feeling embarrassed or singled out from other kids by having a restricted diet. In addition, participants were able to interact with others who had been on a gluten-free diet for a longer time, and were able to learn new coping mechanisms from them.”
Specifically, Dr. Heyman and his colleagues write, “The positive effects of camp were more apparent among campers who had been on a gluten-free diet for less than 4 years compared with those who had been on a gluten-free diet for 4 years or more,” which suggests, they say, that over time, children adapt to life on a gluten-free diet.
The researchers hope their findings will encourage children with celiac disease to attend these camps so they can improve their quality of life at home, at school, and during social interactions.
If you’d like more information on gluten-free summer camps, see my 2010 list of camps and dates.
Dr. Heyman mentioned to me that he is also involved in a camp for children with inflammatory bowel disease, so pass the word if you know anyone who could benefit from that!
Source:
Bongiovanni TRS, Clark AL, Garnett EA, et al. Impact of Gluten-free Camp on Quality of Life of Children and Adolescents with Celiac Disease. PEDIATRICS (doi:10.1542/peds.2009-1862) Published online February 15, 2010
Read about other recent advances in celiac disease research.
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Posted in Celiac |
Tags: Benefits, Camps, Celiac, Disease, Gluten-Free, Research, Shows |
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