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Oct/Nov 2010
Features
Soy Controversy
Soy can be found in baked goods, cereal, crackers, canned soups, vegetable broth, salad dressings, imitation bacon bits, energy bars, reduced-fat peanut butter, pasta, Worcestershire sauce, deli and luncheon meats and vegetarian meat alternatives. It’s also in some vitamin E supplements, prescription drugs and cosmetics. And don’t forget soy infant formula, soy milk, soy lattes, soy nut butter and soy veggie burgers. Americans love the soybean. Nearly one quarter of us report that we drink soy milk regularly.
How to Avoid Soy
The U.S. Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) requires that packaged foods that contain soy must list it on the label. Soy oil is exempt from U.S. labeling laws. Studies show that most people with soy allergy can safely eat products containing soy oil and soy lecithin. (Check with your healthcare provider to be certain this is true in your case.)
Celiac: Diagnosis Delay
Subscribers OnlyWhen Jennifer Hudner was diagnosed with celiac disease, it was long overdue–more than 30 years overdue. While delayed diagnosis is not uncommon with celiac disease (the average time for diagnosis is 11 years from symptom onset), a 30-plus year delay is staggering. Hudner, a clinical social worker with elementary-aged children in West Hartford, Connecticut, suffered from gastrointestinal problems since high school. Over the years she sought help from countless doctors and was diagnosed with numerous conditions, including functional colitis and a nervous stomach.
A BOO!-tiful Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Blast
For the parents of food-allergic children, Halloween can be downright scary - and not because of witches, ghosts and goblins. Treats offered by well-meaning neighbors to cute-costumed kids can strike fear in the hearts of moms and dads. That's because most popular candies contain peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, wheat or other allergens that can make their children sick - and can even be life-threatening.
Easy and Delicious! Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving gives us time to reflect upon our blessings and share a memorable meal with family and friends. Unique among holidays, this all-American day of gratitude doesn't revolve around presents, egg hunts, fireworks, costumes or romance. It revolves around food. That’s why it can stir up anxiety for those with special dietary needs. What foods will be served? Which dishes are safe? What can you eat? What can you bring? What can you make gluten-free?
Departments
Life Story
Actor, Author, Math Whiz
It’s been over 15 years since Danica McKellar starred in television’s The Wonder Years, sharing her first kiss with co-star Fred Savage. The 35-year-old actress is married to composer Mike Verta and is expecting their first child this fall. Allergic to wheat, McKellar recently sat down with Living Without to talk about her special diet.
So Good
Let’s Bake Gluten-Free Bread!
Learning how to make great gluten-free bread is like learning how to drive a car. Before you can drive, you’ve got to know the basics: how to start the engine, how to steer, how to stop. Reviewing the function of each ingredient introduces beginning cooks to the concept of substitution--and successful substitution is a key survival skill for every bread-loving baker who happens to be food allergic or food sensitive.
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Harvest Fresh
Subscribers OnlyFall marks the end of the growing season, the time to reap the benefits of fresh produce. Now’s our chance to savor those garden-fresh squashes and the abundant fall produce at the farmer’s market and your local grocery. Cooler temperatures bring us back to the kitchen to turn the harvest into meals worthy of giving thanks.
House Call
Berry Good
Subscribers OnlyIn the lineup of beneficial berries, cranberries are often overlooked. Yet this tart little fruit, a native of America, is a nutritional super-star. The main health claim of the cranberry is related to urinary tract wellness. Cranberries contain specialized proanthocyanidins and d-mannose, active compounds that block pathological bacteria from attaching to cell walls in the kidneys and urinary tract, helping prevent urinary tract infections.
Pediatric Allergies Q & A - Nut Allergy, Reflux, Pumpkin Seeds & More!
Subscribers OnlyMy 18-year-old daughter is severely allergic to nuts. She’s about to move out to attend college. I’m worried that she won’t do what she’s supposed to do to prevent a serious reaction. Should I be concerned?
Research Roundup: Baby's First Bite, Diagnosing Autism and More!
In the study, part of the All Infants in Southeast Sweden project, over 9,000 parents recorded when breast-feeding started and stopped, dates of first gluten-containing foods, and all infections during the child’s first year of life. Occurrences of biopsy-confirmed celiac disease were then recorded over approximately seven years of follow-up.
Try it
Living Without's Favorites: Flour Power
Vermont-based King Arthur Flour, the oldest flour company in America, has launched a line of gluten-free baking mixes (bread, brownies, chocolate cake, cookies, pizza crust, pancakes, muffins) that whip up quick and easy and taste delicious.
Living Without's Favorites: Pumpkin Eater
Looking for a healthy snack? Munch on Gerbs Pumpkin Seeds. Nutrient dense and fiber rich, Gerbs are free of gluten, wheat, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts with no artificial anything. Gerbs offers both sweet and savory options.
Living Without's Favorites: Mix It Up
What happens when a holistic nutrition counselor decides to lose the wheat, dairy and sugar in her baked goods? Her loss is our gain. Welcome to delectable products by Purely Elizabeth—three nutritious muffin mixes (cacao, blueberry maple and apple spice) and one pancake mix made with all-natural, organic ingredients and no gluten, dairy or sugar.
Living Without's Favorites: A Pasta Pick
No gluten, no “Big 8” food allergens, no carbs, no calories, no fat. Miracle Noodles are simple soluble vegetable fiber made from the Shirataki root, a plant grown in parts of Asia. Pre-cooked and packed in water, it’s seconds before these noodles are ready to be sauced and consumed.
Read it
Living Without's Favorite Books: Help Yourself
Need a hand taking charge of your special diet? Check out The Allergy Self-Help Cookbook (Rodale Press) by Marjorie Hurt Jones, RN. Originally published in 1984, this updated edition provides over 350 recipes using natural, wholesome ingredients for breakfast, lunch and dinner, not to mention snacks, drinks, desserts, holiday dishes and even meals for camping.
Living Without's Favorite Books: Get an Attitude
Gourmet Meals in Crappy Little Kitchens (Health Communications, Inc.) by Jennifer Schaertl proves you don’t need expensive appliances and granite countertops to produce culinary miracles. Schaertl combines feisty humor with baseline practicality for a cookbook that works for people who live in tiny spaces on limited budgets.
Living Without's Favorite Books: Easy Does It
At last. A Dummies book about celiac disease. Introducing Celiac Disease for Dummies (John Wiley & Sons) by Ian Blumer, MD, and Sheila Crowe, MD. Like others in the Dummies series, this one is well organized and easy to read. It gives you a good understanding of this vastly under-diagnosed genetic autoimmune disorder.
Living Without's Favorite Books: Sweet Desire
Do you battle sugar cravings? Many of us over-indulge a runaway sweet tooth and feel out of control. Now there’s help, thanks to Jacob Teitelbaum, MD, a doc with a mission. Teitelbaum’s Beat Sugar Addiction Now! (Fair Winds Press) explains our obsession with sweets—and then tackles it.
Make it
Spooky Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free Treats
Haunted by what to serve your little ghost or goblin? These allergy-friendly, gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free muffins are moist, delicious and versatile. Unfrosted, they’re tasty for breakfast.
Food for Thought
No More Salt
Subscribers OnlySix years ago, I was abruptly forced to remove salt from my life. Diagnosed with lupus-related kidney failure, the doctors put me on a strict no-sodium diet. Good-bye prepared foods, baked goods and most dairy products. So long French fries, pasta sauce and my favorite blueberry muffins.