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Dec/Jan 2011
Features
Special Diets: Visit Atlanta
Subscribers OnlyThe thought of traveling can be intimidating for those of us with celiac disease and food allergies. Anxiety about meal planning and being away from the safety of our own kitchens can often deter us from hopping in the car or boarding a plane and exploring a new city. While these fears will never completely disappear, the good news is that more places around the United States are making moves to accommodate us. There are geographic pockets—vacation spots like Disney World and cities like New York—known for their progressive stance on dietary restrictions. As awareness increases, other areas—like Atlanta—are becoming more friendly to those with special dietary needs.
Eating Out
Subscribers OnlyLooking for Gluten Free? Here’s help for gluten-free restaurant dining while traveling.
Full of Beans
Most Americans don’t consider beans part of their everyday fare. The lowbrow legume isn’t prominent on many restaurant menus or buffet tables. Yet beans, also known as pulses, provide an essential source of daily nourishment for millions of people around the globe.
Ease Off the Gas
Subscribers OnlyBeans offer noteworthy nutrients and health benefits, in addition to great gluten-free flavor and versatility. Yet people tend to shy away from eating beans because of their bad rap for being noisemakers. Beans contain natural oligosaccharides--a sugar that's are difficult for the human body to break down and digest. As a result, this sugar moves to the large intestine where it’s then digested by bacteria, causing flatulence. To prevent the side effects, dietitian Elizabeth Somer offers this advice.
A Celiac Pill
Subscribers OnlyA university dietitian helped arrange for a selection of gluten-free cereals, yogurt, plain chicken and veggies for Simon in the main cafeteria but she still felt she was missing out. Her options were bland and limited. She knew college presented a special set of challenges—but she suspected the diet would always be socially inconvenient. Would there ever be another way to treat celiac disease?
Slim, Trim...and Healthy
Losing weight is a daunting proposition for most. Throw in a special diet and the challenge is compounded. People diagnosed with celiac disease tend to puton weight after going gluten free. The primary reason? The body absorbs more calories and nutrients as the gut heals. Another reason why celiacs and those allergic to wheat, eggs, soy or dairy gain unwanted pounds is simply because forbidden foods hold more appeal.
Departments
Life Story
Special Diets: Actress Busy Philipps
Subscribers OnlyAway from the glitter of Hollywood, Busy Philipps’ life revolves around family—motherhood, healthy eating, regular exercise and weekly visits to the local farmers’ market. Phillips’ hobby during her downtime is making 3-D cake art but the Illinois-born actress and former Mattel Barbie doll model shies away from indulging in her creations. The reason? She has food sensitivities to wheat, gluten and soy. Here she talks to Living Without about living with a special diet.
So Good
Gluten-Free Latkes for Hanukah
It took hours for my grandmothers to make potato latkes, a traditional Hanukah soul food. The two grated potatoes by hand until the grater nicked their knuckles. Then they fried the pancakes, a grayish gruel, in a thick layer of molten Crisco. Thanks to the food processor, you can whip up these gluten-free latkes in minutes, not hours. The short list of ingredients contains no gluten, dairy or trans fats.
Gluten-Free Healing Soup
Subscribers OnlySoup is comfort food at its best–warm, restorative and packed with nutrients. Whether hearty or light, creamy or clear, chunky or smooth, a good soup is a cook’s masterpiece. Choices abound in terms of flavors and ingredients. Leftover veggies, a turkey carcass or garden bounty can all be put to good use, making soup a cozy meal that’s also economical.
Taking Stock
Subscribers OnlyWhy make homemade broth when there are commercial gluten-free, dairy-free options available? Homemade means better flavor, increased nutrition and control over the ingredients, including the amount of added sodium. You wouldn’t find MSG or mystery ingredients, like hydrolyzed yeast or unnamed spices, in homemade broth unless you choose to add them.
Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Italian Christmas Dinner
I grew up in an Italian household where Christmas was a generous affair. The presents were piled knee-high underneath a massive ornament-laden tree that filled our entire front room. But the real center of our Christmas was the kitchen where my mother bent over bubbling pots, my aunts rolled pasta dough, my father filled glasses with homemade wine and my cousins and I decorated cookies. Here’s a festive gluten-free, dairy-free spread (antipasto, bread sticks, pasta dish, main course and desserts) that celebrates the very best of Italian tradition—without gluten and dairy. Add a fresh green salad and a side of mashed potatoes or polenta.
House Call
Research Roundup: Peanut Allergy, Food Dye, Celiac and Autism
Celiac disease is highly associated with dental enamel defects in childhood, according to an article in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. Two independent dentists examined the teeth of 136 patients (67 with biopsy-proven celiac disease and 69 non-celiacs) and found that those with celiac disease had significantly more enamel defects. However, the findings were confined to children in the study. Eighty-seven percent of children with celiac disease had enamel defects compared with 33 percent of the control group.
Pediatric Allergies Q & A - Puppy Love, Allergy Bully, Flu Vaccine Safety & More!
Our food-allergic son develops a bad rash whenever the neighbor’s dog licks him. Does this mean he's allergic to dogs? We want to surprise him with a puppy for Christmas but now we’re wondering if that’s a good idea.
Probiotics
Subscribers OnlyThe benefits of probiotics are widely known. Billions of these friendly bacteria—two to three pounds worth—live in the gut, helping us digest food and keep the body healthy. With over 50 percent of the immune system in the intestines, a healthy digestive system is critical to wellness.
Try it
Living Without's Favorites: Jewelry with a Job
Allerbling is more than a pretty face. This brightly colored bracelet assembles like a toy, wears like fun kiddie jewelry and alerts others (day care providers, teachers, play date moms, medical staff) to your child’s allergies when he is too young or too ill to speak for himself. Allerbling comes as a kit—two orange wristbands and charms for the Big 8 food allergens—that you customize to suit your child’s medical condition.
Living Without's Favorites: The Real Thing
Not going to Italy soon? No problem. Farmo gluten-free pasta is available on this side of the pond. Offering specialty products since 1922, Farmo produces gluten-free pasta made with corn or rice (or a combo) in a dedicated facility near Bologna, Italy.
Living Without's Favorites: Meals Made Easy
Want to boost nutritional density and expand your gluten-free grain repertoire—but where to start? Reach for quinoa mixes from Free Choice Foods. These wholesome blends of all-natural ingredients are a quick and convenient way to introduce super-nutritious quinoa (read: loaded with protein, calcium, iron, B-complex, zinc) to your menu without having to rinse it or wonder how to fix it.
Living Without's Favorites: Meaty Marvels
If you like meatballs, you’ll love these. Coleman Natural’s gourmet meatballs are fully cooked and frozen to save you time when you’re in a pinch and want flavorful food fast. Serve them as an appetizer or in tomato sauce over gluten-free pasta for a quick meal.
Read it
Living Without's Favorite Books: Mother and Son
Silvana Nardone, author of Cooking for Isaiah (Sprig), is editor-in-chief of Every Day with Rachel Ray magazine and owner of a Brooklyn-based Italian bakery. When son Isaiah was diagnosed with food intolerance to gluten and dairy, most of the family’s recipes became off limits. So Nardone started a voyage of discovery, re-creating dishes with new ingredients while preserving the taste and texture of her son's favorite foods.
Living Without's Favorite Books: Expert Advice
Melinda Dennis, MS, RD, LDN, and Daniel A. Leffler, MD, MS, both well-known specialists at The Celiac Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, join the American Gastroenterological Association and more than 50 other experts in Real Life with Celiac Disease: Troubleshooting and Thriving Gluten Free (AGA Press).
Living Without's Favorite Books: Best Buy
Can’t tolerate wheat? Can’t eat gluten? Here’s a book that’s full of tens of thousands of foods you can have. Gluten-Free Grocery Shopping Guide lists products available nationwide—popular brands (Del Monte, Kraft, Frito-Lay) and supermarket brands (Walmart, Publix, Kroger)—that are sitting on grocery shelves and safe for your special diet.
Living Without's Favorite Books: Gluten-Free Vegetarian
Concerned that dietary restrictions may mean the end of menu variety? Worry no more. Organic chef Leslie Cerier’s Gluten-Free Recipes for the Conscious Cook (New Harbinger) will open up your culinary world. Known for her no-holds creative cooking and appreciation of the earth’s natural bounty, Cerier brings the best out of gluten-free whole grains in a way that is simple yet sophisticated.
Food for Thought
Gluten-Free Poem
Subscribers OnlyJax Peters Lowell, author of The Gluten Free Bible, lives in Philadelphia. This Gluten-free poem was published previously in Alimentum, The Literature of Food (Winter 2010). The poem describes the memory of forbidden food.