Celiac Disease

Gluten sensitivity -- also known as "non-celiac gluten sensitivity," "gluten intolerance" or even "gluten allergy" -- has been real to many of us in the gluten-free community for a long time. But researchers now are starting to agree that such a condition exists, to debate how to diagnose it, and to consider what health risks it might pose.

Last week's release of a paper from top celiac disease researchers (including Drs. Alessio Fasano, Peter Green and Marios Hadjivassiliou) outlining an algorithm physicians can use to diagnose gluten sensitivity should help to spur significant debate on the subject. Hopefully it also will lead to further research on gluten sensitivity, its causes and treatment, and how it relates to celiac disease.

To take a look at exactly where we stand right now, I recently interviewed Dr. Fasano, along with Dr. Kenneth Fine (founder of Enterolab, which offers direct-to-consumer gluten sensitivity testing) and Dr. Rodney Ford, who first theorized that gluten sensitivity may be a primarily neurological condition. Based on those interviews, plus reviews of the little peer-reviewed research available on gluten sensitivity, I've written the following series of gluten sensitivity articles:

Gluten Sensitivity - The Basics
Gluten Sensitivity vs. Celiac Disease
How Many People Have Gluten Sensitivity?
Gluten Sensitivity Symptoms
Gluten Sensitivity Tests
Gluten Sensitivity Health Risks

Put all together, these articles spell out where we are in our current understanding of gluten sensitivity.

Unfortunately, there's still plenty more that we don't know about gluten sensitivity -- for example, it's not clear if someone who's "just" gluten-sensitive (as opposed to celiac) can cheat on the gluten-free diet without risking health repercussions (this is obviously a really important question!). We'll know more as research continues. In the meantime, I hope this gluten sensitivity series helps you to understand this condition.

Keep up with the latest in the celiac/gluten intolerant world -- sign up for my newsletter, connect with me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter - @AboutCeliac.

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Hershey's kisses are popular year-round, but I suspect Valentine's Day represents a yearly peak for the iconic candies -- I get plenty of questions around this time of year asking if they're gluten-free or not.

The simple answer is, the basic milk chocolate candy is gluten-free, but variations on it are not. You can figure out if the particular ones you've got are safe in my short article: Are Hershey's Kisses Gluten-Free?

Lots of other Valentine's candies are gluten-free (although not all of them, by any means) -- if you have more you want to check against the list, here it is again: Gluten-Free Valentine's Candy.

And, we're down to the two final days for nominations in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers' Choice Awards. If you have a gluten-free bread, bread mix, pasta, cookie, frozen pizza or restaurant chain that you think is the best of the best, be sure to nominate them. I'll be announcing the finalists next week.

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Lots of us will be celebrating an early Valentine's Day this weekend -- my guess is, restaurants will be packed tonight and Saturday night. To me, packed restaurants are scary (too many chances for rushed staff to make a mistake). I'd rather stay home and cook.

To that end, I've pulled together recipes for four very different (but equally delicious, I think) Valentine's Day menus. You can choose from traditional Italian, hearty beef, a brunch menu and a gluten-free-kid-friendly menu featuring heart-shaped pizza.

All include yummy dessert recipes -- does flourless chocolate cake sound good to you? What about gluten-free cheesecake? Or even Rice Krispies Treats decorated with gluten-free Valentine's candy? (That last one is on the kids' menu, but you adults might like it too!)

To get the details -- and start planning your own gluten-free Valentine's menu -- check out this article: Gluten-Free Valentine's Recipes.

Oh, and don't forget to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, restaurants and more in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers Choice Awards -- nominations close in six days!

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It's not too late to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, bread mix, pasta, cookies, frozen pizza or restaurant in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers' Choice Awards, but the clock is ticking ... we're down to one week left for nominations.

This is the first year for the gluten-free awards (and the sixth year overall for the About.com Readers' Choice Awards), and I have to say I've been amazed at the volume of nominations I've received. But since products and restaurants will move to the finals primarily based on how many nominations they receive in this round, it's definitely not too late to make your voice heard -- your nomination could push your favorites over the top and into the finals.

How does it work? Check out my main 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers' Choice Awards page, which contains plenty more details, plus links to the nomination forms. Nominations will close next Weds., Feb. 15 and I'll announce the finalists a week later, on Weds., Feb. 22.

Good luck to all the nominees!

Keep up with the latest in the celiac/gluten intolerant world -- sign up for my newsletter, connect with me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter - @AboutCeliac.

Would you take a pill or a vaccine that would allow you to be less careful with your diet? You may get the chance within the next few years.

At the moment, there are three potential drugs for celiac disease in development, including two pills (one to break down gluten in your intestinal tract and one to curb leaky gut), plus a vaccine that's designed to desensitize you to gluten. Here are the details of what's in the pipeline: Celiac Disease Drugs In Development.

All of these drugs are still in clinical trials, and it's not clear which -- if any -- eventually will be approved. But it's not too soon to think about whether you would take one.

So ... would you? Vote in the poll below.

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How can physicians diagnose gluten sensitivity when there's no accepted medical test for it? An expert group headed by Dr. Alessio Fasano, director of the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research, proposes using an algorithm that first rules out celiac disease and wheat allergy, and then diagnoses gluten sensitivity based on the person's response to a gluten challenge.

The diagnostic algorithm, plus new classification language for all gluten-related disorders, was published Feb. 6 in the peer-reviewed online journal BMC Medicine (get the article here). It's intended to serve as a guide to improve the diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune gluten reactions (celiac disease, dermatitis herpetiformis and gluten ataxia), gluten sensitivity and wheat allergy.

The paper represents a joint effort to define gluten sensitivity and help diagnose it from 15 experts in the field, including Dr. Fasano, Dr. Peter Green, who heads the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University, and Dr Marios Hadjivassiliou, a consultant neurologist and expert in gluten ataxia who practices at Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield, England.

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Oatmeal (and the oats it's made from ) represent one of the most confusing aspects of the gluten-free diet.

Even though most experts in celiac disease have concluded that celiacs -- well, most celiacs -- won't react to the oat protein avenin the same way they react to gluten, there's still research ongoing on oatmeal and its potential role in the gluten-free diet. In addition, most oatmeal on store shelves is not gluten-free, due to gluten cross-contamination at the farm and in production facilities.

That makes the answer to the question "Is oatmeal gluten-free?" a staunch and confident "Er, it depends." I explain more in my article Is Oatmeal Gluten-Free? Or Does It Contain Gluten? If you're someone who can eat oats, the article also lists potential sources for certified gluten-free oats, and explains the parts per million levels to which the various companies test.

Don't forget to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, restaurants and more in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers Choice Awards!

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Doing anything involving food takes a bit of advance planning when you're gluten-free, and Valentine's Day is no exception. So if you intend to celebrate the holiday -- which is 12 days from now -- it's not too early to lay in some plans.

Take it from someone who's made this mistake (me): it's not a day to be a walk-in at a restaurant and expect a perfect gluten-free meal.

You've got several choices for Valentine's Day venues (restaurant or home) and gifts (candy? gift basket?). My article Celebrating Valentine's Day Gluten-Free lays out the various options and explains what you'll need to do now to make your Valentine's Day perfect.

Don't forget to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, restaurants and more in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers Choice Awards!

Image © Getty Images/Jeremy Woodhouse

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from Elisabeth Hasselbeck's new gluten-free cookbook, Deliciously G-Free. On the one hand, I respect Hasselbeck for helping to raise awareness of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity -- she's done quite a lot for the cause. But on the other hand, she's also been a bit of a controversial figure in the gluten-free community (she has referred to celiac as an "allergy," which of course it's not).

Regardless, I picked up Deliciously G-Free with an open mind and the hope that I'd find some interesting new recipes to try. Well, I did find some interesting recipes -- her French toast with caramel rum bananas looks great, for example. And the book does contain some good tips to avoid gluten in a shared kitchen.

However, as I explain in greater detail in my review of Deliciously G-Free, I think this gluten-free cookbook is best-suited to those who are brand-new to the gluten-free diet, and who haven't yet figured out how to substitute ingredients to make old favorites gluten-free. This is a decent basic gluten-free cookbook ... but it's not much more than that.

Don't forget to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, restaurants and more in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers Choice Awards!

Image © Elisabeth Hasselbeck

It's that time of year again: the store shelves are filled with Valentine's Day candy in pretty red and pink wrappers. Which begs the question: Is any of that candy gluten-free?

Yes, it is. In fact, there's plenty of gluten-free candy choices for Valentine's Day. I explain what's gluten-free (and what's not) in this list: Gluten-Free Valentines Candy.

If you want a candy gift box, however, that's a little more difficult. Unfortunately, most of the gift-boxed Valentine's Day candy on the shelves contains gluten. There are a few options, which I detail in my article on gluten-free candy boxes ... if you want one of those delivered in time for Feb. 14, you should order it as soon as possible.

Don't forget to nominate your favorite gluten-free bread, pasta, cookies, restaurants and more in the 2012 About.com Gluten-Free Readers Choice Awards!

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