The CeliAct Blog

In January of 2013, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) ruled in a case in Massachusetts that effectively identified celiac disease and gluten intolerance as legal disabilities. The story is fairly simple – students at Lesley University, in Cambridge, objected to the available meal plan. Those who had gluten-related health concerns were being offered a regular diet of gluten-containing foods, so they had to either go hungry or find another option. Because they had purchased a meal plan with their tuition, however, they insisted that the school find a better solution. In the legal case, the school agreed to recognize the gluten issues as disabilities and to accommodate this by providing gluten-free meals, dealing with […]

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“I hate this gluten-free stuff…it has no taste to me!” thus spoke the teenager in the backseat of the car. It is not uncommon for young people who must abruptly adopt the gluten-free diet to notice the distinct absence of artificial flavors and sweeteners that tend to make up the most popular and common (gluten-filled) snacks. Because this same teen has celiac disease, his ongoing diet of gluten-dense foods was causing him many problems, and the diagnosis was like a ray of light in terms of his chronic fatigue, malnutrition, and bouts of anemia. The problem, as he so clearly stated, was that he “hated” the gluten-free foods. Naturally, they did have plenty of taste; […]

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It can be pretty tough to learn that you can’t eat gluten, and even more of a challenge if you have other dietary restrictions as well. But as a part of CeliAct Blog’s beyond gluten-free mentality, a low-glycemic diet is also essential. Low-glycemic? What’s that? It’s a way of eating that ensures glucose is released into your bloodstream slowly, preventing peaks and valleys with blood sugar. It reduces your chances for many different health issues down the line and can help you feel much better on a regular basis. Read a more detailed description of why you should eat a low-glycemic gluten-free diet here. While there are further restrictions when you add low-glycemic as a […]

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To begin, I figure I ought identify my greatest culinary influence to date – this being a common request in job interviews, interactions with parents, and the like. It’s an easy one. As the only human I know more enamored with food than I, my mother is a shoe-in for the position. There is an infamous Rice Family story which recounts the time my food-obsessed mother dragged me, an ornery and very hungry fifteen-year-old, through the streets of Paris for two hours determined to find the perfect restaurant for our first dinner in the city. Mom, resolute and hardly starving, walked into cafe after cafe, speaking with waiters in faltering French, sitting down at tables, […]

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As with many nutrients, people with celiac disease often have difficulty absorbing protein. Protein is really important to maintain energy and keep your body firing on all cylinders, so protein powders and shakes can be very useful, especially if you’re busy. Whether it’s a for a snack or meal replacement, protein shakes are a great way to fill in the gaps. Now you may be thinking, “Aren’t protein shakes just for weightlifters and bodybuilders?” The answer is no. Eating gluten-free on the go is a difficult enough task, and further, it’s almost impossible to eat nutritiously on-the-go and also feel fulfilled. Especially if you’re a busy person juggling a number of work and family responsibilities, […]

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This is the last installment of our gluten-free fast food series. Over the past few weeks, we’ve shared the gluten-free “scoop” on the top 50 fast food chains in the United States. We hope you’ve enjoyed it, and that this will serve as a good resource if you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to find something safe to eat on the road. You’ll notice that we saved Domino’s for last. Well, that’s because we have a very, very good story to tell about Domino’s gluten-free pizzas that were stirring up so much controversy last year… – Domino’s Gluten-Free Menu   Domino’s has edged out Pizza Hut as the first large-scale pizza […]

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I went to visit my sister in Israel in January, and it was a pretty special trip. My sister is 3 years older than me but was just diagnosed with celiac disease in November 2012. Even though she had just been gluten-free for 3 months, she was so excited to show me all of the gluten-free options that Israel had to offer. In fact, I took a cab from the airport and got to her apartment at the exact same time as a Pizza Hut delivery guy was bringing us dinner… Our review of gluten-free fast food options continues this week as we explore Pizza Hut, Qdoba, KFC, Baskin Robbins, Arby’s, Tim Horton’s, Hardee’s and […]

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Calories are our main source for energy, yet when we’re forced to start eating a gluten-free diet, we can face a new set of challenges where calories are concerned. For one thing, pre-packaged foods that are gluten-free can also be very high in sugar, meaning they have a lot of “empty” calories. Let’s take a look at how to determine the total number of calories you need each day. Then we’ll provide you with 5 gluten-free foods to base your low-calorie diet around. – The Basal Metabolic Rate: How to Calculate Your Caloric Needs   How many calories do you need each day? That is a question whose answer depends entirely on, you guessed it, […]

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Looking to dine out and safely eat gluten-free? That can be even more challenging than you might realize. Why? A lot of restaurants and chefs are not exactly clear on what it means to be truly gluten-free. Some think they know what it means to be gluten-free, but as we’ve discussed before, most don’t know, so they aren’t strict enough with their cooking and serving standards. Luckily for you, there are some essential tools that will help you to find the gluten-free restaurants in your area and will help you determine which restaurants have gluten-free menus and well-trained staff. So, I’ll take you through my three favorite methods for finding the best places to dine […]

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If you’re familiar with governmental dietary recommendations, you’ve probably heard the phrase rainbow on your plate. This means that different color groupings of foods generally represent different health benefits, meaning a colorful whole foods diet is a nutritious way to eat. This is great advice for anyone following a gluten-free diet because it demonstrates a very easy method for balanced nutrition through daily diet. Right? Well, right. But, it’s a little bit more complicated on a gluten-free diet because there are common nutrients missing as a result of not eating certain foods. These missing nutrients can actually be helpful because they give you a more specific focus in planning your diet from the start… – […]

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Long ago, around ten thousand years ago to be exact, gluten made its way into the human diet. Rather than meat, animal fat, and wild plants and roots, humans began eating heavily grain-based diets. You can learn more about why the food supply changed in a previous post about the paleo diet prior to the agricultural era. During this time, grains were refined in vast quantities to be used as a food source for entire communities. Soaking, sprouting, grinding, and cooking grains became the “norm”, and as we’ve discussed before, this caused a noticeable effect in the size of the human body and brain. Starting in ancient Egypt, societies faced more widespread autoimmune and degenerative […]

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If you’re looking for me, you probably won’t find me in a bakery. Even after having celiac disease for 12 years, the smell of fresh baked breads and treats can really bring on an appetite, and 99% of the time, these temples of gluten do not have anything we can eat. Panera Bread, contrary to its name, has always been different. They’ve always had items on their menu that don’t contain bread, although they’ve never really made much of an effort to claim anything as gluten-free and make us feel safe. Well, that’s changed. In a big way. Panera’s new gluten-free menu is such a big deal that it’s actually a secret… kind of.   […]

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If the winter doldrums are getting you down, maybe it’s time to start planning a mid-winter getaway, an exotic voyage for spring break, or even your next summer vacation. Traveling can be nerve-wracking for people with food allergies and intolerances, who fear spending part of their vacation sick from cross-contamination. Thankfully, there are some fantastic gluten-free cruises and other great gluten-free vacation ideas that need not fill you with terror… – Gluten-Free Cruises   Gluten-Free Cruises is a 100% gluten-free cruise company offering gluten-free wine and food cruises along the romantic Danube River and elsewhere. Gourmet gluten-free meals and pastries are provided by top-notch chefs. Educational and entertainment programming is provided by gluten-free experts such […]

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In a previous article on why gluten-free living isn’t just a fad, I described a few historic events that lead me to truly believe that it’s not just a fad. While I certainly don’t mean to flip sides on that opinion, whether or not a gluten-free diet is healthy is a totally different story. While gluten was originally connected to several chronic diseases long ago, and it’s connected to many additional health issues today, that doesn’t necessarily mean maintaining any old gluten-free diet is healthy. The key reason behind this is food fortification. You know those breads and cereals in the grocery store that say “Fortified With Vitamins XYZ”? Have you ever wondered why gluten-free […]

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To most people, “fast food” is synonymous with greasy, yet delicious burgers and fries. Well unfortunately for us gluten-free folks, we can count on the buns being off-limits 100% of the time. Even the seemingly safe French fries are very often fried in the same fryers as breaded chicken fingers. What’s a gluten-free dieter to do? Keep driving until you come across a Boston Market. Seriously – you’ll see why. Our review of gluten-free fast food options continues this week as we explore McDonald’s, Burger King, Jimmy John’s, Boston Market, Whataburger, Krispy Kreme, Carl’s Jr., Popeye’s, and Zaxby’s.   McDonald’s Gluten-Free Menu McDonald’s does not offer a gluten-free menu and does not have a dedicated […]

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