The CeliAct Blog

While you and I know that gluten-free isn’t just a passing fad, a lot of people out there ask why gluten-free living is all of a sudden so popular. Sure, it has become a lot more prevalent in everyday society, and the gluten-free fad is in full swing, but a gluten-containing diet has long been considered detrimental to human health. Increased diagnoses of celiac disease and gluten intolerance corroborate the fact that gluten can lead to chronic health issues. Not surprisingly, there are historical events that have led to the modern grain-based diet (and the introduction of gluten). Medical discoveries and agricultural changes along the way have led us to where we are today. So, […]

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As celiac awareness has grown in recent years, a number of chain and local pizzerias have ventured into the world of gluten-free pizza. Chains such as UNO Chicago Grill, Pizza Fusion, Z-Pizza, Domino’s and Mellow Mushroom have all launched gluten-free pizzas recently. Gluten-free pizza served by pizzerias varies greatly in its quality, and how much it tastes like the “real thing.” We certainly applaud restaurants for adopting gluten-free menus (especially when they take care to minimize cross-contamination risks), and we love the convenience and taste of gluten-free pizza made in a professional pizza oven. But sometimes you really want to have your pizza just the way you like it – the exact right ratio of […]

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I recently had the pleasure of going to a large fast food chain and ordering a burger on a gluten-free bun. The gluten-free buns were available at every location in the country and extreme care was taken by the staff to avoid cross-contamination. The name of this particular fast food chain is Burger Ranch. Now, I’d be very surprised if you’ve heard of Burger Ranch. The reason? It’s a large fast food chain in Israel and unfortunately, I don’t think they plan on expanding to the United States any time soon. Well, unless you’re going to Israel in the near future; that leaves you with the gluten-free options at American fast food chains. Our review […]

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You know gluten is “this thing” that you can’t eat. But beyond your gluten-free diet, do you understand how it came to be so prevalent in the Western diet to begin with? When you were first diagnosed with celiac disease or figured out you were intolerant to gluten, initially you thought you couldn’t eat bread, pasta, or baked goods. But the more you continue to learn, the more foods you realize contain gluten. It sure is everywhere. So, what is gluten, and how did it make its way into so many things? Let’s start at the beginning… – Here’s a startling fact: when humans transitioned from hunting and gathering to agriculture, millions of years ago, […]

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“Convenience” probably isn’t a word you’re used to. In fact, you could probably drive past dozens of casual restaurants and fast food chains before you found a place where you felt it was safe to eat a gluten-free meal or snack. While nobody should eat fast food very often, many of us unfortunately find ourselves in situations where we need to eat quickly and inexpensively, and we need to attempt a gluten-free meal at a fast food restaurant. If you’re following a gluten-free diet, you can be tempted to lower your guard at these restaurants. Allergen information can be tough to find and the staff may not be much help either. Well, we’ve decided to […]

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We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. A balanced gluten-free breakfast can provide the fuel and nutrients you need to carry you through the day. Unfortunately, it’s also the meal that you’re most likely to skip. For people with celiac disease and for those on a gluten-free diet, it becomes even trickier. Not only does nutrition play a greater role for people with celiac disease, but it can seem like there aren’t any convenient options for a healthy gluten-free breakfast either. After all, it’s not like you can pick up a muffin at a coffee shop or a breakfast sandwich at a fast food drive-thru. A balanced gluten-free breakfast […]

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A recent diagnosis of celiac disease can be scary and isolating. You may suddenly find that the world around you feels like it’s loaded with gluten landmines. The kitchen, the grocery store, restaurants, parties, travel… The combination of these can very overwhelming when you’re new to gluten-free living, instead of fun or exciting. Well, finding a good celiac support group can be just the remedy you need. The internet is a fabulous source of support, but there’s something very special about chatting (and eating) with other celiacs live and in person. Fortunately there are celiac support groups all over the United States, and all over the world! There’s no better place to get emotional support, […]

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Back when I was working for the federal government, finding a good gluten-free lunch was always tough. Most of the restaurants near my office were too pricey for my budget and required way too much time. This left the food trucks that would often hang around our office building during the lunch hour. Food trucks are often inexpensive, quick and convenient, and are the perfect lunch solution if you haven’t brought something from home. The problem? It was often extremely difficult to buy a lunch I could guarantee was gluten-free. Even if the ingredients looked safe on the surface, it was tough asking the food truck’s employees many questions when there were dozens of people […]

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As we discussed in our post on B vitamin deficiency, a gluten-free diet is critical for people with celiac disease but may also result in nutritional deficiencies if care isn’t taken to eat a healthy and balanced diet. Well, not only are B vitamins more difficult to come by, but sources of gluten-free fiber and iron are scarce as well. This is because while the general population consumes pasta, bread, cereal and other products that are fortified with vitamins and minerals, most gluten-free products are unfortified. Fiber and iron are two important components of a healthy diet and a healthy body that are naturally present in many wheat-based foods or are added by food manufacturers […]

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Imagine leaving your house in the morning to go for your morning coffee and being able to conveniently – at any of over 10,000 locations across the country – grab a gluten-free donut or gluten-free muffin at the counter along with it. Well, for some of us, that day is here as Dunkin Donuts has released gluten-free items at a few select locations. Last Friday, I stopped in at Dunkin Donuts in Brookline, Massachusetts (a few minutes from Fenway Park on the edge of Boston), when I noticed these donuts and muffins. I didn’t know from any ads outside the store or even inside the store. When I got to the counter to order, there […]

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In the spirit of 2012, ten of the best gluten-free blog articles didn’t seem like enough, so we had to go with a full-fledged twelve! This year was a huge year for improvements in celiac disease diagnoses, celiac awareness, and the gluten-free industry as a whole. New brands emerged, new research came to the forefront, and gluten-free food and options became a whole lot better! The good news is you can only expect that to continue, so we foresee even more progress in all of these areas in 2013. So, to celebrate the year, here’s a list of our twelve most popular blog articles (decided by you, our readers)… – Going Gluten-Free at the Drive-Through […]

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Following a gluten-free diet can be tough, and for many of us, it can be one of the biggest challenges in our lives. After all, if you have celiac disease, a gluten-free diet isn’t optional, and even the smallest amount of gluten can leave you debilitated for days. Can you imagine voluntarily doing something that would make it even more difficult to follow a gluten-free diet? Well, that’s exactly what thousands of men and women in the U.S. military do when they volunteer to serve the country – knowing they will face countless hurdles in their efforts to maintain a strict gluten-free diet. – Captain Benjamin Andrasik is one of those heroes. His memoir, Gluten […]

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After your diagnosis, you were told to follow a gluten-free diet and that your recovery would begin. Everything should be fine now, right? Not so fast! Although gluten-free diets are critical for people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance, there are serious nutritional drawbacks to a gluten-free diet. Since so many grains used today are fortified with B vitamins, gluten-free diets can often cause deficiencies. B vitamins are a family of water-soluble vitamins that are often added to processed wheat-based foods in the fortification process but are rarely added to gluten-free food. B vitamin deficiencies may arise in some people who are not consuming gluten-based foods any longer. Here we will discuss the B-vitamin deficiencies […]

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By all accounts, both celiac disease and gluten intolerance are being diagnosed much more widely these days. A recent study by Joseph Murray, MD, of the Mayo Clinic, tested blood samples taken fifty years ago and compared the incidence of celiac disease with blood samples taken today. The study found that the incidence of celiac disease today is four times what it was fifty years ago. There’s much ongoing debate about why celiac and gluten sensitivity diagnoses are increasing, which includes both research and conjecture. Here are a few controversial theories we’ve heard about why celiac disease and gluten intolerance are being diagnosed more frequently than before. –   Celiac disease is not becoming more […]

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Whether you spell it Hannukah, Chanukah, or any other variation, the Jewish festival of lights is drawing near, and with it comes an opportunity to indulge in lots of traditional holiday foods. Hanukkah fare is best known for fried foods such as latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts), which are served in recognition of the Hanukkah story. What’s the deal with all the fried food you ask? Well, since the story of Hanukkah involves one night’s worth of oil burning for eight nights in the Jewish Temple long ago, foods cooked in oil are consumed to celebrate! Any excuse to eat fried food sounds good to me, but it definitely poses some challenges to […]

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