Allergies are becoming more common. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians,

Among children in Great Britain, rates of peanut allergy manifested by clinical symptoms increased from 1.3 percent to 3.2 percent between 1989 and 1995. Between 1988 and 1994, up to 6 percent of Americans exhibited asymptomatic serologic evidence of sensitivity in the form of IgE antibodies to peanut proteins.

And those aren’t the only types of food allergies. There are those who are allergic to dairy products and others who are allergic to eggs. As well, there are some who are allergic to all three.

Celiac disease, while not an allergy, is an disease that doesn’t allow the body to absorb gluten. If someone with celiac disease eats gluten, it causes slow, but steady damage to the intestines, and can lead to malnutrition and other health problems.

So, if you know someone with allergies or intolerances, what are some good options for gifts? Lisa MacColl over at Allergy Sense, has written an article with some good suggestions. They include funky Epipen covers and gift baskets, to name just two. You can read her article, Holiday Gifts For People With Food Alleriges, and check out the rest of the site while you’re at it.

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Post from: Blisstree

Gift Ideas for People with Allergies

I recently tried a couple of boxes of Nature’s Path organic and gluten-free cereals: Crunchy Vanilla Sunrise and Crunchy Maple Sunrise. (I received the boxes free for review.)

Both of these cereals are certified USDA organic. In addition, the Sunrise cereals are also vegetarian and free of trans fat. I’m not sure how you can get much healthier than this.

What’s inside? An organic blend of corn, rice, flax, quinoa, buckwheat and amaranth.

Both cereals are crunchy with some round puffs, as well as flakes and crisps. I preferred the Crunchy Vanilla over the Crunchy Maple. Sure, both are plenty crunchy, but I liked the more subtle vanilla flavor. The maple flavor isn’t overwhelming, but my taste buds just liked the vanilla better. Both cereals are sweet, but not so much that you feel like brushing your teeth immediately! They taste wholesome, but not bland.

If you need to maintain a gluten-free diet, or if you’re just looking for a healthy breakfast cereal, I do recommend giving Sunrise by Nature’s Path a try. I can see myself buying the Crunchy Vanilla again. A plus is that the packaging is eco-friendly, and since it’s organic, you know there’s no pesticides, herbicides or artificial additives. None of the ingredients are genetically engineered.

If you try these cereals, I’d love to know what you think. Please leave a comment. (They’re available online for $4.79 per box, or you can find a retailer.)

(Image via Nature’s Path)

Post from: Blisstree

New Gluten-Free Breakfast Option

People with digestive disorders are prone to malnutrition because their bowels may not absorb the nutrients they need to be fully nourished. But there are other issues with celiac disease, researchers have found, issues such as antibodies forming that attack a protein responsible for bone health.

A study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, has found that 20% of a study group of patients with celiac disease had this antibody. Researchers are looking at using medications that prevent bone loss in patients who may be identified as being at risk by checking for this hormone.

You can read more about the study in the link listed above.

For more information on celiac disease:

• More Women Suffer from Celiac Disease
• Celiac Disease Becoming More Common
• Celiac Disease on the Rise

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Post from: Blisstree

Celiac Disease May Cause Bone Mass Loss

What is celiac disease?

Celiac is a genetic disease that makes it impossible for people to digest gluten, which is found in wheat, barley, and rye. There is some debate as to whether it is in oats too.

Celiac disease affects about 1 out of every 133 people in North America, but many – as many as 97% – have not been diagnosed. The disease doesn’t allow you to digest the gluten, which leads to malnutrition and considerably raises your risk of developing stomach cancer.

When someone with celiac disease eats gluten, damage is done to the lining of the colon. Some people say it’s similar to an allergy, but this isn’t an accurate description. Others call it a gluten intolerance – again, not an accurate description. Someone with celiac disease can’t tolerate any gluten whatsoever. Not even the tiniest bit.

It may be surprising to hear that someone with CD can’t tolerate gluten at all, because you may know someone with CD who ate at your home recently and seemed perfectly fine. This is because the damage from CD doesn’t occur right away. The damage builds up over time.

Once the Diagnosis Is Made

Once you’ve been diagnosed with celiac disease, it’s important that you learn about the celiac diet and what you may eat and what you should avoid.

At first, it may seem shocking when you’re confronted with the idea of eating a “celiac diet.” There seems to be so many things you can’t have and, quite honestly, that’s true. But, as people are becoming more aware of CD, companies are becoming more open to making products for their CD consumers and the choices are much more plentiful now than they were just 10 years ago. The important thing for you is to be sure you read all labels and you read them properly.

You can’t outgrow celiac disease, but you can learn how to manage it. For more information, you can visit the following sites:

Canadian Celiac Association (Canada)

Celiac Sprue Association (U.S.)

Coeliac UK (United Kingdom)

Coeliac Association of Australia

Coeliac Society of New Zealand

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Post from: Blisstree

Celiac Disease Awareness Month: October

Researchers were puzzled too, so they undertook a study to find out. According to a press release issued by the Mayo Clinic:

“Celiac disease has become much more common in the last 50 years, and we don’t know why,” says Joseph Murray, M.D., the Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist who led the study. “It now affects about one in a hundred people. We also have shown that undiagnosed or ’silent’ celiac disease may have a significant impact on survival. The increasing prevalence, combined with the mortality impact, suggests celiac disease could be a significant public health issue.”

People with celiac disease are unable to process gluten , a substance found in many foods, and this results in the body being unable to absorb necessary nutrients. Gluten is found in wheat, rye, and barley.

In an average kitchen, it’s not hard to find something with gluten in it, as you find it in breads, cereals, pastas, cookies, and even some types of medications and candies. Gluten is, quite literally, everywhere.

There’s no cure for celiac disease, nor is there a treatment. The only thing someone with the disease can do is to avoid all gluten. However, and this is something that many people don’t understand, this inability to tolerate gluten isn’t a mere inconvenience that allows you to cheat once in a while. Every time someone with celiac disease consumes gluten, more damage is done to the intestine. Many people with untreated celiac disease develop intestinal cancer.

Here are some links – in addition to the one above – to help you learn more:

American Celiac Disease Alliance

Celiac Disease Foundation

Celiac Sprue Association/USA Inc.

Gluten Intolerance Group of North America

National Foundation for Celiac Awareness

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Post from: Blisstree

Celiac Disease Becoming More Common

Celiac disease is often thought of as a disease or allergy that is just gluten intolerance, but it is much more than that. People with celiac disease can’t have ANY gluten as the gluten damages their intestinal walls bit by bit, leading to severe and sometimes life-threatening complications.

This article, Celiac disease: an elusive ‘iceberg‘,  describes the disease and the effects. According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse,

“Celiac disease affects people in all parts of the world. Originally thought to be a rare childhood syndrome, celiac disease is now known to be a common genetic disorder. More than 2 million people in the United States have the disease, or about 1 in 133 people. Among people who have a first-degree relative—a parent, sibling, or child—diagnosed with celiac disease, as many as 1 in 22 people may have the disease.

Here are some links for you to learn more about celiac disease:

• Celiac Disease Foundation
• American Celiac Disease Alliance
• Canadian Celiac Association

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Post from: Blisstree

May Is Also Celiac Awareness Month

American Stroke Month by the American Heart Association.

ALS Awareness Month, visit the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s ALS site

Better Sleep Month by the Better Sleep Council.

Lupus Awareness Month by the Lupus Foundation of America, Inc.

Lyme Disease Awareness Month by the Lyme Disease Foundation.

Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month by the American Academy of Dermatology.

Mental Health Month by Mental Health America.

National Arthritis Month by the Arthritis Foundation.

National Celiac Disease Awareness Month by the American Celiac Disease Alliance.

National Neurofibromatosis Month by the Children’s Tumor Foundation.

Tuberous Sclerosis Awareness Month by the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance.

I hope these are helpful to know.

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Post from: Blisstree

11 health observance months for May

Living with a condition that can be made worse by the food you eat can make it difficult or frustrating to find foods you like to eat that are also good for you.

Food is often a social thing – we gather around dinner tables with friends, go out to eat at restaurants, and we celebrate life with food and drink. So food isn’t just a nutritious part of life, it’s often a way of life.

So how can people with food-triggered pain manage just like everyone else? It does depend on what the issue is. For example, if you have celiac disease, this is a disorder that can’t be cheated on. You can’t have gluten -not even the tiniest bit. Even if it doesn’t hurt you in the short-term, it can really hurt you in the long term.

Migraines

Other illnesses aren’t so cut and dry. Migraines, for example. While some people have migraines that aren’t food-related, others do. And what might be a food trigger for one migraineur is not necessarily a trigger for another migraineur. Here are some common ones:

- Foods with tyramine, a substance that is found in food that ages, like cheese

- Alcohol, specifically darker ones, like red wine

- Food additives in foods like processed meats, hot dogs, MSG in Chinese food

- Some fruit, like figs, raisins, over ripe avocados and bananas

- Freshly based yeast breads, sourdough breads

IBS

If you have problems with your bowels, such as irritable bowel disease, you may have other issues with food.

Some foods may cause cramping and diarrhea, while others may cause horrible gas pain.

What often happens when someone is diagnosed with IBS or they think they have it, the restrict their diet severely. They eat something, have a bad reaction and then strike that from their diet. But, it’s not as easy as that because there may be other influences other than just the foods. Dieticians recommend that people use and elimination diet to find what foods are the culprits. That means to eliminate the foods most known to trigger IBS symptoms and then introduce them back into the diet one by one. That way, you will notice which foods are your triggers.

Here are some of the most common ones:

- Dairy products

- Fats, butter, oil, sauces, salad dressings

- Caffeine

- Chocolate

- Food additives, particularly MSG that is found in many Chinese foods

- Artificial sweeteners

Contrary to popular belief – people IBS generally need a good healthy dose of fiber in their diet.

Do you have a food-related chronic illness/chronic pain? What is it and how do you deal with it?

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Post from: Blisstree

When food causes pain