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Gluten & Celiac Sprue
Having read your topic on Gluten, I have this to share: What little I know of spelt is this--it is an ancient grain, dating back to biblical days. It has gained the interest of the health food community recently. It is low in gluten and may be tolerated by some gluten-sensitive individuals.
Thanks for the information and I will check alternative sources. However, the nutrition databases I have access to (over 40,000 foods) do not list spelt. Unfortunately, the nutrient analysis for many foods or nutrients on labels in foods sold in health food stores is not available.
Hello, I'm 32 and have been diagnosed with many allergies, some I knew about others I didn't. One I am concerned about is gluten, the others are both kinds of yeast. I am wondering about what kinds of things I can substitute in my diet for breads and such, any suggestions would be helpful.
First how were you diagnosed with a gluten allergy? Typically, persistent diarrhea after eating is the most common symptom. There seems to be a popular notion that yeast causes candida infections of the gut, which is not supported by nutrition research. I would recommend you investigate a yeast allergy further with your doctor.
Rice and potato flour is substituted for wheat, rye, oats and barley that contain gluten. These allergens are in many foods. Vegetable protein products including bacon toppings and soy sauce contain gluten as well. I would suggest you contact a Registered Dietitian for a detailed list and individualized meal plan. With respect to the gluten content of spelt products, how does it compare to other grains and is it allowed in diets for celiac disease? Thanks.
Don't know what spelt is and it is not found in any of my food references. So I don't know the gluten content.
We are coming to Disneyland Florida in July and have a 5-year-old son who has Celiac Disease. Can you provide any information on US producers / brands of Gluten Free products or any addresses / e-mail addresses I could contact for stock lists of those products in the Orlando/Disneyland area.
Many thanks in anticipation. I have attached a document that lists manufacturers of gluten free products available in the US, but am not aware of what is available in Florida as I live in Minnesota. I e-mailed Disney regarding your request for gluten free foods available at Disney World in Orlando Florida, but have not received a response yet. Will forward e-mail from Disney as soon as I receive it, but am unaware of your vacation dates in the US. Would suggest you ask to speak to a Disney World customer service person when you arrive and explain your needs. Also, would suggest you look in local pharmacy or grocery stores (special diet section) for gluten free foods in addition to bringing some non-perishable gluten free foods from your home in the UK.
Just received a call from Shawn in Guest Communications at Disney World in Orlando, Florida who offered the following information. There may not be many foods without gluten available at the counter service throughout the park as the foods in these stands are frozen, prepared. Instead, Shawn suggested your best service would be at full service restaurants. He spoke to executive chefs at their full service restaurants who said that while there was no special listing of menu items that are gluten free, there are vegetable and fruit plates available. Ask to talk to the chef at any restaurant who will be thrilled to come out and speak to you about what you about what your son would eat on a gluten free diet. You may also contact the restaurant manager. Shawn suggested you contact the restaurant a day ahead of time and they could make gluten free pancakes, waffles or bread for your son's breakfast. If you would like to bring some gluten free foods into Disney World, just explain to guest relations when you enter that your son is on a gluten free diet. Shawn stated that Disney World would do whatever it takes to accommodate guests on special diets. Shawn said that Disney World restaurants buy gluten free flour at Chamberlains Natural Food Products in Orlando. Hope this information makes your visit to Disney World a lot more fun! Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) may contain gluten. HVP has been used as a meat extender or formed into a product to imitate meat. Special flour with the gluten part removed (DP Baking Mix, DP Low Protein Wheat Starch), corn starch or rice flour can be used in place of regular flours. The flours and bread were developed by General Mills; Number one General Mills Boulevard; Golden Valley, Minnesota 55427. Also, some grocery stores carry a gluten free bread. I am currently 27 and was diagnosed with celiac at aged 9. A large number of my friends are research / biology / science based and an ongoing argument between us is why Celiac is defined as a disease and whether in fact it is not simply an allergy. It has been suggested at times that such things as viruses (produced by the body) are to blame. Essentially we are all guessing and I have seen far too many conflicting viewpoints.
The second aspect is as to a cure. In your opinion, once the reason for it is established, do you consider it a curable ailment - or a lifetime affliction. Your input into this would be appreciated and perhaps settle a few raging battles. Celiac disease (also called nontropical sprue) is caused by a sensitivity to a protein called gluten which is found in most cereal grains (wheat, rye, oats and barley) and not in corn and rice. Symptoms can start suddenly and there is no known cause for this sudden sensitivity (allergic type response) to gluten in previously healthy persons. Your point is regarding gluten is similar to folks allergic to other foods like eggs or lactose intolerance from milk products.
As to a cure, none is known at this time and researchers would have to discover what causes the symptoms to prevent the changes seen in the mucous lining of the intestines. These changes decrease absorption of nutrients resulting in diarrhea and malnutrition. Until then, I would highly recommend you follow a gluten free diet. Some persons tolerate some gluten and by now, you probably know what foods you can eat. I have a few comments on your gluten response. Its symptoms are continuous diarrhea, cramping abdominal pain, weight loss and anemia. These are just some of the possible symptoms and are the most common. However, one may not have these and may have others like constipation. I think you should say these are "possible" symptoms that could include...
Diagnosis may include symptoms, x-rays of the intestines and possibly and intestinal biopsy. X-rays?? Huh? (Barium formulas today are different. Not that is was ever an effective method of screening.) Here is the current method of diagnosing this condition. Celiac disease can be screened for with a combination of antigliadin (IgA & IgG) and endomysial antibody testing of the blood. It is definitively tested for by a small bowel biopsy, which can be obtained by an endoscopist in the distal duodenum. The patient must be consuming gluten at the time of the tests. Hydrolyzed vegetable protein (HVP) from soybeans contains gluten. HVP from soy does not contain gluten. Problem is much of the HVP is made from wheat or barley and one usually does not know the source (though the USDA is better at requiring this disclosure than the FDA). Special flour with the gluten part removed (DP Baking Mix, DP Low Protein Wheat Starch). The US and Canadian celiac societies do not approve of the use of this flour. It is not gluten-free but only low-gluten. Studies using this flour have shown many negative effects with many of the participants dropping out because they can't tolerate it. Only in the UK, Netherlands and Scandinavia do they permit the use of this flour, but this is due to tradition and not what the medical studies say. Hope you find this useful and it is always good to see a mention of gluten somewhere, as it is so unknown that many people think it comes from sugar. There is a gluten-free mailing list at Here's a list of cookbooks. It does not include the ones published by the celiac societies. The Hagman books are considered to be the best. Greer, Rita, 1982, Diets to Help Celiac & Wheat Sensitivity, Thorsons Publishers LTD, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire NN8 2RQ, England, ISBN 0-7225-1705- Hagman, Bette, 1990, The Gluten-Free Gourmet, Henry Holt & Co., New York, ISBN 0-8050-1210-9 Hagman, Bette, 1993, More From the Gluten-Free Gourmet, Henry Holt & Co., New York, ISBN 0-8050-2324-0 Hills, Hilda Cherry, 1976, Good Food, Gluten Free, Keats Publishing, 27 Pine St. (Box 876) New Canaan, CT 06840, ISBN 0-87983-138-3 Hunter, Beatrice Trum, 1987, Gluten Intolerance, Keats Publishing, 27 Pine Street (Box 876), New Canaan, CT 06840, ISBN 0-87983-435-8 [not a cookbook] Kisslinger, Juanita, 1987, The Joy of Gluten-Free Cooking, Kisslinger Publications, 10289 Cleveland Road, Sidney, British Columbia, V8L 4Y6, ISBN 0-921019-03-3 Lowell, Jax Peters, 1995, Against the Grain, Henry Holt & Co., New York, ISBN 0-8050-3624-5 Rawcliffe, Peter and Ruth Rolph, 1985, The Gluten-Free Diet Book, Arco Publishing, 215 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10003, ISBN 0-668-05973-7 Redjou, Pat Cassidy, 1990, The "No-Gluten" Solution, Pat Redjou, Box 731, Brush Prairie, WA 98606, ISBN 0-9626052-0-4 Richter, Muriel L., 1989, The Art of Baking with Rice Flour, LaRice Publishing Co., PO Box 366, Ridgefield, WA 98642 Spicer, Kay, 1993, Full of Beans, Mighton House, Box 399, Campbellville, Ontario L0P 1B0, ISBN 0-9695688-1-9 Stetzer, Arlene, 1990, The Practical Gluten-Free Cookbook, Main Street Systems. Route 2, Highway 35, Trempealeau, WI 54661, (608) 534-6730 Thompson, Peter, 1995, The Gluten-free Cookery, The Complete Guide for Gluten-free or Wheat-free Diets, Headway Hodder Headline, Oxon, UK, ISBN 0-340-62098-6 Wood, Marion N., 1982, Coping With the Gluten-Free Diet, Charles C. Thomas, 2600 South First Street, Springfield, IL 62717, ISBN 0-398-04718-9 Yes, some persons with gluten intolerance can experience constipation, but this seems to involve very few persons.
Diagnosis may also include a colonoscopy (which you mention) where by the doctor inserts a scope in the rectum to take a biopsy of the intestinal wall. Typically, the villi flatten out in the intestine of persons with gluten intolerance. The villi are the absorptive surfaces for nutrients in the intestinal tract and are also responsible for resorbing fluid from waste products prior to excretion. You are correct in that soybeans do not contain gluten and I have made that correction. If hydrolyzed vegetable protein is listed in the ingredient label, without listing the vegetable source, which could be wheat, then HVP is not recommended for gluten free diets. Individuals should contact their doctor if they are having any of the above symptoms rather than diagnosing themselves. PS Thanks for the references on gluten free diets and celiac sprue. I have tried Rawcliffe's and Wood's. Therefore I am cannot recommend others you provided. My husband has Celiac Sprue, which is hard for me to cook for. If you have any information on this, I would like to have it. He can't have anything with wheat, oat, rye or barley.
Celiac Sprue results in a permanent intolerance for gluten, which is the structural protein component of wheat, barley, rye and oats. Its symptoms are continuous diarrhea, cramping abdominal pain, weight loss and anemia. A doctor must be seen to diagnose Celiac disease. Diagnosis may include symptoms, x-rays of the intestines and possibly an intestinal biopsy. The doctor may have tried your husband on a strict gluten free diet to see if his symptoms had improved. Improvement of symptoms occurs within days and the mucous lining in the intestines may revert completely to normal within 6 to 9 months of diet therapy. A person with Celiac disease should remain on a gluten free diet for life however.
A lot of foods contain gluten and some are not obvious. Bread, cake and baking mixes, pie crusts, gravy and seasoning mixes, pancakes, waffles, canned chili and soups, canned entrees and packaged rice mixes all contain some gluten. Even small amounts of regular flour such as the flour used to bread meat or fish would cause diarrhea. A person with Celiac disease must carefully read all labels and look for hidden sources of gluten. |
