Posts belonging to Category Guest Blogger

This week’s post is by Jenny Kales. Jenny is the author of her own blog at http://www.nut-freemom.blogspot.com/, where she writes about her experiences raising her two daughters, one of whom has life-threatening allergies, as well as about tips she hopes will help other parents in similar situations.

As the mother of two girls, one with a severe peanut and tree nut allergy, and one without any food allergies, I know how hard it is to find delicious and nutritious snacks to suit them both. And like all of us dealing with food allergies, I am all too aware of how hard it is to trust food labels, especially for snack foods or sweet treats. Labels list incomplete information that require a phone call to the company, or worse, they are made on equipment with peanuts or tree nuts. It’s confusing for me, so I know that for people who don’t deal with food allergies every day, reading food labels seems especially daunting.

I was reminded of this once again when my youngest daughter’s Girl Scout troop leader called me at home in a panic one day during a meeting. There is a Girl Scout with severe peanut and tree nut allergies in the troop and they weren’t sure what to serve her as a snack. They couldn’t reach her mother and were asking me if I thought a certain item that they had on hand was OK.

Now, I knew that the item in question did not have any allergy warnings on the package; however it was made in a facility that processed peanuts and tree nuts. There was no way I wanted to OK a food for another allergic child without their mother’s approval.

My oldest, food-allergic daughter overheard the conversation. “Mom,” she said. “What about Cocoa Loco? We just bought another box.” Yes! Because Enjoy Life Foods snacks are made in a dedicated nut-free facility, I never have to wonder or worry if they are safe.

Sure enough, we had an unopened box of Cocoa Loco from Enjoy Life in the pantry. Since we live only a block from the school, my daughter offered to walk it over to the meeting, so the Girl Scout could have a safe, nut-free snack.

My daughter reported back to me that the Girl Scout in question had a big smile on her face when she saw the snacks and knew she that could have them. The Girl Scout leaders said they would never be without a box of Enjoy Life snacks or cookies at future meetings. Best of all, my daughter felt like she had helped another nut-allergic child not feel “left out” as she sometimes has been herself.

The best part is that both of my kids love Enjoy Life Chewy On the Go Bars, Trail Mix and Granola. And I love spreading the word about Enjoy Life’s allergy-friendly foods, because then everyone has a safe snack when they want it!

This week’s post is the second in Jane Robert’s 4 part series on Celiac Disease. Jane is the founder of Safe Foods, Inc. – a consulting firm specializing in education and awareness of food allergies. She has received training from the University of Chicago, Tufts University/Astra USA Medical Training, Wayne State University, and Albion College. She herself suffers from Celiac Disease.

Have you noticed the logo certifying a product gluten-free by the Gluten Free Certification Organization? It’s on a lot of product labels that are “gluten-free.” But there are also some products out there that claim their food is gluten-free without certification.

Many people have asked me what the difference is between a product that is certified gluten-free and a gluten-free claim on a product. It goes hand-in-hand with the question “what’s the big deal if I have a little gluten from time to time?” Here’s the rub:

According to the University of Chicago Celiac Center’s Carol Shilson, “research shows that every person with celiac disease has a different threshold to trigger the disease active – some with as little as 10mg of gluten, others can withstand up to 100mg – but we know that EVERY person with celiac disease triggers the disease active with 100mg of gluten in the course of a day.  That is a tiny amount – like a grain of rice – so that is why it is so important to practice zero tolerance.”

Keep in mind that the effect of gluten ingestion is cumulative, and that most people with active celiac disease have no symptoms at all, so gauging one’s threshold of tolerance to gluten cannot be measured by symptoms.

In fact, The University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center’s medical director, Dr. Guandalini, uses the image of an iceberg to explain the disease. Every person within the iceberg has the genetic predisposition for the disease, as well as a positive antibody blood test (TTG). Those above the waterline have “symptomatic” disease and intestinal damage. More than half of those below the waterline, with no symptoms, also have intestinal damage – this is referred to as “silent” celiac disease, while another portion below the waterline, those with “latent” celiac disease again have positive genetic susceptibility and serology, but do not show intestinal damage. However, recent research suggests that over time, the “latent” group will develop intestinal damage, or full-blown celiac disease. Still, experts may disagree about treatment for the latent group.

So is what does it mean for a food to be gluten-free? The FDA has yet to set a standard for manufacturers, so neither manufacturers nor consumers have any assurance that products “labeled” gluten-free are in fact gluten-free…unless the product has been certified by the GFCO – the “Good Housekeeping Seal” of approval for those who must follow a strict gluten-free diet.

Remember two years ago the stories by the Chicago Tribune exposing companies for claiming their product was gluten-free (or some were dairy- and nut-free claims too)? There is no regulation in the US to police these claims. Anyone can call their product “gluten-free” without measuring or testing their facility or product to assure that their claim is correct.  That’s why label reading is critical, but it is not enough: for people with celiac disease it is important to know that all of the ingredients are gluten-free and that the product is manufactured in an environment that is free from cross-contamination. That’s where certification comes in.

While other organizations offer endorsements, according to Shilson, “the Gluten-Free Certification Organization, a non-profit, is considered the most reputable and rigorous in the country. They work similarly to the kosher certification companies that test for proteins. If a product has the GFCO stamp, you can be sure that the manufacturer is following best practices to assure the product is in fact gluten-free and that they are audited regularly.”

Even after the FDA sets a standard for gluten-free it will be important to have products certified, to ensure that they are tested. The importance of the GFCO seal is reiterated in a recent study conducted by Tricia Thomson, MS, RD. Cross-contamination remains a problem even for grains that are naturally gluten free. (see: http://www.diet.com/dietblogs/read_blog.php?title=Contamination+of+Naturally+Gluten-Free+Grains%3A+2&blid=19605&sh=1 )

I also only buy products that are certified gluten-free by the GFCO (for more information, check out their website at www.gfco.org).

Enjoy Life Foods was the first company to be certified by the Gluten-Free Certification Company. Enjoy Life Foods not only tests for gluten. They also require their vendors to test and be certified before sending product to their factory for all of the top 8 allergens (wheat, dairy, egg, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish). I can sleep at night knowing Enjoy Life Foods is keeping watch for me and my family.