The next NCPTGIG Meeting will be held on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2011

Our next NCPTGIG meeting is on Jan. 15, 2011 @ 11:00 AM (please arrive at 10:30 AM) at the Hope Moravian Church (2759 Hope Church Rd, Winston Salem). We will have a program by Dr. Jillian Teta on osteoporosis and celiac disease, with a focus on bone strengthening, diet and exercise.

New study suggests gluten-free diet is beneficial for potential celiac disease patients

ScienceDaily (Dec. 15, 2010) — Findings from a new study of 141 adults add to an ongoing medical debate over which patients with symptoms of celiac disease should go on a gluten-free diet. Published in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research, the study concludes that people currently diagnosed as "potential" celiac disease patients and not advised to follow a gluten-free diet may not be "potential" patients at all.

FROGURT of Winston Salem announces Gluten-Free Frozen Yogurt

News from FROGURT: "We have recently opened a Frozen Yogurt Bar in Winston Salem named FROGURT (Off Hanes Mall Boulevard – Between Brixx Pizza & Firebird Grill – Across from Ashley Furniture Store) and we offer a wide range of frozen yogurt flavors that are Gluten Free. We plan to offer a larger variety of gluten free toppings (currently quite a few are already Gluten Free) in the near future."

Location: 1263 Creekshire Way,Winston Salem, NC 27103.
Tel: 336-331-3939 / 336-331-3130
Email: frogee@frogurtusa.com  

Help raise money for celiac disease research: Visit Alek's Controllable Christmas Lights!

http://www.komar.org/cgi-bin/christmas_webcam

Order your copy of the NCPTGIG Shopping Guide Addendum!

 Click on image to enlarge!

Update: some, but not all, M&M's may no longer be gluten-free

Scott Adams on Celiac.com has a new post on a recent change to the labeling of all types of M&M's, which now state "May contain Wheat".

Reminder: Gluten Free Cookie Event and Swap this coming Saturday, Dec. 4

When: Saturday, December 4 · 2:00pm - 3:00pm

Where: Pilgrim Reformed Church
797 Pilgrim Church Road
Lexington, NC

Bring your favorite Gluten Free cookies and recipes (please bring 10+ copies). Other holiday treats would be lovely too. Joan's GF Great Bakes, Ian's, Glutino, and others have sent samples for all to enjoy and more are on the way (partial list of items below).

Joan's Great Bakes Toaster Corn Muffins
Joan's Great Bakes Sugar Cookies
my homemade local strawberry jam for the corn muffins
Pamela's Spicy Ginger Cookies
Pamela's Sugar Cookies
Pamela's Vanilla Frosting
Let's Do Organic Classic Gummis
Let's Do Organic Super Sour Gummis
Lets Do Organic Jelly Gummi Bears
Let's Do Sprinkles
Edward & Son Onion & Garlic, BBQ, & Salt & Vinegar Rice Snax
Glutino Strawberry Breakfast Bars
Ian's Chocolate Covered Wafer Bites


We will have a prize drawing for GREAT GF prizes! :)

We will have dedicated tables for "Gluten Free", "Gluten Free Dairy Free", and "Gluten Free + other allergens". If you could bring along spiced cider, hot tea, or coffee, please let me know.

There will be a room available for children to play, as well as an outside playground if the weather cooperates.

Please RSVP as soon as possible and invite those you think may be interested.

Look forward to seeing you there!

Please contact Erin Burke Edwards with any questions.

NC Piedmont Triad GIG Meeting Nov. 13, 2010 Recap

Our meeting began with the announcement of the availability of the latest (2010) Addendum to the Shopping Guide for the Gluten-Free Consumer, published by the NCPTGIG. Ordering information will be posted on this blog within the next few days. Click the link below to read the recap..........

Registration for High Point Gluten Free Workshop is Still Open

There is still room for you at the November 20, 2010 Support Group Workshop:

Diagnosis to Treatment: Eating Gluten Free
 

Location: High Point Country Club (800 Country Club Rd., High Point, NC 27262).

Cost: $21.00

EarthFare, Harris Teeter, and Only Earth are setting up tables.

Bob's Red Mill is sending product for us to give away.

Schedule:

• Vendors display 11:00 AM
• Gluten-Free Meal: noon
• Speaker 1:00 PM
• Vendor display 2:00 PM

Directions: Turn onto Westchester from Main Street. Turn left onto Country Club. The building is on the right in about ¼ of a mile.

Contact: Deborah Rosenquist by e-mail or 336 8695958

Invitation to Join the NC Piedmont Triad Gluten Intolerance Group

NC Piedmont Triad Gluten Intolerance Group

Looking for help with the gluten-free diet and/or information on living gluten-free in the Winston Salem area? Become involved and join us for 2011! 

Goals for the coming year:

• provide educational meetings with health care professionals 

• provide educational materials and support for those newly diagnosed persons or caregivers of someone with gluten intolerance

• identify hazards in eating in restaurants and make fellow members aware of the findings 

A year’s membership will run from July 1 to June 30, 2011. We encourage family membership. The best line of support comes from the family and we want them to participate. Children are also becoming friends at the support group events. Please include names of all family members, home address and email. Also include a list of concerns you have about dealing with celiac disease and how you think that the support group might help.

Individual membership: $12.00, family membership: $15. Make check payable to NCPTGIG. Yearly membership cards will be issued. Mail membership information to Jim Johnston, PO Box 367, Lewisville, NC 27023. Contact Grace Johnston with any questions you may have. Upon request, we mail information to members who do not have internet access.

Gluten-free Cookie Exchange on Dec. 4

A gluten-free cookie exchange will be held at Pilgrim Reformed Church in Lexington, NC on December 4 at 2 PM. Bring your favorite gluten-free cookies recipe (10 copies) and cookies to exchange. Also please volunteer to bring spiced cider, hot tea, or coffee.
Contact Erin Edwards for more details.

Reminder: NCPTGIG meeting and potluck is this coming Saturday!

Meet at 10:30 AM (Saturday, November 13, 2010) at Hope Moravian Church, 2759 Hope Church Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27127 to set up our Gluten-Free Holiday Potluck. Whole Foods will provide ham & turkey. Jason’s Deli will provide a salad. Bring 12 copies of your recipe and place beside your dish. Listing brand names is a big help for someone learning the gluten-free diet. The program, featuring Dr. Ivor Hill, M.D. and Kathleen Sigler, R.D., will begin at 11 AM. 

A good gluten-free pizza crust?

When was the last time any of us had a pizza that actually made us forget how much we miss the "real" pizza experience and all it's conveniences?  Maybe it's just me, but I've become obsessed with the search for a better than adequate gluten-free pizza crust. While I appreciate the ever-increasing availability of gluten-free pizza options, over the last two years I've tried a few pre-made crusts and mixes and found none that have come anywhere close to neutralizing my cravings for The Works at Papa J's.

Last week I decided to try the gluten-free crust from Still Riding Pizza, which can be ordered individually or in bulk online and shipped to your door. The crusts arrived within two days of ordering and were individually packaged for convenience. The crust diameter is 12 inches and is about a half an inch thick, plenty of room for a reasonable assortment of toppings. After 15 minutes at 500F on the rack (my oven is a bit underpowered, so you may need less time), the crust was adequately crispy throughout. While it doesn't have the doughy texture that I prefer, the crust from Still Riding Pizza tastes great and holds up well to baking, cutting and reheating. Overall, a great alternative!

On a related note, Still Riding Pizza is the distributor for Mellow Mushroom's gluten-free dough. I contacted Mellow Mushroom recently for more information on their GF crust and here's what Chris McIntyre, the Mellow Mushroom Operations Field Rep, had to say:

"The answer is yes, Still Riding distributes our GF Dough for us but it is exclusive to our restaurants. We went through many taste tests and came up with our own recipe for the dough. So the dough Still Riding makes for us is not able to be purchased except from our company."

I am working on a review of the gluten-free pizza at Mellow Mushroom, but in the meantime I would love to hear from everyone reading this (there must be someone out there.......). What's your favorite crust, restaurant, etc?

Is the prevalence of refractory celiac disease on the rise?

Christopher Hammerle, MD, and Sheila Crowe, MD, from the University of Virginia of Charlottesville, gave a presentation of their recent findings on a retrospective analysis of refractory celiac disease at the 75th Annual American College of Gastroenterology meeting in San Antonio. Results of the study, reported in Medpage Today, suggest that an increasing number of celiac patients may no longer be responding to a gluten-free diet. In the study, 17 gluten-free diet nonresponsive (refractive) patients were identified among the celiac patients treated at the University of Virginia Medical Center during the last 10 years. Interestingly, among the 17 refractive patients, 16 were diagnosed within the last 5 years, with 41% diagnosed within the last 6 months. Additionally, 5 had concomitant autoimmune disease and the average time to diagnosis of refractive disease was 4.7 years after the initial diagnosis of celiac disease. For each patient, noncompliance with the gluten-free diet was eliminated as the cause of refractive disease. The findings of this limited single-site study suggest that the incidence of refractory celiac disease is increasing. However, accidental ingestion from contaminated gluten-free grains or other products cannot be entirely ruled out.

Primary source: American College of Gastroenterology
Source reference:
Hammerle C, Crowe S "Natural history and treatment of refractory celiac disease: Experience with 17 patients at a single center" ACG 2010; Abstract 235.

High Point Gluten Free Support Group Workshop

High Point Gluten Free Support Group Workshop

Presents

Diagnosis to Treatment: Eating Gluten Free

Date: Saturday, November 20, 2010

Place: High Point Country Club

          Time: 11:00 AM vendor displays, optional

 12:00 Gluten Free Meal

               1:00 Presentation by Speaker

                                2:00-3:00 PM vendor displays, optional

Fee for attendance includes meal: $21.00 per person

Menu

Gluten Free Chicken Entrée

Choice of

Fancy Sweet Potatoes or Herbed Corn

Green Beans or Special Squash Medley

Grateful Bread Specialty Bread

Assorted Gluten Free Desserts

Beverage Choices

Registration Form with check needs to be received before 11/13/2010 to be eligible to attend the workshop!!

REGISTRATION FORM

Name:_______________________________

Address:_____________________________

Phone:_______________________________

Email:_______________________________

Address check to Gluten Free Support Group of High Point or GFSGHP

Mail to :  Joel Rosenquist

                2464 Motsinger Farm Lane

                Kernersville, NC 27284