angel-jd1

I have never heard of Donatos. Is this a chain? Where can you find them??

-Jessica

You should never stop taking prescribed medication without first consulting your physician. NOT a group of people on a message board. PLEASE call your dr and set up an appointment.

-Jessica

You are very right, Joe C did have celiac disease. Here is a link about him: Open Original Shared Link

-Jessica

Gluten doesn't absorb from your skin into your intestines. The only way you would have problems is if you have DH, or if you get the lotion on your hands and then put your hands in your mouth etc. It is just best to stay away from it for those reasons.

-Jessica

Rich Gannon the football player has a daughter with Celiac. He does quite a few publicity things for the disease. You may have heard of Danielle's Decadent chocolate cake mix, it is named after his daughter.

Also Elizabeth Hasselback, new co-host on "The View" talkshow and also a Survivor contestant is possibly a Celiac. She has mentioned several things on air that lead people to believe that she is.

-Jessica

I belong to another celiac group online and we have a file about disney. Here is the info that we have. Hope it helps you out!!

-Jessica

The following info. ALL comes from the file located at SillyYaks Yahoo group

Gluten Free Guests Experiences from Disney

(this info was found on the web)

Restaurants

At-a-Glance

All-You-Can-Eat Meals

Animal Kingdom

Disney-MGM Studios

Epcot

Magic Kingdom

Resort: Counter Service

Resort: Sit Down

Dinner Shows

Hoop-dee-Doo Musical Revue

Polynesian Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show

Special Dietary Needs

Celiac Sprue

Food Allergies

Kosher

Low Carb

Other Special Diets

Vegetarian/Vegan

--Parks Counter Service

--Parks Table Service

--Strategies for WDW Vegetarian Dining

--Meet the Authors of Vegetarian WDW

--A Vegetarian at Mickey's Table - I

--A Vegetarian at Mickey's Table - II

Special Dining Events

Afternoon Tea

Easter

Food and Wine Festival

Lunch with a Disney Artist

Mickey's Backyard BBQ

Mother's Day

Thanksgiving

Dining Discounts

Disney Club Discount

Disney Dining Experience

WDW Discounts

September 2002

A Gluten Free Vacation at Disney World

By Janet Lowery, Nashville

I have no financial interest in Disney World. As in any restaurant situation, there are risks of gluten cross-contamination.

Disney World in Orlando, Florida is a very magical place, not only for their entertainment, but for their knowledge and ability to cater to many dietary restrictions.

All sit down restaurants can handle gluten free meals, you'll need to make reservations ahead of time with Priority Seating at 407-939-3463. Mention that you'll need a gluten free diet early in your reservation. They will give you the phone number for each restaurant so you can call and talk to the chef ahead of time to guarantee they will have the appropriate food in stock. You can also contact the Executive Chef of each park for help.

I always carried a small soft side cooler for quick snacks as back up just in case (Frigo cheese sticks, Hillshire Farms lunch meat, carrots, blueberries, strawberries, Glutino pretzels, and gluten-free chocolate chip cookies). It also came in handy when my son, John, was served such large portions in the sit down restaurants, we were able to take the leftovers with us for a quick meal later on. Take lots of extra baggies just for this reason. And be sure to request a refrigerator for your hotel room as well.

Downtown Disney

We arrived Wednesday evening and went to Downtown Disney for dinner and shopping. We chose McDonalds for a quick meal. They have a dedicated french fryer and the manager put on clean gloves to place John's meat, cheese and pickles in a box. They also have salads and the yogurt parfait (the granola is not gluten-free) as another option. Ask for the manager's assistance. There is also a Rainforest Cafe and Planet Hollywood as well many other restaurants. Priority Seating does not make reservations for Downtown Disney's restaurants, so you'll need to call the Disney Switchboard at 407-824-2222 to get each phone number.

Magic Kingdom

We went to the Magic Kingdom on Thursday. I highly recommend visiting this park on the weekday as it was so much busier on Saturday. We had a wonderful character breakfast at Tony's Town Square. Chef Dennis was incredible and made gluten-free pancakes shaped like Mickey's head. John also ate bacon and mixed berries. We had leftovers! Chef Dennis also made up gluten-free meatballs for our return dinner on Saturday evening. We had a different chef Saturday, but he was just as knowledgeable and brought my son rice spaghetti with a huge gluten-free meatball and fresh steamed broccoli/asparagus. He also brought out warmed gluten-free bread (Cibros brand I believe) with butter. What an wonderful feeling to watch my son eat in a restaurant!

For lunch we had a Turkey leg from a walk-up wagon and McDonald Fries in Frontierland. We had reservations for the Liberty Tavern, which I've heard wonderful reviews about, but opted for a quick meal instead of a sit down meal. All parks have a Turkey leg wagon as well as a McDonald's French Fry wagon.

Epcot

The Magic Kingdom closed at 6 p.m. so we took the monorail to Epcot for the evening parade and fireworks, which are absolutely wonderful. Just don't stand down wind from fireworks! We went to the Liberty Inn in the American Adventure for gluten free pizza (no reservations required). Ask for the manager first thing and call ahead to let them know you are coming. They have Nature's Highlight frozen pizza. Unfortunately, they overcooked the first one, then the next 3 kept falling apart on them. After an hour, we finally pulled food out of the soft side cooler for John's dinner. They get an "A" for effort though.

MGM Studios

On Friday we went to MGM for our second character breakfast at Hollywood and Vine. It was a buffet, but the chef made gluten-free Mickey Waffles (which my son didn't like, they were also free of dairy and eggs too). John ate leftover pancakes from Thursday. The chef also brought out bacon and fruit before it hit the buffet.

For lunch we went to a walk up restaurant, the Backlot Express. They have a dedicated fryer for french fries, but the staff uses the same tongs to pick up the fries as they do the bun. The manager had to remake the french fries and handle my son's food personally. So best advice is to ask for the manager first thing in walk up restaurants. We didn't have reservations for dinner, so we went back to Hollywood and Vine for the dinner buffet. The chef brought some turkey and green beans from the kitchen. Plus more gluten-free bread. There were plenty of entree and veggie options. And the chef brought out a gluten-free brownie for dessert! Our favorite show of all four parks is the Fantasmic! laser and light show in the evening. Don't miss this one!

Animal Kingdom

On Saturday, we had yet another character breakfast at Restaurantasaurus in the Animal Kingdom. This is a buffet, but the chef made gluten-free pancakes and bacon for John. The chef mentioned there were two other gluten-free reservations for the same morning. We found whole fruit on the buffet. For lunch John ate leftovers from the night before, plus McDonald french fries. My husband and I ate at the Tusker restaurant Barbeque, but the food just looked too spicy for a 5 year old.

It was a wonderful experience! I highly recommend it to anyone planning a family vacation, or even an adult getaway. If you do your homework and make reservations ahead of time, you won't have much to worry about, just enjoy yourself! www.disneyworld.com has downloadable maps to help you plan your day.

And one last note, we weren't charged any additional cost for the gluten-free food.

Important Disney Numbers

DISNEY WORLD PRIORITY SEATING Restaurant Reservations

407-939-3463

DISNEY SWITCHBOARD

407-824-2222

MAGIC KINGDOM

Executive Chef 407-824-5967

EPCOT

Executive Chef, Sharon Schifano, Epcot F&B, 407-560-7483

MGM STUDIOS

Executive Chef Michael LaDuke 407-560-1347

ANIMAL KINGDOM

Executive Chef Robert R. Adams 407-938-2441

The following is information I received from postings on St. John's Listserv as well as my own Disney contact research.

MAGIC KINGDOM

Executive Chef 407-824-5967

Tony's Town Square, Chef Dennis

gluten-free Pancakes, bacon, eggs, fruit, gluten-free pasta and meatballs, bread

Liberty Tree Tavern in Liberty Square - Family style meals

Sleepy Hollow - Caramel Corn

Aloha Isle - Pineapple Dairy swirl

Cosmic Cafe - Rostisseri Chicken (ask manager to help)

Main Street Ice Cream Shop (ask manager for gluten free in back)

Hamburgers, hot dogs without buns, ketchup, Turkey legs, frozen lemonade, snow cones, strawberry juice bars, Nestle's Itsakadoozie ice treat, baked potato, Orville Redenbacher popcorn, frozen banana, Mickey shaped pops with vanilla

ice cream and chocolate

Fast Food counters keep a book that shows pictures of each food item and lists the ingredients.

EPCOT

Executive Chef, Sharon Schifano, Epcot F&B, 407-560-7483

All table service restaurants can accommodate your needs. If you make a priority seating, please mention it to the Cast Member and they will note this on your information. I recommend asking to see a Manager or Chef when you arrive and they will be happy to assist you and help ensure your food is prepared safely. As for our Quick Service Restaurants, we do keep special products on hand at one of our locations, Liberty Inn located at the American Adventure. They serve hot dogs and burgers. The french fries in this location are gluten-free as they are not cooked with anything else. (Please double check this, they weren't the day we were there.) We can also do a burger on gluten-free bread. The hot dogs are gluten-free as well. We serve a grilled chicken sandwich that is marinated in canola oil and Italian spices, garlic, salt and pepper. We also have a turkey club sandwich. They keep a gluten-free pizza on hand in the freezer. We have an ingredient book at the cash register for you to look at as well. Hagen Daz ice cream is usually available.

As for our food carts, the turkey legs are gluten-free, popcorn, strawberry juice bars and Itzakadoozie bars are all gluten-free. We serve fresh fruit cups at all of our Counter Service Restaurants. Pure & Simple at Wonders of Life Pavilion serve fruit smoothies (Strawberry Apple: frozen strawberries & Minute Maid Apple juice or Pineapple Banana: fresh bananas & Dole Pineapple Tidbits in natural juice).

MGM STUDIOS

Executive Chef Michael LaDuke 407-560-1347

michael.laduke@disney.com

Quick Service Areas

All areas EXCEPT ABC Commissary have fryers designated to their french fries which are not cross contaminated. (Note: Always be sure to double check if fryers are safe!) The ABC fryers are in very close proximity to a batter dipped fish area, which may lead to cross use. Areas are able to adapt their menu items slightly without notice, please allow 5 to 10 extra minutes for them to accomplish this as it is apart from their daily practice and certain safety measures are always followed.

We are able to provide items such as Gluten Free Pizza, or Pasta, Lactose Free Milk, etc. with advance notice. Please contact Ex. Chef Michael LaDuke to arrange items/times/and locations.

Table Service Areas

In our Table Service Locations (Prime Time CafE, Sci-Fi Dine-In Theatre, Mama Melrose, Hollywood and Vine, Hollywood Brown Derby) we have a staff of trained chefs who can meet your needs by adapting current menu items, or developing items fit to your requests. If making priority seatings please notify reservation agent of any dietary request, and ask them to note. Upon arrival at the restaurants please notify your server of your need, and a chef will visit your table, to insure your requests are met. Special items of course are available to be provided with advance notice, and should be communicated through Chef as mentioned above.

ANIMAL KINGDOM

Executive Chef Robert R. Adams 407-938-2441

Restaurantasaurus in DinoLand (Donald & friends)

Burgers and Hot Dogs (you provide your own bread), Character Breakfast has several offerings including gluten free pancakes

Rainforest Cafe

McDonalds Fries

Flame Tree Barbeque: Ribs, Chicken, Corn on the cob, Chicken breast sandwich (your bread)

Tusker House: Rotisserie Chicken, Fresh Vegetables

Fruit Market: Fresh Fruits

Snacks: Soft serve ice cream, all 3 locations in Park are gluten free (ice cream only, not cone), Popcorn, Juice Bars (ice cream wagons), Frozen Banana (has nuts and chocolate coating), Cotton Candy, Lemon Slush

**********

April 2001

Last year my wife was diagnosed with Celiac Sprue. With Celiac Sprue your body reacts very negatively to gluten. Even small amounts of gluten can cause celiacs to become very ill. Gluten is in grains (flour, etc.). The cure for this is a gluten free diet. Although gluten is found in grains, it is used in many products used for cooking. Check the labels, anything that has wheat or modified food starch contains gluten.

Well, my wife was very concerned about eating in restaurants and even more concerned about going on vacation where she would be eating out for extended periods. When we started thinking about a possible vacation my wife was doing some research in the Sprue literature and read that Disney World is a good place for celiacs because the chefs are well educated and they are willing to bend over backwards to assist. So, we thought we would give it a try...

A few weeks before we were scheduled to go to Florida I sent an email to the Disney Folks and explained my wife's concerns. I received an email back the following day indicating that they deal with special diets all the time. The email gave me the names and phone numbers of 3 people to contact who could help me. I called these people and they were not only willing to help but they also knew about Celiac issues.

I was told to make Priority seating reservations and then call them back. So, I made our first set of reservations at Germany (EPCOT), the Brown Derby, and Chef Mickey's. I then called back and gave the ladies our dining schedule. She told me she would contact the chefs at these restaurants and make sure they had food my wife could eat. We were also to speak to the chefs when we arrived at the restaurants.

Well, each of the chefs knew we were coming. At Germany, the chef walked the buffet with my wife and pointed out what she could eat and what she could not. He also made a special fruit plate for her dessert since all the buffet deserts contained gluten. At the Brown Derby they made a special gluten free sauce for her food. At Chef Mickey's there was not a lot on the buffet that was gluten free so the chef cooked her a special steak dinner!!! He even had gluten free desserts in the kitchen.

To make this a enjoyable and healthy vacation for my wife required the coordinated efforts of many Disney employees and it all ran like clockwork. This was truly customer service as it should be. Joe DiBiase

4. Is it normal to be obese and have this thing? If it is possible, HOW?

Your body goes into a survival mode. Seeing as your body isn't getting nutrients(due to the villi flattening) your body starts storing fat. Thus you become obese over time. This doesn't happen to every Celiac, but does to some.

Hope that helps ya!!

-Jessica

Wow that is new!!! Thanks so much for being so helpful and pointing that out so kindly!

-Jessica

Wendy's doesn't exactly have a gluten free menu. It is just sort of known in the Celiac community that their chili and baked potato are gluten free. Of course they have salads (bring your own dressing). Some people say their fries are gluten free, however I don't eat them. I used to, until I found a chicken nugget at the bottom of my fry carton. So you might want to ask about a dedicated fryer for their fries.

McDonalds does have a gluten free list online. You might want to check it out sometime.

Burger King now has a low carb menu. They have a burger in a bowl. It is gluten free and pretty good!

-Jessica

I have noticed a lot of folks are posting the same information in different topics. (posting then cutting and pasting the info and posting it under a different topic). Doing this bogs the board down and makes it less effective. It defeats the purpose to have the information in 10 different places. Not to mention it is against the board rules. So please be aware of your posts!

-Jessica

Below are the basic rules of the board. Generally speaking users who break these rules will get two warnings, and if there is a third rule violation they will be banned from the boards. Serious board violations can result in an immediate ban. The rules are as follows:

Do not be abusive or otherwise out of line towards other board members. Show respect for each board member, no matter what you think of their post(s). This is not a place to quarrel.

Do not promote your own business, Web site or products.

Do not spam the boards (i.e., post the same thing in multiple topics or areas of the board to bring more attention to your post ).

I believe that we definately NEED a grieving process. You have to mourn your past lifestyle so you can begin the new one. You will have days when you feel like crying when you see a piece of pizza or smell a doughnut. I still have those days when it is hard. I TOTALLY avoid the bakery section of the grocery store. I hate going into those isles and smelling the good foods.

I remember right after my diagnosis. My dad was going to order a pizza for the rest of the family, and I threw a temper tantrum like a two year old. I thought it was sooo insensitive of him to even THINK of ordering pizza when I was around. I was having a major craving for pizza at the time! ha I'm sure that had something to do with it.

We just have to mourn for the things we miss, and try to find a way of making them at home with our own ingredients or finding a new substitute for your vice. We are much healthier for our diagnosis. I know some days when you see that sandwich or doughnut it is really hard to remember that though!!

Keep pushing forward and keep a positive attitude.

-Jessica

I am also extremely sensitive to gluten, and McCains's oats DO bother me terribly. I have the rumbley tummy and pain and diarrhea just shortly after eating them.

So I think it's really a thing that you personally have to try for yourself to see if you have a reaction or not. Research lately has said that Oats are ok for SOME Celiacs. You have to see if you are one of them. (I'm not!)

-Jessica

Lee-

I am in college also. I find that it really helps to listen to your body. When you get those tired feelings don't ignore them Take a nap!! It will only get worse if you don't.

Eat good foods. Eat a good meal (not junk). Take a daily vitamin. Take some time out of your day to just chill and watch your favorite tv show or whatever. Give yourself a mental break too.

College is stressfull enough without a disease!! ha Give yourself a break once in a while. You can't do EVERYTHING!!

-Jessica

has anybody seen the commercial for that new drug Zelnorm. It is for women with IBS. It totally lists symptoms of celiac and then tells people to go get Zelnorm!! What a crock!!

Just my opinion!

-Jessica

that reminds me of my quote that I put on the outside of my notbook that I made for all my celiac info. The quote says :

"we can not change the direction of the wind.....but we can adjust our sails"

meaning we can't change things that have already happened, we just have to adjust and keep going.

-jessica

If you are going to travel outside of the U.S. and want to pack gluten free food in your suitcase you MUST have a letter that states your diagnosis. Most of the time they won't let you take the food with you if you don't. Seeing as it is so hard to find food while traveling (different gluten-free standards in different countries) most folks like to pack a few things to take with them.

-Jessica

In the United States (not sure where you live) you may deduct the price difference between a normal product and a gluten free product. For example: if a normal loaf of bread was 1.50 and a gluten free loaf of bread is 5.00 you may deduct $3.50 on your taxes.

However you MUST keep all reciepts for varification.

As far as my sources...you can find them right here on celiac.com they have some wonderful pieces of information if you take the time to look.

Here is the text from celiac.com

Tax Deduction for Gluten-Free Foods as a Medical Expense for Diagnosed Celiacs Only See your ad here!

Site Sponsor:

The following guidelines were received from the Oct. 1993 CSA/USA National Conference in Buffalo, NY:

1) You can claim only the EXTRA COST of the gluten-free product over what you would pay for the similar item at a grocery store. For example, if wheat flour costs $0.89 per 5 lbs. and rice flour is $3.25 per 5 lbs., the DIFFERENCE of $2.36 is tax deductible. You may also claim mileage expense for the extra trip to the health food store and postal costs on gluten-free products ordered by mail.

2) The cost of xanthan gum (methylcellulose, etc.) used in gluten-free home baked goods is completely different than anything used in an ordinary recipe, so in the opinion of the IRS, the total cost of this item can be claimed.

3) Save all cash register tapes, receipts, and canceled checks to substantiate your gluten-free purchases. You will need to prepare a list of grocery store prices to arrive at the differences in costs. You need not submit it with your return, but do retain it.

4) Attach a letter from your doctor to your tax return. This letter should state that you have Celiac Sprue disease and must adhere to a total gluten-free diet for life.

5) Under MEDICAL DEDUCTIONS list as "Extra cost of a gluten-free diet" the total amount of your extra expenses. You do not need to itemize these expenses.

Suggestions:

1) You may want to write the Citations (as given below) on your tax return. Always keep a copy of your doctor's letter for your own records.

2) Your IRS office may refer you to Publication 17 and tell you these deductions are not permissible. IRS representatives have ruled otherwise and this is applicable throughout the US Refer them to the following Citations:

Revenue Ruling 55-261

Cohen 38 TC 387

Revenue Ruling 76-80, 67 TC 481

Flemming TC MEMO 1980 583

Van Kalb TC MEMO 1978 366

Hi I DO NOT recommend any of the De Boles brand of pastas. None of us in the family liked them.

I personally think the DeBoles are good. I like their sghetti.

-Jessica

There are several good reasons to be tested:

*Accurate Family Medical History

*To have a letter of diagnosis for travel outside of the U.S.

*To have a letter of diagnosis for tax deductions on food products

*Piece of mind

Just a thought (not meaning to sway one way or another) I have noticed that many people who do go through Entero lab have their regular medical doctors reject the diagnosis. You might want to go a more formal route? Depending on what you are needing a formal diagnosis for.

Best of luck!!

-Jessica

I am not sure about being gluten free with an UNBORN child. The child could be carrying the genes, however it takes something to "set" the genes into action. Most likely the unborn baby hasn't had any sort of stress to set the genes into action yet. That would be a really good question to ask your doctor. Just from my own research I wouldn't see why you would need to be gluten free during pregnancy if you are NOT celiac. But do check with Doc.

If you are breastfeeding a Celiac Child you MUST also be gluten free. You will do damage to their tiny systems otherwise.

Cow's milk doesn't seem to be a problem for us. With the exception of when you first begin the healing process. Possibly a different process seeing as we are humans and well cows are cows!

Just my two cents!!

-Jessica

Gluten can be passed through breastmilk. So that is definately something for you to take into concideration while you breastfeed. You should also be following a gluten free diet if your baby does indeed have Celiac Disease. Otherwise you will be causing them conciderable damage.

Best Wishes!

-Jessica

that is exactly why i'm asking you all to be careful! ha

-Jessica

PM=Private Message

We have a feature here on the board where you can report a person who abuses the board. Maybe they might post something offensive etc. HOWEVER, lately I have gotten several emails reguarding posts that are NOT offensive at all. I am not sure why they are being reported!! Possibly people are hitting the wrong buttons?!? So what I am asking is PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be careful of what you are doing. I have to read each and everyone of those, and they have been nothing!! So thanks and be careful in your posts!

-Jessica

I could have sworn they also had sausage in other forms. Maybe I am wrong. I'm not much of a uckey sausage eater anyways! ha