BlessedMommy

I would like to buy a small toaster for use on road trips, since rather obviously, I can't use any toasters at any place that I stay. Does anybody have a recommendation for a good quality, but very small toaster?

Are all punches and juice gluten free? I went to a wedding today and I actually ended up eating or drinking nothing at the reception (other than water from their water pitcher) just to be safe, but I considered pouring a glass of punch.

Is it safe to drink juice/punch without reading ingredient lists?

So, IrishHeart, did you go the blood test and endoscopy route or did you pair your symptoms with your double D2 genes and then try the gluten-free diet? (Just wondering, based on your sig?)

Looks like according to University of Chicago, celiac can't develop without the D2 or D8 genes. So it does sound like they could be used as a rule out tool.

I agree that gene tests are not diagnostic, but it sounds like they might be a "rule out" tool?

They are not gluten free in the sense of being 100% free from contamination or sneaking things on the side and also they eat things that should be gluten-free but  that haven't been verified as gluten-free. So they are probably closer to "gluten light."

But even being 95% gluten free isn't going to work for blood testing, since you have to eat gluten consistently in order to avoid false negatives. I'm just frustrated and wish that I would have never even attempted to take them off gluten. It's so easy to be strict about what I put in my own mouth, but kids really need a real DX.

I don't have an actual DX, but I treat my condition like celiac. (see sig below for history)

It also occurred to me...there is a very celiac knowledgeable doctor not very far away from this. This doctor will sometimes diagnose celiac without the normal tests, in certain situations of extreme symptoms, etc. (probably genetic testing too, I'm guessing)

I wonder if I should go to this doctor and see if I can get a celiac diagnosis from her and then present to my doctor that hey, celiac is genetic, I need my kids tested. Or I could get gene tested as well to see if I'm carrying the gene.

This is so complicated! Knowing what I know now, I would NEVER have taken my kids off gluten without proper testing, but my primary care doctor advised dietary trials when they were having skin issues. I unfortunately asked for allergy testing, not celiac testing, because I didn't know any better. Eeek!

but our doctor really doesn't know a lot in this area and I really don't think that he will be very helpful. After I had my gluten induced TIA, he told me to stay away from gluten, but that "a little bit probably won't bother you." 

I would like to work towards pursuing a DX for my 7 year old daughter because there's not a chance in the world that she will stick to a gluten free diet without a formal DX. She will pretty much go find gluten and eat it and really doesn't care about the rash that develops as a result. I bought gluten free granola bars for us and regular granola bars for my husband and youngest daughter as a treat. I figured that it was pre-packaged, so if they kept it and ate it outside or took it on a trip it shouldn't contaminate my gluten-free house.

So after eating 3 of the gluten free bars, she went outside and snuck into the van and found her dad's bars and ate one as well. Her face is already rashy and raw from the last couple of cheats that she's done. She consistently gets the same symptom from being glutened and I know that it's not placebo effect, because there were some times when I didn't expect it and then it flared up and I realized that she had either snuck some behind my back or gotten some accidently at a restaurant. (i.e. when Taco Bell subbed out a wheat tostada for the corn)

Is it possible to go to some sort of specialist without a referral from your primary care doctor? Or should we find a lab that can order us a celiac panel first without having to try to convince our doctor first?

If we do a gluten challenge, how can I make it safe for her? In my gluten challenge, I overdid it and wound up with severe headaches, but then again I went cold turkey to eating the same type of meals as my husband. Is it fairly safe to feed a kid say, 1 PBJ sandwich on whole wheat bread per day when gluten challenging?

I like Seventh Generation products. Their baby lotion and their baby shampoo/body wash are both gluten free and say so on the label.

I totally understand your excitement! The VitaMix was one of the best kitchen investments that we've made. Since we make most of our food from scratch, having quality tools is very helpful.

BlessedMommy

 

Asking  questions  & listening always  pays  off,,,  glad  you have  peace of mind... it  is  always nice  to feel  safe......I felt  such a  relief  when  I  made a gluten-free    home....

Yes, it is a relief. It's so much easier to cook when I'm not worrying about CC the whole time. Easier on my hands too! (I used to be constantly washing my hands when making my husband's work sandwiches!)

It's so nice to have a supportive community to provide feedback! I've learned so much since coming here.

Not sure why a Celiac would go to a place called Macaroni Grill. You can call ahead of time and talk to a manager or chef. Let them kniw you react to CC and see if they can tighten up for you. 

I think that some places with names like that can have safe food, it just depends. I've heard good reviews of Old Spaghetti Factory and Olive Garden.

And yes, we're going to Akron, OH, so there are definitely other options. They have an Outback Steakhouse there and up further north, closer to Cleveland, there's a California Pizza Kitchen.

One unlikely place where gluten hides is in salad dressings. Fillers, thickeners, vinegars, and soy sauce. Always verify gluten-free status of salad dressings before using.

Also, if you have cast iron pans, putting them in a self clean cycle of the oven (which gets up to 900 degrees) will burn off any gluten. Then re-season them and they should be safe for use.

Don't forget waffle irons! It's pretty much impossible to get the gluten off of a used waffle iron. Flour sifters should also be replaced.

Yikes, I just read through a whole bunch of reviews about Macaroni Grill cooking and preparing gluten-free pasta/food very sloppily, to the point where people found whole wheat pasta mixed in with their gluten-free pasta.     There was even one review stating that they often bring out gluten pasta when you ask for gluten free and one person was rushed to the hospital after being reassured that their food was safe.

I won't be trying this place! Who are they trying to cater to, the fad dieters?

I always get Plantars.   Yum....

Thanks for the recommendation! I was looking for snacks for a wedding reception that I was going to, and I remembered that, so I picked up a container of Planter's mixed nuts.

Does anybody have any info about them? We are going on an overnight trip this weekend and my husband asked me if they had any gluten-free options. I did a quick google search and it appears that they have options, but what is their cross contamination protocol? Anybody have any experiences with them, good or bad?

I never expected to enjoy deglutening my house as much as I have!

Being a kitchen and cooking junkie, but also being somewhat of a tightwad in some areas, it was wonderful to have a medical excuse to buy new kitchen stuff. 

So far (between birthday gifts and personal purchases) I've gotten a:

1) New cookie sheet

2) New pizza stone

3) New set of silicone spatulas

4) Two new quality wooden spoons

5) One new silicone spatula and one metal spatula

6) One new quality metal spoon

7) New cutting board

8) New Dutch Oven pot

9) New stock pot

My waffle iron, toaster, flour sifter, and blender have always been gluten-free, so no worries there.

The peace of mind of having a gluten-free kitchen is well worth the effort and to boot, I get shiny new kitchen stuff after using old scratched up stuff for a long time.

Thanks to those who encouraged me and answered my questions about making my kitchen gluten-free. I'm loving the end result.

Go Cathy! You know, if people are being that ridiculous, they need a blunt response. 

I'm in a similar situation. I may eventually pay for the genetic OOP, just to satisfy some curiosity, but I know that I can never, in good conscience, do any type of gluten challenge, based on the results of my only challenge that I've tried to do. I've been gluten-free for over 4 years, I can only imagine what a disaster a gluten challenge would be at this point! If they ever develop testing that doesn't require a gluten challenge, though, I'll be one of the first in line to try it.

The main thing is, if you've decided to forgo celiac testing, make sure that you treat it like celiac and be just as careful as a celiac would.

Clean your house out of old scratched up pots and pans that can't be thoroughly cleaned, put your cast iron pans in a self clean oven and then reason, replace scratched plastic utensils, and all wooden utensils, old cookie sheets, etc. Make sure that you take care whenever going out of the house as well, in regards to eating at friends and family members, and ordering at restaurants. 

Good luck!

I'm sorry that you got bad medical advice. You do have to be eating a normal diet with gluten for 8-12 weeks in order to avoid false negatives on bloodwork. 

I look forward to the day when celiac testing doesn't require lengthy gluten exposure.

Ditto! We eats lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, roasted veggies and potatoes, cooked beans, rice, quinoa, tofu, eggs, etc. 

Ditto! Celiac is a life long disease that is controlled by a life long strict gluten free diet. If you go back to eating gluten, you can expect your health to deteriorate even if you aren't having violent symptoms every time, because the internal damage is still being done. 

I don't get that symptom if I'm accidentally cross contaminated, but with large amounts of gluten, yes. When I did my gluten challenge, someone commented that it looked like I got punched in the face.