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Showing results for tags 'alert'.
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Celiac.com 09/17/2020 - A recent "Advisory" issued on August 29, 2020 by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), followed by a product recall, has brought up an interesting question: Which food safety system works better, the USA's or Canada's? The alert was issued two weeks ago for President's Choice Brand "Gluten-Free" Chicken Strips, the text of which reads: "In response to several reported reactions from consumers, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is recommending individuals with celiac disease, or others with gluten-related disorders, to not consume the product described below as it may contain undeclared gluten. " The advisory goes on to list the UPC number (0 60383 20488 4) and product code (2021 AL 20) of the chicken strips to avoid. What caught our eye about this particular alert was that it was an "Advisory," rather than a recall, and recalls are what we typically see issued by both the CFIA and the FDA. This raised the following question: What is the difference between a CFIA "Advisory" and a "Recall", and is it better to have both? On August 31, 2020 we sent an email to the the CFIA's media department where we asked several questions, and on September 2, 2020 we received the following responses from Christine: Q: What is the threshold minimum number of complaints required to trigger this type of public warning? Christine's Answer: "There is no set number of complaints required to issue a public warning. The CFIA issues public warnings on a case-by-case basis. In this case, the Agency had credible information from several sources that a particular product was the cause of several illnesses." Q: Did you test any of this company's products before issuing this warning? How did you determine that gluten was present in this product before issuing this warning? Christine's Answer: "In this case, the Agency acted on credible information from several sources that a particular product was the cause of several illnesses. It was affecting individuals with Celiac disease who normally show adverse reactions to the presence of gluten. Given the potential severity of reactions, the Agency chose to inform individuals with Celiac disease and other gluten related disorders based on a pattern of reactions." Q: Did you speak with any representatives at this company before issuing this warning? Christine's Answer: "Loblaw Companies Limited was contacted before issuing the consumer advisory and the recall warning." Q: Did any of the people who complained about the product run any tests for gluten? Christine's Answer: None of the complainants supplied test results for gluten to the Agency. After 25 years operating the Celiac.com Web site, including over 15 years of running our site's forum, one thing we've learned is that it can be very inaccurate to try to determine whether or not something has gluten in it just by someone's gut reaction to it. While some celiacs swear they can do this accurately, many celiacs, especially during the 1-2 year period following their diagnosis, can react in a similar way to all sorts of things like casein/milk, corn, eggs, soy, etc., possibly due to the "leaky gut" condition caused by the disease. Some celiacs swear they react to distilled alcohols made using gluten containing grains, even though scientists and the FDA have determined them to be gluten-free. Given the extremely high expenses that such an advisory could create for a food company, we were hoping to get a more specific answer to our first question, and were very surprised to discover that there is no threshold to trigger such an advisory. Could a single report from a celiac trigger an advisory to be issues? Below are examples of stories that ran in the press just one day following the advisory, which triggered Loblaw to voluntarily recall the product: Notice that none of these stories leave any doubt that there was gluten in the product, even though the CFIA made it clear in answering our first round of questions that the product never tested positive for gluten. At this point we were scratching our heads and wondering whether this system was working as planned, and whether it was doing a good job of keeping celiacs in Canada safe, or were advisories being issued without any real evidence that the product contained gluten? Since the CFIA indicated that there is no specific threshold for the issuance of such an advisory, we really had no idea if "several" complaints meant two or three, or two or three hundred. Directly following Christine's September 2, 2020 responses we sent a follow up question to her, but this time Patrick, rather than Christine, responded to it: Q: How can you be sure that the reactions that have been reported were not caused by a bacterial, chemical, or other issue with the product, rather than by gluten in the product? Patrick's Answer: "In this case, multiple individuals consumed the product and only those with celiac disease or allergies to wheat reported reactions. This points to gluten/wheat being the causative agent. In addition, some individuals reported anaphylactic shock. Those reactions are not associated with bacterial or chemical contamination in food. After the Consumer Advisory was issued, the food safety investigation was able to confirm that one of the ingredients contained gluten and a recall was issued by Loblaw Companies Limited." Patrick's response certainly makes this sound like an open and closed case of wheat contamination in a product that was labelled gluten-free. If true the CFIA's advisory system was very effective at detecting gluten in a gluten-free product, which is exactly what their advisory system was designed to do—protect its citizens as soon as possible from dangerous foods. Even though the CFIA's system appears to have worked well in this case, it also seems like it could easily result in costly errors. By not setting a threshold number of complaints, or verifying the presence of gluten in a product before issuing such an advisory, it's possible that a costly mistake could be made, and if so, such an error could severely damage a small company. In this instance the company was a large one, which means that the product was distributed more widely, and it was therefore more important to react quickly, especially for those with anaphylaxis. Many people in the USA have reported complaining to the FDA about the possibility of gluten in products that are labelled "gluten-free," for example certain General Mills cereals, however it appears that the FDA has a much higher threshold for issuing a product recall. At the time of writing this article we could not verify exactly how the warnings sent into the FDA are used to issue a recall, but we assume that they follow up by testing the reported batch and/or lot number of the reported products, and if gluten is found we assume they issue the recall. We wonder if the FDA's current system would have been able to detect gluten in these chicken strips and issue a recall as quickly as the CFIA's advisory system did? On one hand it makes perfect sense to verify complaints with positive testing for gluten before issuing any recall, if only to avoid costly errors that could harm companies, on the other hand it's possible that such delays could cause serious injury, or even deaths. Ultimately it's possible that both countries' systems could learn something from one another, and each could be improved. Tell us in the comments below which food safety system you like better, the FDA's possibly more conservative approach, or the CFIA's seemingly more aggressive approach? Read the original consumer alert at: healthycanadians.gc.ca
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Can a Gluten-free Diet Make You Healthier, More Alert?
Jefferson Adams posted an article in Additional Concerns
Celiac.com 12/17/2015 - A landmark study shows that a gluten-free diet lessens fatigue, raises energy levels, and promotes healthier bodies. Funded by the university, the British government and Genius Foods, and conducted by Aberdeen University's Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, the 'Going Gluten Free' study is the largest of its kind conducted to date in the UK. For the study, researchers asked 64 adult women and 31 adult men, to adopt a gluten-free diet for three weeks and then to return to their 'normal' diet for the same period. The average study participant was 38 years old, with a BMI of 24.8. In general, those who followed a gluten-free diet a more fiber and less salt, which lowered both cholesterol and glucose levels in the blood. Study subjects also reported a reduction in stomach cramps and higher energy levels during the gluten-free spell. Moreover, vitamin B12 and folate remained stable during the gluten-fee period, suggesting participants were not taking in fewer vitamins. So, basically, even for people without celiac disease or gluten-intolerance, eating gluten-free can be part of a healthy diet. It's not just celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Novak Djokovic who have adopted a gluten-free diet, but millions of regular folks with no history or indication of celiac disease. This study suggests those folks may all be reaping some health benefits as a result. Source: Dailymail.com -
Alert-Other Possible Cause Of Celiac Like Symptoms
mitchellbarbara posted a blog entry in mitchellbarbara's Blog
well tried to copy and paste my story...but didn't work...so here it is.... I have been going thru some things over the last 18 months that led me to be tested for Celiac, 3 blood tests were normal, as well as biopsies...everything I was tested for came out normal, however I was having severe reactions to gluten ingestion only after 20 minutes or so...I also have had a chronic caugh for the last 8 months, that was getting worse....I changed my primary care provider because she just wasn't helping me...in fact would listen to what I was reporting, month after month, and then just saying "I'll think on it and see you in a month"...basicly running out the door while I was still sharing...and unable to decide what tests to order...I ended up researching everything and leading the whole thing when it came to tests....based on symptoms...anyway, just a couple of weeks ago, I was in the ER for an allergic reaction to strawberries...the next day I had an appt with this rimary care person, but she was out sick....but since I was already there, the staff scrambled to findsomeone else to see me, es since they knew I was in the ER the night before...a nurse that I had seen previously, before she moved to a different city and passed me to the one I was currentoly seeing, and came back later...offered to see me....she came in and took charge, because of the ER experience and since she was following what was going on with me, she prescribed steriods to get rid of the inflammation...I was also taking 2 Allegra per day from before as well as 3 Benadryl per day form the ER....since the cough started when I began a certain medication, she instructed me to stop for now and see what happens...the cough actually got worse...so she ordered an inti-biotic...which didn't help....I had an appt the following Monday, when I went in my cough was severe as well as I had no voice....she order chest Xray as well as some blood tests...and put me on what she called the strongest antibiotic available... I had bowel issues over the last 30 years or so, and after the first table, not only my bowel issue was solved but also the food sensitivities...(including gluten)....researching what this antibiotic address, as well as remembering all the symptoms over the years, I figured out the following...when I shared this with the nurse, she agreed on all of this.....Back when I was married, probably about 1979, I got an infection, was really sick, and when I asked my hunsband to take me into town to the ER...he refused and said "it was all in my head"...(one of the reasons I am now divorced)...anyway, it appears I had Strep throat and it was NOT treated...all this time, I have had this latent in my body...I have had antiotics over this time, but nothing changed in this respect....it apparenlty is the cause of chronic diarhhea, with became severe, after going to a local DR in my small town, and was actually more of an incontenance issue...very stressful and annoying...and expensive as I was taking massive doses of Immodiam just to get out the door to go to work....this apparently caused diverticulitis, as well as heart damage.....high blood pressure and high cholesterol.....then when my daughter visited us from Australia,, she was sick...thinking it was a virus....before going back she had to go to the ER in California and get antibiotics....half my family was exposed...and now are having the gluten symptoms....a year later my daughter actually got really sick and was hospitalized with sepsis..nearly died.....apparently is was a Staph infection, (by my symptoms)...there is one Staph bug that can cause malabsorption, as well as food sensitivites...UTI's, bronchitis, pneumonia, endocarditis, encephilitis, menengitis, boils, sepsis as well as death...both of these for me were latent after the initial exposure, only producing minor symptoms, until I had a streeful event and then my whole body went crazy.... anyway the point of this is, if you have gluten issues or other foos sensitities, that showed up later in life as opposed to childhood, PLEASE go get tested for bacterial infections...what I had apparently was ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANT BACTERIAL INFECTIONS...I was given LEVAQUIN 500 mg, 1 per day for 10 days....I responded with the first tablet....eating gluten 2 hours later with NO NEG RECTION and in the morning my bowel issue was gone and back to normal....you need to be monitored while on this med because there can be severe and lasting side effects....this med is used for ANTIBIOT RESISTANT Strep, Staph, Inhalational Anthrax, plaues, UTI's, Acute Bronchitis, Acute Sinusitis, Community Acquired Pneumonia, etc...most of these are resistant to other antibiotics....over the years, because of my bowel complaints, I have had 3 colonoscopies, and nobody everthought to check for bacterial infection..only told me to get more fiber...the answer became apparent only after the current nurse decided to give me this particular antibiotic...then everything seemed to fall into place....it seems that everyone around me could have this bug...at work, half of the staff has been in and out of the office sick over the last year or so...obviously, it's time to share with them....all of this was figured out by ACCIDENT... When I had started eating gluten-free, I was eating a gluten-free soup, almost everyday, and from that point I was getting severe muscle/bone pain....it got better when I discontinued eating this...however did not completely go away, till I started to take an iodine suppliment, and almost immediately I was painless...but after the antibiotic this pain came back.... this is one of thepossible side effects of this antbiotic...so it's possible that I will soon be over this...but the nurse is testing for Lupus as Rheumatiod antibodies just to rule out..with this I will know more next week.... I hope this information will help some of you get a handle on this....GOOD LUCK OH, I can eat ANYTHING NOW...
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