Celiac.com 11/15/2016 - The YouTube video that helped to spark litigation against blood pressure drug Olmesartan, also marketed as Benicar, was made by celiac disease expert Dr. Joseph Murray, a gastroenterologist and a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, New York, who is very familiar with the drug's side effects.

In July 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning to patients and doctors that the popular blood pressure medication Benicar had been linked to a severe side effect called sprue-like enteropathy. The side effect was easily confused with celiac disease or a gluten sensitivity, and caused serious problems in many patients, including cases of irreparable gut damage.

A week after the FDA's warning, Dr. Joseph Murray took to YouTube to notify patients about the drug's risks. In the video, Dr. Murray advises anyone who is taking Benicar, and who has also been diagnosed with celiac disease, to consult a doctor about the FDA warning.

Many Benicar patients learned the hard way the drug can cause debilitating side effects, but Dr. Murray's video no doubt helped spread awareness to patients who suffer from sprue-like enteropathy. Many patients feel Benicar's manufacturer, Daiichi Sankyo, failed to warn consumers of the risks associated with the drug and are now trying to hold the company responsible through legal action. There are more than 1,700 lawsuits currently pending against the company.

Plaintiffs have called into question the validity of the clinical trial leading to Benicar's approval with the FDA. Managing high blood pressure is a long-term proposition, but the clinical trial testing Benicar's safety and efficacy only lasted three months.

Plaintiffs believe the short clinical trial caused the makers to overlook the risk of sprue-like enteropathy, but plaintiffs are also pointing to the fact that drug maker Daiichi Sankyo spent $1 billion on Benicar advertising between 2002 and 2008. The plaintiffs say that company advertising focused more on the benefits of Benicar, while downplaying potential risks.

The suit has been slate for court docket in 2017. Stay tuned for developments on this and related matters.

Celiac.com 11/01/2016 - Is flour made from mangoes the hot new gluten-free alternative to wheat flour?

A Filipino pastry chain is hoping to woo health-conscious consumers with their gluten-free flour made from mangoes. You heard right. Flour from mangoes.

Philippine-based bread and pastry chain, Magic Melt Foods Inc., is introducing a gluten-free product line they hope will appeal to people with celiac disease, and with growing numbers of nutritious-minded consumers.

Magic Melt's "healthilicious" mango flour is milled from mango peel and mango seeds, instead of wheat.

Based in Cebu, Philippines, Green Enviro Management Systems Inc., manufactures and holds the patent for mango flour. The company's product as gained attention from far and wide, and recently drew a visit from government officials of Johannesberg in South Africa, who sent workers to learn the process.

Like many gluten-free flours, mango flour lack the stickiness common to gluten flours. To work around that, the company turned to egg whites and other "healthy" alternatives. The resulting mango flour is suitable for some muffins, bread, energy bars, and sandwiches.

So, will mango flour be making an appearance in gluten-free products at your store? Stay tuned for more developments on this and other gluten-free stories.

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Celiac.com 10/26/2016 - There's been a bit of confusion lately over claims by the Canadian Celiac Association (CCA) that the optical sorting system used by General Mills to produce gluten-free Cheerios and other cereals is somehow flawed, and their products not safe for people with celiac disease. The CCA has issued a warning to Canadian consumers with celiac disease against eating gluten-free Cheerios products, based on concerns of possible contamination due to a what they say is a faulty sorting process.

General Mills debuted their patented optical sorting process and launched gluten-free Cheerios in the U.S. last summer, and they spent millions of dollars developing the new technology. Later, the company voluntarily recalled nearly 2 million boxes, when a plant mixing error caused wheat flour to mixed with oat flour. However, since that time there have been no known reports of systemic contamination, which is what the CCA is alleging.

General Mills launched five flavors of gluten-free Cheerios in Canada this summer: Original, Honey Nut, Multi-Grain, Apple Cinnamon and Chocolate. Clearly, the CCA is looking to protect people with celiac disease from the perceived possibility of gluten contamination, but the CCA's statement goes beyond urging simple caution, and urging celiacs to report any cases of gluten contamination and to save boxes for lab testing.

"Hearing stories…"

Samantha Maloney, former president of the Ottawa chapter of the Canadian Celiac Association, told CBC Radio's All In A Day that the General Mills process of sorting grains to produce gluten-free cereal is "flawed."
She and her group claim that they have made the claim because they have "heard stories." Has Maloney or anyone in her group actually followed up on these claims, these "stories" she's "hearing?" Without offering any proof or names, or scientific data for making her claim, Maloney went on to say that General Mills is having "a bit of a problem" with the way they are cleaning their oats. Is she saying that the product is being contaminated by gluten? It seems so.

Well, if that's true, then surely some celiac suffer who ate Cheerios and had a bad reaction must have a box of cereal that can be tested. If General Mills is churning out box after box of gluten-tainted cereal and labeling it "gluten-free," then it seems like a massive scandal and lawsuit waiting to happen. Maybe some enterprising person, or even a law firm, can go grab some boxes and get them tested, and add some actual evidence to these claims.

One would think Maloney and the CCA would confirm such information beforehand, rather than first making the claim, and then asking people to provide confirmation after the fact. If Maloney's claims are proven true, then General Mills deserves to be called out, and Celiac.com will certainly be among the first to report it.

Until then, saying that General Mills is knowingly using a faulty system to sort their gluten-free oats is simply irresponsible hearsay, and doesn't really help provide accurate information for consumers with celiac disease, something the Canadian Celiac Association claims is part of its mission. It's one thing to urge caution, and to call for testing and evidence gathering that supports any claims of gluten-contamination, but it's entirely another to claim without any evidence a product and process are flawed and likely to harm people with celiac disease.

What happens if the General Mills process turns out to be okay? What happens if Gluten-Free Cheerios and other products are perfectly safe? That means the CCA was not only wrong, they were wrong without even having any facts to support their original claim. How does that help people with celiac disease or the CCA?

Celiac.com continues to support efforts by the CCA and other groups to inform and protect people with celiac disease, but we also urge proper facts, data, context and evidence to support any hard claims about products, gluten-free or otherwise.

Regarding the status of General Mills' patented optical sorting process for producing gluten-free grains for their Cheerios and other gluten-free products, Celiac.com urges caution on the part of individual consumers. Currently there is no evidence to suggest that any of these products not gluten-free, but, there is also no evidence that similar gluten-free oat cereals made by smaller companies do a better job to ensure that their products are safe, yet there is no controversy about them.

Ultimately people with celiac disease should use caution, and, in the event they experience gluten contamination, they should save the box and report it to the Canadian Celiac Association, and/ or any of the other official resources listed on the CCA website:

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Stay tuned to celiac.com for information on this and related stories.

Celiac.com 10/10/2016 - Good news for anyone on a gluten-free diet who misses their beloved Lucky Charms breakfast cereal.

Lucky Charms joins a number of General Mills' other brands with gluten-free versions, including Chex and Cheerios. In this case, the company turned an old brand into a gluten-free product.

Like Cheerios, Lucky Charms are made from oats, which are gluten-free, except that most major commercial oat supplies have minor, but problematic, amounts of other grains.

To solve that, General Mills has created a process that sorts "out the small amount of wheat, rye and barley in our supply of whole oats that are inadvertently introduced at the farms where the oats are grown, or during transportation of the whole oats to our mill," according to the company.

General Mills has applied for patents on their unique sorting process that ensures General Mills’ gluten-free cereals meet the FDA's strict guideline for gluten free, said Emily Thomas, senior marketing manager for Lucky Charms in a press release.

One advantage of General Mills sorting process is that it allows the company to formulate gluten-free options without altering their recipes, or changing their flavor.

One thing consumers can count on, says Thomas, is that “…the recipe won't change. It will maintain the same great, magically delicious taste that Lucky Charms fans love."

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Celiac.com 10/06/2016 - If you've bought pasta in a box, or if you've even strolled your boxed pasta aisle at the supermarket, you've likely come across Barilla, and their famous blue box. Well, it turns out that the world's largest pasta-maker might have been ripping off customers by routinely under filling their boxes. In fact, Barilla is being sued for 'substantially' under-filling boxes and, as a result, cheating customers out of as much as a quarter of their noodles.

Plaintiffs Alessandro Berni, Domenico Salvata, Mossimo Simioli, and Giuseppe Santochirico, have filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that Barilla deceptively packages certain pastas in order to deceive consumers. They claim extra-protein, whole-grain, and gluten-free pastas are placed in the standard-size boxes used for plain old penne or farfalle — only these specialty boxes are "substantially under-filled."

According to the plaintiffs' math, a box of Protein Plus contains 9.4 percent less pasta, the whole-grain variety is under-filled by 17.4 percent, and the gluten-free shorts buyers a full 25 percent. At the heart of the dispute is a practice commonly known as "slack-fill," the practice of leaving empty space at the top of packaged goods.

Now, many consumers complaint about the practice, but if the contents are measured by weight, and the weight on the label matches the weight of the contents in the box, then there's no problem with slack-filling the package. Often it's done to prevent breakage. However, the plaintiffs argue that Barilla manipulated consumer familiarity with the size and look of the box, familiarity built by decades of marketing, to mislead consumers into thinking they were receiving the same quantity of pasta, even though that quantity, sold in that same familiar blue box, was up to 25% less than usual.

The plaintiffs admit that the boxes do include a vague reference to a "new reduced net weight," but it was placed so that most customers would never notice it. Customers were otherwise uninformed that any change has been made to the amount of pasts in the box.

Previously, Barilla has found themselves in hot water for funding a health study that "found" people didn't get fat eating pasta, which might have proven true had the study relied on under-filled boxes of Barilla. Oh, and then there was that time Barilla publicly suggested that people who are gay should "eat pasta from another manufacturer."

So, will Barilla be forced to change its ways? Stay tuned to learn how this and related cases resolve.

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Celiac.com 09/27/2016 - After repeated shareholder requests, and a public admission from the CEO that the company had "really screwed up the gluten free stuff," Starbucks is announcing an expansion gluten-free and other specialty options.

Until now, Starbucks has relied heavily on packaged foods to meet the rising demand for gluten-free food raises. As part of a new effort to change that, the company recently released its latest offering, the organic gluten-free, vegan, kosher chickpea puff called Hippeas, which is currently available in white cheddar and fajita flavors.

Over the years, numerous shareholders have demanded that Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz add more food options for people who are either allergic to gluten or choose to eat gluten-free. At the 2015 shareholder meeting, Schultz said the company had plans to address the gluten-free issue because it represents a "big opportunity." He added that, to that point, the company had "really screwed up the gluten free stuff."

Some gluten-free options are available regionally at various Starbucks, such as the Marshmallow Dream bar and the Kind Bars, but there has been little in the way of quality gluten-free options that are local, aritisanal, etc. "Items in our pastry case can be subject to cross contamination and we use shared equipment," Starbucks spokeswoman Erin Schaeffer said in an email response to questions. "So adding gluten-free options to our broader food portfolio has posed a challenge that we continue to explore."

The market for packaged gluten-free foods is estimated at more than $3 billion and is continuing to grow.

Last year, Starbucks launched the Retail Brand Partnership team, which is tasked with finding packaged goods that satisfy various dietary specialty needs.

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Celiac.com 09/15/2016 - Some doctors and clinicians have reported cases of severe sprue-like enteropathy associated with olmesartan, but, until now, no clear demonstration of an increased risk has been documented by epidemiological studies.

Now, a French nationwide observational cohort study has shown a connection between severe intestinal malabsorption and the drug olmesartan, according to results presented by a team of researchers. Olmesartan is an angiotensin II receptor antagonist which has been used for the treatment of high blood pressure. Olmesartan is also sold commercially under the name Benicar.

The research team included Mickael Basson, Myriam Mezzarobba, Alain Weill, Philippe Ricordeau, Hubert Allemand, Francois Alla, and Franck Carbonnel. They are variously affiliated with the French National Health Insurance Fund, Paris, France, and the Université Paris-Sud, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris and Gastroenterology unit, Hôpitaux Universitaires Paris Sud, Le Kremlin Bicêtre, France.

The team set out to assess, in a nationwide patient cohort, the risk of hospitalization for intestinal malabsorption associated with olmesartan compared with other angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) and ACE inhibitors (ACEIs). From the French National Health Insurance claim database, they included all adult patients initiating ARB or ACEI between 1 January 2007 and 31 December 2012, with no prior hospitalization for intestinal malabsorption, no serology testing for celiac disease, and no prescription for a gluten-free diet product. Their main endpoint was incidence of hospitalization with a discharge diagnosis of intestinal malabsorption.

The team included 4,546,680 patients, for a total of 9,010,303 person-years, and observed 218 events. Compared with ACEI, the adjusted rate ratio of hospitalization with a discharge diagnosis of intestinal malabsorption was 2.49 (95% CI 1.73 to 3.57, p

Average length of hospital stay for intestinal malabsorption was longer in the olmesartan group than in the other groups (p=0.02).

Compared with ACEI, the adjusted rate ratio of hospitalization for celiac disease was 4.39 (95% CI 2.77 to 6.96, p<0.0001).

These results show that olmesartan is assoc qiated with higher rates of hospitalization for intestinal malabsorption and celiac disease.

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Celiac.com 09/13/2016 - A 10-year-old girl allegedly fell ill after eating pizza that was supposed to be gluten-free, but which turned out to be standard pizza.

The girl, Sydney Bayle, became violently ill, and ended up in the local emergency room. The attorney for Grotto Pizza says the company has admitted making a "mistake."

Now the parents, Samuel and Victoria Bayle, of Edinboro, Erie County, are seeking monetary damages against both Grotto Pizza and Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center in Plains Township, including doctors and nurses.

After becoming ill and checking in at the Medical Center's Emergency Room, the parents claim that medical center staff made the Sydney wait for nearly three hours, where she continued to be ill enough to vomit blood.

Sydney has suffered from celiac disease from birth, according to the complaint.

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Celiac.com 09/08/2016 - A café in Ireland has stirred controversy after claiming that customers requesting gluten-free food will be required to present a doctor's note, proving they have celiac disease or a medical condition that makes gluten-free food necessary.

The White Moose Café in Dublin's Phibsborough neighborhood has stirred controversy in the past after banning vegans for writing negative reviews about the café. Now, say the owners of the café, guests who demand gluten-free food will need to produce a doctor's note stating that they suffer from celiac disease.

A post on the company's Facebook reads:

Well, that's one way to deal with gluten-free fad dieters. Smartly played, or misguided?

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Celiac.com 09/05/2016 - Currently, a gluten-free diet is the only recommended treatment for celiac disease. But, researchers don't know much about how effective the actually diet is, or exactly what constitutes the normal range of responses among persons with celiac disease on a gluten-free diet.

To get a better idea, a team of researchers recently set out to study a group adults with biopsy proven, newly diagnosed celiac disease. The research team included J. A. Silvester, L. A. Graff, L. Rigaux, J. R. Walker & D. R. Duerksen, variously affiliated with the College of Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, the Celiac Research Program at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA, USA, and the St Boniface Hospital, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.

The team had each patient complete a survey related to diet adherence and reactions to gluten at entry and 6 months. To measure celiac disease symptoms and gluten-free diet adherence, the team used the Celiac Symptom Index, Celiac Diet Assessment Tool (CDAT) and Gluten-Free Eating Assessment Tool (gluten-free-EAT), and they assessed a total of 105 participants, 91% of whom reported gluten exposure less than once per month, and showed an average CDAT score was 9 (IQR 8–11), consistent with adequate adherence.

Two-thirds of the subjects reported suspected symptomatic reaction to gluten. For 63% of subjects, gluten consumption was only suspected after a reaction occurred. For nearly 30%, gluten consumption was the result of eating in a restaurant. Gluten consumed came from cross-contamination in 30% of cases, and from gluten as a major ingredient in 10% of cases. On average, symptoms began an hour after gluten consumption, running from 10 minutes on the low end to 48 hours on the high end.

On average, when symptoms did occur, they lasted about 24 hours, on average; though they ranged from 1 hour to 8 days. Common symptoms included abdominal pain in 80%, diarrhea in 52%, fatigue in 33%, headache in 30% and irritability in 29% of patients.

Adverse gluten reactions are common in people with celiac disease on a gluten-free diet. Eating away from home, especially at restaurants and other homes, carries the greatest risk for gluten exposure.

The team encourages doctors who treat people with celiac disease to question their patients about adverse gluten reactions as part of their assessment of gluten-free diet adherence.

How often do you get exposed to gluten? What happens?

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Celiac.com 09/02/2016 - A Canadian woman who claims to suffer from celiac disease has sued Mohegan Sun Pocono and its buffet, Timbers, after she allegedly became ill from eating pastries mislabeled as "gluten free."

The woman says the pastries labeled as "gluten free" at the buffet were standard non-gluten-free pastries, and says the error made her violently ill, and caused weight loss and several weeks of sickness.

Dianne M. Leyshon, of Terrace Avenue, Harding, claims that, at a brunch served on July, 27, 2014, Timbers Buffet represented the desserts as gluten-free. The complaint alleges Leyshon became "violently ill" after she ate "several pastries."

Gluten can inflame and damage the inner lining of the small intestine if eaten by those with celiac disease, according to the Mayo Clinic. She was later taken via ambulance to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center with "severe dehydration" and continued to feel the injuries' effects weeks later, losing as much as eight pounds in the process, according to the complaint.

The complaint seeks a sum in excess of what Leyshon would stand to win through out-of-court arbitration as well as costs and interest.

A Mohegan Sun Pocono spokesperson has not yet returned comment.

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At the start of the 2016 academic year, Kent State University becomes the first university in the country to feature an entirely gluten-free dining hall on campus. Kent State restructured Prentice Café after administrators noticed that the number of students arriving on campus with gluten intolerance was rising each year. The new dining facility will meet the ever-increasing demand for gluten-free foods.

An estimated 3 million Americans suffer from celiac disease, a genetic autoimmune disorder that affects the digestive process. When a person who has celiac disease consumes gluten, the individual’s immune system attacks the small intestine and inhibits the body’s ability to absorb important nutrients. Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. It is essential for those with celiac disease and sensitivity to gluten to avoid products containing these ingredients. Some individuals who have not been diagnosed with an allergy or sensitivity to gluten also choose to restrict their gluten intake as a personal preference. Until recently, however, it has often been difficult to find suitable gluten-free food options, especially when dining away from home.

Kent State aims to make college life easier for students who need or prefer gluten-free foods. At Prentice Café, all menu items are gluten-free. Although many campuses offer gluten-free products and some even offer gluten-free stations in their dining halls, Kent State is the first campus to offer an entire dining hall that is certified gluten-free.

"Students’ needs have always been our top priority," said Rich Roldan, director of university dining services at Kent State. "Students have enough to worry about - they should not havve to worry about their food being safe to eat. It is important they can eat in a safe environment, which is why we decided to make Prentice Café a gluten-free dining location."

Prentice Café earned certification from the Gluten-Free Food Services Certification Program, a food safety program offered through the Gluten Intolerance Group. The Gluten Intolerance Group is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering the gluten-free community through consumer support, advocacy and education.

Although gluten intolerance has gained attention in recent years, it can still be challenging to address the needs of students who have celiac disease or sensitivity to gluten. One issue is students’ reluctance to self-identify as gluten intolerant. Students are sometimes self-conscious about special dietary needs and often prefer not to feel singled out when dining on campus. This was something administrators considered when developing Prentice Café.

"It’s important for students who have celiac disease or gluten intolerance to be able to have a safe location where they can go and not have to worry," explained Megan Brzuski, Kent State’s dining services dietitian. "There are many different menu items and options available for students to choose from at Prentice Café."

Anyone is welcome to dine at Prentice Café, which is open Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and on Fridays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. In addition to every item being gluten-free, the menu also features a variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes, as well as foods that support a healthy lifestyle. The café accepts meal plans, cash and credit cards.

Prentice Café opened on Aug. 29, the first day of the fall semester. A grand opening celebration will be held on Sept. 7 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Students, faculty, staff and all members of the Kent State community are invited to attend the event, which will include opportunities to sample items, as well as educational displays and prizes.

The Gluten-Free Food Service Certification Program, a program of the Gluten Intolerance Group, is a proven model of established best practices for food service establishments offering gluten-free options. Certifications and protocols are customized to the specific needs of each food service establishment who works with the Gluten-Free Food Service Certification Program, including considered factors such as facility size, number of locations and the type of food establishment. For more information about the Gluten-Free Food Service Certification program, visit Open Original Shared Link.

For more information about Kent State’s Dining Services, visit Open Original Shared Link.