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Great, do let me know! Would love to eat at a food truck.

When my Mom was in the hospital dying of leukemia, I told them she was on a strict gluten free diet. When they brought her first meal, there was a slice of bread on the plate!

I went ballistic. I insisted that I talk to the head cook. When I explained about Celiac, he apologized, and then asked what was wrong with the bread!! He didn't know that flour was made with wheat!!!

I stayed with Mom the entire time she was there, and inspected every meal. I had to send back the roast beef the next day because it was covered with gravy. And this was in a HOSPITAL!

So now I when I am talking to anyone about my diet, I tell them wheat, rye, barley and anything that has flour in it. I specify bread, breadding, batter, or the oil or surfaces that have been touched by any of these things. But to tell the truth, I have been afraid to try eating in a restaurant.

How awful. It is so fundamentally wrong for a hospital kitchen staff to be improperly trained. And agreed, JessicaNYC, everyone in the food industry should know about Celiac and food allergies & sensitivities. Definitely encouraging to hear about your little sister, and I have a friend who is in culinary school now and has had similar training - hopefully more and more culinary schools are incorporating it into their teaching now.

Cool! Were they careful about pita CC?

If it's any consolation, I feel I can't fly for different reasons. I'm diabetic and have to take insulin. I fear there would be a problem getting on the plane with the needles and insulin. Yes, I know they have to let you with a Drs. note but I think you are limited to what you might need on the plane. I also take a ton of medications and supplements. Since you are limited as to the size of the carryon, I fear that those alone would fill up my carryon for a two week trip. Having had my luggage lost once, I want to travel with at least a change of underwear and clothes for the next day.

And then of course there is the issue of food. I don't think most airlines offer meals any more. Not that I could actually eat the meal. Gluten is not the issue for me but I have other food allergies. I just know I would have to pack food and with all the restrictions it wouldn't be much of anything I'd want. I used to always travel with extra bottles of soda and water because they never seem to give me enough. I've been told those days are over too.

Wanted to offer some encouragement! You can take as much medication through security as you need - just declare it to TSA as medically necessary. I routinely fly with a big bag of meds in addition to the standard allowance of liquid toiletries, and carry on a nebulizer for asthma in addition to my carryon bag.

And the food restrictions aren't all that bad, there is actually a lot of room to get creative - just make sure whatever you bring isn't at all liquid-y. I fly internationally every few months and bring all of my food in tupperware - usually fried rice, sauteed spinach and chickpeas, fresh fruit that doesn't produce a lot of juice (grapes, sliced apples, etc), homemade trail mix and some cookies or snack bars.

And way to go, T.H. - hope you are having a blast!

Was hoping to buy some Chartreuse and was looking to see whether it is gluten-free, and came across your post. How great! And isn't that just about the most charming, reassuring company reply ever? Thanks a lot for investigating and posting two years ago. Also, love your username - my aunt has a dog named Gypsy Moon, Gyp for short.

There is/was an amazing Gluten Free bakery and market in Brunswick called Wildflours, which recently burned down (yikes! it was Mecca for me!).

Oh no! I used to live near Brunswick, that's sad to hear.

In the United States, if any grain product is added to meat it must be disclosed per USDA rules. If the meat is contained in a processed food product, then FALCPA rules apply, and wheat must be clearly disclosed.

Ah, was not aware of this. Thanks for clearing up my misinformation.

I have never seen gluten in ground meat...If it were a "meatloaf" mix or something like that it would be disclosed on the package and in the ingredients.

I'm not saying most ground meat isn't perfectly safe, just that I have occasionally seen pre-seasoned ground meat with 'natural flavoring' listed, which could be from wheat - and not every meat company discloses the source. Usually in these cases the flavoring seems to be herb-based, like rosemary oil, but it's still good to check with the company.

Since OP did not capitalize ragu: was it Ragu brand sauce or actually a homemade "ragu" style sauce? If homemade and containing meat, pre-packaged ground meat can have seasonings that you might want to check for gluten.

When traveling somewhere where I won't have access to a safe kitchen, I usually take along a cooler full of meals prepared in advance at home and a bag full of shelf-stable snacks. Think about what does well as leftovers and make a few large batches of hearty recipes (I usually do chili, lasagna, chicken noodle soup, etc) for main courses and a few lighter things (chickpeas, sauteed spinach, etc) for sides and then put them into tupperware. Also nice to throw some fruit and yogurt in the cooler. This might be a good plan for you, since you'll be able to make sure what you are eating during the wedding is safe, won't have to worry about finding accommodating restaurants in New Bern, and could even try to match the food you bring to the reception menu. Definitely pursue having the hotel secure you a fridge for the room, and if they aren't able to provide that, GlutenFreeManna's idea about storing labeled food in the hotel's kitchen seems like a good one. It would be more work, but if neither of those options work out, maybe you could keep refreshing the cooler with ice from the hotel?

Good luck, I hope you find a good solution and have a lovely time.

Hope I've caught you before you leave. Noticed your two 12 hour travel days - ouch! Make sure you are stocked with plenty of food on those days - enough to get you through without buying anything on the road - because airports, rest stops and gas station convenience stores are just the pits when it comes to finding safe gluten-free food. Despite all the intimidating TSA restrictions, pretty much anything that isn't liquid-y (like a container full of chili) or gelatinous (like jello) is OK. I've found it's better to pack food for the plane in tupperware or clear baggies instead of foil - about half the time TSA has wanted to open up my bag and check out the food and if it's in clear packaging they won't open it up and risk cross-contaminating or spilling it.

Does anybody know if there is a connection between celiac and egg allergy?

Is there an explanation as to why someone could eat eggs cooked one way, but not another way?

Hi anna, are you talking about anaphylaxic egg allergy or egg intolerance?

As far as I know, there is no proven connection between anaphylaxic allergies and celiac disease.

As far as intolerances go, the reason some people might tolerant eggs in baked goods, but not in other forms, is that the amount of egg in a baked good might be relatively small in comparison.

Second love2travel on baking fish in parchment paper or foil. One nice flavor combination is with thin potato slices, cherry tomatoes, a bit of thyme, olive oil and salt.

Jaywalker, sorry to hear you've had trouble with the chocolate dessert. I have not had any of Alpro's soya desserts (do not tolerate tapioca well) but do eat their soya yogurt. Haven't had a problem with it, and am curious to know if you do alright with it as well.

And an aside for the others: as far as I know Alpro is only in Europe.

No doubt about it, all three are safe for Celiacs.

Hi lulu, just noticed your reply - thanks so much for the local knowledge!

Searching the archives of gluten-free blogs is helpful, especially for baked goods recipes. A couple to check out are:

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

And the 'links' or 'blogroll' page on either of those sites list other gluten-free blogs.

I lived in London for a year, and was just back for a vacation at a friend's flat. Celiac awareness is generally better in the UK than it is in the US. Food with wheat/barley/rye has to be labeled as such and a lot of companies include the "CONTAINS:..." message, but not all do. I am not 100% up on all of the labeling laws anymore, but this page and other info from the Coeliac UK group will probably be helpful:

Open Original Shared Link

Definitely second LolaK in recommending Waitrose, they have the best gluten-free sections, with brands that are definitely safe. They also maintain a list of all of their private label foods that do not contain gluten. I have eaten many things on the list without trouble, except a possible reaction to the gluten-free sausage links. Sometimes they don't have a copy of the list in store, but if you contact the South Kensington branch they can get one ready for pick-up. Waitrose has lots of pre-packaged salads and cut-up fruit, and some of their private label cold cuts are gluten-free, so your daughter could put together "picnic lunches" to take with her while out and about during the day. That is how I handled lunch on my recent trip. I also used the flat's oven to cook dinner in foil packets with ingredients from Waitrose - like pre-cut vegetables and small salmon fillets that can just be plopped into foil and roasted if the restaurants don't work for some reason.

Unfortunately no Rice Chex over there, but Kallo Rice Puffs are a good substitute to look out for.

Hope she has a great time!

Hi Mindy, I don't know specifics for Genoa, but (and you may already know all this) Italy is very gluten-free friendly. Most pharmacies (farmacia) carry gluten-free food, so he can stock up on bread rolls, cookies, crackers, etc for snacking. For restaurants and even hotels that cater to Celiac, look through the Italian Celiac Association listings:

Open Original Shared Link

That link should go straight to the Genoa page, it looks like there are a lot of options!

You could substitute Earth Balance 1:1 for the butter:

Open Original Shared Link

I think it is good that you are being tested after all. It may not seem important now since you just want to get the gluten the heck out of your system, but it will probably give you peace of mind in the long term to have a proper diagnosis of Celiac, or if the tests are negative, know that you are more likely gluten intolerant.

And like CrunchyChristianMama said, it's important to confirm or rule out Celiac for genetic reasons.

In terms of strictness, if you do test positive for Celiac you should not eat any gluten, even if you do not seem to react to small amounts. If you keep eating some gluten, it will continue to damage your intestines. People with untreated Celiac have higher rates of cancer, infertility, etc.

Like Jestgar said, if you are likely gluten intolerant instead it's more of a grey area. The medical community doesn't yet understand how gluten affects gluten intolerant people. But the major study published in BMC Medicine recently (Open Original Shared Link) showed that gluten definitely does affect gluten intolerant people in some way. Strictness of diet for the gluten intolerant is a personal choice, but given how sick many of us gluten intolerant people on the board were before the gluten-free diet, a lot of us avoid it entirely.

Hang in there!

Under the Americans With Disabilities Act, 'public accommodations' (which would include a bowling alley) do have certain obligations to make reasonable accommodations. You can scroll down to Section III here:

Open Original Shared Link

I don't know much beyond that, or whether allowing you to bring food for your son would be considered a reasonable accommodation under the law. Seems pretty reasonable to me, and I'm sure most people here. But like the others have said, in this case it's probably a good idea to go elsewhere if you can. I'm sorry you have to deal with this, and hope it works out well.

Definitely can second using the AIC restaurant/gelateria/bar listings. The places listed have very strict protocols from preparing gluten free food and you will know you are safe in their hands.

I have not been to Venice, but in Rome Cafe Alex at Via Veneto, 20 is wonderful. About half of the menu can be made gluten free, including many of the pastas. Unfortunately they don't do pizza gluten-free though. I have not been to either but Il Viaggio (Via Isonzo, 14) and Voglia di Pizza (Via dei Giubbonari, 13) are both AIC listed and supposed to be good.

And the BEST place, hands down, to buy gluten free groceries is the Celiachiamo store at Via Giulio Venticinque, 32. Everything in the store is guaranteed certified gluten free by the Italian Ministry of Health. They stock the full lines of the popular European and Italian gluten-free brands, and also have freshly baked breads and pastries, some meats, risotto rice, condiments, and even microwavable popcorn. It is a little out of the way, but really worth making a trip when you first get into Rome to stock up on snacks.

Also if you can squeeze it in a day trip to Florence there are several AIC certified restaurants there. I have eaten at Il Quattro Amici (Via degli Orti Oricellari, 29) and Ciro & Son's (Via del Giglio, 28) and like both of them, although my last meal at Ciro's was a little disappointing and I think you need to request a gluten-free pizza one day in advance. Haven't been there myself, but classic Trattoria Camillo is in the AIC listings. And also Grom gelateria is safe.

Good luck, I hope you have a wonderful trip!

You're welcome Mago! The grey area of gluten sensitivity can be really frustrating, but don't let your doctor convince you that it isn't a real condition, because the medical community is just starting to figure it out. From what I understand, many doctors are not even aware of it yet or are not willing to deal with it because the research is so new. Peter Green at the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia is definitely one of the people leading the way on starting to broach the subject of gluten sensitivity. He goes into some depth about it in a talk he gave recently:

Open Original Shared Link

The video is pretty long, but it is definitely worth at least listening to the parts on gluten sensitivity.

And coincidentally, I'm going to hear him speak in NYC tonight. Will pass along anything new he might have to add.

Hi Mago,

It is definitely possible to have a gluten sensitivity (and be very sensitive at that), but not Celiac. I was negative for Celiac but diagnosed with gluten sensitivity three years ago (after over a year of being very ill) and am very sensitive to cross-contamination. There is still a lot of research to be done on gluten sensitivity and how it differs from Celiac, but a major new study just came out:

Open Original Shared Link

I would say that just removing croutons from a salad would be a pretty serious cross-contamination threat. I think the crumbs that were inevitably left behind would be enough to cause a reaction for both Celiacs and gluten sensitive people who react easily. Say bread had been cut on a prep surface in the kitchen, the crumbs were wiped off but the surface was not washed down with soap and water, and then your salad was prepared on it - even that might be enough to set off a reaction. In your case the crumbs were still probably sitting in the salad - yikes!

My gluten reactions are pretty consistent, in that they always last 3 days and include gastro issues, fatigue, headaches, muscle pain and brain fog. But the symptoms do seem to be more or less severe based on how much gluten I may have accidentally consumed. i.e. if it was a larger amount, I'll probably be spending more time in the bathroom and the fatigue will be more debilitating over those 3 days, etc.