The easiest way to avoid or reduce your exposure to chemical coloring is simply to avoid a lot of processed food.  Check your gluten-free labels always.

FD&C on a label means the FDA allows the dyes to be used in food, drugs and cosmetics.  Sometimes you’ll see FDA Red 40 or FD&C Red 40, so these are just 2 ways the labeling is used.

The FDA allows nine synthetic color additives to this date despite consumer advocacy groups showing mass evidence of the 2 dyes; Red 40 and Yellow 6 linked to hyperactivity, hence attention disorders.

Also, the term artificial colors means “dyes from plants and minerals”, not a synthetic source.  Two of these are caramel (used in cola) and annatto extract from a tropical seed and used in some cheeses to make the color desired.

Click here to read Part 1 on how chemical food dyes are linked to hyperactivity.

Tina Turbin
www.TinaTurbin.com

There seems to be a number of sites on travel.  Karen reached out to me to share a bit about her travel site and here is her story as well:

Tina,

I launched a website almost exactly two years ago to address this specific challenge: traveling safely on a gluten-free diet. My son, who was diagnosed with Celiac before he was even two years old, is now almost seven. We had taken a Caribbean vacation and had realized there wasn’t really any place to share our feedback with other Celiacs looking to plan safe and fun vacations with gluten-free family members…and few places to go to GET feedback when in the initial planning stages of a trip.

Two years ago I launched my own gluten free website to help people find restaurants, grocery stores, hotels/resorts, and cruise ships around the world that accommodate gluten-free diets. It is a review-based site, with dining and travel reviews submitted by people all over the country — and the world. We have over 800 reviews, and they are organized geographically to make it easy to access the ones most relevant to you. In fact, we just added new and improved search technology to allow users to narrow their search down to the city/town or zip code level — and map the results.

We also have a section of our site called Gluten Free Restaurant Menus ( http://www.glutenfreetravelsite.com/restaurants ) dedicated to listing some of the best national and regional chain restaurants with gluten-free menus (with direct links to those menus).

So all told, our site helps users find thousands of great places to safely dine gluten-free around the world. I hope you’ll find it useful Tina!
Karen Broussard
http://www.glutenfreetravelsite.com

I truly believe Virgin coconut oil is one of the smartest oils you can eat. Rich in lauric acid, coconut oil contains NO trans fat, strengthens your immune system and boosts your metabolism! I am not diagnosing jut sharing my opinion.

Also, by substituting Coconut Flour in some baking recipes, you can literally recreate your favorite treats, turning them into delicious guilt-free health promoting foods.

Coconut flour which has been defatted and then finely ground into a powder has a very similar consistency to wheat flour. However, that’s where the similarities begin and end. Coconut flour is unlike any other consisting of 14% coconut oil and 58% dietary fiber! The remaining 28% consists of water, protein, and carbohydrate. If you haven’t tried coconut flour yet, here are some more excellent reasons to start:

·Coconut Flour is gluten-free and hypoallergenic. With as much protein as wheat flour, coconut flour has none of the specific protein in wheat called “gluten”. This is an advantage for a growing percentage of the population who have allergies to gluten or a wheat sensitivity.

·Coconut Flour consists of the highest percentage of dietary fiber( 58%) found in any flour. Wheat bran has only is 27% fiber.

Tina Turbin

Can you control what genes you are born with? NO! You change your diet and lifestyle to avoid the troubles you may be facing and that seems to be about it.

Gluten is used in many medications as an excipient, so it is important for people with celiac disease to check with the manufacturer to be sure that each medication they take is gluten-free.

Some patients may ask for their pharmacist’s help in reading the list of ingredients or contacting the manufacturer directly.

It’s also important for pharmacists to be aware that medications may not work as expected in people with undiagnosed celiac disease, due to possible problems with malabsorption.

The Problem:

* There are currently NO requirements for  labeling gluten or common 
allergens
 found in drug ingredients.

* There are NO specific precautions for individuals with celiac disease in 
labeling.

* Potential sources of gluten in medication excipients are NOT 
well-recognized by 
health professionals or patients.

* Botanical sources of starch may not be specified.

* Generic formulations may include different excipients than the 
brand-name drug.

Starches found in medications:
 Starch derivatives:

* Dextrates (source not specified)

* Dextrin (source not  specified but usually corn or potato)

Other excipients:

* Dextrimaltose  (when barley malt is used)

* Caramel coloring (when barley malt is used)

* Corn (most common)

* Modified starch (source not specified)

* Potato

* Pregelatinized starch (source not specified)

* Wheat

* Tapioca

* Pregelatinized modified starch (source not  specified)

Manufacturers: Some drug manufacturers can advise a patient who contacts them about the 
gluten
content of a particular medication.
  On the web:
 www.glutenfreedrugs.com. (Maintained by
a pharmacist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus,  Ohio)

In Print: A Guide through the Medicine Cabinet. 
A book developed to  give those who suffer with Celiac Disease the tools to choose medications and  supplements that meet special dietary requirements.

Tina Turbin

www.TinaTurbin.com

     So what exactly are omega-3 fatty acids and what do they do? Essential omega-3 fatty acids are found in cold-water fish and fish oils. Fish oil contains docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), while some nuts (English walnuts, for example) and vegetable oils (such as canola, soybean, flaxseed, and olive oils) contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Research now supports taking DHA and EPA in the form of dietary fish or fish oil supplements for an abundance of health benefits, such as promoting heart health, reducing age-related risks, and improving your mood and the ability to handle stress. The body can’t produce it, so these essential fatty acids must be part of your daily diet.

Tina Turbin

Tina Turbin

This is a new one for me folks. As a researcher and writer, one who is VERY involved in the gluten-free and celiac arena I am constantly learning. This I feel we all need to be aware of and as a women I really wanted to get this out.

. With upwards of 4,000,000 Americans suffering from Sjögren’s syndrome, it is one of the most prevalent autoimmune disorders. Nine out of 10 patients are women. With that said, please read on:

Here are some of the connections between Celiac and Sjögren’s :

• Celiac disease and Sjögren’s syndrome have an autoimmune background and a close association.
• In one study, the prevalence of celiac disease amongst patients with Sjögren’s syndrome has been found to be in the range of 4.5% and 15%.
• According to Patinen et al., the co-occurrence of celiac disease and Sjögren’s syndrome should be recognized because of its effects on dental and oral mucosal health. In their 1994 study, they suggested that a gluten-free diet treatment might alleviate autoimmune inflammation.
• On the basis of these findings, Szodoray  recommends screening and follow-ups , and regular gastrointestinal care of Sjögren’s syndrome patients to help identify celiac disease cases as well as help to avoid severe malnutrition and intestinal malignancies.

The symptoms are dry eyes and dry mouth, Sjögren’s may also cause dysfunction of other organs such as the kidneys, gastrointestinal system, blood vessels, lungs, liver, pancreas, and the central nervous system. People can experience extreme fatigue and joint pain and have a higher risk of developing lymphoma.

About half of the time Sjögren’s syndrome occurs alone, and the other half it occurs in the presence of another autoimmune connective tissue disease.When Sjögren’s occurs alone, it is referred to as “Primary Sjögren’s.” When it occurs with another connective tissue disease, it is referred to as “Secondary Sjögren’s.”

All instances of Sjögren’s syndrome are systemic, affecting the entire body. Symptoms may remain steady, worsen, or, uncommonly, go into remission.

Since symptoms of Sjögren’s syndrome mimic other conditions and diseases, Sjögren’s can often be overlooked or misdiagnosed. On average, it takes nearly seven years to receive a diagnosis of Sjögren’s syndrome. Wow, so similar Celiac disease!

Since the disease was first identified in 1933 by Dr. Henrik Sjögren, it has been proven to affect virtually every racial and ethnic group. General awareness about Sjögren’s syndrome is still lacking and increased professional awareness is needed to help expedite new diagnoses and treatment options. Again very similar to our Celiac disease needs in this country.

Please share your experiences with this autoimmune disease as well as celiac, please.

Tina Turbin

Tina Turbin