GIFTS - Gluten Intolerant Families Teamwork and Suppport, Portland

February 19 will be the first meeting of GIFTS, a support group for gluten intolerant kids and their families. 
The meetings will be held every other month on the third Saturday and will have an activity for the kids as well as speakers from various backgrounds.

Where:
The meetings will be held from 2 to 4 PM at Wendy Cohan's house.
6108 NE 45th Ave, Portland OR 97218.  This is 1 block East of Fernhill Park, on 45th between Ainsworth and Holman.  (This is also the location that we held our January GIG meeting).

More on GIFTS:
Wendy has an exciting schedule in the works with fun themes and activities.  Check out the GIFTS website for the tenative schedule for 2011 and more information at http://www.gifts-pdx.org/


Topic:
The speaker of the February meeting will be Krista Anderson-Ross, ND. Her topic will be Nutritional Deficiencies in Gluten-Free Kids.  Krista Anderson-Ross, ND, will present information about what symptoms to look out for and practical strategies for treating nutritional deficiencies in children, particularly those who are gluten intolerant. She’ll also give advice on how to plan ahead and deal successfully with: birthday parties, school and community events, holidays, etc.. 
Krista Anderson Ross ND is a licensed naturopathic physician with a fam

ily practice at Heartspace Center for Healing in Lake Os

wego.  Dr. Krista is also a blogger, lecturer and mother of three gluten-free children.

 

http://wholefoodmatters.net  and http://wholefoodmatters.net/blog

Study for FDA, from GIG National

Seeking Participants

for a Research Study on

Gluten-Free Claims on Food Labels

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is seeking adults diagnosed with celiac disease or gluten-intolerance or caregivers to such individuals to participate in a research study on their grocery shopping habits. Participants will be asked to take an Internet survey, which will take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

This Survey is available at www.synovate.net/forgluten

Please contact Katherine Kosa at kkosa@rti.org or 1-800-334-8571, extension 23091, if you have any questions about the study. To request a paper copy of the survey, please call 1-877-4GLUTN1

Gluten Free Easter Candy

Easter is this Sunday! Wondering which candies are gluten-free? A great site to check out is http://celiacfamily.com/easter-candy/ Below I am including a concise version of their lists.

Safe Gluten-Free Candy

Jelly Beans
Gimbal’s Jelly Beans
Jelly Belly Jelly Beans (including original and sour flavors)
Just Born Jelly Beans (including original fruit flavored, licorice flavored (black), berry flavored, and spice flavored)
Jolly Rancher Jelly Beans (including fruit smoothie flavors)
Lifesaver Jellybeans
Mike and Ike Jelly Beans


Other Easter Candy
Almond Joy Eggs
Andes Creme de Menthe Thins
Brach’s Jelly Bean Nougats
Lifesaver hard candies – Original and Pastels
Lifesaver Eggsortment (including jellybeans, gummies and pops)
Lifesaver Gummies – Original, and Bunnies and Eggs
M&M’s — original, peanut, Speck-tacular Eggs, and Bunny Mix
Mounds Eggs (as found Mar. 2009)
Nestle’s Nest Eggs (Nestle’s Crunch Nest Eggs are not gluten-free.)
Nestle’s milk chocolate Nest Eggs
Nestle’s creamy caramel Nest Eggs
Nestle’s Butterfinger chocolate Nest Eggs
Nestle’s Butterfinger Creme Eggs
Sixlets
Skittles eggs and fun-size
Smarties candy rolls “Contain none of the following: gluten (from wheat, barley, oats and rye), milk, egg, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, or soybeans.”
Snickers mini’s
Sour Patch Bunnies
Starburst fruit chews – funsize
Swedish Fish Eggs soft and chewy candy
Sunny Seed Drops chocolate covered sunflower seeds
Tootsie Rolls (including midgees and fruit rolls)
Tootsie Pops
Wonka Everlasting Gobstopper Eggbreakers
Wonka Giant Pixy Stix
Wonka Hoppin’ Nerds
Wonka Runts Freckled Eggs
York Peppermint Patties

And the list goes on, check out the website at http://celiacfamily.com/easter-candy/ for the full list!

GIG Annual Education Conference

Savor the Flavor of a Healthy Gluten-Free Life

June 4 and 5^th, 2010

Register early to get the best rate (the price hasn't increased in 3 years!).

Don't miss this event. It has everything you want - great topics on all aspects of living a gluten-free life, expert speakers on all forms of gluten sensitivities, exhibits, fun and community networking.

This conference is for everyone living gluten-free.

Learn about the important role of Vitamin D in health; the benefits of a Mediterranean-style diet in super charging the GF diet; the health risks of metabolic syndrome; and how to make healthy low-cost snacks. Learn how gluten affects behavior and attitude; how to improve your quality of life by conquering the hurdles; the impact of inflammation on health; how to improve your diet with whole grains; and learn about the latest research in celiac disease and gluten intolerances. That's just the first day!

David Harris, comedian, will help us find the fun things in life. Learn about the ADA recommendations for treating celiac disease; how to travel safely; how to make the most of your GF bucks on a budget; learn about the different kinds of gluten sensitivities; making health GF desserts; the trick to having homemade fresh bread everyday; how to dine with confidence; and how to use a holistic approach to owning the GF lifestyle.

Registration includes access to exhibits, GF breakfast and lunch each day, and registration materials. Limited numbers of Scholarships are available.

Exhibitors are one of the most popular aspects of this conference. They offer new and exciting products and services, some authors will be on hand to sign their books, and there are give-aways, raffles and much more.

Saturday includes special lectures for parents and our teen challenge activity.

We will see you in Minneapolis!

Check out the GIG website at www.gluten.net for more information.

Please contact us if you have any questions:

GIG Office Staff

Cynthia Kupper, Exec. Director

Rebecca Powell, Admin Assistant rebecca.powell@gluten.net

Nancy Kloberdanz, Office Manager gig@gluten.net

Gluten Intolerance Group of N. A.®
31214 - 124 Ave SE, Auburn WA 98092
P: 253-833-6655 F: 253-833-6675

Kinnikinnick.TV is on the Air

Source: Kinnikinnick e-mail:

Kinnikinnick.TV is on the Air!

For the last couple of weeks we have been putting the finishing touches on our new gluten free cooking show "Great Food, Gluten Free".

Each week, Hosts Chef Lori Grein and Kim Reiniger will cover some of the issues that often come up in Gluten Free baking and cooking but most importantly, they'll show you just how easy it is to make "Great Food, Gluten Free"

While we do want to showcase our products, the show will cover the entire range of gluten free cooking, from the basics, to holiday meals, to appetizers and even beverages.

The show will be released about once a week, with episodes running from 15-25 minutes. They'll be posted to our YouTube channel www.youtube.com/glutenfreeinsider but to get the best experience, you should visit our new website www.kinnikinnick.tv The site will let you watch the videos, view the recipes for each video and any links mentioned in the show.

To get everyone ready for the upcoming holiday season, our first 4 episodes will feature everything you need to make a complete holiday dinner.

In the first episode Lori and Kim will tackle the main course:

* Lemon Herb Turkey
* Sausage Stuffing
* Gravy

The remaining episodes will feature:

* Cranberry Sauce
* Caramel Apple Pie Martini
* Turnips n' Apples Casserole
* KinniKwik Dinner Rolls
* Autumn Harvest Apple Cake
* Dairy Free Pumpkin Pie
* Pumpkin Spice Latte

This is a pretty cool site if you want to go check it out: gling.

I'm very excited to announce the launch of Gling, a fun (and free) Gluten-free Living online experience. Gling is mostly built around Recipes, Foods and Locations to help you make real life choices around your Gluten-free diet right there in your own neighborhood, as well as online.

In addition, Gling is all about content, which you can view on the Articles page. Here you'll find original content from Gling writers, as well as content from popular Gluten-free bloggers around the world. All of this is tied together with a hefty social networking backbone, including your own blog, friends and our twitter clone.

The concept for Gling woke me up at 3 a.m. one day late in 2008 and after tossing for 45 minutes, I finally decided to start writing my ideas down. I just couldn't forget what it was like for my family when we embarked on the Gluten-free lifestyle 7 years ago. Labeling was atrocious and online content scarce.

I founded Gling with one thought in mind: YOU. I wanted to create something that would allow people to have a set of tools to make real change. We're still very new and some parts of the application haven't been released yet. And at the same time, I think Gling is a great way for people to really make some changes in their life ... and to have healthy food be delicious, too! (What a concept!)

~Mike Lee, CEO/Founder

Do you Tweet?

Celiac.com is now on Twitter - Check 'em out

Shabtai Gourmet

Shabtai Gourmet just launched their new website and decided to celebrate by allowing their customers to purchase products without having to pay shipping costs. They produce a full line of Gluten Free, Casein Free, Lactose Free, Soy Free, Corn Free, & Dairy Free Cakes & Cookies. Even their Florentine Lace Cookies are Egg Free*! Their sweets are baked in a dedicated facility, and are certified Kosher Parve & Kosher for Passover by the OK Labs. You can visit them online at www.shabtai-gourmet.com.

While I personally have yet to taste their products I've heard from other (gluten eaters) that their products are better then many "regular" cakes and cookies. I might have to place an order very soon!

*Sadly it's the only product they currently offer that's egg free.

Outback Steakhouse Potential Contamination Issue

According to the Newsletterette by Connie Sarros* (Author of Gluten-free Cooking for Dummies)

Last month, I posted that Outback Steakhouse places a piece of wheat bread in their brown sugar to keep it fresh. I called four different Outbacks in my area and all four agreed that they do place a piece of bread in the bag of brown sugar. Since that time, I have learned that each Outback Steakhouse determines whether or not to add the bread; this decision is based on how quickly they use up the brown sugar and whether or not the bread is needed. It is possible that the Outback near you may not use the bread. It is best to ask the manager once you arrive at the restaurant or call ahead.

*To see her website Click Here