Gluten-Free and Healthy?
Many Times the Answer is No

by Melissa Diane Smith

This article is based on a presentation I gave to the Southern Arizona Celiac Support group entitled “It’s Gluten Free, but Is It Healthy?” in January.

The gluten-free diet is one of the most talked-about and followed diets these days for good reason: It’s the nutritional answer for the growing number of people who realize they are gluten sensitive. It’s the best example we have of food as our best medicine. The vast majority of people who are gluten sensitive have experienced the amazing feeling of having longstanding bothersome or even debilitating symptoms dramatically improve or completely go away when they eliminate gluten from their diet.

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Going Against the Grain of What You Think You Know About Nutrition

If you’re a little confused about nutrition, you have a right to be: Much of what we’ve been told about nutrition is just plain wrong. I plan to set the record straight in my author talk, “Going Against the Grain of What You Think You Know About Nutrition,” at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 12, 2012, at the Joel D. Valdez Main Library, 101 N. Stone Ave., in Tucson, Arizona.

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Gluten Free for Pets

by Melissa Diane Smith

More dog and cat owners are tossing out conventional kibble and feeding their pets against the grain.

A few years ago Melissa McLean Jory’s dog Fairbanks was so sick he couldn’t even lift his head off the ground. After he was diagnosed with autoimmune conditions and severe intestinal problems, Melissa, a nutritionist who has celiac disease, became convinced that Fairbanks had gluten intolerance, too. She shifted him to a completely grain-free diet, and Fairbanks regained his weight and health fairly quickly. Now, if Melissa gives him a dog biscuit that contains gluten (found in wheat, rye and barley), her dog immediately experiences health trouble, such as gastrointestinal problems, skin rashes, and reduced energy. “I believe without the dietary changes, he wouldn’t be here today,” Melissa says.

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A Closer Look at “Gluten-Free”

by Melissa Diane Smith

It’s important to understand what the label really means.

Today, more foods than ever are labeled “gluten-free.” Would it surprise you to know there is no official definition of “gluten-free” approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)? It’s true.

Buying gluten-free food is the only treatment for people with celiac disease, an autoimmune disease reaction to gluten, as well as other forms of non-celiac gluten intolerance. The FDA is expected to issue its final guidelines on gluten-free labeling later this year. That’s a welcome development, but it’s not the end. You might think that after the FDA makes its ruling, all of us will be able to easily choose foods that are completely devoid of gluten. Unfortunately, it’s much more complicated than that. For the sake of your health, it’s important to understand the issues behind the label.

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Local, Sustainable, Gluten-Free Still
at Top of 2012 Restaurant Trends

by Melissa Diane Smith

Photo Credits: National Restaurant AssociationGood news for those of us who eat against the grain of the Standard American Diet: Trends we saw last year – locally sourced meat and seafood, locally grown produce, sustainable foods, healthful kids’ meals, and gluten-free cuisine – continue to be on the top ten list of restaurant trends for 2012. According to the National Restaurant Association’s “What’s Hot in 2012” survey of more than 1,800 professional chefs, the top ten menu trends this year include:

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Eating Gluten Free & Healthy The Topic of My Speech on Jan. 14th

by Melissa Diane Smith

The gluten-free diet is one of the most talked-about and followed diets these days for good reason: It’s the nutritional answer for the growing number of people who learn they are gluten intolerant. However, few people realize it, but eating gluten free can harm health in other ways when we focus only on “gluten-free” and end up eating a gluten-free version of the Standard American Diet that leads to ill health. Many people are doing that, unknowingly making mistakes with their diet that lead to weight gain, elevated blood sugar, heart disease risk factors, new allergies, immune system problems, and more.

I will address these issues and the little-covered topic, “It’s Gluten Free but Is It Healthy?” at the Southern Arizona Celiac Support (SACS) general meeting on Saturday, January 14, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. In my presentation, I’ll explain the most common mistakes people make with the gluten-free diet that lead to health problems and cover key food concepts that promote better health. My presentation will take place at Pima Community College, 4905 E. Broadway Blvd., and will be immediately followed by book signings of Going Against the Grain and my follow-up book Gluten Free Throughout the Year.

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Your Most Pressing Questions about Gluten & the Gluten-Free Diet

Reprinted from the “Just the Facts” Q&A with me in the January 2012 issue of Better Nutrition magazine.

We’re a few years into the “gluten-free” diet revolution in this country, yet many people still don’t understand the basics about celiac disease, gluten sensitivity, and the ins and outs of going gluten free. To give us the answers, we posed commonly asked gluten-related questions to Melissa Diane Smith, our Go Gluten Free columnist – a leading nutritionist and author of Going Against the Grain and Gluten Free Throughout the Year – who has been counseling people on the gluten-free diet for more than ten years.

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