Site about Celiac Disease and being on a Gluten Free Diet. Life in general

(More at http://gfcfblog.blogspot.com) Photo, instructions, and first-hand experiences of making gluten-free, casein-free, soy-free animal crackers/cookies. Perfect for parents whose children are following a gluten-free, casein-free, soy-free diet for autism spectrum disorders, or for those following a gluten-free diet for celiac disease.

VERY easy recipe for peanut butter cookies that are gluten-free, casein-free, and soy-free. Perfect for kids on the autism spectrum who are following a GFCF diet, or for those with celiac disease and living a gluten-free lifestyle. (Photos included)

If you are suspecting that your child has celiac disease, have him or her diagnosed right away and put on a gluten-free diet. Kids and the gluten-free diet can actually go hand in hand, if the diet is introduced properly.

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet is an excellent option in dietary intervention for celiac disease and was originally developed for that purpose over fifty years ago by Dr. Sydney Valentine Haas. Dr. Haas treated over 600 cases of celiac disease with his Specific Carbohydrate Diet . . .

Coeliac disease, also spelled celiac disease, is an autoimmune disorder of the small bowel that occurs in genetically predisposed people of all ages from middle infancy. Symptoms include chronic diarrhoea, failure to thrive (in children) and fatigue, but these may be absent and symptoms in all other organ systems have been described. It is estimated to affect about 1% of Indo-European populations, but is significantly underdiagnosed. A growing portion of diagnoses are being made in asymptomatic persons as a result of increasing screening.Coeliac disease is caused by a reaction to gliadin, a gluten protein found in wheat (and similar proteins of the tribe Triticeae which includes other cultivars such as barley and rye). Upon exposure to gliadin, the enzyme tissue transglutaminase modifies the protein, and the immune system cross-reacts with the bowel tissue, causing an inflammatory reaction. That leads to flattening of the lining of the small intestine, which interferes with the absorption of nutrients. The only effective treatment is a lifelong gluten-free diet.This condition has several other names, including: cœliac disease (with "œ" ligature), c(o)eliac sprue, non-tropical sprue, endemic sprue, gluten enteropathy or gluten-sensitive enteropathy, and gluten intolerance. The term coeliac derives from the Greek κοιλιακος (koiliakos, abdominal), and was introduced in the 19th century in a translation of what is generally regarded as an ancient Greek description of the disease by Aretaeus of Cappadocia.