Tag Archives: Celiac disease

Dining out with allergies is tough

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Although 170 foods have been reported to cause allergic reactions, there are eight common foods that cause allergies: milk, egg, peanut, tree nuts, wheat, soy, fish and shellfish. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Serena Gordon, HealthDay


When you have serious food allergies, eating at a restaurant can literally mean risking your life. But new research suggests you can take steps to protect yourself when dining out.


In fact, the more steps you take to protect yourself from exposure to the allergic substance, the less likely you are to have an allergic reaction, the study found.


The researchers asked 39 people with allergies (or their parents) about 25 behaviors people might do before eating out. Nineteen of those surveyed had experienced a food allergy reaction while dining at a restaurant.


“Overall, when you look at the results and the strategies that people used, people who had an allergic reaction [after eating out] used significantly less strategies compared to non-reactors. Non-reactors used an average of 15 strategies, reactors used an average of six,” said study author Dr. Justine Ade, a pediatric resident at University Hospitals’ Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital in Cleveland.


Up to 15 million people may have food allergies, according to the nonprofit organization FARE (Food Allergy and Research Education). Although 170 foods have been reported to cause allergic reactions, there are eight common foods that cause allergies in the United States: milk, egg, peanut, tree nuts, wheat, soy, fish and shellfish. FARE reports that sesame allergy is also a growing threat.


Eating food outside the home has been linked to numerous deaths in people with food allergies, according to the researchers.


Although the study didn’t evaluate how well any particular strategy worked, it did note how often people used individual strategies.

The top 5 strategies people use

  • Speaking to the waiter on arrival (80 percent)
  • Ordering food with simple ingredients (77 percent)
  • Double-checking food before eating (77 percent)
  • Avoiding restaurants with higher likelihood of contamination (74 percent)
  • Reviewing ingredients on a restaurant website (72 percent)

The strategies used least often

  • Placing food allergy order separately (23 percent)
  • Using a personal allergy card (26 percent)
  • No longer eating at restaurants (39 percent)
  • Choosing a chain restaurant (41 percent)
  • Going to a restaurant during off-peak hours (44 percent)

Ade said it may sound like a lot of work just to eat out, but “these are things that become second nature for some people, and it probably takes less than five minutes to do most of these things.”


People with food allergies aren’t the only ones who worry about what’s on their restaurant plate. Alice Bast, CEO of Beyond Celiac, a nonprofit health and awareness group, said that every time someone with celiac disease eats out, they play “gluten roulette.”


Celiac disease is a digestive disorder, and symptoms are triggered when someone with the disease eats gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye.


“Dining out is one of the biggest challenges of living with celiac disease,” Bast said. “When you’re out of control of your food, it’s easy to feel anxious about the possibility of becoming sick. There are always risks when someone else is preparing your meal, especially if they don’t take it seriously, or if they are just unaware of how to take the appropriate precautions.”


Both experts said it’s important to be vigilant and take the steps that you can to make sure your food is as safe as it can be. In the case of food allergies, Ade said it’s important to carry an epinephrine injection pen every time you eat out.


Ade presented the findings at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology annual meeting, in Seattle. Research presented at meetings is considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.

Cautionary tale of cracker crumbs

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Even a crumb of gluten can have a serious impact on those who have sensitivities or celiac. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Jessica Corwin, Spectrum Health Beat


Just one-sixteenth of a saltine cracker is enough to cause damage in someone with celiac disease—mere crumbs.


This means that any of us hoping to serve meals free from gluten must pay attention to much more than our ingredients alone. We must consider the entire kitchen as we begin any gluten-free cooking adventure, everything from food storage to kitchen appliances.


Read on for six simple and effective tips to help you dish up 100 percent gluten-free meals with peace of mind.

1. Wash Up

Registered dietitian McKenzie Hall, co-founder of Nourish RDs, suggests beginning any gluten-free food preparation with hand washing. As even a crumb of gluten-containing food is enough to cause a negative reaction, the need to wash your hands every time you come across a gluten-containing ingredient or surface cannot be stressed enough.

2. Separate your storage

Food storage is not something that typically comes to mind when considering gluten-free safety, yet it is an essential component. Designate a specific cupboard, drawer and perhaps even the top pantry shelf as gluten-free zones to be sure no gluten containing crumbs are introduced. As a separate freezer may not be an option, prevent contamination by sealing ingredients securely within a zip-top freezer bag.

3. Manage your mise en place

Before you begin cooking, gather all your ingredients and identify whether or not hidden sources of gluten may be present. Sneaky sources include bouillon, artificial bacon bits, malt vinegar, wonton wrappers, dressings, sauces, seasonings, yogurt, and even colors or flavorings if they have been produced outside of North America. If you are uncertain, call the manufacturer to determine whether or not gluten is a concern.

4. Stock up on spatulas

If you are able to, purchase a separate set of utensils solely for the use of gluten-free food preparation. Please do as this will greatly reduce the risk of cross-contamination. Incorporating clean and separate utensils, cutting boards, pots into your kitchen, while avoiding the use of porous equipment such as wooden or plastic cutting boards are key to kitchen safety. Kim Koeller, founder of Gluten Free Passport, recommends designating a separate toaster and fryer for gluten-free cooking, as well as separate pots and strainers for gluten-free pasta.

5. Consider your condiments

Hall advises any gluten-free cook to buy separate condiments for gluten-free cooking to prevent cross-contamination of gluten. Consider doing so for condiments such as peanut butter, jam, jelly, cream cheese, mayonnaise, hummus and butter. Label each item with a ‘gluten free’ sticker or a red rubber band to let friends and family know not to dip a gluten-covered utensil inside, because once a gluten-drenched knife enters the peanut butter jar, it is no longer gluten-free.

6. Clean up the crumbs

While you most likely clean and sanitize your kitchen counters on a daily basis, when was the last time you cleaned your cupboards, pantry, or drawers? If gluten-containing foods, bread in particular, are being served in your kitchen, then crumbs should be a concern. Each time you reach into your silverware drawer, which is often, you are presenting the opportunity for crumbs to fall in and pollute knives, forks, spoons and other utensils with gluten.


Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.

Severe stress may send immune system into overdrive

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Stress disorders are tied to a 36 percent greater risk of developing 41 autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, Crohn’s disease and celiac disease. (Courtesy Spectrum Health Beat)

By Steven Reinberg, HealthDay

 

Trauma or intense stress may up your odds of developing an autoimmune disease, a new study suggests.

 

Comparing more than 106,000 people who had stress disorders with more than 1 million people without them, researchers found that stress was tied to a 36 percent greater risk of developing 41 autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, Crohn’s disease and celiac disease.

 

“Patients suffering from severe emotional reactions after trauma or other life stressors should seek medical treatment due to the risk of chronicity of these symptoms and thereby further health decline, such as the increased risk of autoimmune disease,” said lead researcher Dr. Huan Song, from the University of Iceland in Reykjavik.

 

The body’s immune system protects you from disease and infection. But autoimmune diseases turn the body’s natural protection against itself by attacking healthy cells.

 

In comparing people who had stress disorders with more than 1 million people without them, researchers found that stress was tied to a 36 percent greater risk of developing 41 autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, Crohn’s disease and celiac disease. It’s not clear what causes autoimmune diseases, but they tend to run in families. Women, particularly black, Hispanic and Native-American women, have a higher risk for some autoimmune diseases, the researchers said.

 

Song added that treating stress-related disorders may help reduce the risk of developing autoimmune diseases.

 

“There are now several treatments, both medications and cognitive behavioral approaches, with documented effectiveness,” she said.

 

For example, treating patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with antidepressants such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) may help lower the risk for autoimmune disease, especially when taken in the first year after diagnosis, Song said.

 

But she cautioned that because this is an observational study, it’s not possible to prove stress causes autoimmune diseases, only that the two are linked.

 

In the study, Song’s team looked at patients in Sweden diagnosed with stress disorders such as PTSD, acute stress reaction, adjustment disorder and other stress reactions from 1981 to 2013. The researchers compared these individuals with siblings and people in the general population not suffering from a stress disorder.

 

The effects of severe stress have been associated with a variety of health problems, one PTSD expert said.

 

“Many studies have linked stress conditions as well as adverse childhood events, such as trauma and neglect, to future medical problems, including immune problems,” said Mayer Bellehsen. He directs the Unified Behavioral Health Center for Military Veterans and Their Families at Northwell Health in Bay Shore, N.Y.

 

“It is also notable that when people received effective treatment, their risk was lessened,” he added.

 

Although it isn’t known why stress can increase the chances of developing an autoimmune disease, Bellehsen suggested several possible explanations.

 

These include the impact of stress on lifestyle—for example, getting less sleep or increased drug or alcohol use. Stress might also directly affect the immune system, he said.

 

“Regardless of cause, this study adds to the evidence of the link between stress conditions and physical well-being, warranting further attention to the reduction of trauma and other causes of stress conditions, as well as improving treatment of these conditions,” Bellehsen said.

 

The report was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Have questions about your health or autoimmune diseases? Contact the Spectrum Health Neurology team or the Spectrum Health Allergy/Immunology team for more information or to make an appointment.

 

 

Is stress or PTSD so common in your life that it feels normal? Do you experience stress or PTSD without even realizing it? For additional information, call 616.447.5820 or schedule an appointment with the Spectrum Health Medical Group Psychiatry & Behavioral Medicine Program today.

 

Reprinted with permission from Spectrum Health Beat.