Western Producer Regina-based reporter Karen Briere was diagnosed with celiac disease more than five years ago. The adjustment has been difficult but not impossible.
One of my childhood harvest memories is breaking ripe heads of wheat in my palm and picking out the kernels for a snack.
If I did that today, I’d be sick.
About five years ago, I was diagnosed with celiac disease, or gluten intolerance.
At the time, researchers believed about one in 2,500 Canadians were gluten intolerant. Today, the incidence is thought to be one in 200.
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That’s a lot of people who can’t eat what you are growing on your grain farm. Gluten is also found in barley, oats, rye and triticale.
I make or buy bread made of rice, potato, tapioca, corn and soy flours. Ditto for cookies, muffins, pizza crust, cereal and anything else usually made with wheat flour.
Salad dressing, canned soup, deli meats and many other processed products are all suspect because they can contain derivatives of these grains.
Going to a restaurant is a real adventure, but one of the hardest things to do is travel where gluten-free products might not be available.
I’m the one who will call if I’m coming to your conference, just to find out what you’re serving for lunch or if there is a restaurant close by.
I will turn down the muffins you baked especially for my arrival at your farm home.
And no, I won’t join you for a beer.
There is no cure for celiac disease and the treatment is a gluten-free diet for life.
Many people tell me they could never give up their bread. If they knew it would make them feel better, they would do it. (And besides, you’re not really giving it up. You’re just going to eat a heavier, dryer version.)
But it is an adjustment.
Adapting to reality
Most gluten-free products are found in health food stores, and are expensive. I buy frozen bread for $5 a loaf.
When I grocery shop, I have to read every label every time to be sure the manufacturer hasn’t changed ingredients.
I make spaghetti for four people in one pot and mine in another.
I make meat loaf with cornmeal, and my family now prefers brownies made with rice flour.
At first, I thought I couldn’t live without submarine sandwiches and restaurant pizza. Guess what?
