Gluten Free Raleigh: Wellsphere HealthBlogger Network

Fundraising History

As of Dec 3, 2010
1) Jules Shepard Gluten Free Cooking Class - 2/28/2009 $100 donated to the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research $400 donated to the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA)

2) Gluten Free Raleigh Run/Walk Fundraiser - 6/13/2009 $915 donated to Gluten Free Week 2009 @ Camp Kanata (GIG sponsored camp in Wake Forest)

3) Jules Shepard Gluten Free Cooking Class - 7/12/2009 $300 donated to the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research

4) GF 101 Class @ Rosie's Plate - 10/3/2009 $175 donated to Gluten Free Week 2010 @ Camp Kanata (GIG sponsored camp in Wake Forest)

5) GF 101 Class @ Rosie's Plate - 1/23/2010 $100 donated to Gluten Free Week 2010 @ Camp Kanata (GIG sponsored camp in Wake Forest)

6) GF 101 Class @ Rosie's Plate - 4/24/2010 $85 donated to Gluten Free Week 2010 @ Camp Kanata (GIG sponsored camp in Wake Forest)

7) Gluten Free Food Drive to benefit The Food Bank of Central & Eastern NC - May 2010 $925

8) GF 101 Class @ Whole Foods - 10/23/2010 $82.50 donated to Gluten Free Week 2011 @ Camp Kanata (GIG sponsored camp in Wake Forest)

Grand Total = $3,082.50

Celiac Disease Stats

16,860 Triangle residents with Celiac Disease
1 out of every 133 Americans (about 3 million people or 1% of population) has Celiac Disease.
97% of Americans estimated to have CD are not diagnosed.
CD has over 300 known symptoms although some people experience none.
Age of diagnosis is key: If you are diagnosed between age 2-4, your chance of getting an additional autoimmune disorder is 10.5%. Over the age of 20, that rockets up to 34%.
30% of the US population is estimated to have the genes necessary for CD.
2.5 babies are born every minute in the USA with the genetic makeup to have CD.
There are 15 states in the US with populations less than the total number of Celiacs in the US.
CD affects more people in the US than Crohn’s Disease, Cystic Fibrosis, Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease combined.
500,000 new Celiac diagnoses are expected to occur in the US by 2012 -- thanks to efforts to raise public awareness of the disease.
People with CD dine out 80% less than they used to before diagnosis and believe less than 10% of eating establishments have a 'very good' or 'good' understanding of GF diets.
It takes an average of 11 years for patients to be properly diagnosed with CD even though a simple blood test exists.
The average cost of misdiagnosis is $5,000 - $12,000 per person per year. Improving the time to diagnosis could save the health care system millions of dollars annually in unnecessary medical care.
A recent study by Packaged Facts projects that the sales of GF food will reach $2.63 Billion by 2012. The GF market is also projected to hit $5 Billion by 2015.
GF foods are, on average, 242% more expensive then their non-GF counterparts.
The smallest amount of gluten which has been shown by a biopsy to cause damage to a Celiac is 0.1 gram per day - or 1/48th of a slice of bread.
The Food Allergen Labeling & Consumer Protection Act became law in 2006 allowing for easier reading of food labels for those with CD but the law only requires labeling of wheat. Nearly 5 years later, the FDA still has not finalized what it means to label a product Gluten Free.
12% of people in the US who have Down Syndrome also have CD.
8% of people in the US who have Type 1 Diabetes also have CD.
Among people who have a first-degree relative diagnosed with Celiac, as many as 1 in 22 people may have the disease. First degree relatives should be tested yearly for CD even if previous tests were negative.
There are currently 0 drugs available to treat CD.

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Wellsphere HealthBlogger Network

I was recently invited to become a member of the Wellsphere HealthBlogger Network by Wellsphere's Chief Medical Information Officer, Geoffrey W. Rutledge MD, PhD. Wellsphere is a consumer health Web site which is revolutionizing the way people find and share health and healthy living information and support. Kinda like taking the medical information of WebMD and adding a community aspect to it.

The community aspect of Wellsphere is it's HealthBlogger Network which features over 2,500 of the web's leading health bloggers. The Network consists of a highly selective group of the leading minds in medicine, brave patients who daringly share their stories of struggle and survival, and healthy living professionals helping people live healthier everyday. Gluten Free Raleigh is now a part of this network. This is a pretty high honor for this blog! Dr. Rutledge has personally reviewed GFR and has decided it is worthy to add to the network. GFR posts will now be found in the Celiac Disease Community. Wellsphere boasts nearly 6 million visitors per month so that means I can do more to help those with Celiac Disease or a Gluten Free Lifestyle.

You will now notice my Top Health Blogger badge on the right side bar of this blog. Links in the badge will take you over to the Celiac Disease Community pages where you can find a ton of great information from other Celiac Disease/Gluten Free Top Health Bloggers.

So check out Wellsphere today, along with the Celiac Disease Community where you can find all sorts of great information about CD.

1 comments:

The Gluten-Free 'Dish' said...: Congratulations!

Recently I accepted the invitation to become a member of this group.
How did you get your badge?; August 13, 2009 at 10:34 AM

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Thursday, August 13, 2009

Wellsphere HealthBlogger Network

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