Raleigh CSA Support Group 12-17-09 Meeting Recap

Special thanks to Gail for taking meeting minutes during the last North Raleigh Celiac Support Group meeting on 12-17-2009. Below is a recap for those of you that could not make the meeting.

North Raleigh Celiac Support Group
CSA Chapter 108
December 17, 2009 7:00-9:00 PM
Rex Hospital Private Dining Room, Raleigh, North Carolina

The primary focus of the December meeting was a question and answer session regarding basic information for the newly diagnosed celiac. In fact, the majority of those in attendance had only recently learned that they need to follow a gluten free lifestyle in order to restore and maintain their health.

Pat shared that she started our current group in 2004 and the list of members statewide has grown to over 130. There is renewed effort to get additional support groups established in Durham and Wilmington, NC.

The support group meetings offer a place to both share personal experiences as well as to learn new things. Staying gluten-free can be a moving target with continually changing ingredients in processed foods and misunderstanding about celiac disease widespread in the restaurant industry. All celiacs need to speak up when eating outside their own kitchen and always read labels when shopping. It is important to insure safe ingredients while keeping in mind the very real issue of cross contamination.

One of our group members shared that the following website is a wonderful source of additional, accurate information: http://www.celiac.nih.gov.

There is a new, local, online company that offers gluten-free cereal from a dedicated facility. Custom Choice Cereal allows you to order from a variety of dried fruits, nuts and seeds with your cereal order. They can be found on the web at http://www.customchoicecereal.com.

The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 21, 2010 in the private dining room at Rex Hospital. Meeting guest Maria Hopper will offer a gluten free pizza tasting.

Submitted by,
Gail Harris