Rant

Monday

Gluten Free Not By Choice



life-style
plural life·styles

[count: a particular way of living : the way a person lives or a group of people live 
 She envied the lavish lifestyles of wealthy people.  Eating right and exercising are essential to having/leading/living a healthy lifestyle.



I'm really beginning to wish that we could go back in time and have someone coin a new term for those of us who eat Gluten Free out of medical necessity. Seeing the words diet or lifestyle next to Gluten Free really cranks my gears. It often implies choice. Something someone with a dietary restriction does not have.



I guess I just feel that Celiac Disease needs to be separated from the mainstream. Put in the forefront if you will. If someone wants to eat Gluten Free by choice that's a-okay. However, I would like that to get less hype. Celiac/Intolerance needs to be the star of the show here. No one ever confuses people watching their sugar intake to lose weight with Diabetics. Nor does anyone ever say that they maintain a shellfish free lifestyle. 

Many people see me eating something that is Gluten Free and feel the need to mention that they "tried" it (Gluten Free) once and just couldn't handle the restriction. Talk about a pet peeve. I wish people understood how silly they sound. Yes, it's frustrating gibberish that I can roll off of my back. But the hard part is the shear lack of education out there about Celiac Disease. Sometimes I think that the blissfully ignorant are worse to deal with than the disease itself.

Wednesday

Dearest Domino's



 Dearest Domino's Pizza,

You have probably noticed by now that the Celiac community is less then enthused with your offering of Gluten Free Pizza. Really, why call it Gluten Free  when it actually  ends up not being so. I understand that the crust itself is indeed Gluten Free, but once your employees handle it all that Gluten Free safeness is out the window. "Appropriate for those with mild gluten sensitivity" Not recommend it for those with Celiac Disease".
 Seriously? What are you trying to accomplish?





In my personal opinion, if you are going to offer a Gluten Free pizza, shouldn't it remain just that? I get that it's not only Celiac's who eat Gluten Free. The difference between us and  bandwagon yuppies   Kim Kardashian, Gwyenth Paltrow, and the rest of the posse is that Celiac's MEDICALLY REQUIRE 100% GLUTEN FREE FOOD! Did you catch that? The fact that you are even marketing it as  Gluten Free  blows my mind. Would you market something Peanut  Free but only suggest it to only those who have a "minimal intolerance"? Probably not. Just like you would not sell a Vegetarian Pizza that is dripped in meat sauce.


Please understand that I am not out to get you. You are just going about it the money making  wrong way. I mean sheesh, why not just label the darn thing "low carb" for crying out loud. Your twitter feed the other day sort of made me laugh. I had to or my eyes would have exploded at the shear ignorance of what you are doing. Sure, go ahead and tweet well known celebs who credit being  Gluten Free  for their amazing bodies, about your new Gluten Free pizza. Not a sham at all! You do realize that these people have personal chefs, fitness trainers and their photos get a healthy dose of that neato thing called Photoshop.




What was the point in partnering with the NFCA? Credentials perhaps? Neither of you recommend this pizza to those with Celiac.So what it is then? Are you secretly hoping that Gluten Free will be the next big thing and then when you are overflowing with money, you will actually offer pizza that stays Gluten Free? Or is it that you are hoping Celiac's in desperate need of something new and quick to eat will see GLUTEN FREE and order without questioning? Sure they can't sue or anything because you disclaimed the hell out of it on your website. Just know that not everyone reads fine print, things such as language barriers exist and a lot of people assume the words Gluten Free mean just that. You probably think that's silly though.

Celiac Disease is an Immune Disorder and Gluten Free is NOT a trend. It is my life. It keeps me from being so ill that I can't function. Have you seen someone with Celiac Disease have a reaction? Did you know that even if we all react differently (hence the trouble with diagnosis) we have the same detrimental outcome. Untreated, or continuous accidental ingestion can and does result in MANY other serious ailments. Please allow me to list a few for you - Osteoporosis, Cancer, Neurological Disorders, Infertility. Oh, and it can be fatal too.


Here's something else I bet you didn't know, Malnutrition is a symptom of Celiac Disease. 


In the end, you are attaching yourself to a trend that is not actually a trend. You are doing so at the expense of myself and others with Celiac Disease. Shame on you.





Controversial Facebook Post by Chef Damian Cardone

Damian Cardone is a self described executive chef. He has worked at multiple eating establishments including Sopris Chalet, Restaurant, Aspen, Co Tavern on the Green N.Y.C and Florindo's Italian Cuisine in Glenwood Colorado. He left his job at Florindo's March 15th 2011.


 Mr. Cardone's Facebook bio claims that he has appeared on Regis and Kelli, Project Runway, and numerous PBS segments. It also goes on to make claim that he has personally cooked for celebrities including, George Clooney, Tom Hanks, and Sigourney Weaver. 

He made the alarming post below about Gluten Free Food on  His Facebook Page recently. 
***UPDATE*** It looks as though Damian has deleted his FB page.Probably due to overwhelming outrage. I will keep the link up in case he changes his mind. 


This shameful chef takes another shot with this piece of gold "May god help the Liberal hippie idiot whos going to ask for gluten free pasta this weekend"  he goes on to insult other customers and his boss!







Clearly Damian Cardone is ignorant to many things, not just Celiac Disease. I can't begin to understand his reason for doing this let alone the point of it all. It's malicious and frankly it scares me. I find myself wondering about times I have had a reaction after eating in a restaurant. Was it a mistake by someone who didn't know any better? Was it intentional by someone like Mr. Cardone? Is this a common issue that we clearly do not know much about?  So many questions!!!

 I will be honest with you, there is a restaurant in my city that I will not go to anymore. They have a Gluten Free menu but almost every time I have been there, the server has told me that the chef says my order (from the GF menu) is not Gluten Free. I have been in touch with the establishments head office about this. They said the items on the GF menu are indeed all Gluten Free! They even e-mailed me ingredient listings. This makes me wonder...did the chef just not want to prepare my food carefully and separately? Really makes you think.


File a complaint with Colorado Department of Law Attorney Generals Office Here.

Further discussion of this matter can be found at   Celiac.com. (where I first read about this controversey)

 Thank you to everyone who is helping to spread the word about this very important issue.




***UPDATE*** Here is an article published Thursday March 31st 2011 on the subject. Glenwood Springs Post Independant.
The article states that Mr. Cardone was a waiter at Florindo's......still there are many opportunities for him to intentionally cause harm to diners.







Disclosure

This policy is valid from 23 February 2013

This is a personal blog written and edited by me. All opinions are that of my own. I am not a healthcare professional or an expert. All information presented in this blog is purely that of my own experience and or opinion. Please consult a medical professional before making any changes to your diet.

I write this blog as a hobby that I am passionate about. From time to time, I may receive monetary compensation for a sponsored post. I only work with brands that I trust and would use in my own home.

This blog accepts complimentary products for review. The opinions I have of a product will never be swayed by a company sending me an item(s) for free. I take into consideration the opinion of family members who are gluten-free due to Celiac Disease and I also value the opinions of non-gluten free family members. Taste is a matter of personal opinion so please use your own discretion and don't take my opinion as a gold standard.

Any ingredient or gluten-free claims should be verified with the restaurant/manufacturer as things can and do change.

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