I think we've had another breakthrough in the food world. You're going to have to check this out for yourself, but I had a dairy free (casein free for those of you who speak that language) and soy free cheese that was significantly better than any other dairy free cheese I'd ever had before. It's the Rice Vegan Cheddar Flavor from Galaxy Foods, but it's not the plastic wrapped individual slices that I've seen before.
This rice cheese came in a little block, just like the other dairy free cheeses. We found it by accident in a grocery store in central Washington. Huckleberry's Natural Market in Ellensburg had it. Although it's rice cheese, it tastes very different than any other dairy free cheese I've had, including the supposedly same thing in those American cheese slice packages. It actually tastes like cheese! I was not only pleasantly surprised, I was almost shocked. Word has it that they've changed the formula, thus the improvement.
No one has spotted it in the Seattle area yet, but Central Market has told us that they would carry it. Please keep reminding them, and request it at your local specialty grocer. You can learn more about it at Galaxy Foods.
I was also just informed about another cheese product. The report isn't quite as positive, but apparently it's an improvement. Here are the readers exact words:
"I’ve discovered a vegan cheese that’s allergen-free and actually decent. It still tastes like fake cheese, but you notice it less when it’s part of a dish. It melts like normal cheese, http://www.daiyafoods.com/products.html. I was able to buy it in east Redmond at http://www.savorymoment.com/. This is the first vegan cheese I’ve ever tried that doesn’t taste absolutely horrible."
At the very least this should change all future Super Bowl parties. Please let me know what you think of it.
JO-SEF Gluten Free Cookies
This week we received a box full of boxes of cookies from Josef Gluten Free in Brooklyn, NY. Thank you! If you were at our support group meeting this week you were one of lucky ones to get to try their cookies.
They make Sandwich O's, Animal Cookies, and Cookie Squares. The Sandwich O's come in three flavors - Chocolate (yep, like Oreo), Vanilla, and Cinnamon. The Animal Cookies come in Chocolate and Vanilla. And the Cookie Squares come in Chocolate, Vanilla, and Cinnamon.
These are, plain and simple, cookies. Exactly like you remember them. They aren't a cheap imitation that falls apart or that tastes different. They are well researched and well thought out regular cookies. If they didn't say "gluten free" on the box, no one would know. And they are also egg, dairy and nut free. No kid would ever turn these down. And no adult would likely know the difference.
If you've been looking for an Oreo or an animal cracker, now you've got one. And if you are into cinnamon, then you're golden. And when you put them out, don't even say anything. Just let people eat them.
For more information visit www.josefsglutenfree.com.
They make Sandwich O's, Animal Cookies, and Cookie Squares. The Sandwich O's come in three flavors - Chocolate (yep, like Oreo), Vanilla, and Cinnamon. The Animal Cookies come in Chocolate and Vanilla. And the Cookie Squares come in Chocolate, Vanilla, and Cinnamon.
These are, plain and simple, cookies. Exactly like you remember them. They aren't a cheap imitation that falls apart or that tastes different. They are well researched and well thought out regular cookies. If they didn't say "gluten free" on the box, no one would know. And they are also egg, dairy and nut free. No kid would ever turn these down. And no adult would likely know the difference.
If you've been looking for an Oreo or an animal cracker, now you've got one. And if you are into cinnamon, then you're golden. And when you put them out, don't even say anything. Just let people eat them.
For more information visit www.josefsglutenfree.com.
Food Allergies and Oral Desensitization
I have been wanting to write about food allergy desensitization for a long time. It's a huge subject, and nothing has proven to be a true cure for food allergies or intolerances, but it's an important discussion. Today we'll focus on the classic oral desensitization with sublingual drops.
Many conventional allergists use sublingual drops to treat classic food allergy symptoms such as anaphylaxis. Today I was reading a couple of medical articles on this topic which gave me food for thought (and for blogging), and I will use some statements from these articles to help explain the benefits and limitations of oral desensitization.
Oral desensitization is the process of placing diluted amounts of an allergen under the tongue. The theory is that these small amounts will help train the immune system to not over-react to the allergen. This is an especially important concept for people with anaphylactic reactions, which can be life threatening.
Although this treatment is commonly found in the typical allergy office, it is not universally accepted, nor is it universally successful. However, it does seem to work in some cases. But what does "work" really mean?
To quote from one of the articles,
allergen specific immunotherapy may offer new perspectives for the management of patients at risk of potentially fatal reaction to foods. ... protecting the allergic subject from anaphylaxis caused by accidental ingestion of small food amounts. (1)
This is of course very important for people suffering from these types of allergic reactions. But it is not necessarily the same thing as completely eliminating the allergy. This is a topic of great confusion in allergy medicine (or in any area of medicine), where treating the symptoms is often inaccurately portrayed as curing the problem. To emphasize this point, read another quote from the second article that I read today:
Oral immunotherapy studies continue to show promise for the treatment of food allergy, but determining whether the treatment causes tolerance (cure) or temporary desensitization remains to be explored. (2)
Here they can't stop themselves from throwing in the word cure. However, tolerance is not the same things as curing the problem. In fact, the word tolerance implies that you are tolerating the problem, not that you've cured it. This is true regardless of what you are tolerating. Just try it in a sentence. "I am tolerating my noisy neighbors." You haven't cured the problem, but you're adapting as best you can. It's better than the alternative, which is over-reacting, but it's not the same as having them go away never to be heard from again.
It's the same thing for allergies. The patient no longer has an anaphylactic reaction, which is fantastic. But there is no evidence that they no longer have any type of immune reaction. They are still likely getting inflammation, but it's more tolerable. And what the article really should have stated was that "...determining whether the treatment causes permanent relief from anaphylaxis or temporary desensitization remains to be explored."
I have yet to see studies on oral desensitization demonstrate with blood testing that the patient no longer has an IgE reaction at all, or that it impacts all potential allergic reactions.
As you can see, it's an interesting subject, but one that still has a lot more questions than answers. And unfortunately there is no evidence that it has any relevance to gluten intolerance or other related types of food allergies and intolerances.
1. Recent Pat Inflamm Allergy Drug Discov. 2010 Jan 26. [Epub ahead of print]
Anaphylaxis: An Update on its Understanding and Management.
Incorvaia C, Mauro M, Pravettoni V, Incorvaia S, Riario-Sforza GG.
2. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2010 Jan;125(1):85-97.
Advances in allergic skin disease, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects in 2009.
Sicherer SH, Leung DY.
Many conventional allergists use sublingual drops to treat classic food allergy symptoms such as anaphylaxis. Today I was reading a couple of medical articles on this topic which gave me food for thought (and for blogging), and I will use some statements from these articles to help explain the benefits and limitations of oral desensitization.
Oral desensitization is the process of placing diluted amounts of an allergen under the tongue. The theory is that these small amounts will help train the immune system to not over-react to the allergen. This is an especially important concept for people with anaphylactic reactions, which can be life threatening.
Although this treatment is commonly found in the typical allergy office, it is not universally accepted, nor is it universally successful. However, it does seem to work in some cases. But what does "work" really mean?
To quote from one of the articles,
allergen specific immunotherapy may offer new perspectives for the management of patients at risk of potentially fatal reaction to foods. ... protecting the allergic subject from anaphylaxis caused by accidental ingestion of small food amounts. (1)
This is of course very important for people suffering from these types of allergic reactions. But it is not necessarily the same thing as completely eliminating the allergy. This is a topic of great confusion in allergy medicine (or in any area of medicine), where treating the symptoms is often inaccurately portrayed as curing the problem. To emphasize this point, read another quote from the second article that I read today:
Oral immunotherapy studies continue to show promise for the treatment of food allergy, but determining whether the treatment causes tolerance (cure) or temporary desensitization remains to be explored. (2)
Here they can't stop themselves from throwing in the word cure. However, tolerance is not the same things as curing the problem. In fact, the word tolerance implies that you are tolerating the problem, not that you've cured it. This is true regardless of what you are tolerating. Just try it in a sentence. "I am tolerating my noisy neighbors." You haven't cured the problem, but you're adapting as best you can. It's better than the alternative, which is over-reacting, but it's not the same as having them go away never to be heard from again.
It's the same thing for allergies. The patient no longer has an anaphylactic reaction, which is fantastic. But there is no evidence that they no longer have any type of immune reaction. They are still likely getting inflammation, but it's more tolerable. And what the article really should have stated was that "...determining whether the treatment causes permanent relief from anaphylaxis or temporary desensitization remains to be explored."
I have yet to see studies on oral desensitization demonstrate with blood testing that the patient no longer has an IgE reaction at all, or that it impacts all potential allergic reactions.
As you can see, it's an interesting subject, but one that still has a lot more questions than answers. And unfortunately there is no evidence that it has any relevance to gluten intolerance or other related types of food allergies and intolerances.
1. Recent Pat Inflamm Allergy Drug Discov. 2010 Jan 26. [Epub ahead of print]
Anaphylaxis: An Update on its Understanding and Management.
Incorvaia C, Mauro M, Pravettoni V, Incorvaia S, Riario-Sforza GG.
2. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2010 Jan;125(1):85-97.
Advances in allergic skin disease, anaphylaxis, and hypersensitivity reactions to foods, drugs, and insects in 2009.
Sicherer SH, Leung DY.
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