Doctor's Note!

Next time you're thinking of going to an event such as a music festival, make sure you bring a note.  Yeah, I know this can be kind of weird, bringing a note to a concert. Well, I did it -When the "Gentlemen of the Road" tour came my way -aka the Mumford & Son's Music Festival.  I knew I was going to be in some trouble with getting food, but to my surprise the festival let ticket holders know that if they had any food allergies to bring a doctors note.  They asked for you to present your note to any entrance guide and you would be allowed to bring your own food into the venue.  So, I asked my doctor to write a note and the rest is history.  It was great to have access to the concert field which happened to be an all day and night 2 day event and not have to worry about food.  The festival was great I was always with food and even tried a few food stations within the concert that accommodated my allergy greatly.  I even got a few bun-less burgers on the house from a cute cashier who suffered from the same Gluten allergy I did.  Thanks again Mumford & Son's for making my weekend stress free and musically sound.  Other artists and festivals should continue to follow your lead.  Since the event I have even used a note at the movies and other events with success.  Don't be afraid to shout it out that you suffer from this allergy.  People are starting to recognize what challenges we go through and are more than happy to accommodate you -remember you are the consumer and they want you there.  You don't have to stay at home anymore.  And to all of you who have always hesitated when making plans like this and thinking how you would stay fed, get a doctors note and know that you can always stay full.  Cheers!

Twizzlers!

Not sure if I discussed this entirely, but here is some more info about Twizzlers I had found.  Thanks.  Just wanted to expose the truth about products that contain gluten. After looking at the back of a Twizzler package I noticed the second ingredient to be ENRICHED WHEAT FLOUR. If the corn syrup wasn't enough to deter you then looking at the flour content should do the trick.  Now if you know the basics of reading labels and understand that the closer the ingredient to the front to be the most prevalent then you will understand my concern.  I had been eating Twizzlers for many years and had no idea. If you have the gluten allergy, I recommend looking closer at products that you have had in your daily diet. Double check you staples or go to's just to double check there gluten free properties. Who knows you might find one like I did and save your body from any further pain or damage.  Man, I am going to miss those sweet delicious twists!

Strawberry TWIZZLERS Twists

Ingredients

CORN SYRUP; ENRICHED WHEAT FLOUR (FLOUR, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, AND FOLIC ACID); SUGAR; CORNSTARCH; CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: PALM OIL; SALT; ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR ; MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES; CITRIC ACID; POTASSIUM SORBATE (PRESERVATIVE); ARTIFICIAL COLOR ( RED 40) ; MINERAL OIL; SOY LECITHIN; GLYCERIN

Nutrition Information

Kosher Status: OU
Serving Size: 4 Pieces
Total Calories	160
Calories from Fat	5

Amount Per Serving	%DV *
Total Fat .5 g	1%
Saturated Fat g	0%
Trans Fat g
Cholesterol mg	0%
Sodium 95 mg	4%
Total Carbohydrate 36 g	12%
Dietary Fiber g	0%
Sugars 19 g
Protein 1 g
Vitamin A	0%
Vitamin C	0%
Calcium	0%
Iron	2%

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs:
	Calories:	2,000	2,500
Total Fat	Less than	65g	80g
Sat Fat	Less than	20g	25g
Cholesterol	Less than	300mg	300mg
Sodium	Less than	2,400mg	2,400mg
Total Carbohydrate		300g	375g
Dietary Fiber		25g	30g
Hershey's goal is to keep each product's nutrition information up-to-date and accurate but please consult the label on the product's packaging before using. If you notice that something is different on a product's label than appears on our website, please call us for more information at (800) 468-1714.

If you have a friend or a friend of a friend? Safe a life!

Listen, if you have a friend or relative who has been suffering from some weird medical condition -I don't care if it is chronic headaches to an enlarged thyroid or even some kind of a strange heart problem.  Then you should approach them and ask them if they have ever been tested for gluten allergies.  Try to educate them and save a life.  I can't tell you how many people I have spoken to who had no idea of this autoimmune disease and how it may be affecting other parts of their body and causing them medical turmoil.  Now,  if they are not healthy to begin with and don't care for themselves and never exercise then they probably have caused these stresses on their body.  You know the ones who don't understand why their blood pressure is up, but they smoke 2 packs a day, drink a little too much while they stuff their mouths with tons of sugar and processed foods.

I had experienced all these symptoms and health problems and more and I was eating well and exercising and just couldn't put a finger on why I was feeling badly everyday.  Looking back I would have loved to have had someone approach me and educate me on this disease.  Maybe I wouldn't have suffered so long.  I recall even working with a person who had this disease who never really discussed the adverse affects or wanted to educate the people around her.  Some people are like that, but in these times it is pivotal that we all try to at least reach out when we hear of someone who is sick and they just don't know why.  Step up and save a life!  Thanks for listening.

Gluten Free Beer!

To those of us who like to drink beer every once and a while this post is for you.  Budweiser makes Red Bridge the most common if any beer that you may find when hitting the bars -below are a few of the more taster and bolder brews available for consumption enjoy!

Also: Bards (left out of this list) is found at ABC Liquor makes really bold Gluten Free line of beer.

No Grain? No Problem! Meet the 10 Gluten-Free Beers You'll Actually Want to Drink

At its most basic, beer is composed of four core ingredients. Equipped with water, hops, yeast, and barley, brewers can send beer into thousands of flavorful directions. For many people, however, beer is not a pleasure but a source of pain. The culprit is gluten, which is several different proteins found in cereal grains such as rye, spelt, and barley. Most people easily digest gluten. But for millions of American suffering from celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder, ingesting gluten causes wrenching stomach pain and cramping.

Brewers, however, do not want to deny anyone the pleasure of a cold beer. To create beers suited for celiacs, as well as people suffering from gluten sensitivities and dietary restrictions, ingenious brewers have begun experimenting with alternative grains and grasses such as sorghum, buckwheat, rice, and millet. The result is gluten-free brews as flavorful as anything found in the craft-beer aisle.

Here are 10 of our favorite gluten-free beers. You won't know what you're missing.

The Alchemist: Celia Saison
After John Kimmich's wife, Jennifer, was diagnosed with celiac disease, the Vermont brewer decided to make a flavorful craft beer. For this Belgian-inspired saison, John relied on sorghum syrup, Curaçao orange peel and Celia hops to create a crisp, tart drinker with a peppery and citrusy profile.

Green's Gluten Free Beers: Endeavor
Making beer without barley is the mission of Britain-based Green's, which crafts Belgian-style beers such as the strong and fruity Quest Tripel Blonde Ale and Endeavor. The rich, ruby-hued dubbel smells of licorice and dark chocolate, and it drinks creamy and smooth.

Sprecher Brewing Co.: Shakparo Ale
Sprecher first created this West African-style ale as a one-off for Milwaukee's African World Festival. The sorghum-and-millet concoction (they're common ingredients in sub-Saharan Africa, where wheat and barley are rare) was so popular that the Wisconsin brewery made Shakparo a regular. The pleasingly tangy refresher somewhat recalls apple cider.

Estrella Damm: Daura
Unlike most gluten-free beers, Spain's Daura is made with barley malt. The brewery uses a proprietary technique to remove gluten from barley malt (the amount of gluten is below the allowable threshold), meaning Daura taste close to the real thing. The light, bubbly beer gently smells of sweet toasted grains, with a bit of bitterness on the back end.

Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales: Tweason'ale
In lieu of barley, the Delaware brewers turned to sorghum syrup to fuel this fruit-forward gluten-free offering that's flavored with strawberries and sweetened with a bit of buckwheat honey. Tweason'ale is by turns sweet and tart, and it'll ably slay thirst on a sunny afternoon.

Omission Beer: Lager
What's left out of Omission? Well, the beer is made with low-protein barley that's treated with an enzyme that breaks down gluten and proteins. While Omission beers are below the established cutoff line for gluten-free products, they can't be labeled as such. Nonetheless, the pale ale is a hoppy pleasure, and the crisp lager is made with Citra hops for a touch of tropical complexity.

Harvester Fresh Hop IPA
One of Portland, Oregon's more unique breweries is Harvester, which relies on locally grown chestnuts and hops, as well as oats and sorghum, to make its lineup of gluten-free beers. They include a piney and pungent IPA, chocolaty and espresso-like Dark Ale and our favorite, the Pale Ale. It's citrusy, with a nutty nose courtesy of chestnuts.

Epic Brewing Company: Glutenator
To craft Glutenator, the Salt Lake City, Utah-based brewery dialed up a blend of brown rice, sweet potatoes, molasses and millet. Add in a boatload of citrusy and floral American hops, and you have a balanced, bitter-and-sweet brew with a light body and moderate carbonation.

New Planet Gluten Free Beer: Raspberry Ale
After being diagnosed with celiac disease, beer lover Pedro Gonzalez founded Colorado's New Planet. The trio of releases includes the hoppy Pale Ale, light-bodied Blonde Ale and Raspberry Ale. The sorghum syrup supplies a tangy edge that's balanced by sweetening corn, while orange peel and Oregon raspberry purée provide a delicately fruity nose.

Lakefront Brewery: New Grist
New Grist was America's first gluten-free beverage that the U.S. government permitted to carry the name beer. Its creation was spurred by a call from a doctor lamenting his gluten intolerance, which spurred Lakefront president Russ Klisch to create this straw-colored libation made from sorghum and rice. It tastes lightly lemony, with an aroma of hay and cloves.

Jolly little Chews -Twizzlers and Jolly Ranchers

Warning!   These new Jolly little chews and the new bite sized Twizzlers introduced by Hershey's company are delicious -you want to know why I tried them.  Then to my dismay and surprise I turned the wrapper over to look over the ingredients and saw that they contained wheat!  Are you kidding me!  I was aware that Twizzlers had this poison to all us gluten allergy people, which was surprising -so I figured I would check the Jolly Ranchers candy's (since they were made by the same company).  Not so Jolly now in these festive times.  I wanted to post this quickly so that if any of you were thinking of having a taste to think twice.  I will post the ingredients in my next blog to show you the proof -thanks for reading!