Anne Luther
President
phone: 501-681-5544
email: aaluther@comcast.net
Mission Statement:
Central Arkansas GIG® is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Our Mission is to provide support to persons with gluten intolerances, including celiac disease, dermatitis herpetiformis and gluten sensitivities to live healthy lives.
Meetings and Events:
"Gluten Free 101 - An Introduction to Living Gluten Free" - This class will be held on an as needed basis. Please call or email Terri or Anne:
General Meetings - Meetings are usually held in the Community Room of Whole Foods on the third Monday of each month from 6-8pm. Please check this website or the current newsletter for changes in date or time
Monday, July 19th, 6 pm - 8 pm - Madelyn Van Valkenburg wrote her thesis on the lack of awareness of celiac disease and will be showing her PowerPoint presentation.
Saturday, August 14th, 1 pm - 3 pm- Betsy Hendricks, MD will speaking. Her topic is 'It's the Yeast'.
Monday, September 20th, 6 pm - 8 pm - Samuel B. Welch, MD, PHD, FACS, FAAOA, Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at UAMS will be speaking. Topic: "Delayed Food Reactions: Diagnosis and Management".
Saturday, October 16th, 10 am - Noon - Cookbook author, Claudia Pillow will be giving a presentation. She and her sister Annalise Roberts, recently published a new book, "The Gluten-Free Good Health Cookbook: The Delicious Way to Strengthen Your Immune System and Neutralize Inflammation". The three step strategy of Gluten-Free Good Health is simple: replace gluten containing foods (such as wheat) with vegetables and fruits, reduce sugar intake, and balance every meal with whole foods. The book contains such sought out recipes as a gluten-free roux for Mac and cheese, traditional pan sauce gravies, innovative low-fat sauces and creamy soups. The extensive vegetable chapter contains flavorful, easy-to-prepare recipes like Roasted Ratatouille and Butternut Squash Gratin, so eating healthy is simple. www.foodphilosopher.com
Anne's Notes from GIG's 2009 Annual Conference - Seattle.
"I was again fortunate to be able to attend the GIG conference held in Seattle the first weekend in June. Although my plane was 4 hours delayed, it was still daylight when I arrived and I was able to see the snow covered mountains as we came in for a landing. In getting off the plane, it felt more like Arkansas. The temperature was about 90F.
The meeting theme this year was "Celebrating Life" and celebrate we did. Of course celebration always includes food. There were over 50 vendors; most were displaying delicious samples of the GF foods they sell. There were not just packaged foods. These vendors cooked up some wonderful goodies for us to try. There were cookies, muffins, burritos, cakes, soups, baklava and so much more. I hardly had room for my meal when lunch came. Everything at the meeting is gluten free. No asking what is in the food unless you have other food intolerances. No one thinks it strange if you do ask about ingredients.
Celebration always includes people - over 300 people attended. I was able to see old friends and meet new friends. I have always said that gluten free people are some of the nicest people I know.
The next meeting will be held in Minneapolis Minnesota. I hope that you will be able to attend next year and "celebrate life" with us.
I am sharing notes I jotted down and hope they accurately represent what the speakers said. This is not medical advice. Please see your medical team for diagnosis and treatment concerns.
Anne's Notes from GIG's 2008 Annual Conference - Dallas.
"The conference title, It's All About Food lived up to its name. Both the food served at the meals and the food samples from the vendors were fabulous. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is beginning to get attention. Dr Murray, Dr. Fasano and Dr Pietzak all mentioned they see patients who do not have CD but symptoms improve when they are GF. Danna Korn and Carol Fenster are both GF but have never been diagnosed with CD. Dr. Wangen spoke about non-celiac gluten intolerance. GIG supports people with gluten intolerances. Nothing was said about non-celiac gluten intolerance at the first conference I attended. Progress is being made.
