For some eating gluten free is a “fad diet,” but for those with coeliac disease, it’s the only way their condition can be managed effectively.
With coeliac disease affecting on average approximately one in 70 Australians, you are likely to know someone with it or may even have it yourself.
This week Coeliac Australia are hosting a national Coeliac Awareness Week campaign that aims to highlight the importance of the gluten free diet as a medical necessity for people with coeliac disease and encouraging food businesses to treat gluten seriously.
Three Sunraysia women share with Caitlyn Morgan their favourite gluten free recipe and chat about the impact the disease has had on them.
WHEN Emma Parker attends a family event she doesn’t have to worry about whether there will be anything gluten free to eat.
With her mother, uncle, aunt, brother and daughter all diagnosed with coeliac disease there is always bound to be a tasty treat that she knows is safe to eat.
Emma’s mother Beth was diagnosed more than 20 years ago, where as Emma and her daughter Alice were only officially diagnosed three years ago.
“Alice was always a sick baby, always throwing up and screaming and when comparing her to her sister, we just knew something was wrong,” she says.
“At 14 months old, she lost four kilograms in a six week period.
“She always had a bloated tummy, she was always moody and not a good sleeper but apart from that she was relatively normal, so it wasn’t until the weight drop that we thought we should get her checked.”
Unfortunately the tests were unable to discover what was wrong with Alice so the family continued on as normal.
“It was almost Christmas, she woke up and she would no longer walk, she wouldn’t put any weight on her feet,” Alice says.
“We made another appointment and did another round of tests, at this point they were talking about diabetes or leukemia.
“She was just this little empty kid, she wouldn’t talk, wouldn’t talk or smile.”
When the tests once again came up inconclusive, it was Beth who suggested it may be coeliac disease.
“Even doctors didn’t think it would be that but tested anyway, after going gluten free we saw an instant change, a week later she was back to walking,” Emma says.
“We are lucky to have the diagnosis as her body was shutting down and she was close to passing away.
“If she had not been diagnosed, the long term effects would have been detrimental to her health.”
It was after Alice’s diagnosis that Emma was checked and discovered she also had coeliac disease.
“It wasn’t until I went gluten free that I realised how much better I feel,” she says.
Emma says while it’s easy to eat gluten free at home, eating out can often be challenging.
“A single crumb can set Alice off and have her be unwell for two weeks including back to experiencing night terrors,” she says.
“I do wish it was taken as serious as those with nut allergies.”
