Let’s play a game. C’mon…everybody loves games!!

You are going to spend the next two weeks on a deserted island. Just you and the elements (and if you watched Gilligan’s Island, the occasional native, cosmonaut, mad scientist and Gabor sister.)

Let’s also assume you will have cooking facilities on the deserted island (yeah…I know).

But…you’ve only got 30 minutes to pack.

What are the ten things you bring that are in your house right now? (And remember, we’re gluten-free.)

Here’s my list: (more…)

Mark it on your calendar folks. The day: February 23, 2012. The time: 6:14am.

This is the first day of the beginning of the end of the gluten-free craze.

The ship has sailed. Elvis has left the building.

Ok…you get the point.

Yes, we have a long ways to go still. Don’t kid yourself.

There will still be people spewing that going gluten-free has saved them from the depths of despair.

There will still be pseudo-celebrities saying it allowed them to bring their A-game to their latest Reality TV show.

But the pendulum is beginning to swing and this makes the Dude very, very happy.

“How do I know this?” you ask. “Where’s the proof?” (more…)

It’s Tuesday morning and I’m still shaking the cobwebs out!

Did the Dude tie one on last night? No he didn’t.

Did the Dude get glutened? Nope.

Did the Dude go to bed too late? Not at all.

So what was the Dude’s celiac sin?

I simply had an unhealthy weekend. And not unhealthy as many may define it. No binge drinking. No fast food. No candy. No ice cream. No late-night 7-Eleven runs. (more…)

Who is Dean McDermott you say?

If you don’t know who is he, then you don’t watch reality TV.

And if you don’t watch reality TV, then you don’t watch “Tori & Dean”.

And if you don’t watch “Tori & Dean”, you are missing some of the best unscripted entertainment the industry has to offer.

Ok…I’m being totally sarcastic. I am not a fan of Reality TV but to each his own.

Alright Gluten Dude…get to the point. What does this have to do with celiac disease?

Well…it seems that our friend Dean McDermott has celiac disease. Which in and of itself is not necessarily newsworthy. But whenever a public personality has celiac disease and opens up about it, it can go one of two ways.

1. Either he/she can become an advocate for the disease and educate people about its implications.
2. Or he/she can can mislead the public, making it more difficult for us celiacs to be taken seriously.

Since you can tell I’m in a ranting mood, you can guess which route Mr. McDermott decided to take. (more…)

There are always two sides to every story.

And while we as consumers can bitch and moan about gluten, celiac and all the things that come with it, there is an entire industry that is also side-saddled with this problem.

This would be the food industry.

Not the manufacturers of food (who have jumped on the gluten-free bandwagon just fine, thank you) but the chefs who work their butts off each and every day so we can all enjoy a meal out once in awhile.

One of my good friends is a personal chef at a vacation home and he has recently opened my eyes to what he goes through on a daily basis as food allergens have become all the rage.

Here is a recent email I received from him: (more…)

Yesterday was indeed a strange day in glutenville (glutentown? glutenburgh??).

It’s days like yesterday that I think us celiacs need to hire a top public relations firm to help us rise above the noise of the media-created gluten hysteria.

As I’ve said in the past, I HATE the fact that gluten has gone mainstream.

Hate it, hate it, hate it, hate it, hate it.

The ONLY benefit it has provided is more food choices as many companies drool over the potential profits and have jumped on the gluten-free bandwagon. Hell…even foods that were always gluten free now have GLUTEN FREE plastered all over the product.

Other than that, it is all negative. Some may say it has created awareness for our plight, but I think it’s had the opposite affect. I think it’s minimized it. For much of the public, celiac disease has become “that gluten thing”. (more…)

The picture above? That was me ALL DAY yesterday. One of those days where I wake up tired and just get more exhausted as the day goes on. Clock-watched the entire day and finally crawled into bed at 7. Actually woke up in the middle of the night thinking it must be time to get up. Looked at the clock and it was 9:13…pm.

And this is where my mind starts to wander a bit. Was I glutened? Or was I simply just…tired? I mean, people get tired, don’t they?

But I did eat something that I’ve never had before yesterday.

On the other hand, I watched the Super Bowl, had a few beverages and watched the (awesome!) Giant highlights until midnight.

If I didn’t have Celiac disease, I wouldn’t think twice about it. (more…)

“All Beer Now Gluten Free”

“Rafael Nadal Eats Five Loaves of Bread: Wins Wimbledon”

“Gluten-Free Groceries No Longer Double the Price of Normal Groceries”

“B-list Celebrity Goes on Gluten-Free Diet. Gains 70 Pounds.”

“John Doe has Stomach Ache. Does Not Blame Gluten.”

“Gluten Declared Illegal Substance”

“Government Says All Gluten-Free Food Now Tax Deductible”

“All Italian Restaurants Now Carry Gluten-Free Pasta”

“Snow White says Sleepy Now Gluten Free and Wide Awake”

“Afternoon Naps for Celiacs Mandatory”

“Morning-After-Gluten Pill Comes to Market”

“Celiac Disease Declared Off-Limits to All Children”

“Number of Confirmed Celiac Symptoms Falls Below 1,000″

“All Physicians Now Properly Trained in Celiac Diagnosis”

“Everything Labeled Gluten-Free is Actually Gluten-Free”

“The Gluten-Free Fad Diet is Officially Over”

“The Gluten Dude Discovers a Cure for Celiac Disease”

Do you have a headline you’d like to see? Would love to hear it.