Veggies & Beyond:
Why Celiacs Need a Nutritionally Dense Diet
Q&A with Melissa Marek, RD, LD
Revised: October 11, 2010

QUESTION: 
Which grains have the most fiber?
ANSWER:
• Amaranth flour (Bob’s Red Mill) ¼ cup (30g) = 3g fiber
• Amaranth grain (Arrowhead Mills) ¼ cup (47g) = 7g fiber
• Black-bean flour (Bob’s Red Mill) ¼ cup (35g) = 5g fiber
• Buckwheat Flour (Arrowhead Mills) 1/3 cup (30g) = 6g fiber
• Cornmeal, blue (Arrowhead Mills) 1/3 cup (35g) = 5g fiber
• Fava Bean Flour (Bob’s Red Mill) ¼ cup (33g) = 8g fiber
• Garbanzo and fava bean flour (Bob’s Red Mill) ¼ cup = 6g fiber
• Montina Pure Indian rice grass All-purpose blend (Amazing Grains) 2/3 cup = 5g fiber
• Organic Whole Grain Quinoa (Bob’s Red Mill) 1/4 cup (46g) = 3g fiber
• Teff (The Teff Company) ¼ cup (45g) = 6g
QUESTION: 
Dining out is very anxiety producing. Can you suggest items that are naturally gluten free
besides a burger without a bun or a grilled chicken cutlet?
ANSWER:
• When you are eating out, bring your own GF bread/rolls/pasta/pizza crust -->many restaurants will substitute that for you (be aware of possible cross-contamination)
• Safest choices:
• Plain foods without breading, sauces, marinades, or gravies
• Ex: broiled scallops with a squeeze of lemon, baked potato with butter, & steamed asparagus
• Triumph Dining Cards: www.triumphdining.com
• *Information on dining cards that can be used in restaurants to explain the gluten-free diet

QUESTION:
What test should a celiac patient take to make sure they are getting enough nutrients from a gluten free diet?
ANSWER:
• CBC
• tTG
• TSH
• Liver function Tests
• Vitamin D
• Iron Studies
• Folate
• B12
• Optional: Zinc, Vitamin A, E, K, Calcium, Phosphate, PTH, Albumin
QUESTION:
My biggest nutritional question is that as a parent of a GF child with celiac disease I bake a lot. What is a good way to find out the nutritional information say for a homemade muffin, a slice of bread or a cookie? Is there a program you can recommend, or can I just add the values of all the ingredients and divide by the number of servings? Does the nutritional value of ingredients change during mixing or baking?
ANSWER: 
Nutritionist Pro software www.nutritionistpro.com is a great program to help you analyze
the nutrition information in baked goods. The vitamins and minerals may be affected by cooking methods.
QUESTION: 
I do have celiac disease and I totally need to know about getting a more nutritionally dense diet! I have chronic low potassium and semi-low iron. I also have 25 food allergies due to leaky gut syndrome, which over time should mostly heal! But it's very hard for me to make sure my diet is good when I can't have potatoes, tomatoes, dried beans, garlic, onions, peppers, spinach, lettuce, green beans, eggs, dairy - the list goes on! Any help would be great!
ANSWER: 
Some of this is covered in the presentation (the presentation has a lot of food lists included that might be helpful) – a GF supplement might be a good idea since you are afraid you aren’t consuming enough of a variety of foods to get all of the vitamin/minerals you need.
QUESTION:
Please share any Diabetic recipes. I am in need of the glycemic index of different GF
flours/grains.
ANSWER: 
A lot of recipes can be found on the Internet that are diabetic and GF. No major American
health/medical organization endorses the use of the glycemic index or glycemic index load because the
science is not strong enough to support their use.

QUESTION: I would like guidelines for protein and fiber particularly. What is considered poor, good
and best in foods?
ANSWER:
Recommendations based on age and sex for the following best food sources eggs & egg whites, meat, fish, soy, nuts, beans, legumes include:
• Fiber:
* Men 19-50: 38g/day
* Women 19-50: 25g/day
* Food sources covered in the presentation
QUESTION:
Which GF snack bars or energy bars are nutrient dense AND good tasting? My celiac support group taste-tested about 7 varieties of GF bars this year, but most were not well liked by our members.
ANSWER:
LaraBar, Think Thin bars, NuGo Free bars, Kind bars, Pure Fit, Soy Joy * you can also find a PDF with gluten-free status of energy/fitness products here: http://www.celiaccentral.org/Events/Free Webinars/Archived-Webinars/208/
QUESTION: 
What are some reliable shopping choices, either in store or on-line?
ANSWER: 
Some reliable brand names: Blue Diamond, Thai Kitchen, Schar, Kettle Cuisine, San-J,mRudi’s Gluten Free Bakery, Steel’s Gourmet Foods, Eden’s Market, Full Flavor Foods, Domata Living Flour (to name a few).
QUESTION: 
What are some good recipes for clients?
ANSWER: 
Check out these cookbooks:
• Carol Fenster: Cooking Free: 200 Flavorful Recipes for People with Food Allergies and Multiple Sensitivities
• Bette Hagman: The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods: Creating Old Favorites with the New Flours
• Sheri L. Sanderson: Incredible Edible Gluten-Free Foods for Kids: 150 Family-Tested Recipes

QUESTION:
I am a teen with celiac disease and also dairy, egg and soy allergies. These are my top 3 concerns.
1. Getting enough protein especially since I don't really eat meat.
2. What types of foods have certain vitamins in them?
3. Getting enough calcium.
ANSWER: 
Concerns 2 and 3 were covered in the presentation. Regarding protein: nuts, beans, legumes, amaranth (7g protein in ¼ cup), quinoa (6g protein in ¼ cup).