<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

There was an astonishing outpouring of message in response to my post!

Just to clarify- a response from scientists at Teflon is pending and I have
not personally investigated flour in frozen vegetables. I mentioned them as
examples of urban myths where no one had checked with the sources.

Here is what people had to say. I have a comment on one.

Michael Thorn
CeliACTIONetwork
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CeliACTIONetwork/
email: [log in to unmask]

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Thank You for your well-spoken words.  As a parent of a young teen celiac, I
truly rely on postings from seasoned celiac folks like yourself, and often
have to "evaluate" what I read, and  make a judgement as to the "source" of
the info. Thanks for making the reminder to all of us listmembers to keep
things in perspective.
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THANK YOU! Well said! Every one of your statements were items that needed to
be said to this group.
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Thank you for your post.  When my daughter was first diagnosed last May,
I was almost hysterical with all of the things I read on this listserv!
 My life turned around when we attending the Gluten-Free Living
Conference in Philadelphia in August.  It was wonderful to listen to the
REAL experts talking about not having to worry about vinegar, carmel
color, etc. let alone being paranoid about coffee filters and teflon!
 They put so much in perspective for me!  I actually read a post once
that someone suggested wearing a paper mask on a windy day because
gluten-containing particles can be blowing in the wind!!!   There are
thousands of celics happily living their lives and not running to this
board every day announcing their loose stools and blaming it on a
product that they now deemed "no longer gluten free" or a victim of
"cross contamination" at the manufacturing plant.
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Beautifully put Michael. Thank you.
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I just want to say thank you for your well-written post. It echoes my
sentiments exactly. As the mother of a celiac, this list has been a life
saver for me. However, my biggest frustration is when I have to second-guess
products because somebody "got sick" and thus the product must contain
gluten.
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Thank you, thank you, thank you!  Finally a voice of reason on the
list.  I could not agree more; we can not base our actions on unfounded
and uninformed claims.  When I was first diagnosed 6 years ago, I
mentioned this list to my doctor (who is one of the leading celiac
researchers in Canada) and his only comment was "do not believe
everything you read."  I've found that by relying on his advice, I have
stayed healthy (much healthier than I have even been in my life), have
lived a "normal" life with my non-Celiac husband which includes eating
out quite often, have travelled extensively without incident, and have
stayed sane about the whole thing.  I really don't see Celiac Disease as
this huge problem, nor do I in any way feel "handicapped" by it.  So I
have some dietary restrictions... big deal.  Admittedly, I was diagnosed
before any other health problems arose so my this view may be somewhat
naive, but my doctor has never given me any reason to believe that this
was some kind of a downward spiral.  I was very fortunate to have landed
in the care of such a well-informed doctor, and I have never hesitated
to ask him any questions about research and foods.

It is because of the unfounded, anecdotal comments (and sometimes
blatant inaccuracies) I've read on this list that I no longer
subscribe.  I read over the archives every week solely to learn of new
research or products.  Otherwise, I ignore posts.

Oh, and that Teflon thing... one of the more ridiculous ideas I've ever
heard.  As my doctor would say, gluten is not indestructable!

Thanks again for a wonderful post.  I'd appreciate my name being left
out of a summary (if you do one) because I don't want the flames :-)  I
am going to write to Michelle and thank her for her posts; I really want
to encourage her and other health professionals to continue to share
their incredible knowledge and not be put off by the ignorance of
others.
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Thank you Mr. Thorn!  I'am a strong supporter of your message.  Being a
newly diagnosed Celiac, I have found the posts to be at times, very
misleading.  Fortunately, for myself I have an undergraduate degree in
nutrition and did not find the diet, food labeling etc. as overwhelming
as any other mainstream, newly diagnosed Celiac's.  I did have a
consultation with a RD, who herself is a Celiac, and found some of her
information to be a little unfounded (i.e. avoid red food coloring).
As I meet new Celiacs, I provide them with this website, but caution
them when reading the posts and ultimatly remind them that they are
responsible for their own health and what works best for them.

Hopefully, others will remember your message before they post something
unfounded.
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on to part two

*Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*