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Hello, All,

I sent this message to Karen directly, and she suggested that I post it to
the entire list.  So here it is.

Best regards,

Pat (Patricia) Shechter
Boston, MA
Email:           [log in to unmask]

----- Original Message -----
From: Pat Shechter <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2000 12:38 PM

> Hi, Karen,
>
> It was great to read your post and learn about another excellent physician
> at Beth Israel.  (My GI doc, Catherine Cheney, is there also, and I love
> her, referring to her as "the doctor who saved my life.")  And I am so glad
> you are feeling well!!!  That is simply terrific!!!
>
> So I'm writing mostly in response to what you wrote in your next-to-last
> paragraph, about bread and pastry products.  After nearly a year on a
> gluten-free diet, last spring I began to miss bread, bagels, etc.  At a
> meeting of the Boston Children's Hospital CD group (which I attend because
> it they are within walking distance to where I live, even though I'm nearly
> 50 and don't have children), several of the parents mentioned that they and
> their children really, really liked the baked goods from Kinnikinnick in
> Edmonton, Alberta, Canada  (http://www.kinnikinnick.com/welcome.html ).  I'd
> really started to long for, of all things, a grilled-cheese sandwich (once a
> staple of my diet!).  So I thought I'd try stuff from Kinnikinnick.  The
> company has a great (and very reasonably priced) "Sample Pack," which
> contains a good number of their products -- breads, bagels, rolls, cookies,
> even cereal.  I was really impressed and excited, and I've been buying stuff
> from there ever since.  The bread smells and tastes like real bread and
> makes very nice toast.  (I'm partial to the Italian White  Tapioca Rice
> Bread and the Sunflower Flax Rice Bread.  One of my friends prefers the
> Brown Rice Bread.)  The bagels are substantial (and easier to chew than
> traditional bagels).  The crispy rice cereal is so much like Kellogg's Rice
> Crispies that I could not tell the difference.  Along with cookies,
> Kinnikinnick has donuts (!!), cinnamon buns, English muffins, and even
> brownies.  I order and keep stuff in my freezer, which is what the company
> recommends; plus, shipping is a flat rate of $15, so it's worth ordering
> more than just an item or 2.
>
> I've also learned that, through my Flexible Spending (Medical) Account,
> with a letter from Dr. Cheney indicating that my buying gluten-free food is
> medically necessary for my health, I am able to be reimbursed for all of
> the food!  The only thing not reimbursed is the shipping.  {Note to
> everyone:  My Flexible Spending Accounts is offered through my employer;
> pre-tax dollars are deducted for medical and related expenses.  Its
> administration is governed by Federal law, in terms of what is and isn't
> reimbursable.  I've used mine for everything from new eyeglasses to
> prescription and over-the-counter medications to health plan co-payments and
> now my gluten-free food.  It is one of the best benefits I've ever found.
> It is definitely worth checking to see whether employers offer such a
> benefit.  My employer also offers a Dependent Care Account that operates in
> the same way and is similar in what it covers, but I'm not familiar with it;
> I don't know whether it would cover gluten-free foods for children, but I
> can't see why it wouldn't!}
>
> (I have no financial or other connection with Kinnikinnick.
>
> Although if the company ever goes public [if it's not already] and sells
> stock, I might buy some.  Since it will be a good while until I'll have the
> space in my kitchen for a good bread-maker -- I'll need to move from my
> apartment and into "a home of my own" -- I am very happy to have discovered
> that going gluten-free doesn't mean that I must give up bread, bagels, etc.,
> for the rest of my days.)
>
> Didn't intend to go on at such length, but what you said about bread etc.
> caught my eye, and I thought that, if you haven't yet discovered
> Kinnikinnick, you might want to try the Sample Pack and maybe find breads
> and stuff that you'll like.
>
> Happy (almost) Spring!
>
> Pat (Patricia) Shechter
> Boston, MA
>
> Email:           [log in to unmask]