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

Thanks for the answers to my last few questions, everyone.  Regarding
medications, I'll be looking for the book from Stokes, "Celiac Sprue:  A
Guide Through The Medicine Cabinet" which a few people recommended.

Regarding the use of quinoa and amaranth, apparently these are not
recommended for celiacs in the U.S., but are considered fine outside the
U.S.  Some people seem to use them with no problems, while others get
sick on them.  One person thought amaranth was a close relative of
wheat, but my sources say neither amaranth nor quinoa is even a "true
grain;"  they're not closely related to wheat at all, so neither of them
*should* be a problem for most celiacs, IF no cross-contamination was
happening.

Further question on amaranth and quinoa:  if you've tried them, what was
your source, and how did/didn't you react?  Maybe there are some sources
which are prone to cross-contamination and some which aren't.  Also, did
you try the flour or the whole grain?  I would think that with the whole
grain (either grinding it into flour yourself, or using it as a cereal)
there would be less risk of cross-contamination.

Regarding avoiding cross-contamination in your own homes, there seem to
be the whole range of approaches, from keeping a totally gluten-free
kitchen to just not worrying about it much.  But most people have
separate jars of anything a knife may be dipped into (or at least a
house rule of no double-dipping), either separate cutting boards or they
set down a paper towel or piece of waxed paper for preparing the gf
foods, and many have either a separate toaster or a separate tray for
the toaster oven or a separate slot in the toaster.  A few have separate
utensils, but most just trust the dishwasher to remove all traces from
the utensils and dishes.  Most people say that it's relatively easy to
keep *most* of the family's meals basically gluten-free, anyway, so the
gluten foods in the house are somewhat minimized.

Regarding floating stools, several people have already responded to tell
me that they also always thought that floating stools were normal, until
they were diagnosed and/or until their stools became normal after going
gf.  I'm still wondering, "are you all *sure* about this?" because as
far as I know, my entire family has always had floating stools.  (And in
a large family with one bathroom and with kids who don't always flush,
or toilets that don't always "finish" flushing, I have had ample
opportunity to see -- laugh.)  And mine didn't change during the three
weeks I was gf with my daughter this month (though that just might have
been too short a trial to see any difference, of course).  Does this
maybe just mean that we all eat too much fat?

  -- Angi