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

Miscellaneous Notes:
--------------------

Boost BARS are NOT GF:  I received this note from TCCSSG member Diane
Chadwell:  "I found an error under the Dining Out section in our
October newsletter.  Boost BARS are NOT gluten-free (GF).  I called
the company yesterday and they were very emphatic about it.  All
flavors and formulas of Boost drinks ARE GF.  I just want to save
others some grief and discomfort."  Thank you Diane, for correcting
this error.

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CSA Conference Note:  At the CSA Conference in Atlanta on October 1-3,
1999, elections were held for a Region 1 Director to replace Jim Lyles
who had declined to run again due to family responsibilities and time
constraints.  Lori Wichman from Appleton, Wisconsin was elected as
Region 1 Director.  Tom Sullivan was reelected as Member at Large.
Region 1 includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan,
Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.  More on the conference in next
month's Sprue-nik Press.--Tom Sullivan

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Cause Of Type-I Diabetes Found<1>:  Researchers said they had
confirmed that Type-I Diabetes is triggered by the body's immune
system attacking the pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin for
the body.  Finding what it is that causes the body to attack these
cells could help in the development of a cure.  More work needs to be
done, but it seems that the immune system's T-cells attack an early
form of insulin as it is produced by the body.

The findings could lead to a type of vaccine against the disease that
affects more than 1 million Americans, said Susan Wong and colleagues
at Yale University School of Medicine.  Writing in the journal Nature
Medicine, Wong's team said they found an antigen--a protein that
stimulates an immune response--in mice specially bred to develop what
looks like human juvenile diabetes.  "This is the first report to our
knowledge of the identification of an antigen that can stimulate
islet-reactive CD8 T-cells, and it is likely to be a naturally
processed peptide of preproinsulin," they wrote.

In a commentary, Christopher Benoist and Diane Mathis of the Institute
of Genetics and Molecular Cellular Biology in Strasbourg called the
findings "clear and provocative."
		
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From Marion MacLeod<2>:  A lot of people don't realize what perfect
gravy can be made with rice flour and water.  Just shake them up in a
jar and add them to browned fat and salt.  I have used rice flour to
make gravy for years now, and so have my non-celiac daughters.  The
gravy will not lump up the way it sometimes does with wheat flour, and
tastes much better than gravy made from corn starch.

Chick pea (garbanzo bean) flour can be used in recipes that call for
soy flour, with the same results.  This can be handy for those of us
that can not tolerate soy bean products.  This tip comes from Going
Against the Grain, by Phyllis Potts.