Has anyone ever gone out of their way to prepare gluten-free food just for you, only for you to discover that it contains a sneaky, gluten-containing ingredient like soy sauce or malt? Have you ever gone to a party where the host assured you everything was gluten-free, only to discover that they unknowingly put the food in cross-contact with gluten?
You may feel touched that they considered your needs, but at the same time guilty about rejecting their food. They went through the trouble of preparing something special for you, and you don’t want to seem ungrateful. Perhaps your usual safety questions get stuck in your throat: “What are the ingredients? Did the label say gluten-free? Did you use a new sponge while cooking?” You might nervously accept the food, not wanting to appear rude in front of others. You might even take a bite, anxious about your safety but reluctant to offend.
We hear these sorts of stories often because social situations frequently revolve around food, posing challenges even when the event is organized by well-meaning allies. In some ways, it can be more difficult to manage the kinder, well-intentioned ally who doesn’t fully understand the gluten-free diet than the outright dismissive and judgemental people who gripe about how annoying the gluten-free diet is or challenge you to “just try a little.”
So, what to do? First and foremost, remember that your health is more important than being polite. It’s always okay to say no. But if you’re feeling torn about a confused-but-kind ally, here are a few tips and tricks we’ve compiled over the years for navigating the tough situations:
I am a strong advocate for teaching loved ones about the gluten-free diet. While it requires an investment of time, your safety, relationships, and the joy of sharing food together are worth it. Bringing a loved one into the experience and showing them just how intense and restrictive the diet can be is one of the best ways to get someone to understand the burden of eating gluten-free. In my experience, most people assume eating gluten-free is easy until they have to cook or live like someone with celiac disease.
These emotional and social burdens highlight why the gluten-free diet is not a comprehensive treatment for celiac disease. But until we have a treatment or a cure that fully replaces the gluten-free diet, we need to help our loved ones help us safely live life to the fullest, even on a gluten-free diet. Social situations may continue to be challenging, but the more educated your supporters are, the more they can advocate for you in those tricky moments.
Together, we will find a treatment that will release the stress of food in social situations. In the meantime, thanks to the support of the celiac community over the years, Beyond Celiac provides tools to help you educate your friends and family.
Together for a cure,
—Alice Bast, CEO
We are now accepting applications for four summer internships with Beyond Celiac. All are part-time, paid, and remote. If you’re interested in working in research, business partnerships, digital content, or web development, we encourage you to apply! A celiac disease diagnosis is not required.
As either a patient of celiac disease or caregiver of someone with celiac disease, a Patient and Family Advisory Board (PFAB) member will provide first-hand insight to inform and enrich the research and development of a treatment or cure for celiac disease.
This May, we’re partnering with two MLB teams for Celiac Awareness Month! If you purchase tickets through the links for the May 17 game in Fenway Stadium as the Red Sox take on the Braves or the May 25 game in Target Field as the Twins take on the Royals, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Beyond Celiac. So invite your friends and family and head out to the ballpark—together, we can strike out celiac disease!
Get tickets for the Red Sox-Braves game in MA
Get tickets for the Twins-Royals Game in MN
Support our work by signing up for the annual virtual Step Beyond Celiac, presented by Takeda, DiGiorno, Jack’s, and California Pizza Kitchen! Participants in the virtual event can walk, run, bike or roll 3.1 miles anywhere, anytime this May, which is Celiac Awareness Month. Proceeds will go toward our work to find treatments and a cure for celiac disease, and our top fundraisers will receive fabulous, gluten-free prizes, donated by our generous sponsors.
Wherever you are, lace up your shoes and help us race toward the ultimate finish line—a cure for celiac disease!
Step Beyond Celiac is proudly presented by:
If you’re looking for a main course for Easter, Passover, a spring holiday get-together, or just a special dinner, try making this lamb with orange mint stuffing. The mint jelly is optional, but makes for a wonderful sauce pairing!
With or without the rich cream cheese frosting, this spice-heavy sweet is a wonderful treat. Just be sure to grate the carrots small enough! This recipe was provided by our friends at the Gluten-Free Palate.
What is refractory celiac disease?
Refractory celiac disease is marked by a lack of response to a strict gluten-free diet after six to 12 months, with symptoms, intestinal damage and an abnormal population of white blood cells in the gut. Learn more about refractory celiac disease.
Beyond Celiac has granted a three-year Established Investigator Grant to the University of Sheffield, Sheffield UK, continuing the organization’s support for research into neurological symptoms of celiac disease and other gluten-related disorders.
Read more research news on our Research News Feed
Beyond Celiac is seeking applications for its 2025 Beyond Celiac Early Career Research Award. The Award consists of a two-year grant of up to $100,000 annually, which includes up to 8 percent in indirect costs. The award is intended to support a research project focused on translational research, with the potential to advance disease knowledge and accelerate discovery and/or development of treatments for celiac disease. The funding period covers October 1, 2025–September 30, 2027. The application deadline is May 26, 2025.
This award provides $40,000 for one year to independent investigators at any career stage researching celiac disease or gluten-related disorders. Applications open May 1, 2025 and close September 18, 2025.
The Celiac Disease Program at Children’s National Hospital is currently enrolling for the Gluten-Free Resilience and Overall Wellness (GROW) Project, a behavioral research study led by Dr. Shayna Coburn. They are enrolling on a first-come, first-serve basis. Read on for more details and click the link at the bottom to see if you and your teen are eligible.
About the GROW Project:
Eligibility:
To see if you and your teen are eligible, click here. Enrollment begins April 18th. Reserve your spot today!
“We transitioned to an entirely gluten-free household and still couldn’t get his lab work to budge. We changed all appliances, soaps, dog food, chapstick, toothpastes, play-doh—you name it, we made sure it was gluten-free. We eliminated all oats entirely for months and still no improvement in labs—they were still off the charts. We were repeatedly told we weren’t doing something right, despite giving 100% effort and knowing that my child didn’t consume anything that wasn’t certified.
I stumbled upon an article about refractory celiac disease and eliminating all milk protein, which caused a sudden and drastic improvement in celiac disease labs. We tried this, and within six weeks of being dairy-free, his numbers came to near perfect!”
Lawsuit Puts 504 Plan Protections at Risk for Food Allergy Kids
The suit, called Texas v. Becerra, involves 17 states and seeks to end accommodations for students with disabilities that have been in place for decades. The 504 is a civil rights tool. Many U.S. families use it to ensure equal access to public education for students with food allergies and asthma. The states involved in the lawsuit are suing the U.S. government. In the suit, filed in September 2024, they claim that Section 504 is unconstitutional.
Rewatch March Town Hall: Living Gluten-Free with Dietitian Christiana Williams
On National Registered Dietitian Nutritionist day, we had a Q&A on the gluten-free diet with Schär dietitian Christiana Williams, MS, RD, LDN. Her and Carl also showed us a gluten-free version of the traditional Reuben sandwich.
This event was possible thanks to our sponsor, Schär!
Raise Money for Beyond Celiac on Facebook!
Happy birth-month to all our April-born community members! When your big day rolls around, consider raising money for Beyond Celiac so that we can help fund new research by scientists in the celiac disease field. And a HUGE thank you to everyone who’s created fundraisers for us throughout the years! These fundraisers help make our important work possible.
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