It’s not easy for Beth Lohmeier and her two daughters’Olivia, 13, and Emma, 10’to stay healthy.
Diagnosed in 2007 with Celiac Disease (CD), the Independence Township mother and daughters must avoid gluten at all times’that means no wheat, rye or barley or oats in any form. Not even a trace. Ever.
It took some doing’and lots of learning’but Lohmeier, 41, now manages her family’s meals in a whole new way.
Even her husband David, who doesn’t suffer ill effects of the protein, usually eats a diet free of gluten when he’s home.
‘He’s outnumbered,? Lohmeier laughs, explaining that she shops carefully, modifies recipes, and describes her family’s needs to restaurant employees.
And, since her diagnosis, Lohmeier has spent a great deal of time and energy discovering local sources for gluten-free gourmet, fast food and everything in between.
It’s all information she wants to share through the recently-formed Dinner Divas Gluten-free Cooking Club.
‘We’re going to eat, share some wine, sit around the table and talk,? she said. ‘I really want to help others by bringing people together, but I need the help too. It’s nice to talk to someone else who gets it.?
The idea behind the club, Lohmeier explained, is simple: one Friday each month, participants can bring a gluten-free dish’along with copies of the recipe’to her home for a potluck dinner and the chance to connect with others who understand the difficulty of gluten-free living.
‘It’s pretty easy, once you get used to it, to keep gluten out of your own home,? she said. ‘But once you walk out the door, you’re bombarded with all kinds of things you can’t have. When it comes right down to it, this disease is about the food we eat, and we are our own best resources.?
For a long time, Lohmeier lived with CD unawares; the diagnosis came only when the disease was ‘accidentally? uncovered during treatment for other health problems.
Still, she said, many of the symptoms were nagging at her all along, including’but certainly not limited to’a constant lack of energy.
‘I was overwhelmed by fatigue,? she said. ‘But you can blame that on a lot of things. I’m a mother, I volunteer, I take care of the house’so of course I get tired.?
Her youngest daughter, Emma, was also experiencing symptoms of the hereditary disorder, while Olivia, on the other hand, had no reaction; her CD is asymptomatic.
Both girls were diagnosed just a few months after their mother.
The major diet overhaul has been difficult, Lohmeier said, but both the girls are doing well and she hopes the Dinner Divas Cooking Club will be a great place to find help with children’s menu items.
‘I needed to learn how to bake gluten-free,? Lohmeier explained. ‘I do buy some gluten-free baked goods, but they’re really, really expensive; you hate to have to ration cookies and crackers to your kids.?
Above all, she said, the club’s emphasis will be on building a social network and having fun.
‘Don’t feel like you can’t come if you’re not a good cook,? she said. ‘Just throw a mix together. In fact, if you’re not a good cook, all the more reason you should come. We’ll help each other; no one has to live with this disease alone.?
The Dinner Divas Gluten-free Cooking Club meets at 7:30 p.m., Friday, March 13 at Lohmeier’s Independence Township home, 5150 Glenwood Creek. For more information, or to RSVP, call 248-391-4566 or email bethlohmeier@hotmail.com.

Celiac Disease?

According to the Celiac Disease Foundation, a national non-profit, organization providing services and support to those living with CD, one in 133 Americans has the disease, but 97 percent go undiagnosed, placing blame elsewhere; the autoimmune disorder has many symptoms, such as stomach cramps, pain in the abdomen, bones, or joints, and fatigue, and often mimics other disorders.
Initial diagnosis requires blood tests. An internal scope shows damage in the small intestine and confirms diagnosis.
When individuals with CD ingest gluten, villi’tiny hair-like projections that absorb nutrients from food in the small intestine’are damaged due to an immunological reaction and do not effectively absorb proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals.
Left untreated, damage can be chronic and life threatening, causing increased risk of nutritional and immune related disorders such as iron deficiency anemia, early onset osteoporosis or osteopenia, intestinal lymphomas and other GI cancers.
The only treatment for CD is lifelong adherence to a gluten-free lifestyle. When gluten is removed from the diet, the small intestine will begin to heal as overall health improves. Medication is not normally required.
Source: www.celiac.org