Welcome to the Southern Arizona Celiac Support Group

This is the official web site of the Southern Arizona Celiac Support Group, CSA/USA Chapter 15. We are dedicated to assisting Southern Arizona residents and visitors with celiac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis, as well as their family and friends.

Our Objectives

Educating newly diagnosed patients with CD/DH on how to switch to a gluten-free (GF) diet: i.e., no wheat, barley, oats or rye or other grains containing harmful gluten.
Aiding members in self-education by assisting in their search for information, finding hidden sources of gluten, and determining safe sources of food.
Alerting members to recent research concerning CD.
Educating the medical community about recent research that indicates that CD is drastically under-diagnosed in the US because it actually occurs in about 1 out of 133 people instead of the one in five thousand that are actually diagnosed.

We WANT you!

Support your support group. SACS is as good as you, our members make it.

Mark Your Calendar, January 14^th

Beginning 2012 on a healthy note, nationally recognized gluten-free author Melissa Diane Smith will speak on "It’s Gluten Free but Is It Healthy?" at SACS general meeting on Saturday, January 14th, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. She’ll explain the most common mistakes people make with the gluten-free diet that lead to health problems and cover key food concepts that promote better health. The presentation, which will take place at Pima Community College, 4905 E. Broadway Blvd.

Gluten-free Dining Featured in the Star

On Thursday, January 27 the Caliente section of the Arizona Daily Star featured an article on Dining without gluten. Local restaurants that offer gluten-free dining were highlighted, as was your SACS website. Thank you, Arizona Daily Star!

Celiac Disease Survey

If you have been diagnosed with celiac disease or gluten intolerance you probably have a story about your experiences. Please share it with us by taking our survey.

Symptom Checklist

With the kind permission of Dr. Peter H.R. Green we are able to reproduce the symptoms checklist from his book Celiac Disease—A Hidden Epidemic. Use it to see if you should talk to your doctor about testing for celiac disease. We've also attached a diagram showing the steps to arrive at a diagnosis. Note that not every doctor will follow exactly this sequence, but you should be insistent on following up with all tests needed to establish for certain if you do or don't have celiac disease.

News and Events

For a full schedule of support group events please see our calendar.

Celiac Disease Newsfeed

celiac disease - Bing News

Side effects of celiac disease and wheat intolerance may risk heart health - Examiner: 2012-02-04T05:01:05Z - The tie between celiac disease, gluten intolerance or wheat allergy and heart disease is somewhat unclear. There have been a few studies done over the past decade that have shown there might be a connection between certain cardiac conditions and these ...
Celiact supplement provides nutritional help for celiac patients - Examiner: 2012-01-29T00:07:33Z - For people with celiac disease, a lifelong commitment to a gluten free diet is not a choice, it is a requirement. Varying levels of malnutrtion are common among people who suffer from celiac disease and gluten intolerence, and without proper nutrition it ...
Need To Make People Aware Of Coeliac Disease - TopNews United States: 2012-01-28T08:51:18Z - A campaign has been launched to make people aware of coeliac disease. It is believed that a large category of the population is suffering from the syndrome and is unaware of the fact. The disease is an illness in which the immune system does not accept the ...
Worcester Park coeliac sufferer backs campaign - Kingston Guardian: 2012-01-28T05:23:42Z - A coeliac sufferer from Worcester Park is backing a campaign to get people tested for the disease. Zoe Wickins, 20, suffers from the disease and both her mother and brother were diagnosed with the condition after she was. At 15-years-old, Miss Wickins was ...
Gluten-Free Beer Company New Planet Taps Into Rapidly Expanding Market - International Business Times: 2012-01-27T21:09:47Z - Pedro Gonzalez began to miss the simple foods within a couple years. In 2003, doctors diagnosed Gonzalez with celiac disease, a genetic autoimmune disease triggered by consumption of gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, according to ...
Vegan, gluten-free? Tips for safe and tasty trips - CNN: 2012-01-27T08:23:51Z - (CNN)-- Hilary Davidson was diagnosed with celiac disease eight years ago and worried at first that she couldn't maintain a gluten-free diet on the road. But the idea of staying in one place didn't suit her -- or her work as a novelist and ...

Photos from the 2011 SACS BBQ, held June 4th

Everyone had a wonderful time a the BBQ at Corene's house with it's beautiful views and or course our SACS gluten-free BBQ masters. A great time was had by everyone. Please enjoy the photos.

2011 Gluten-Free Food Faire

The Food Faire was held in a new location for 2011, with more space, more vendors and more fun--samples, raffle, a silent auction and improved blood screening. Please take a look at our photos of the GFFF.

GFFF in the Media

Melissa Diane Smith talked about her newest book, Gluten Free Throughout The Year and about SACS’ upcoming Gluten Free Food Faire with Bill Buckmaster on his radio show. The interview starts at 16:35. Many thanks to Melissa and Bill for their support!

GoodSearch will donate to the Celiac Sprue Association

Want to donate to our parent organization (CSA) every time you search the Web? Well, you can by using GoodSearch and setting up CSA as the charity you want to support. Just go to http://www.goodsearch.com/ and enter "celiac sprue association" in the "WHO DO YOU WANT TO GOODSEARCH FOR" box and click the "Verify" button. You should see "Celiac Sprue Association USA - CSA (Omaha, NE)" appear and you're good to go. There's a link (http://www.goodsearch.com/Toolbars.aspx) with instructions on how to add it as a search option for the search box in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Google Chrome. You can even download a toolbar for Internet Explorer.

A Reminder from Your Support Group

We want to remind everyone with celiac disease or on a gluten-free diet that ALL types of wheat contain gluten at levels harmful to anyone who is sensitive to it. This includes: Bulgur, common or bread wheat, Durum, Einkorn, Emmer, Kamut, Semolina and Spelt and any other type of wheat (any member of the genus Triticum). Be wary of any claims to the contrary.

Our parent organization, the Celiac Sprue Association, has a web page outlining the different gains and their gluten-free status.

Gluten-Free School Lunches

The diet.com blog recently posted an article on school lunchs and making sure they are gluten free. The include suggestions on how to ensure that your child receives gluten-free meals at school. There's also a good article from the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness on gluten-free lunch guidelines and how to navigate the requirements of your school.

Tucson Cel-Kids (formerly R.O.C.K. Tucson Chapter)

Cel-Kids - For assistance with a newly diagnosed child or just to connect with families that have celiac kids, contact Diana, 520 574-0777.

Collecting Ideas on a living facility with a gluten free kitchen

Suppose you could no longer live independently, had no relative, friend, or group able to share housing, food preparation, etc.
Suppose there were a facility featuring a gluten-free kitchen. that was affordable to you, had room/apartment that would accommodate you where the staff were knowledgeable about GF food prep.

Suppose there were *NO* facility featuring a gluten-free kitchen available to you.

Would you like to add your name(s) to a list of others who have expressed interest in locating or creating such a facility? If so, contact Pat Hirsch at (520) 971-9595, patriciahirsch1@aol.com or Phoenix Wheeler at (520) 751-2332, fenx23@cox.net.

Contact Us

Your comments and requests for information are welcome. Contact us at info@southernarizonaceliacsupport.org, use our online form or you can call us at 520 219-7076.

To join or renew your membership, download and print the membership form in PDF format.