Making a Difference in the Gluten-Free Community: Jay Thurston
Julie and I have thoroughly enjoyed hosting our guest bloggers who have responded to our question: What are Five Ways to Make a Difference in the Gluten-Free Community? We heard from Chad Hines and Jen Cafferty who gave us their unique insights with suggestions like getting to know your local restaurants and health food stores, and contacting the health editor of your local newspaper. This week we are happy to present you with the final guest blogger of this series – Jay Thurston.
Jay Thurston, the creator of Gluten Free Post (GFP), was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 1994 after a long stay in the Intensive Care Unit. After the diagnosis, his struggle to find gluten-free foods and learn more about Celiac drove him to establish GFP in order to help others so they would not have to go through what he did. Jay’s goal is to continue to educate the GF community and help his fellow Celiacs with choosing the best GF foods out there. You can find Jay on the web at www.glutenfreepost.com
5 Ways to make a difference:
- Take the support groups OUT of the hospitals! Ok, sorry for yelling right away, but who really wants to go to a hospital when they don’t have to? I have organized many gluten-free parties where we all meet at restaurants that serve GF items. And even though I organize the party, there is no single person in charge, no agenda…just have fun!
- Get Social: It is so much easier to be gluten-free in today’s world. With Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, Group Forums, and so on…the information available to you is endless. But it is ONLY endless if YOU join too! Make contacts, give your opinion, get free information, and speak real time with vendors.
- Talk with your Local Grocer: Most people who eat gluten-free, shop only at the health food stores. If you just take the time to talk to the manager of your big name grocery store, you will get results, I promise you that. The competition between grocery chains is fierce, and you will be surprised how they will bend over backwards to get the products you want. If they already carry some GF items, but you don’t happen to like the choices, then try to make it easy for the manager and take in printouts of the products you want.
- Offer your Help to Dietitians: I have contacted countless dietitians in Columbus, where we live, and they are very thankful to have a resource that they can point their patients to. Do this ONLY if you really like helping people because you WILL get calls . The way I handle these calls is by giving the newly diagnosed person a few lists. They will need help with advice regarding some staple items that they will need right away. Certainly they will also appreciate a list of local gluten-free friendly restaurants. And you should also recommend your favorite websites and blogs for information, news, and recipes (which include www.jensglutenfreeblog.com and www.glutenfreepost.com obviously).
- Be Honest with the Vendors: I have been lucky enough to taste test GF products before they are introduced to the public. I hold small focus groups that help vendors understand what the general public feels about their items, and they love the feedback. You too can contact vendors and give them your thoughts and requests. A good example is when I had a craving for a pop-tart. I logged on to Twitter, and asked the general public why there is no vendor that makes a pop-tart…within minutes, I not only received 3 excellent recipes, I was also contacted by two reputable vendors who said that they would give it a try!
I know some of my ideas might be redundant or obvious, but I have tried them all and they indeed work! Thanks so much to Jennifer Ungar for allowing me the opportunity to share my thoughts…and for once…I think my thoughts made sense…weird.
4 Responsesto “Making a Difference in the Gluten-Free Community: Jay Thurston”
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Great information in a valuable series! Thanks to the J’s-Jay, Jen & Julie. I especially like the party idea! Things need not be so somber. It’s also a good way to attract the younger generation.
I’ve been GF for about 18 months now, and have found that I have other issues as well; soy, dairy, rice, seseme, eggs. It seems that many GF foods have several of these in them, otherwise they taste like cardboard. I need to rotate my foods every few days, otherwise I get “stuck” on a food and it starts to mis-treat my system. I’d love to find a good GF vendor that doesn’t cook with rice, especially. Good idea to post on Twitter about my wants! I’ll give it a try.
I discovered pretty quickly after my daughters and I were diagnosed with celiac, how important it is to have a “network” of gf friends to help you with this transition. I believe that everyone should have FREE access to safe food lists, tips on which products are worth your hard earned money, and delicious gluten free recipes. I created http://www.glutenfreechecklist.com so that everyone can have a “network” of gluten free friends.
i have an allergy to Gluten and most of the time i use guar gum or xanthan gum for baking. these gums are good substitute for wheat.