On the Gluten-Free "Trend"

The "trend" of going gluten-free is a double-edged sword:

• It makes it MUCH easier to find gluten-free items in grocery stores. 
• People are far LESS likely to take me seriously when I say I can't have gluten. 

This is a problem unique to Celiac. No one would look at someone with a peanut allergy and say "Can you really not have peanuts?" No one would look at a diabetic and say "But are you cutting out sugar just to lose weight, or are you really not supposed to have it?" Yet, people with Celiac get asked to verify the truth of their illness ALL THE TIME.

In restaurants, at work events...any time I say "no thank you" to a dinner roll or a bite of a sandwich or have to pass on a slice of birthday cake. People mean well, but reciting the same "no, really, sorry, I can't, it's medical" thing every single time gets exhausting.

Sometimes I wish I had something I could show people to prove that I'm really full-blown Celiac, and that it's not in my head - it's in my intestines and my nervous system. Something like...

Of course, I wouldn't hand this to everyone who asks. But for those who want to grill me about why I can't eat bread, and won't take Celiac for an answer...they might get one of these, on a little 3x4 card. Yes, this is a printable. You know what to do... ;)