Food pantries to offer gluten-free products
Share with others:
When gluten-free food was needed by patrons of the South Hills Interfaith Ministries pantry, volunteers had to sift through inventory to find food with the appropriate ingredients.
But no more.
Beginning this month, the pantry at 5301 Park Ave. in Bethel Park has joined five other pantries that are part of the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank network in regularly receiving and distributing gluten-free food.
The Squirrel Hill Community Food Pantry, 828 Hazelwood Ave., Greenfield, began doing so Dec. 1. As the only kosher pantry in the city, the additional service seemed natural. Of the 370 households it serves monthly, about two dozen households use the gluten-free offerings.
The other pantries are:
• North Hills Community Outreach, 1975 Ferguson Road, Hampton;
• East End Cooperative Ministries, 116 S. Highland Ave., East Liberty;
• West Hills Food Pantry, Sharon Community Presbyterian Church, 522 Carnot Road, Coraopolis;
• Brentwood Presbyterian Church Food Pantry, 3725 Brownsville Road.
The driving force behind the effort is the Celiac Center at the Allegheny Center for Digestive Health in Pittsburgh, part of the West Penn Allegheny Health System.
"We became aware of patients who were struggling financially and the diagnosis of celiac disease made the only treatment much more difficult to obtain: a 100 percent gluten-free diet," center coordinator Kathy Sepesy said.
Gluten-free products can be expensive, costing three to four times the price of food containing gluten.
On Jan. 28, Ms. Sepesy and other center personnel filled two vans with donated food from the Celiac Awareness Tour in Mon-roeville.
Major contributors include Bloomfield Farms, BiAglut, Eden's Market and other companies.
Celiac disease is a hereditary, digestive disease that damages the small intestine because of a sensitivity to gluten, which is found in wheat, rye, barley and oats.
While it is estimated that 1 in 133 people in the United States have the disease, it can take years to diagnose because its symptoms -- which may include weight loss, recurring abdominal pain and bloating, unexplained anemia, fatigue and more -- are similar to other digestive diseases.
When people with celiac disease eat gluten, an inflammatory reaction occurs in the small intestine. As a result, hardly any nutrients from any food are absorbed, leading to other health issues such as anemia and osteoporosis and a higher risk of developing cancer.
For most sufferers, eliminating gluten from the diet will stop the symptoms and heal intestinal damage while preventing further damage.
The effort to supply pantries with gluten-free food began in 2010 with formation of the Gluten Free Task Force. A plan was then developed to work with food pantries, under the auspices of the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, to educate volunteers and staff about gluten-free food and to begin soliciting donations from the community.
The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank serves about 120,000 people monthly through roughly 400 shelters, after-school programs, public housing communities and senior high-rises in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Information on the pantries offering the gluten-free food is available at all food bank network sites.
"It would not be practical to have the food at all sites as training is involved, and you have to be careful to keep the food separate," Iris Valanti, communications director for Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, said.
"Kathy [Sepesy] came to us and said it was a shame that low-income people don't have many choices and she wanted to do something about it," Ms. Valanti said. "It seems like a good partnership that will help certain people ... and that's good with us."
The Celiac Center offers a team of experts who treat those who have the disease or suspect they have it. For an appointment, call 412-359-8956 or visit www.pittsburghdigestivehealth.com .
If you are in need of food assistance or want to donate nonperishables or volunteer, call Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank at 412-460-3663 or visit www.pittsburghfoodbank.org .
First Published February 9, 2012 12:00 am
