University is hard as a newcomer, but even harder for students with celiac disease.
Throw in a strict diet, extra expenses, sickness, isolation, cross-contamination, on top of learning to live on your own or with roommates, making new friends, keeping up with classes, and you have the life of a student with celiac disease.
“I have a job, but every week spending like $100 is not ideal for food,” said Autumn Johnson, a second-year education student at the University of Regina with celiac disease.
Something that affects students significantly is expenses. Compared to regular non-diet food, gluten free options were 242 per cent more expensive, according to the National Library of Medicine.
According to the Canadian Digestive Health Foundation, celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that affects the small intestine, caused by a reaction to ingested gluten. About one in 114 Canadians have the disease, but many people are undiagnosed. As awareness grows and more research is done, the number of cases is growing.
Johnson discussed how she tries to plan meals at the start of the week around things that are naturally gluten free so she wont have to buy an expensive substitute. Rice and potatoes are some of the best naturally gluten free foods as they are so versatile.
In terms of places to eat out in Regina, Johnson’s favourite place to go is 4 Seasons.
“That’s the only one where they’ve given me an actual gluten free menu,” said Johnson.
George Yannitsos, the owner of 4 Seasons is committed to making the celiac experience as reliable as possible.
“Our pizzas are our number ones,” said Yannitsos. “We understand for someone that is a student, a lot of the comfort food is not readily available.
“My wife and daughter are celiac, that’s where we started this journey from, It’s a very important part of our options that we offer.”
Yannitsos recalled taking lots of time to figure out the substitutions they could make to have as many gluten free options as possible. He has confidence in the staff’s training regarding the disease, so customers can feel reassured.
Living on campus as a student with strict dietary needs is also a struggle. Johnson filled out an accessibility form and lives in a room with her own kitchen, but the process is complicated.
“The form is geared toward learning disabilities,” said Johnson. “I feel like they could have a separate thing instead of just accessibility because it was kind of confusing.”
Autumn discussed the social impact that the disease has. Many people are uneducated about things like cross-contamination.
“Sometimes we’ll order pizza and they’ll just be like ‘can you just pick the toppings off?’” said Johnson. “Like, no, I can’t do that.
“I just feel like I get excluded, not meaning to get excluded.”
There are Facebook groups where people share gluten-free finds in Regina, but there aren’t any campus support groups. A website called Find Me Gluten Free lists places that have been rated by celiacs and shares what menu options are safe.
