Tools to help your patients

Healthcare professional membership to Coeliac UK  is free of charge! To sign up as a Member please click here and follow the instructions.  

All our publications and online services are available in the Members log-in area of our website.

Booklets  

We produce a wide range of information booklets and have introduced a number of new publications for people with coeliac disease. They are useful for both newly diagnosed patients and those who have been diagnosed for some time. All information in our publications are checked by our medical advisors.

Members receive the appropriate booklet when they join Coeliac UK, and can order others as and when they are required.

Patients should be guided to the most approriate resource during different stages of living with coeliac disease.

• Getting started
  
  There are two booklets available in this series:
  
  'Gluten-free living for children - A guide for parents and carers' and 'Gluten-free living for adults'
  
  These booklets provide an introduction to coeliac disease - what to eat and what to avoid - information about shopping, cooking, eating out and getting gluten-free foods on prescription. Its purpose is to help people understand their coeliac disease and feel confident about their gluten-free diet.
  
  Our 'Gluten-free Checklist' - an easy to read A4 table with foods that are 'gluten-free', 'need to check' and 'not gluten-free' is provided in the Getting Started booklet.
  
• Keeping Healthy
  
  This booklet is designed for both the newly diagnosed and those who have been living with coeliac disease for several years.  It offers information on following 7 steps to eat a balanced gluten-free diet and how to maintain a healthy weight. Other topics covered include how to manage raised cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes and frequently asked questions about glycaemic index and trans-fats.
• Moving on
  
  This booklet offers guidance to young adults from 16 -21 year olds, who as Members in their own right, may be in charge of managing their own diet for the first time. It offers information about what to do when living on your own, health matters and shopping.
• An additional 'teenage leaflet' aimed at 12-16 year olds will be available soon.
• Out and about
  
  This is designed for parents and carers of a child under 16 with coeliac disease.  It provides guidance on safe playtimes, school trips, packed lunches, keeping healthy and information to give to your childcare provider.
• Me and My Tummy
  This booklet is specifically aimed at those under 7 with coeliac disease.  It contains an easy to read story with colourful illustrations to help children understand why they are feeling poorly, what will happen through diagnosis and how eating gluten affects them.
• A template letter to write to school is available here.
  
  We also have a range of leaflets on the following areas:
• Dermatitis Herpetiformis

• Osteoporosis (which includes information on calcium)
• Coeliac disease & diabetes
• Lactose intolerance & coeliac disease
• Pregnancy
• Weaning
• Going into hospital
• Going on holiday
  

• Alternative languages
  
  The older style A4 Members' pack explaining what coeliac is, what a gluten-free diet involves, what care to expect, how to shop for gluten-free food, prescriptions and cooking gluten-free are available in Urdu, Hindi and Punjabi.
  
  A Members Welcome Pack also includes:
  
  Food & Drink Directory

• Produced annually and sent to all members
• Updates produced on a monthly basis - available via our website homepage, monthly electronic newsletter eXG and Ceefax
• Also available in large print and Daisy format.
  
  Crossed Grain magazine

• Produced three times a year and sent to all members
• Also available on tape.
  
  Other tools available include:
  
  Prescribing Guidelines
  

• Coeliac UK produces a leaflet on prescriptions for patients, and we also have a prescribable list of gluten-free products which is updated when new products become available.
  
  If a patient requires additional restrictions to their diet, it is best to contact the manufacturers directly about specific products.
• 'Gluten-free foods: a prescribing guide' produced in conjunction with Coeliac UK, the British Dietetic Association and the Primary Care Society for Gastroenterology is available. Click here to see a copy.
• A full copy of the document is available from:
  Good Relations Healthcare, Suite 2, Cobb House, Oyster Lane, Byfleet, Surrey, KT14 7DU
  Telephone 01932 350006
  Email: amorris@grhealthcare.co.uk

             Online services

• Online Food and Drink Directory
  A fully searchable, regularly updated Food and Drink Directory
• Recipe database
  This serachable database holds a range of gluten-free easy-to- make recipes, from pastry to vegetarian food.
• Venue guide ' Eating out without'
  We now have over 600 venues (restaurants, hotels, cafes and B&Bs) currently listed across the UK, Europe and America. The venue guide is designed for Coeliac UK Members to upload details of venues where they've had positive experience of eating gluten-free.
  
  Coeliac UK have not vetted the venues - we ask Members to let us know if a venue no longer caters for people with coeliac disease. People should still phone ahead and mention their dietary requirements, and again on arrival.

              Coeliac UK Helpline: 0870 444 8804

• Opening hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Friday 10am-4pm; Weds 11am-4pm
• Manned by diet and health advisors and dietitians
• We offer information and support about diagnosis, diet and health issues and queries regarding the gluten status of food products.
  
  E-newsletter - Professional eXG
• Our 3 monthly electronic newsletter 'Professional eXG' is an easy way to keep yourself updated with the latest news, research findings, project updates and upcoming events in coeliac disease. To sign up, simply fill out a few details via the healthcare professional homepage.
• An archive of previous editions of Professional eXG is available via the Members log-in area.

              Allergen labelling legislation

• From November 2005, it became mandatory for food manufacturers to identify gluten containing cereals on an ingredients list, regardless of the amount used.
  
  This is a major step forward for people with coeliac disease since before this date there was no way of telling from a food label if a food was suitable to eat.
• The Crossed Grain Symbol is licensed across Europe to food manufacturers who are making foods that are safe for people with coeliac disease.