Resources and Information

Online Resources for Those Newly Diagnosed
Our parent non-profit. The NCA website contains information about Celiac Disease, national events and various resources for those following a strict gluten-free diet.
Members note this as especially helpful in communicating the need for gluten-free food to schools or institutions.
Medically reviewed and last updated August 25th, 2025.
The best way to follow a strict gluten-free diet is with help from a celiac specializing dietitian. CeliacNow was created with support from a grant to Harvard's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Hospital's Celiac Center, and co-authored by one of the country's top celiac specializing dietitians (with celiac disease herself!) It's a rich, completely free resource for basic-advanced skills in following a strict gluten-free diet, and one we have had experience with!
 Find Yourself in the Hospital? NCA Has Suggestions for Gluten-Free Food
NCA Resources for Seniors with Celiac Disease or Other Gluten-Related Conditions
NCA's Product Alerts and Recalls Page

 NCA has created a Products Alert and Recalls page to keep you informed. 
Gluten-Free Dining and Restaurant Tips
*You will need to decide for yourself whether these or any restaurant is right for you, but the following tips may be useful!
  • Help yourself and your community long term.  Ask the restaurant manager if they have recently trained all of their food  staff using one of the three nationally available gluten free certification programs through BeyondCeliac.   These three programs go extensively beyond the very basic ServSafe training related to celiac: GREAT Kitchens Program, GREAT Schools, Colleges and Camps, GREAT Gluten-Free Foodservice Training
  • Check to make sure the restaurant's flours, grains, legumes, and seeds used to prepare menu items are labeled gluten-free, since cross-contact can be a problem with many naturally occurring gluten-free grain flours, including rice flour (over 30% of naturally occurring gluten-free grains were significantly cross-contact with gluten in a 2010 study).
  • Ask any bakery or restaurant who bakes their own gluten-free products if and how often they test their final products using the R5 ELISA Ridascreen Gliadin Competitive R7021 (R-Biopharm AG) . A competitive ELISA is used when assessing food for gluten protein fragments, which occur when gluten protein is hydrolyzed or fermented.  A "dipstick, in house test" is not adequate according to leading celiac dietitians and researchers.
  • Check to make sure any San Diego restaurant or bakery is using purity protocol oats, not just oats that are labeled GF or certified gluten-free.
Check to make sure any restaurant or bakery follows these necessary protocols: 
  • Wash hands thoroughly.
  •  Use  a separate gluten free work area. 
  • Use dedicated gluten free cutting boards.
  • All utensils, colanders,  stainless steel cookware, and toasters should be dedicated for gluten free food only.
  • Grills, griddles, and fryers should also be dedicated for gluten free food. 
  • Do not cook gluten free pasta in water used to cook regular pasta.   
  • Ideally, gluten free food should be served on plates shaped differently than those used for gluten containing food.  This will help to avoid confusion in the prep area and at your table.
  • You should be especially careful at pizza establishments serving "gluten-free" pizza , as some are not as safe as others (see "Gluten Free Pizza Time" for needed safety steps, courtesy of Melinda Dennis, MS, RDN).  ​
Dedicated Gluten-Free Restaurants in San Diego County
​We do not have any testing information from these restaurants. No endorsement is necessarily implied.  
  • ​Chani's Donuts (San Diego) They offer delicious (and parent approved) vegan and gluten-free mini donuts!
  • El Tianguis (North Park)  They offer gluten-free taquitos and a recently expanded menu, including churros! They have been used for many years to cater the annual NCA San Diego Summer Party.
  • Healthy Creations  (Encinitas)  They offer a varied  menu of organic meal items and dessert-type baked goods. 
  • Nectarine Grove  (Leucadia and Del Mar locations)  They offer varied menus of organic meal items and homemade baked goods.  Even sourdough pizza! ​
  • Sweetfin (Del Mar location) They offer gluten-free and fresh poke bowls, burritos and sides. Located in the beautiful One Paseo shopping center.
  • The Coop Bakehouse & Pantry  (Solana Beach) They offer gluten, soy and corn free baked goods, breads and meals (also pizza!). See our Events tab for upcoming NCA San Diego events at The Coop!
Travel Tips
Questions for Manufacturers of Grains, Flours and Legumes Labeled Gluten-Free
  • What type of facility do you use (ie. dedicated gluten-free)?
  • Do you test your at-risk “raw” ingredients for gluten contamination and how frequently do you test?
  • Have you validated your in-house testing procedure?
  • Do you periodically send your finished product to a third-party lab for testing using the R5 ELISA?​ Do you work with the third party lab to determine best practices in terms of sampling and testing? 
Links below for further information:
https://nationalceliac.org/celiac-disease-questions/certified-gluten-free-beans-grains/  ​
https://www.glutenfreewatchdog.org/news/to-decrease-your-risk-of-cross-contact-with-gluten-choose-naturally-gluten-free-grains-seeds-and-legumes-labeled-gluten-free/
GlutenFreeWatchdog.org is a not for profit service which independently tests hundreds of packaged products with top-notch ELISA tests in triplicate to see how much gluten they really contain.  
​
Excerpt from GlutenFreeWatchdog.org: "Unfortunately, the Food and Drug Administration under the gluten-free labeling rule is NOT requiring manufacturers to test their labeled gluten-free foods for gluten contamination.
Contamination of naturally gluten-free grains and flours with wheat, barley, and rye is a concern to many people who must eat gluten-free. In a study conducted by Tricia Thompson, Anne Lee, and Thomas Grace, 32% of the naturally gluten-free grains and flours tested contained gluten in amounts greater than 20 parts per million. Gluten contamination can occur in the fields where food is grown, in the trucks and railcars where food is transported, and in the processing and manufacturing plants where food is made ready for the consumer. It is our hope that independently testing labeled gluten-free products and making results available to subscribers will allow you to feel more confident in the products you buy. "​
Celiac Listserv
Sign up for the national Celiac Listserv (this is not a part of NCA San Diego) if you'd like to receive emails from others around the country about celiac disease. The emails include primarily general Q&A's about celiac, upcoming non-profit celiac related events, recruiting for trials, and once a month info. about celiac cookbooks and special educational or travel programs for those managing the disease.
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​Sign up by sending an e-mail to:
[email protected]​
Gluten-Free Cooking School (Online!)

Learn how to bake gluten-free with America's Test Kitchen's online Gluten-Free Cooking School (not an endorsement, but mentioned as an option).  See fee to participate online.
Gluten-Free Insights
New Abbreviation:
You may notice that we are transitioning to the use of CeD instead of CD as an abbreviation for celiac disease. This is to distinguish between other diseases including Castleman and Crohn’s that use CD.

​Important Definitions:
Cross contact is the correct term to use when gluten-free food has had contact with gluten-containing food.
Cross contamination should be used when bacteria is transferred to food, making it unsafe to consume.