My sister, Nicky is a celiac. It is a disease where her intestine and digestive system cannot properly digest gluten or any kind of wheat or barley. She has been trying to change her life for the past year and a half and she has had some slip ups. 1 in 133 Americans is affected by the disease according to celiac.org.
I didn't know that she really decided to take control of her life this week. She cleaned out all the food that she thought was making her sick and bought the food she knows does not. I know its hard for her because myself and my room mate do not suffer from the disease. There is constantly temptation around her and I know if I was struggling with something like this it would be hard for me to turn away from some of my favorite foods. I mean I practically live off of carbs.
She has really been an inspiration to me. There was a time when I used to joke about people who shopped in organic food markets. It wasn't until my sister truly needed to shop in a place like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods that I truly started to appreciate these retailers for their presence in the marketplace.
Going green and the emergence of the organic food industry has truly been beneficial to people's lives. I see it directly on my sister's face when it lights up when they have the special peanut butter or bread that she eats at the local Fry's or Albertson's. It's because of people caring more about the environment and what they put in their bodies that has forced the mainstream industry to recognize the need for organic products.
If you could see the look on my sister's face when she knows what she is eating is safe and won't make her sick, you would understand how much these sometimes seemingly unnecessary products can be.
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