First, I’m not against GLP-1 meds. Tools are tools; they seem to have potential as anti-inflammatory medications, especially for people with MCAS, and that’s some really exciting stuff.¹

But. It’s so important that we know what we’re signing up for, right?

Even with small doses of GLP-1s, people often lose weight. Much of the time, that means a loss of muscle mass.²

Let’s take a step back. For people with symptomatic hypermobility, the problem isn’t so much having bendy joints, it’s having bendy joints that are *unstable*. If you lose muscle, especially if it’s lost quickly, there can be more joint instability…and, of course, this can lead to all sorts of injuries in a population that is incredibly injury prone. So it’s mission critical that if someone is taking a GLP-1, not only are they getting enough protein and all the other nutrients (B vitamins, iron, zinc, etc.) fluids, electrolytes, (nice list here) but that they’re getting enough targeted physical activity to make sure to maintain muscle mass.3

Because believe me, I know how hard it is for people with hypermobile joints to get muscles back when we’ve lost them.

My intent here isn’t to say people with hEDS/HSD, or even MCAS shouldn’t be on GLP-1s. Of course they can be useful. I do think that a lot of care and planning should happen to set patients up for success prior and throughout. I do wish we did a better job communicating both the pros and cons so that patients can make informed choices.

References:

Afrin LB, Weinstock LB, Dempsey TT, Aschenbrenner K, Blitshteyn S, Schofield JR. Utility of glucagon-like-peptide-1-receptor agonists in mast cell activation syndrome. Am J Med Sci. 2025 Oct;370(4):377-382. doi: 10.1016/j.amjms.2025.07.006. Epub 2025 Jul 15. PMID: 40675372.

Karakasis P, Patoulias D, Fragakis N, Mantzoros CS. Effect of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and co-agonists on body composition: Systematic review and network meta-analysis. Metabolism. 2025 Mar;164:156113. doi: 10.1016/j.metabol.2024.156113.

Mozaffarian D, Agarwal M, Aggarwal M, Alexander L, Apovian CM, Bindlish S, Bonnet J, Butsch WS, Christensen S, Gianos E, Gulati M, Gupta A, Horn D, Kane RM, Saluja J, Sannidhi D, Stanford FC, Callahan EA. Nutritional priorities to support GLP-1 therapy for obesity: A joint Advisory from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, the American Society for Nutrition, the Obesity Medicine Association, and The Obesity Society. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2025 Aug;33(8):1475-1503. doi: 10.1002/oby.24336

Original article: What I wish patients with bendy bodies heard before starting GLP-1s

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

BIG NEWS! The comment period is open for U.S. Food and Drug Administration re: labeling of gluten.

The tl;dr: the FDA has a comment period open NOW re: requiring labels to clearly mark ingredients with gluten on the ingredient list, and requiring cross-contact protocols on gluten-containing grains.

This would be a game changer. Do you have thoughts? Submit them before March 23rd 2026 here.

This is not any kind of commitment to change. This is the first step to assess public interest. Again. If they don’t hear from the public, there won’t be any changes.

What should your comments contain?

Just a few thoughts that your comments *might* cover:

• Have you encountered products that were mislabeled for gluten? Write about that.
• Have you encountered products that were problematic in some way? (I found a grain in a product with no grain containing ingredients) This is often an issue with lentils and other beans
• Have you had issues with products that you suspect are due to gluten/cross-contamination?
• Comments on oats & availability of gluten-free oat products
• Comments on barley, which currently *isn’t* required to be clearly labeled
• Has following a gluten-free diet increased the difficulty of shopping?

I’d love to hear other thoughts on what you’d plan to include in your letters—and I’ll link to sample letters when I write mine—I’m on a few tight deadlines.

Again, the comment form is here

Research, recipes & more

• If you missed it, new study on hEDS and nutrition
• Neat paper on mast cells in GI issues
• Chocolate banana bread: a great recipe for a snow day, and low fodmap if needed!
• Butternut squash soup (one of my favorites!)

• Missed this one last time: I did a podcast on nutrition for POTS with Jill Castle, MS, RD of the Nourished Child

Stay warm, dry, and off the roads today…

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS, MCAS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: Comments open for GF labeling

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Hope you’re enjoying the holiday season.

So…here’s a link to another try at dietitian coverage for people with Medicare. I think that people with Medicare who have Celiac, or Crohn’s, or UC, or IBS, or malnutrition, or cancer, or eating disorders, or…(you get the idea) should be able to have a dietitian visit covered, even if they don’t have diabetes or renal disease, and that’s currently not the case. And if Medicare changes, most likely, other plans will, too.

Desserts, desserts… this is the season of desserts. It just is.

Some people just people wrinkle their noses at the idea of a gluten-free dessert.

But cheesecake? Or truffles? Yes, please! So why not choose a naturally gluten-free dessert and skip the 4 different flours?

If you do want to adapt your family’s favorites, GF blends like King Arthur’s, Jules GF, and Cup-for-Cup make it pretty easy. Just double check whether or not it has gums or you need to add them. In terms of best cookbooks, I am a big fan of public libraries—most do have a good section so you can get a feel of what you like, and what appeals to you. And yes, America’s test kitchen has a cookbook, which is great for foodies, and for people with multiple food intolerances, books by the Loopy whisk.

Of course, do be on the look out for holiday treats that manage to sneak some gluten under the radar.

The holidays can also be more than a bit stressful…at least for some people! With all the caveats that all sorts of things work for all sorts of people, here’s a list of some of my favorite stress-reducers. See if something inspires you, or choose something entirely different. Whatever you do, take good care.

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS, MCAS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: Brrr…December G-Free newsletter

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Halloween thoughts…with candy and treats everywhere, there are more options for tricks to trip people up. Here are a few seasonal ones to keep on your radar:

Of course, non-food treats can also be a nice way to celebrate…but if you’re in the mood for chocolate, there are a bunch out there, just read your labels carefully. Lists from CDF and a list from GF Jules here for some ideas, knowing that reading the label in front of you is always the most important thing.

My favorite seasonal recipe: Spooky meringues. I know this is for the bunnies, just a different shape…and I promise, I’ll get my act together to do a video. By next year. I hope.

Research:

New paper on constipation & dietary management from the British Dietetic Constipation Management:

• The TL;DR Psyllium supplements, certain probiotic strains, magnesium oxide supplements, kiwifruits, rye bread, and high mineral water are recommended to improve specific constipation outcomes.
• No recommendations were made on whole diet approaches (e.g., high-fiber diet) because of a lack of evidence.
• Protein powders–yep, so many reasons people drink protein drinks & powders, and so many that tested as high lead and cadmium. If you drink them, do check out this new list from Consumer Reports

New paper: Time restricted eating may improve POTS–the tl;dr QOL (fatigue, tachycardia) heart rate, and mitochondrial function improved with time restricted eating in a small sample of POTS patients. Caveats–no control group

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: G-Free fun in the air…

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Gastroparesis is kind of like what it sounds like. Gastro (stomach) paresis (not moving). And, of course, that can be all sorts of uncomfortable, causing symptoms like nausea, vomiting, early fullness, bloating, etc. More on diet here:

It’s back! The House has reintroduced the ADINA Act, which would require medication labels to list allergen information, including gluten. ADINA Act is co-led by Representatives Mike Lawler (NY-17), Doris Matsui (CA-07), and Ben Cline (VA-06). Does your representative support it? please consider contacting them and encouraging them to get on board.

Digestive disease week had some fascinating new studies. CDGEMM is a long-term study looking at risk for Celiac. The tl;dr of the latest research; breastfeeding is protective; girls & older siblings were more likely to get Celiac.  

This is a first! The European Crohns & Colitis society put out comprehensive dietary management of IBD.

A neat new study looked at the impact of the low FODMAP diet on mast cell activation in people (and mice) with IBS-D.  

Great new hEDS/HSD article out today: for hEDS, people had an average of 24 comorbidities & 21 year delay to diagnosis. Most frequently affected systems included dysautonomia, skin, GI, dental, orthopedic, ocular, neurologic and more, with pain as the worst symptom for most. Over 98% of people with hEDS/HSD had GI symptoms.

I meant to send out a post earlier, but time got away from me. I did share a post on accessible cooking, if that’s an interest.

Last but not least, here’s one of my favorite summertime recipes: summer rolls

Stay cool, enjoy the rest of the summer, and hope you get time to relax a bit.

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: August Digestive News

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Cookware

Aluminum is one of the lightest options out there; however, there’s some risk of it leaching into food. It needs to be specially treated—aka anodized aluminum—and, ideally, food isn’t stored in aluminum. Unfortunately aluminum isn’t compatible with induction stoves.

Stainless steel is another option that tends to be on the lighter side. The weight will depend on the size, the # of layers, and whether or not it has a lid. Many, but not all, are compatible with induction stoves. It’s a bit tricky, because the higher end options (All clad, etc.) tend to advertise as heavy=good, because heavier cookware leads to more even heat distribution and nicer browning, and the 5 ply (D5 series) is heavier than the D3.

Copper makes for excellent cookware, but again, it’s generally heavier. Same with cast iron cookware, which unfortunately tends to be quite a lift.

Non-stick

As a general rule, I don’t love Teflon; I know many people like the convenience of non-stick. Options like carbon steel and ceramics or carbon can be great choices. Misen is carbon and has pans under 2 pounds. Ceramic options, such as GreenPan are also non-stick and non-reactive and tend to be on the lighter side—starting under 2 pounds, and increasing with bigger pots. But, sadly, the gorgeous LeCreuset Dutch ovens are definitely not great joint-friendly options.

Generally, most frying pans are going to have one handle, as opposed to sauté pans, which have two—and two handles can make it easier to distribute weight and reduce wrist strain. French skillets are the exception and generally have two handles.

Also, larger pans are always going to be heavier.

Bakeware:

Glass, ceramics, metal, oh my!

Again, a range of options for baking. A 9×13 glass dish weighs just under 6 pounds. A ceramic dish of the same size is about 4-5 lbs (without a lid). A metal pan of that size is closer to 1-2 pounds; if a cooking sheet is workable for the job, it weighs slightly less.

Of course, if you’re going thrifting, you can get a feel of the weights and how they might work for you–but remember, it’s always going to be heavier with food.

Hopefully, this gives some ideas of swaps that might lighten the load, literally and figuratively.

Original article: Accessible Cooking

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

One of the brands with the highest levels, Bob’s Red Mill, “noted that their products’ packaging carried a Prop 65 warning label, and thus consumers were appropriately notified.”

Note—tapioca is from the same plant as cassava, but seems to have lower levels of lead, potentially because it’s more processed.

In addition to Consumer Report’s testing, Tricia of Gluten-free Watchdog also did testing on a handful of products.

If you are on a gluten-free diet, it’s a good idea to get iron levels checked periodically, too, along with B vitamins

It’s also Ehlers Danlos/Hypermobility Spectrum disorder Awareness month, and there’s a link with Celiac disease. I’ve updated my post on the relationship between the two. And, even better, a new paper on EDS, MCAS & POTS, and the interaction with GI disorders is here.

Wishing you a happy and healthy Springtime,

Cheryl

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: Lead in G-Free Foods

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Okay, so this newsletter is late. Very, very late. But here are a few articles that have caught my eye, some recipes, news & more.

AI to diagnose Celiac, with better accuracy? This may be the next new thing.

Coconut has never been a nut. But in terms of allergen labeling, it’s been required by the FDA since 2006 until now. No more!

It’s not all or nothing! Compression garments, even the ones you can get without a prescription, improve heart rate and symptoms of people with POTS.

A potential link between archaea (the little buggers that produce methane in intestinal methane overgrowth, or methane SIBO) and colon cancer. This may really alter how doctors view intestinal overgrowth.

One of my go-to recipe ideas is featured in Real Simple, featuring one of my favorite foods

I’m looking forward to speaking on mast cells, histamine & the GI tract in a few weeks. It’s aimed at RDNs, but anyone can sign up.

In honor of IBS awareness month:

I know too many of you are *entirely* too aware of IBS. The two most common questions I get are about on the go foods and hummus. So, here are a few bars that are low FODMAP:

• Go Macro bars (many kinds)
• Belli welli
• Just Nosh
• 88 acres
• Nature Valley Peanut butter crunchy, Almond
• Bobo bars
• Fody food bars
• Casa de Santé Low FODMAP Vegan Protein Prebiotic Snack Bar

If FODMAPs aren’t an issue for you, a longer list of GF options here.

And re: hummus, here’s a quick and easy low FODMAP hummus recipe . I’m a fan of making your own hummus either way because it is really quite simple!

Easter:

Easter GF candy list from Jules GF.

Last, but not least, bunny meringues.

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, Colitis, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: Springtime ’25 GF newsletter

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

Ferrero Rocher are a holiday classic, especially for anyone who loves chocolate and hazelnuts. But sadly, they’ve got wheat as an ingredient.

Tea: we tend to think of this as a way of opting out of potential gluten. Some Yogi teas & Celestial seasonings have barley malt as an ingredient. Yep, even flavors that sound yummy like sugar cookie sleigh ride…and seriously, who keeps the box around to read the ingredients?There can be a cross contact concern for some teas, too. And have you ever heard of Bori-cha; dàmài-chá; mugi-cha; or be?h-á-tê? all names for barley tea. Caffè d’orzo is barley coffee, which is also out.

Candy: Yes, it’s important to think beyond the normal chocolate covered cookies and wafers and all that yummy stuff. All candy needs to be rechecked, even familiar candy. There are items that are regularly gluten free, like peanut butter cups, that sometimes aren’t gluten-free in holiday shapes. Sorry. There are some available in holiday wrappers, though, so do check the list.

Nuts: You know the main table with the crackers is out, so you grab a handful of nuts, thinking that must be safe. Right? If they’re plain or dry roasted nuts, you’re good. If they’re flavored, some use wheat to make things stick, like nuts.com’s Cajun or Japanese peanuts, for example, which have wheat. This may be the case if they’re homemade, or bought. This can be particularly tricky with brands with some gluten-free and some gluten-containing products, because it’s easy to assume everything is gluten-free from a brand.

Potato chips: on your mad dash through the airport, you’re trying to grab something to eat. The only thing that looks like a potential option is a bag of potato chips. Somehow in the overwhelm you miss…the malt flavoring, especially on salt & vinegar chips. I’d absolutely recommend bringing along extra plain nuts, fruit and or bars, especially for travel.

Alcohol: You know to stay away from gluten-removed beer, and that you’re good with wine, most ciders, and hard alcohol. But there’s something else which has become more popular. Wine coolers like Mikes often have malt (and nope, it can’t be fully removed) and malt beverages are out. Bottom line, aside from distilled alcohol, if it started gluten-free and no gluten was added, you’re good. If it started with gluten, it’s a no.

Of course, the biggest issue can often be cross-contact, which is a topic for a different day.

For ideas of naturally gluten-free options see this list with a ton of options.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season.

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, Colitis, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: Wait, gluten is *where*? Holiday Edition

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.

My 3 favorite tips:

• Plan ahead, and try to bring along safe options when possible.
• Bring along or order ingredients online that might be a problem. This includes broth, gravy, butter without crumbs, soups, flour for thickening, etc.
• Keep it as simple as possible.

Turkey:
Though it’s always good to check, the good news is that all plain, fresh turkey is naturally gluten-free. Again, that’s ALL plain, fresh or frozen turkeys. I know there are emails that go out every year about warnings of “hidden gluten” in the turkeys, but ironically, the turkey is usually the easiest and safest part of the meal. For the past 17 years I’ve been looking, calling and asking around if any of the brands of un-stuffed turkeys have gluten, and I haven’t found a single one in all that time. If you’ve seen one, email me or leave me a comment below. So you do have to look out for stuffed turkeys, and you do want to look out for gravy packets and of course, the preparation of the turkey.

The only exception is Tofurky, which has gluten, and some glazed hams DO contain gluten. As always, read carefully!

There can still be risks in the ingredients used on or in the turkey, and cross-contamination always needs to be on your radar. You’ll need to talk to your host about:

• Preparation method: Broth used for basting, or even the butter used for basting. This also includes the kind of flour used if a turkey is cooked in a bag.
• Seasonings…so much room for problems here
• Stuffing in the turkey
• Cross contamination/cross contact<–and this is the most common problem.

Gravy

Many regular canned gravy and gravy packets are not gluten-free. Gluten-free gravy is available online, and Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Wegman’s, etc. sell  some now. Even Mc Cormick’s has a gluten-free gravy packet that’s certified GF! Also, it’s pretty easy to make a simple gravy with gluten-free broth and cornstarch instead of wheat (and if corn is a problem for you, arrowroot can be substituted 1:1 instead).

• Herb Gravy From Elana’s Pantry
• Gravy using Cornstarch from Simply Recipes
• My favorite gravy (paleo/starch free)

Side dishes

There are lots of good options here. Green bean casserole works, just sub the french onion–Aldi’s does NOT have a GF version in this year, yikes, be careful! or use Fritos, or almonds, and buy a GF cream soup–Pacific is in most stores. Or get creative–we do roasted green beans, baked yams, cranberry relish or the stuff from the can works, too! gelatin salads, butternut squash soup, mashed potatoes, roasted veggies, applesauce…all of these things are easy to adapt to food restrictions, and they’re healthy and delicious to boot.

Stuffing:

This obviously requires a bit more planning. You can go the nontraditional route and do a wild rice, buckwheat or quinoa stuffing. You could use a gluten-free cornbread or pre-made GF bread crumbs, too. Aleia’s and Arrowhead mills are easy to find locally.

Make sure that “regular” stuffing is not used to stuff the turkey. Not only does that raise the risk of food poisoning, but the whole turkey would be cross-contaminated with gluten.

Cornbread stuffing with roasted acorn squash from the Gluten-Free Goddess

The NY Times Blog had a G-Free Stuffing section with a few recipes

Dessert!

For many people (myself included!) dessert is the highlight of the Thanksgiving. If you’d like to use your standard old-school recipes, you can easily make a crustless pumpkin or sweet potato pie or check out Whole Foods’ GF crusts. Or, you can easily make a crust from crushed up gluten-free cookies, shredded coconut or almond meal. Apple crisps are also simple, too. And, of course, now with the GF Wegman’s or Betty Crocker mixes, a cake or brownies are pretty simple, even if they’re not traditional.

For suggestions for cross-contact/cross contamination, see ideas here from GFE

Have a wonderful holiday!

Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Certified Wellcoach working with clients in VA, DC & MD.  She helps people with a range of digestive problems, including Celiac, IBS, Crohn’s, UC, gastroparesis, EDS, POTS & more. Let’s get you on your way to achieving your goals and feeling great!  Email or call 571-271-8742.

Original article: G-Free Thanksgiving

©2026 Harris Whole Health. All Rights Reserved.