Gene Therapy on the Horizon
Horizon tonight was on gene therapy. It really did give people with genetic diseases hope.
As both my wife and our son died of cancer, it was thought that he may have inherited a faulty gene. He hadn’t, but I can understand how much something like that, would blow families apart.
On the other hand, I have an inherited genetic disease in coeliac disease. Would I want to be cured by gene therapy? Probably not now, as I control my symptoms through diet, but it would have been nice to know, I carried the faulty gene earlier and I could have modified my diet accordingly.
Doves Farm Tricolour Pasta
I cooked a pack of this for supper with my son and a friend. They both liked it.
Doves Farm Tricolour Pasta
So thev sauce was a bit runny, but it was just created with two onions, some garlic, some tinned chopped tomatoes, some chopped salami and possibly too much stock.
But it tasted good and everything was eaten up!
Every Town Should Have One!
Nottingham is one of the best places to visit as a casual visiting supporter, as the station, town centre and the football ground are all within about twenty minutes walk. I have eaten in the centre before a couple of times and have never had a problem. I walked up the town to a restaurant I know, called French Living, where I had a simple lunch of an ommelette with all the trimmings and a glass of house wine for just £9.85.
They are a bit more than a restaurant and bistro, as you’ll see from their web site. They sell cheeses and other products andare also in quite a few respected guides.
It would be nice if this concept of shop/restaurant/bistro was to be repeated all over the country. After all judging by the full restaurant on a wet Saturday in October, it is a concept that works.
Especially with a one course lunch with wine for just £9.85!
Gluten Free Goes Mainstream
There has been an announcement that Genius gluten-free bread is going to spend £3million on a television advertising campaign for their products.
It’s even got a mention in The Sun.
I probably wont see the advert, but it will be interesting to see if it raises the awareness of coeliac disease and gluten-free products.
As to their gluten-free bread, I usually have a loaf in the bread-bin for sandwiches and toast. So I can’t say that I’m unhappy with the product.
Allergy Alerts
Yesterday, I was informed that Marks and Spencer had made a mistake with one of their gluten-free products. This is the gist of the problem.
Marks & Spencer has withdrawn some of its own-brand Gluten Free Rich Fruit Cake, because the product contains wheat flour. The product label incorrectly mentions that the product is ‘made without wheat’ and is ‘gluten free’. This makes the product a possible health risk to anyone who is gluten intolerant or has an allergy to or intolerance of wheat. The Agency has issued an Allergy Alert.
The full text of the message is on this web page at the Food Standards Agency.
There apparently is a syste of allergy alerts that you can subscribe to here.
Obviously, the system works, but in these days of austerity is it done as efficiently as it can be?
A Bit of a Scare
I got up at the usual time of about six this morning, as I was intending to see the Japanese Grand Prix. However, within a few minutes, I had such pain in my face, that I did the only thing I could think of and that was dial 999. The thought of another stroke occurred to me, but then I could still type and speak!
The ambulance arrived fairly quickly and I was taken off to Addenbrooke’s after they found me wandering about in the house.
It turned out to be a blocked sinus, or that’s what they think it is. I’ve had bad taste in my mouth for months, teeth and cheek pain and a lot of other symptoms that fit with a severe sinus problem. I should also say, that for years as a child I suffered from the same problems and they really only went away when I went gluten-free.
At least now, as i write this, I feel a little bit better! but i must get to see a specialist.
For example could the blocked sinuses, which often cause a lot of muck to discharge into your throat and gut, be the cause of my almost permanent soft and very ginger motions?
Carluccio’s Is Open In Bury St. Edmunds
As I said I might earlier , I sampled the new Carluccio’s in Bury St. Edmunds today.
Strangely, I had a little trouble finding the restaurant, as it was tucked away in a corner of the arc Shopping Centre and the maps in the Centre didn’t show it. But thinking about it later and it was positioned, where many would either come from the cinema or the car parks. But I don’t use that cinema, as it almost exclusively shows American films in 3D and I don’t drive.
This was my first visit to any of the restaurants, since a new gluten-free menu has been brought in. It’s a bit different and it might be slightly larger. I had some bresaola followed by a mushroom risotto, all washed down with two glasses of lemonade.
One of the things I like about the restaurants in my present state was innocently illustrated by a two-year-old sitting with his parents. He managed to tip his food all over the floor. I worry about doing that with my gammy hand, but I know that if I did, it wouldn’t be too much trouble for the staff.
However, I behaved myself and thoroughly enjoyed my meal.
A Bone Scan at Addenbrooke’s
My gastroenterologist thought that as a coeliac, that I ought to have a bone density scan and I did today. I also decided that it would be easier, if I took the train to Cambridge and then got a bus to the hospital. I could have got someone to drive me, but in some ways there is less hassle if you take a bus, especially, as the stop is in the station forecourt.
I actually arrived early and after being booked in by the receptionist, she advised that I went and had a coffee and returned on the booked time. That shows a high degree of professionalism and confidence that the radiologist can keep to te set schedule.
They’d said if I didn’t want to wear a hospital gown, then I should wear clothes without zips and fastenings. But as I haven’t been warm for a few days, I wore my usual uniform of blue cord trousers, short sleeved shirt, jumper and Jodhpur boots. The radiologist said that would be fine, as all I would have to do is drop my trousers to my knees. I could make a comment about when young ladies say that, but I won’t!
It took perhaps fifteen minutes to do the scan, with the machine moving up and down my lower body. It was completely without any feeling and all I’ve got to do is wait for the results to be assessed.
I think as medicine progresses, we’ll see more and more specialist machines like this, developed with clever software and hopefully operated as many hours of the day as is possible. Assets should always be made to sweat!
About an hour after arriving, I was back at the station waiting for the train home.
Baked Haddock with Cheese
I usually cook haddock with tomatoes and onions, but I felt I needed something simple and quick. After searching the Internet I found this recipe.
The ingredients I used were.
- 1 cupful of goats milk
- 1 tablespoon of gluten-free flour
- 50 grms of butter
- 2 or 3 haddock fillets
- 1 cupful of grated cheese.
- salt and pepper to taste
These quantities make enough for perhaps a friend and myself, but as I was hungry, I made it for one.
The method was as follows.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan.
- Add the flour, mix with the butter and when smooth add the milk, salt and pepper.
- When thickened add the grated cheese and stir constantly over a low heat until the cheese is melted and the sauce is smooth.
- Meanwhile arrange the haddock fillets in an ovenproof dish and pour the cheese sauce over the top.
- I then baked it in the top of the bottom oven of the AGA for thirty minutes.
The Effect of Calcium Tablets
I reported in Calcium and Vitamin D, that I thought that the calcium tablets were helping me get a bit better.
It is some days since I wrote that and my typing seems much better. It could also be today, that Ipswich beat The Damned United yesterday and that gave my brain a lift.
But I’m not going to knock it!
Also, my mouth seems better. I just wonder if my mouth is rather acidic and of course the calcium tablets, which are mainly calcium carbonate will neutralise the acid and generate carbon dioxide. Could that create a beneficial effect?
The Anonymous Widower 