Coeliac Society teams up with Promise Gluten Free to deliver free care packs to cocooning members
“Drive to care” comes after house-bound members feared they wouldn’t be able to get gluten free products during lockdown
Print7 April 2020
The Coeliac Society of Ireland is teaming up with baked goods brand Promise Gluten Free to deliver free food packs to hundreds of vulnerable coeliacs who are cocooning in order to stay safe from the coronavirus.
Delivery of around 400 packs to the homes of mostly elderly people throughout Ireland will start this week. They will include baked staples like gluten free bread but also Easter treats such as hot cross buns. The society hopes that further deliveries in the coming weeks will include products from other manufacturers.
The move comes after cocooning members of the Coeliac Society who could not travel expressed concern that they would struggle to access gluten free products as the coronavirus lockdown continues. Many feared they might become ‘glutened’ because they would not be able to stick to the strict gluten free diet which is required to manage their coeliac disease.
Coeliac Society CEO Gill Brennan said of individuals with coeliac disease currently cocooning: “These are vulnerable people in the current climate, not least because many of them have underlying conditions other than coeliac disease. These care packs will help keep them safe and well by allowing them to stick to their gluten free diet, but they will also mean they have one less thing to worry about at a time of real stress and anxiety in their lives.”
Mary Horkan, senior marketing manager at Promise Gluten Free, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown is a very worrying time and it is important that we help and protect those who are vulnerable.
“We hope the care package brings some joy to those people who can’t leave their homes right now.”
The Coeliac Society of Ireland’s dietitian Sarah Keogh is hosting weekly Facebook Live Q&A sessions on how to cope during the Covid-19 crisis. These will cover different health topics that are relevant to coeliac sufferers, including ‘Osteoporosis: Are you getting enough calcium?’ ‘Fibre and Coeliac Disease: What are the best sources?’ and ‘Looking after your heart: Cholesterol and you’.
Anyone wishing to support The Coeliac Society of Ireland can do so at www.coeliac.ie/join-now/donate/
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