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But the roasted potato-garlic soup that a dining companion orderedseemed safe, so when her friend offered, Craig took a little sip.

"I got home and immediately knew it wasn't gluten-free," Craigsays. "My friend barely made it out of the parking lot."

After the two got over their intestinal distress, they contacted the restaurant. The manager told them he thought a crouton may haveinadvertently fallen into in the soup. Result: That restaurant'sgluten-free menu now reads: "Roasted Garlic Soup (hold croutons)."

"It's all about communication," says Craig, chairwoman of theSacramento Celiac Sprue Association. "People, by now, have heardabout celiac but there's still misconceptions. No, we can't have alittle bit of wheat. And, yes, it matters what's in ourmedications, because you'll find it there, too."

It takes a lot of dietetic diligence to live well with celiacdisease, Craig adds, but it can be done. The National Institutesfor Health estimates that 3 million Americans are affected. And theresearch firm Mintel reports that $1.75 billion was spent ongluten-free foods in 2007.

"The great news is, when you take away the gluten, the ill effectsof the disease goes away," Craig says. "It's the one autoimmunecondition in which you can do that. Get well, stay well. I ran myfirst half- marathon in May."