Charity Hop Giveaway - Celiac Disease & Gluten Intolerance - Lexie World by Kimberly Kinrade

This giveaway is part of Charity Hopping Around the World hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer, Reading Away the Days and Reading a Little Bit of Everything. There are a lot of great blogs participating in this hop. After you enter here, hop over and enter their giveaways too.

While you are here, please check out my other giveaways. They can be located in the right sidebar. 

The charities I am focusing on raise awareness of Celiac disease and gluten intolerance. They also promote better labeling on foods.

What is Celiac disease? Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder in which your body cannot tolerate gluten. It is not a food allergy. You can potentially outgrow a food allergy, but you will have Celiac disease for the rest of your life. Gluten is found in wheat, rye, barley and sometimes oats. When these foods are consumed, the body of someone with Celiac disease thinks there is poison and works to attack it. This damages the small intestine and can lead to malnutrition (because you are not absorbing nutrients correctly) and many other problems, including cancer. Some of the symptons of Celiac disease or even just a gluten intolerance include migraine headaches, joint pain, distended abdomen or bloating, chronic fatigue, diarrhea or constipation. Children may also exhibit behavioral problems, irritability, growth failure, and learning problems, among other things. It is estimated that Celiac disease affects 1 in every 133 people.

Here are a couple of sites where you can find out more information or donate to support the awareness of gluten intolerance and promote better labeling on foods.

Why I chose this cause: When I first signed up to do Charity Hopping Around the World, I was planning to focus on an entirely different charity. However, my young son was diagnosed with Celiac disease just last week. He was not feeling well for a long time before being diagnosed and was missing a lot of school. We are thankful to now know the reason, but it has been a challenge for us to figure out what he can and can't eat. Many labels do not state if the product is gluten-free and gluten can be hidden in the ingredients in things like "natural flavors." Many food manufacturers and especially restaurants (and their staff in general) do not understand how important it is to not get ANY gluten in your food or don't even know what gluten is. Many foods that would not normally contain gluten become contaminated during the manufacturing process or during cooking at restaurants.

Thank you for taking time to learn more about Celiac disease and gluten intolerance. Please visit the links above to learn more.

My Giveaway:

2 winners will receive an eBook of Lexie World by Kimberly Kinrade.

While it is not the focus of the story, Lexie is unable to eat anything with gluten and the unicorn in Lexie World gives her gluten-free food. Kimberly and her young daughter, Lexie, both have a gluten intolerance.

Lexie World by Kimberly Kinrade

Published: December 20, 2011 by Evolved Publishing

5-year-old Lexie is tired of getting in trouble for leaving her stuff and trash outside. She doesn’t mean to litter or ruin her shoes, but it’s just so hard to remember sometimes.

When she, her two big sisters and their dog TayTay find a portal to Lexie World, Lexie discovers the consequence littering has had on her special world. Garbage Goblins have taken over and are destroying the Earth!

To save Lexie World, the girls (and TayTay) must travel with their new Unicorn friend through the Waters of Waste and over the Mountain of Lost Clothes to retrieve a piece of the Mirror of Ice in order to remind the Garbage Goblins of their true form and break their curse.

On this journey, Lexie learns about courage, love and the importance of taking care of her world.

With full color illustrations, Lexie World bridges the gap between picture books and chapter books, offering children 4-9 years old a new, exciting reading journey.

How to Enter:

There are many ways to enter. Choose one or choose all for 4 total entries.

+1 Be a follower of Krazy Book Lady in any way you choose.

+1 Follow Kimberly Kinrade on Twitter or like on Facebook.

+2 Tweet about this giveaway. Here's the tweet to use:

I want to win Lexie World by @KimberlyKinrade from @KrazyBookLady in her Charity Hop #giveaway for Celiac disease. http://bit.ly/H62ynM

 

Giveaway details:

Giveaway is open internationally. This giveaway will run until midnight EST on April 4. Must be 13 or older to enter. Winners will be chosen using Random.org. Winners will be emailed and this blog post will be updated to include the name of the winners. Winners have 3 days to contact me or a new winner will be selected.

Sorry! This giveaway is now over.

Winners: Tami H. and Sarah S.