Food Fix -- These Specialty Stores Know All Food Is Not For All People

I'M SPOILED BY PUGET Consumers Co-op, I know. But there are other health and specialty food stores in the Puget Sound region, of course, and some offer products and services that set them apart from the others.

Rainbow Grocery on Capitol Hill, for example, has a satellite store four doors away called Rainbow Natural Remedies (409 15th Ave. E., Seattle; 206-329-8979). There I can not only choose from a range of natural health-care products, but also concoct my own blends at an herbal apothecary, consult a library and referral center, take classes such as aromatherapy and healthy cooking - plus get advice from naturopathic doctors during free, quick consultations (no exams). Staff naturopaths are on-site Monday through Friday from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., and weekends noon to 5 p.m.

Many people rely on natural-foods stores to help maintain a vegetarian diet. One lesser-known source of vegetarian foods and meat alternatives are the small groceries within the Seventh Day Adventist Book Centers (20015 Bothell-Everett Highway, Bothell, 800-765-6955; and 5000 Auburn Way S., Auburn, 253-833-6707). I can find vegetarian spices, broths, seasonings, non-dairy yogurt-like dessert mixes, basic soy protein concentrate, vegetable- and grain-flavor patties and a cornucopia of imitation meats: burgers, loafs, sausages, chili, taco filling, sloppy joes, swiss steak, chicken nuggets, and giant rolls of imitation beef, chicken and salami. (For vegetarian dining out, just up the street from the better-known Cafe Flora is a Seventh Day Adventist restaurant, Five Loaves Deli & Bakery, 2719 E. Madison St., Seattle; 206-726-7989.)

Perhaps the least known local company benefiting people worldwide is Ener-G Foods, a small family-owned business that produces and sells special prepared goods and mixes: wheat-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-protein, milk substitutes and egg replacements.

Ener-G was even smaller - a two-person operation - when flour-company owner Sam Wylde bought it in 1962. Soon he was contacted by Dr. Belding Scribner of the University of Washington. Scribner was a kidney dialysis pioneer, and he wanted his patients to cut down on their intake of protein and other elements to lessen the stress on their kidneys. After a year of testing, Wylde came up with a bread low in protein, sodium, potassium and phosphorus.

Soon another UW doctor called, looking for a bread without gluten. A natural part of many grains, gluten yields an elasticity that helps baked goods rise. But in some people gluten damages the small intestine and inhibits absorption, a disease called celiac sprue.

By 1978 Ener-G was selling not only the low-protein and gluten-free breads, but also a number of baking mixes. Along the way it stumbled onto a much larger market: Since gluten-free products were made without wheat, rye, oats and barley, they also were suitable for people allergic or sensitive to those grains, and often other foods as well. About 50 percent of Ener-G's customers are looking for wheat-free/gluten-free foods, 20 percent for low-protein and 30 percent for food-allergy alternatives.

Though there's no retail store per se, customers can visit Ener-G's friendly office (5960 First Ave. S.) to browse samples and buy foods on the spot; call 800-331-5222 to receive product information and order forms; or visit its website: http://www.ener-g.com

Today, with only 32 employees, Ener-G offers nearly 200 products, from tapioca bread to rice pizza shells to brown-rice lasagna to the very tasty almond orange cookies I'm munching on right now (made with almond flour, sugar, egg whites and orange peel).

Baked goods are vacuum-sealed for a six-month shelf life and easy freezing. They're more expensive than common counterparts, since much of the production is hand-operated (the pizza shells - three for $8.93 - are handmade) and since baking without gluten can be touchy at best. "You can do all the things you did yesterday but all of a sudden the whole batch doesn't come out, whether from a change in the weather or a different batch of rice," says Colleen Wylde, Sam's daughter and Ener-G's sales manager. "So we take a lot of hits."

Hits taken on behalf of others, those struggling to find foods their bodies can handle.

Molly Martin is assistant editor of Pacific Northwest magazine. Gary Settle is the magazine's picture editor.

NOTEBOOK

If the suit fits...

Are poor-fitting swimsuits keeping you out of the pool? Seattle-based Calla Bay specializes in made-to-order suits, with 50 styles and more than 150 fabrics, often shipped in about a week. Prices range from $59 to $120. It even has a new line of mastectomy suits. Local stores are at Bellevue Square and Alderwood Mall.

Interfitness

Sports Etc, the regional multi-sport magazine, is now online. The Web site includes top stories from each monthly issue, plus news, schedules, sports and travel planners and a search engine. It's at http://www.sportsetc.com

Food sensitivity?

Other resources for people with food sensitivities:

# One local woman who conducts workshops, classes and counseling related to food allergies and sensitivities is Sally Rockwell (206-547-1814).

# The Food Allergy Network (10400 Eaton Pl., Suite 107, Fairfax, VA 22030; 800-929-4040) offers free recipes, suggested food substitutions and other information; send a business-size, self-addressed stamped (64 cents) envelope. A two-booklet set, "Off to School with Food Allergies - A Guide for Parents and Teachers" is $8. Its Web site is http:// www.foodallergy.org

Ask Molly

Questions on workouts, equipment or nutrition? Send them to Ask Molly, Pacific Northwest magazine, The Seattle Times, P.O. Box 70, Seattle, WA 98111, or e-mail mmartin@seattletimes.com.