Ballard teen Dominick Cura is a man on a mission. The 14 year old wants to get on the Ellen DeGeneres Show to help raise awareness about Celiac disease.
“In 2009 I was diagnosed with Celiac disease which meant I couldn’t eat wheat, rye or barley ever again,” says Cura. Since his diagnosis, Cura has self-published a gluten free cook book, started a gluten-free blog and created a Facebook page to raise awareness about the disease within the local community. “The diagnosis was really hard for me, but I want to help people with Celiac who don’t know what to do,” says Cura.
After spreading his message locally, including in previous posts on My Ballard, he wants to take his message to a national level. Why the Ellen show? “Because she has such a large audience, I would be able to inform everyone about Celiac and what it is,” says Cura.
According to Cura, spreading the message about the disease is so important as “only 5% of people with Celiac know they have it and the other 95% are suffering from symptoms and they have know idea what is wrong with them because their doctor hasn’t thought of testing them for Celiac.” He also believes that some national media outlets are misinforming Americans about the disease and he wants to put the real facts out there for people to see.
Reflecting on the events since his diagnosis, Cura now says that he is “really grateful for Celiac”, despite the fact that he is unable to eat many of his favorite things again. It has given him the opportunity to help others through his blog, where he posts gluten-free products and recipes that he enjoys. His diagnosis also inspired him to help others through his cook book. “I decided that I was going to write a cookbook with a story of my life with Celiac and how I made it from something negative to positive,” says Cura. And he has done just that! The book is now available at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble online and locally at Secret Garden Bookstore. “Hopefully, it will spread out of Seattle soon,” says Cura.
According to Cura, there are many ways that locals can raise awareness about Celiac. Most importantly, Cura encourages people to get themselves and their children tested which will in turn push doctors to know more about the disease.
If you want to help this fantastic local young man on his quest to spread his message on the Ellen show, click here and like his Facebook page! To spread the word on twitter or instagram share #DomOnEllen.
Photo courtesy of Amazon.com.
