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Similarly, when they ate out Kristen, now 16, used to be limited to ordering a hamburger -- sans bun -- and a baked potato.

"Now, if we go out, we usually go to a place that has a gluten-free menu," Lisa Noto said. Among the restaurants they are able to frequent are Boston Market, Bonefish Grill and Chili's.

Simon Wong, general manager of the Red Bowl Asian Bistro, which opened in March in Cary, said three or four people each week ask for the restaurant's gluten-free menu. He said he expects the menu to become a bigger draw as word spreads.

There was a time when the Harmony Farms natural food store in North Raleigh, which has a wall devoted to gluten-free products, bought virtually any available gluten-free product, co-owner Steve Long said.

Now there are so many products, the store has the luxury of picking and choosing.

Its most popular gluten-free selections are pastas made from brown rice flour or other alternative ingredients.

"The next big thing you are going to see is pre-made dinners that are wheat- and gluten-free," Long said. "We're just starting to see them."

Gluten-free and pricey

Gluten-free products tend to be pricey. Some loaves of bread cost $6 or more.

"Gluten-free products can be two to three times higher than a mainstream product," said Kupper of the Gluten Intolerance Group. She blames growing demand, higher ingredient costs and production problems stemming from stickier doughs.

For the most part, gluten-free products are produced by small and midsize companies.

The industry giants are sitting on the sidelines until the Food and Drug Administration develops a standard for labeling a product as gluten-free, according to Packaged Facts.

The FDA has proposed a standard that would allow a trace amount of gluten -- 20 parts per million, the equivalent of a crumb in a loaf of bread -- and is supposed to issue its standard in August. The Gluten Intolerance Group of North America supports the proposed standard as "appropriate and safe."

Consequently, many products on grocery shelves contain no gluten but don't advertise it. People who observe gluten-free diets have become accustomed to scrutinizing labels and, when necessary, calling manufacturers' toll-free numbers to find out whether a product is safe for them to eat.

The consensus among people who observe a gluten-free diet is that the quality of packaged foods has been upgraded considerably over the years but still has room for improvement.

"If you didn't know some of the products, you would never know they were gluten-free," Kupper said.

But that's not always the case.

Gluten-free beer "makes me appreciate barley," Johnson said. Still, she said she would drink them if she was gluten-intolerant.

Killette tried gluten-free bagels and found them inedible. "When I threw them out to the birds, they wouldn't eat it, either," she said.

Killette said she sometimes falls off the gluten-free wagon, even though she pays for it with diarrhea, constipation or a heavy dose of nausea. "I grew up a country girl," she said. "I love biscuits. Once in a while, when I can't stand it anymore, I'll have a biscuit -- or half a biscuit."

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