The Department of Oecotrophology at the Hochschule Niederrhein (HSNR) on the Mönchengladbach campus joined forces with the German Coeliac Disease Society (DZG) to host a Children's Experience Day. Numerous children with coeliac disease, their families and interested members of the public took the opportunity to find out more, exchange ideas and experience gluten-free activities up close.
"It was a wonderful event for us at the DZG, which exceeded all positive expectations," said Managing Director Gunnar Höckel. "We couldn't have wished for a better collaboration with the university."
Whether it was the bouncy castle, play mobile or face painting station, the campus grounds were transformed into a colourful adventure paradise for a day. The "shopping rally", where children learnt which foods are gluten-free in a fun way, was particularly popular. The exclusively gluten-free food such as cakes, bread, chips and ice cream catered for the physical well-being. The Oecotrophology student council was closely involved in all planning processes and made a significant contribution to the success of the event by providing drinks.
At the same time, parents and interested parties were able to find out more about the autoimmune disease coeliac disease in specialist presentations. Doctors and nutritionists shed light on medical aspects such as diagnosis and monitoring as well as dietary and practical everyday topics - such as gluten-free nutrition in daycare centres and schools.
Students from the Bachelor's and Master's degree programmes in Nutritional Sciences and Food Science were also involved in the event - both in terms of organisation and content. This is because coeliac disease is one of the central topics in all degree programmes in the Department of Nutritional Sciences.
Students of nutritional sciences learn how to present scientific findings on coeliac disease in an understandable way and apply them in practice. In this way, they are optimally prepared to later provide dietary and nutritional support to those affected and to act in a multidisciplinary manner.
Prospective food scientists acquire the skills to develop gluten-free products or manufacture them in accordance with the requirements; sustainably and in line with market requirements. They also deal with the sensory quality of these products - because flavour, consistency and appearance change significantly without gluten.
Coeliac disease affects around one in 100 people worldwide. In Germany, however, the disease often goes unrecognised as symptoms can be unspecific or cannot be clearly assigned. Further information on coeliac disease can be found at www.dzg-online.de.
The German Coeliac Disease Society, based in Stuttgart, was founded in 1974 as a self-help association for parents of affected children. Today, it represents the interests of 42,000 members, maintains around 180 contact groups throughout Germany and is represented in every federal state.
