At Zeer, we have assembled a group of leading medical and nutrition advisers and food researchers with deep personal and professional experience in celiac disease and the gluten free diet. Please find a brief description of the Zeer Medical Advisory Board and Food Research Team below, including brief bios of members.
The Zeer Medical Advisory Board is made up of a number of experts in their fields, including nutrition, medicine and gastroenterology. We will expand this board as time goes on to include other disciplines. While all people with health or diet-related concerns should consult with their own medical and nutritional advisors, our goal is that this advisory board ensures that information provided through the Zeer service is as accurate as possible.
Melinda Dennis MS, RD, LDN
Melinda Dennis was diagnosed with celiac disease and Dermatitis Herpetiformis (an associated skin rash) in 1992 when celiac disease was considered to be very uncommon. Following her passion for teaching, she became a registered dietitian in order to teach the gluten free diet and lifestyle to others. She received her Master of Science in Nutrition and Health Promotion from Simmons College in Boston, completed her clinical internship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and became an Outpatient Dietitian specializing in celiac disease.
Currently Melinda is the Nutrition Coordinator of the Celiac Center at Beth Israel Deaconess and co-investigator of celiac-related research taking place in our the Gastroenterology Division. Melinda serves on the American Gastroenterology Association’s Press Advisory Board and served as a work group member of the American Dietetic Association’s Evidence Analysis Library task force for celiac disease. She has co- authored several journal articles on the nutritional management of celiac disease and greatly enjoys nationwide public speaking to the celiac and medical communities. One of her greatest joys was founding and chairing the Healthy Villi Greater Boston Celiac/DH Support Group for several years. Now, she acts as one of their nutrition advisors.
Melinda offers dietitian coaching, nationwide lecturing, gluten-free classes, shopping tours and home visits for those following the gluten-free diet through her nutrition consulting service, Delete the Wheat ®, LLC.
Dr. Daniel Leffler, MD, MS
Dr. Leffler is currently the Director of Clinical Research at the Celiac Center at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center an afflilate of Harvard Medical School. Prior to medical school he completed a Masters degree in Nutrition at Columbia University, where his interest in celiac disease first began. In medical school he trained under Dr. Peter Green before going on to complete both is residency and GI fellowship at BIDMC where began work with Dr. Ciaran Kelly. Dr. Leffler is board certified in both internal medicine (2005) and gastroenterology (2008) by the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Dr. Leffler’s current focus, along with clinical care, is in clinical and translational research relating to celiac disease. Major efforts to date have involved the study of factors which influence dietary adherence, non-responsive celiac disease, clinical trial design and immunologic changes which occur with celiac disease activation. This work has facilitated the creation of clinical algorithms which are used throughout the department of gastroenterology and primary care in the diagnosis and treatment of celiac disease. To continue his work in celiac disease, Dr. Leffler has recently been awarded a five year career development grant from the National Institute of Health.
Tricia Thompson, MS, RD
Tricia Thompson, MS, RD is a nutrition consultant, author, and speaker specializing in celiac disease and the gluten-free diet. She is the author of a variety of books on the gluten-free diet, including The Gluten-Free Nutrition Guide and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Gluten-Free Eating, as well as the American Dietetic Association’s booklet Celiac Disease Nutrition Guide. She also is the author of the chapter entitled “The Nutritional Quality of Gluten-Free Foods” in the book Gluten-Free Food Science and Technology. Tricia is a contributing author to The American Dietetic Association’s Nutrition Care Manual and is a work group member of the Association’s Evidence Analysis Library project on celiac disease.
Tricia writes broadly on the gluten free diet and nutrition, including a quarterly column in Medical Nutrition Matters for dietitians about celiac disease. She also has written numerous articles for both scientific and popular readers, including those that have appeared in Gluten-Free Living magazine, The Journal of the American Dietetic Association, The Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, and The New England Journal of Medicine.
Tricia has a MS degree in nutrition from Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts and a BA degree in English Literature from Middlebury College in Vermont.
For more information about the gluten-free diet, visit Tricia’s website at www.glutenfreedietitian.com.
In consultation with the Zeer Medical Advisors, the Food Research team at Zeer is responsible for researching and communicating gluten free status of foods, ingredients and packaged products. Using our process for assigning gluten free status, they evaluate ingredients separately and also apply product level analysis when required.
Gillian O'Callaghan
Gillian O'Callaghan brings deep personal experience and passion to the subject of celiac disease and gluten free diets, as her son was diagnosed with celiac disease six years ago.
When Gillian's son was diagnosed, she was frustrated by the lack of practical advice available from his doctor. At that time there was much less information available to individuals with celiac disease, so she combined her knowledge of cooking, with resources available on the Web, to develop gluten free recipes that would both meet his nutritional requirements and taste great, too. In an effort to help other individuals with celiac disease be successful at following the gluten free diet, Gillian began sharing her knowledge by teaching cooking classes. Her classes for the Heatlhy Villi Support Group (one of the United States' largest regional support groups for people with celiac disease) consistently sell out their 75-seat classroom.
Gillian has also been a volunteer for the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, and helped to found the Celiac Support Group at Massachusetts General Hospital for Children.
Gillian brings to the Zeer team a strong research background as well as other skills developed during her 14-year career in market research, the last 10 of which have been at The Boston Globe. Gillian holds a BA from Haverford College and an MBA with High Distinction from Babson College.
Michele Tassinari
Michele Tassinari has a deep personal understanding of the gluten free diet, food allergies, and in tolerances. She was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2007. She also is intolerant to lactose and has had a severe peanut allergy since she was a toddler.
Michele has worked closely with the the Healthy Villi in Boston as a volunteer Board Member and product and restaurant researcher, also helping facilitate networking and communication within the celiac community. She has also given presentations at the BU School of Public Health and at the USDA Human Nutrition Center at Tufts University.
Michele holds a BS in Toxicology with a Biology minor from Northeastern University, and a Masters in Public Health from Boston University.