Nationally Known Cartoonist Visits Scenic City to Talk "Gluten Free"

Cartoonist Joe Staton has been the man behind Batman, Green Lantern, Archie and Scooby-Do for the past forty years.

Now, the artist battles a different villain... Celiac Disease.

Joe and his wife, children's author Hilarie Staton, collaborated on Amy Goes Gluten Free.  The book explains the disease that makes some three million Americans unable to digest foods that contain gluten.

The comic book also includes activities for children and their parents to learn how to better cope with the disease. "Kids while they're in the gastroenterologist's waiting room can be learning to read labels and pick things out on their own, find out things they can eat," Joe Staton explained Monday morning. Hilarie Staton added the books help kids with "understanding the vocabulary that they're going to hear from the doctors so they can be an active part of the conversation, not just their parents."

This is the second medical comic the couple has under their belts. The Statons first wrote a comic for children with Crohn's Disease and Colitis for Children's Hospital Boston.

That comic was such a success they were soon asked to tackle Celiac Disease.

The Statons are the featured guests at Monday night's Gluten Free Chattanooga meeting. The Celiac Support Group will be at Greenlife Grocery at 7:00pm.

Learn more about Gluten Free Chattanooga.

Learn more about Amy Goes Gluten Free and other Children's Hospital Boston publications.