y u m . | s u e s h e p HE r d
walk the talk { s u e s h e p h e r d i s p r o u d t o s ay s h e ’ s b i g i n t h e w o r l d o f b ow e l s a n d a s a c o e l i a c h e r s e l f, i s r e a l ly wa l k i n g t h e ta l k } Words Natasha Pavez
If there’s anyone to trust when it comes to gluten intolerances, it’s Sue Shepherd. Not only is she a coeliac, she’s a practising dietician and nutritionist who’s widely regarded as one of the world’s leading experts about the disease. She lives and breathes gluten-free cooking, in her personal and professional life. Sue, pictured above, was already studying to become a dietician when she found out she was coeliac, and she knows that she’d be down a completely different career path if it weren’t for the diagnosis.
“I love the human body. I think it’s fascinating,” she says. “I also love food, flavours, tastes, being creative with food – being a dietician was the perfect job, because if combined both my passions.” Originally, she planned to be a sports dietician, dreaming of being the Australian cricket team’s dietician. “My family loved cricket,” she laughs. “I used to play indoor cricket, and my summer time was spent with cricket!” During her third year of study, Sue realised she was coeliac after participating in a study at her university.
