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Witness describes reaction from improperly labeled bread

Paul Evan Seelig, owner of bread company Great Specialty, is on trial on charges he knowingly sold bread advertised as being gluten-free - even though tests showed the food as having high levels of the substance.

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Paul Evan Seelig
RALEIGH, N.C. — Jonathan Mull said Thursday that his wife, who suffers from Celiac disease, had the worst reaction he had ever seen after she consumed products from Great Specialty Bread Co.

"She was rolling on the floor writhing in pain and threw up for hours," Mull said in testimony at the trial of Paul Evan Seelig, the owner of Great Specialty.

Authorities say Seelig, of 3105 Cardinal Lake Drive in Durham, sold products falsely labeled as gluten-free, causing dozens of customers to fall ill. He is on trial for fraud.

Sufferers of Celiac disease have negative reactions to gluten which can range from diarrhea and abdominal pain to irritability and depression. In order to avoid those symptoms, they must carefully monitor their diet and avoid foods with gluten, a protein found in grains like wheat, barley and rye.

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