Your Gluten-free Diet Just Became Less Restricted… perhaps

If you suffer from gluten intolerance or celiac disease you know how important it is to read labels carefully. Let me know if you would eat anything that said the following on the label:

1. this plant also processes foods that contain gluten

2. this product “may contain” gluten

3. contains wheat starch

If you answered “No” to all the above you are being cautious and I think that’s a good thing. In fact, prior to talking with Cynthia Kupper, R.D., founder of the Gluten Intolerance Group, I would have agreed with you completely with absolutely no reservation.

I met Cynthia at our Second Annual Gluten Sensitivity & Celiac Forum. The event was attended by hundreds of people and we received rave reviews. We did create a DVD of the event if you’d like to see it in its entirety.

There are Food Companies that Follow “Best Practices”

Cynthia was our first speaker. She travels the country evaluating companies that produce gluten-free products.

To ensure proper compliance she created an accreditation program for manufacturing and food services of all types to implement best practices for safe gluten-free food production. She also created an awareness program for restaurants that reviews menus, recipes, and provides training modules for them.

Cynthia definitely has her finger on the pulse of this industry and that is why I wanted to share some information with you that should allow you to feel a bit more at ease when grocery shopping. Do keep in mind that Cynthia is a celiac herself so the comment I’m about to relay was, I’m sure, not said lightly.

She stated that she is not concerned about consuming items from a food plant that says they also process foods that contain gluten, ditto if the plant says it “may contain” gluten on their ingredient label.

In her experience, she finds that such plants use good practices and the label warning is more of a legal “CYA” for the manufacturer than anything that someone with celiac disease should be worried about. If you’re surprised you’re in good company – I was too! But this is an area where she is the expert and I do trust her opinion.

With that said, if you feel that you’ve had a bad experience with a particular manufacturer you can always contact the Gluten Intolerance Group to find out if that company is following the “best practices” – www.gluten.net.

Is Wheat Starch is Okay?

Additionally, Ms. Kupper stated that wheat starch is gluten-free; it’s been used in Europe for many years successfully. The starch is a pure carbohydrate, there is no protein in it and therefore no gluten.

Being an avid ingredient label reader, I couldn’t readily remember seeing “wheat starch” as an ingredient here in the U.S. I am a bit of a purist, so perhaps that’s why, but it does seem that it is more commonly seen in Europe.

An individual wrote to me stating that she spent 4 months in Ireland this year and ate many items with wheat starch in them that were labeled gluten-free. She stated that she never got sick.

Research Agrees

I find a nice study out of the Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterology done in 1999. The conclusion was that wheat starch was safe to use with those suffering from celiac disease based on follow-up laboratory testing performed on a group of celiacs who consumed it. I have included the reference at the end of this post.

With that said, I still think it’s wise to be cautious. It’s true that by definition “starch” means carbohydrate and therefore no protein (gluten) should be present. But there’s nothing wrong with being on the safe side and contacting a company to confirm that their product is truly gluten-free.

I Still Recommend You Follow Your Own Due Diligence

I would recommend that you write online to any company whose product that you run across that contains wheat starch and ensure that their response is one that you feel comfortable with. None of us like to be a guinea pig, especially when an “oops” can result in such misery.

It is unfortunate that countries in Europe and elsewhere seem to be so much easier for us who are gluten challenged! But don’t lose hope – I plan to continue building awareness of gluten intolerance such that companies will have no choice but to comply!

Please write to me with any questions that you have. I am here to help you, your friends, and your family. Root Cause Medical Clinic is a destination clinic and we see patients from across the country as well as internationally.