Gluten Free and Gluten Safe

I have been gluten intolerant for most of my life.

I just didn't know it.

Growing up, I had never heard of anything like being allergic to bread.  I think of all the "healthy" foods I was trying to eat in high school (pastas, sandwiches, crackers, etc) and I would have been better off just eating candy and potato chips.

It's what you call ironic.

When I got diagnosed, I was a literally a month away from turning 21.  I was really sick and the doctors could not identify why.  Finally, this old GI doc did an intestinal biopsy (oh, yeah, it was "fun") and diagnosed me with Celiac Sprue.  When he called on the phone, that's all he said, "you have Celiac Sprue".

Like, uhm, what!?

After a very painful, teary investigation of what I was now allowed to eat, I found my self on a regiment of tapioca pudding and rice cakes.  That and some baked potatoes- that was about all I knew I could eat.

This was WAY before the days of googling something.

This was WAY before the days of "GLUTEN FREE!" labels on packages.

I had to learn everything the hard way- mostly reading medical journal articles on what celiac sprue was and what could be done about it.  Many hours in the medical library at the university pulling dusty volumes off the shelves.  Thank goodness my job was there, anyway!

What I found (boiled down) was this:
Celiac Disease/Celiace Sprue/Gluten Intolerance is an allergy to gluten.

This is completely different than gluten sensitive, which is not an allergic reaction at all.  People who are gluten sensitive could eat wheat without ensuing a whole-body illness for weeks on end.

Products in the US have been ramping up their advertising for being "Gluten Free".  This is actually quite a tricky statement.  Most of the products that we eat are naturally gluten free.  Fresh fruits and vegetables, coffee, rice, nuts- I've seen the strangest things as advertised to be gluten free- they naturally ARE!

But Gluten Free does not mean Gluten Safe.  Gluten is two part molecule (think of Legos) found ONLY in wheat.  But those of us with Gluten Intolerance cannot have Wheat OR Barley OR Rye...and we can't have any of those hybrids, either.  We can't eat any grass/cereal grains that are grown in fields with wheat, or rotated in fields with wheat because the contamination is so high.  This includes Quinoa, Amaranth, Sorghum, Teff, Oats, Buckwheat, or Millet.

Products sold by Pamela's ARE NOT gluten safe.  They are gluten free, but they are made with Sorghum and Millet.  (Millet, by the way, is a grain you should avoid if you have hypothyroidism).  Similarly, products by Bob's often contain oats, which are on the gluten free, but not gluten-safe list.  They're fine if you're eating gluten-free because of Autism or some other non-immune problem.

The only retail products I've found that have an entire line of truly gluten free and gluten safe foods are Glutino and Kinnikinnick.  All of the products I've seen by these manufacturers are made with rice and tapioca flours.  Glutino pretzels are fantastic. Kinnikinnick has a fantastic white sandwich bread (freezer section).  Udi's also makes some good products, but their entire line is not gluten safe.  And their frozen foods are expensive and TERRIBLE.  They're like eating foods bought at a gas station. (I tried to contact customer service to complain, but they just said, "Thanks for purchasing our products.  Sorry you didn't like them.").

Now, it turns out that the US has finally declared those with severe food allergies disabled.  It's about time.  Our fates are in the hands of those around us and we often become sick because people just don't know- or frankly don't care.  But if you've got a food allergy, you know what it's like to be in a meeting and have to get up suddenly because your supposedly safe lunch turned out to not be safe.

In summary, gluten free products are not always gluten safe products.  Be sure you read your labels CAREFULLY!

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to write to me.