Gluten Free, But Processed With Wheat?

[Linus]

Both my daughter and I are celiacs. I was diagnosed two months ago and my daughter was diagnosed a few days ago. I am trying to teach my daughter about lable reading. She is 11, and much of this has to be overwhelming to her.

Last night she wanted some gluten free pasta. Here is the interesting part, the label reads Gluten Free, but on the back it states that it was processed in a facility that uses wheat and egg. I imagine that it is under 20 ppm, but it is a confusing thing for us all. I have been teaching my daughter to avoid foods that are processed in a facility with wheat. We look for the wheat allergy lable and then look at the ingredients for the barley (malt) and rare rye items.

Here are the product details:

Company - Heartland

Fusilli

Advice is welcome.

Thank you.

[SarahJimMarcy]

Welcome, and know that the first few months are the most overwhelming. We are nearly 5 months in, and now, it seems like second nature. My daughter is 14.

We avoid all foods that are manufactured in a facility that processes wheat. It's just safer. SuperTarget has a good gluten-free pasta that turns out well as long as you follow the cooking instructions and rinse it with cold water. I can't remember the brand, but the label is purple and clear.

Good luck!

[rosetapper23]

I only eat pastas and other foods that are certified gluten free and completely avoid those products that are made in facilities or on equipment that processes wheat. I eat only Tinkiyada and Glutino brands of pastas.

I know that learning to read labels is important, and soon both you and your daughter will easily recocgnize exactly which products you can eat. However, when first going gluten free, many of us have found that eating only natural foods helps with both the healing of our small intestines and absorption of vitamins and minerals. Eating natural foods also pretty much eliminates the cross-contamination problem. Therefore, while label reading is important, it may be more important to teach your daughter to eat only natural foods for a while (6-12 months, for example). Of course, I also ate gluten-free pasta soon after my diagnosis, because I wanted to eat spaghetti and pasta primavera, but that was the only processed foods I ate. Be sure to include natural fats in your diet, as well, since you'll need them to help you absorb fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K). Examples of good fats are organic butter, ghee, olive oil, olives, and avocados.