Personal Care Products

[gilligan]

Hello!  What are your feelings about using body products that contain gluten after a celiac dx?  I was reminded to check all personal care products and medications, etc. in the packet I received from the doc.  But, I don't have the skin issues related to celiac, so do I need to worry about using products that might contain gluten?  I know the Clinique makeup I use is gluten-free, and I did switch body lotion.  I haven't yet given up Aveda hair care products, but I don't seem to have any effects from it (at least I don't think I do).  Wouldn't gluten need to be consumed to cause damage?  I'm really confused.

[Adalaide]

You can't absorb it through your skin, so you need to just think about what you're comfortable with and the risk of it ending up in your mouth. I personally checked all hair care products because of the frequency with which it ends up in my eyes, if it's ending up in my eyes, it's probably ending up in my mouth. I don't wear makeup anymore, but if I did I would check it because I'm just too lazy to be careful about it ending up in my mouth when I wash my face. My hand lotions are all gluten free. Body lotions, I don't really care. I can just wash my hands after I use them. Most are gluten free anyway, but if I like one that isn't I wouldn't mind picking it up. So I guess, I worry about anything I put on myself above my neck or on my hands. Other than than the risk of ending up in my mouth is so minimal that it is pretty much nonexistent.

 

Really though, a lot of it beyond the most obvious is going to come down to comfort. We each need to do what makes us most comfortable. Some of us use hair products with wheat protein in it, and it won't hurt us, and for some of us that would be so stressful that it would make us crazy. Do whatever feels right for you that won't have you spending every day wondering if you're making yourself sick.

[kareng]

You don't really have to worry about them with the exceptions of what goes in your mouth.  If you don't get shampoo in your mouth,  don't worry about it.  Gluten has to be eaten to cause a reaction.  

 

Open Original Shared Link

What ingredients should I avoid in cosmetic products?

Gluten is only toxic to celiac patients and patients with dermatitis herpetiformis (DH) if ingested. Because gluten cannot be absorbed through the skin, the use of cosmetic and shampoos containing gluten has not been shown to be detrimental to patients with celiac disease or DH. However, we do recommend gluten-free lip products, hand lotions and other products that may end up near the mouth. And, in the case of children, a gluten-free shampoo would be wise.

[upsilamba]

I agree - even though I'm pretty paranoid, I don't tend to worry about shampoo/conditioner or hand soap, but for anything that goes on my face or is meant to cling to skin (like lotion, hand sanitizer, etc), I won't use anything that has gluten or might be contaminated with it. It's been a pain finding and buying new things, but it's so worth it to not worry about washing my hands after every time I put on moisturizer or hair cream or something like that before I touch my mouth or any food (and then wondering whether the hand-washing actually got all the gluten off of my skin, given lotions are generally supposed to cling to your skin even through getting wet...).

 

One thing you should definitely watch out for is chapstick/lipbalm/lipstick etc - there's no way to not get that on food or straight into your mouth by licking it! I couldn't figure out if Chapstick was definitively gluten free or not, so i ended up buying an expensive but very safely gluten-free lipbalm by red apple - I've been pretty happy with that this winter!

 

Now off to googling gluten-free sunscreen before I head down to Florida for the weekend : )

[moosemalibu]

I found that I have a scalp sensitivity to wheat and use a gluten free shampoo and conditioner. Since I switched my itchy, flaky scalp has minimized drastically. That being said - I have a particularly sensitive skin and scalp so I am likely just sensitive and it's not what everyone experiences.

My lipsticks and lip balms are gluten free. That is the only cosmetic that I worry about. My body and hand lotions are gluten free just because I don't want to worry about washing my hands each and every time I eat something or fiddle with my mouth (I'm a fidgety person). Other than that I just buy what I used to use and things have been fine.