I Hate You, Mcdonalds

[lorka150]

Okay, McDonalds (in Canada, at least) uses Mother Parker's instant coffee for their decaf.

I drank it over the course of my gluten free diet, and although have been feeling better, not 100%. I don't drink it every day, but I go through times were I drink it more often.

Anyway - I think it might have gluten, OR I got cross contaminated (because they are making the coffee) at McD's.

I'm a little angry.

About mid-way through my "I am certain this meal is gluten free" dinner (made it at home - steamed fish and veg - my eyes started to cross. Then, HORRIBLE brain fog, then the WORST headache ever! I felt like my skull was being crushed! That had never happened, but I do understand that symptoms can change throughout various glutenings. And I do always get brain fog first.

Wow. It sure hurt. I shoved two tylenol down my throat so fast!

It went away (the headache), but man... Now I am getting some of my other symptoms, but oddly, not the gastro ones. Either way, a symptom is a symptom.

The point is, I think I shall never consume a McD decaf coffee again.

That was unpleasant.

Oh, and the weird thing is, I know I haven't had one in awhile, and I was feeling really good these last few days.

So Mother Parker's decaf coffee? I think it contains gluten or casein.

[Cindy Chabot]

I understand your frustration. I am currently dealing with being glutened, I'm not sure where or how but it has happended. My skin is so itchy and my head also hurts. I also dealt with the gastro problems. Sometimes have celiac disease just sucks and we have to live with it, although sometimes it is just so difficult. I hope you feel better soon

[mart]

My kids love McDonald's french fries, but I don't dare buy them anymore. Although they do fry them separately from the chicken nuggets, the employees use the same gloved hands to pick them up as they do to pick up the nuggets. I'm so paranoid, I guess it's because my celiac disease son is still so underweight even after being "gluten-free" for 4 months. Anyway, I once got up the nerve to ask them to change their gloves, but the girl just looked at me weird and didn't do it. She just served them with the same gloves. So I just threw them away and drove home with some very disappointed kids. That was our last trip to McDonald's.

[lizzy]

i too am going through a gluten accident and am still trying to find the culprit, i am going to eat rice for the next week untill i can figure it out. i had a coffee at starbucks on wensday and after drinking it my cheast felt really tight and i couldnt breath propaly. i wasnt certain if it was the cafine or somthing else but as the day went on i felt sicker untill i stared having seizures , now to day after sleeping most of yesterday away my hand tremor is back and the tinging i have in my body. so what ever it was was alot for me to be this sick. its so frustrateing because once its consumed theyre nothing you can do but wait it out.

[Merika]

Flavored coffee can contain gluten. Vydor had a great post on that a while back, with links.

As for unflavored coffee - well, if the basket has been put down on a counter that bread crumbs (buns, muffins....) are on, and some stuck to the bottom and then coffee was brewed through it, you could definitely be sick from that.

At coffee shops, I've been getting an Americano (espresso shot with hot water - so about the size of a coffee) and haven't been glutened yet from it (knock wood). That way mine is made fresh. It's also not stored in a large coffee urn (urn?) that may have previously contained flavored coffee.

Merika

[lovegrov]

I'm no Starbucks fan, but all their coffees are gluten-free except a couple that they add some sort of chips to after brewing. Although you should always check before drinking, flavored coffees are almost without exception gluten-free.

richard

[darlindeb25]

Richard and I will never agree on this, but I know for a fact that flavored coffee's quite often do CONTAIN GLUTEN! I was reading the different flavored teas the other day from the company that claims gluten-free, Celestial Seasonings, and they stated on the box, this tea is not gluten free, this tea may contain gluten. A good many of the flavored coffees have a spice added to them and they are not gluten free. Just be very careful and always ask to read the ingredients of any flavored coffee you want to purchase. I worked in food service and everything they get in has ingreds listed on it--if they say they cant show you, then dont purchase it. PLEASE! I have been glutened by flavored coffee, hazelnut to be exact--so always be careful. Deb

[mytummyhurts]

Okay, McDonalds (in Canada, at least) uses Mother Parker's instant coffee for their decaf.

I drank it over the course of my gluten free diet, and although have been feeling better, not 100%. I don't drink it every day, but I go through times were I drink it more often.

Anyway - I think it might have gluten, OR I got cross contaminated (because they are making the coffee) at McD's.

I'm a little angry.

About mid-way through my "I am certain this meal is gluten free" dinner (made it at home - steamed fish and veg - my eyes started to cross. Then, HORRIBLE brain fog, then the WORST headache ever! I felt like my skull was being crushed! That had never happened, but I do understand that symptoms can change throughout various glutenings. And I do always get brain fog first.

Wow. It sure hurt. I shoved two tylenol down my throat so fast!

It went away (the headache), but man... Now I am getting some of my other symptoms, but oddly, not the gastro ones. Either way, a symptom is a symptom.

The point is, I think I shall never consume a McD decaf coffee again.

That was unpleasant.

Oh, and the weird thing is, I know I haven't had one in awhile, and I was feeling really good these last few days.

So Mother Parker's decaf coffee? I think it contains gluten or casein.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

So, why do you think the coffee's not safe? Could you have been glutened from another source?

[darlindeb25]

I agree, I dont think it was the decaf coffee that made you ill, but I have no idea what else you may of had throughout the day that may have contained gluten or maybe something else you cant tolerate now. Could be so many things. I know I have never had a problem with McDonald's fries or hashbrowns. My son is a manager of McDonald's and I know they are careful, this is in the US though. Deb

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

It could have been eating at McDonalds also...

Folks forget that Fast Food can be devastating to your stomach -- sometimes just eating there will hurt.

Also, this brings up another great point I was talking to my mother about the other day. Celiacs always tend to believe that when they get diarhea that they were "glutened" -- they often forget about the fact that normal folks get diarhea all the time also -- from the body not liking a certain meal to spicy foods to even mild food poisoning -- so, just a friendly reminder that we may not be "glutened" every time the big "D" shows up -- sometimes we have the same reactions as other people.

the problem is we get so trained into beleiving that every little stomach problem is based in Celiac - -we forget that we can get common ailments and indigestion like other people

Just my two cents....

p.s. I hate decaf -- never saw the point

[lorka150]

Ha, thanks but I would NEVEr eat at McDonald's! Just was grabbing a drive-thru coffee.

[Candy]

Okay, McDonalds (in Canada, at least) uses Mother Parker's instant coffee for their decaf.

I drank it over the course of my gluten free diet, and although have been feeling better, not 100%. I don't drink it every day, but I go through times were I drink it more often.

Anyway - I think it might have gluten, OR I got cross contaminated (because they are making the coffee) at McD's.

I'm a little angry.

About mid-way through my "I am certain this meal is gluten free" dinner (made it at home - steamed fish and veg - my eyes started to cross. Then, HORRIBLE brain fog, then the WORST headache ever! I felt like my skull was being crushed! That had never happened, but I do understand that symptoms can change throughout various glutenings. And I do always get brain fog first.

Wow. It sure hurt. I shoved two tylenol down my throat so fast!

It went away (the headache), but man... Now I am getting some of my other symptoms, but oddly, not the gastro ones. Either way, a symptom is a symptom.

The point is, I think I shall never consume a McD decaf coffee again.

That was unpleasant.

Oh, and the weird thing is, I know I haven't had one in awhile, and I was feeling really good these last few days.

So Mother Parker's decaf coffee? I think it contains gluten or casein.

I guess it's the Celiacs who can't eat anything,I mean face it ,it's not Mcdonald's fault.Cellies'll have to make all their own special food,and stick too it.I'm not trying to make the rest of the world gluten free.Or maybe there should be a whole gluten free market ( including irritant-free coffee flavoring),since most things are thickened with flour.

[cornbread]

I wouldn't be surprised if it was the coffee - or rather, the coffee lid... If I buy coffee at coffee places , I very often change the lid for a fresh one, because I've noticed that they often use their palm to press the whole lid down - a palm that has very likely just handled some kind of gluten filled baked goods (or milk, which for us casein-free folks is just as bad). Call me paranoid, but so far no coffee shop glutanimations or caseinations!!

[lorka150]

No way, I don't think you're paranoid. This morn I went out for coffee with my dad and he grabbed me a lid (after sharing it in the hand with his huge Starbucks Breakfast cookie ), and put it on the table, face down. I nudged it in the trash and grabbed another and I said, "ONE CRUMB, dad!"

And we laughed - because it's so serious, but so silly.