Importance/Necessity of a gluten-free kitchen??

[RShisler]

Hello everyone,

My husband had his blood tested, with celiac disease suspected.  He is currently doing the “gluten challenge,” and testing in the next week or so is expected to confirm his diagnosis.

So, he’s been eating gluten-free since October.  Since then, we’ve gotten much of the unnecessary gluten-containing items out of the kitchen (teriyaki sauces, bread, etc.)  However, up until recently (his blood tests), we assumed an intolerance, and we didn’t think cross-contamination would be a concern.

I’m actually not too fond of bread and pasta anyway, so I’m generally cool with the gluten-free diet.  However, I’m not sure how easy a full-gluten-free kitchen will be, because we have a 16-month old daughter.  While she’s not picky with her food by any means, she has seems to have already determined that the gluten-free pasta is “not food,” and definitely prefers regular macaroni.  Also, my husband usually fixes her multi-grain cereal at breakfast, and I feel like the small flakes get EVERYWHERE.  

Sooo… is it completely necessary to get her favorite (glutened) food out of the kitchen?  And what precautions do I need to take to avoid cross-contamination?  I know the other day, I accidentally put a knife that touched a regular (flour) tortilla back into the mayo, thus contaminating the jar.  Luckily, I noticed it, and we bought another jar… but I do have concerns that I may not always catch myself.

Also, what about cleaning?  If gluten touches a counter, will normal kitchen sprays/cleaners work? If gluten touches a pot/pan or spatula, does normal soap and water remove the gluten?  
 

Thanks for any advice you can give me! 

 

[trents]

First, I want to be clear what you mean by saying your hubby is doing the "gluten challenge." We normally use that term to mean that someone who has been on a gluten free diet is temporarily going back on gluten in order before testing in order to ensure that the tests are not invalidated. People with upcoming celiac disease testing need to be eating regular amounts of gluten (two slices of wheat bread or the equivalent) for at least 6-8 weeks before the antibody blood tests and at least 2 weeks before the endoscopy/biopsy. In your concern about cross contamination you make it sound like he is already trying to eat gluten free before his next test. So, is the next test you refer to as happening in the next week the endoscopy/biospy?

Second, concerning your toddler's aversion to eating gluten free food, realize there is a 44% chance that if dad has celiac disease that the child will develop the disease at some point. 

Third, it is much more difficult to keep celiacs safe in a household where others are still using gluten containing food. You have already mentioned your experience with inadvertent cross contamination and no amount of "carefullness" will totally eliminate that possibility. Every gluten exposure is a healing setback for a celiac. It always works best if everyone in the household of a celiac commits to eating gluten free. Don't pander too much to your toddler's food preferences. They won't starve and they can be trained to eat things they initially don't like. Becoming a picky eater starts early in life with over indulgent parents at meal times. And experiment with different kinds and different brands of gluten free products. Some taste terrible but there are a lot of tasty ones available these days. Some things you have to just keep eating until they become the new normal of what tastes good. Having said all that, celiacs vary significantly in the amount of gluten it takes to produce a celiac reaction episode. That's something you and your husband will have to sort out through experience when it comes to how careful you have to be when it comes to cross contamination ("CC"). So minor contact of a utensil with a piece of bread may or may not be an issue for your hubby but I would definitely be careful with peanut butter and mayo jars, that sort of thing. Have separate ones of those kind of thing for hubby.

Fourth, don't get OCD about cleansing cookware from gluten. Washing with soap and water should be sufficient. You would want to use different toasters, however.

Edited July 1, 2021 by trents

[RShisler]

12 minutes ago, trents said:

First, I want to be clear what you mean by saying your hubby is doing the "gluten challenge." We normally use that term to mean that someone who has been on a gluten free diet is temporarily going back on gluten in order before testing in order to ensure that the tests are not invalidated. People with upcoming celiac disease testing need to be eating regular amounts of gluten (two slices of wheat bread or the equivalent) for at least 6-8 weeks before the antibody blood tests and at least 2 weeks before the endoscopy/biopsy. In your concern about cross contamination you make it sound like he is already trying to eat gluten free before his next test. So, is the next test you refer to as happening in the next week the endoscopy/biospy?

 

His GI doctor did the celiac panel (bloodwork) without requesting him to eat gluten— I think it was in addition to a bunch of other bloodwork she was doing.  But she did see some abnormal results, and requested that he eat gluten every day for a couple weeks before an endoscopy/biopsy. He is currently in the process of doing that (when he previously had been eating gluten-free).  

That said, I’m just trying to prepare in case the endoscopy/biopsy comes back as confirming celiac disease.  Your response/feedback has been helpful.  Thank you. 

 

[trents]

He could also have NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) for which there is currently no diagnostic test per se. It is diagnosed by symptomatically reacting to gluten consumption similarly to those with celiac disease when the celiac tests are negative. In large part, the symptoms are the same, the long term health risks are the same and the antidote is the same - total avoidance of gluten.

By the way, RShisler. Welcome to the forum!

Do you have access to the blood antibody tests results and would you be willing to post them here? We would also need the reference ranges for what is negative and positive in order to make sense of them. Different labs use different reference ranges.

Unfortunately, there is still a lot of ignorance in the medical community with regard to gluten-related diseases. Many doctors neglect to tell their patients they need to be eating gluten before testing or they aren't aware of the need to. More than likely, you will find more good information about gluten related diseases on this forum than you will from the average physician.

[Scott Adams]

Did you try Barilla gluten-free pasta? Most people can't tell it's gluten-free. There are many types of gluten-free products, and it can take a while to navigate them all and find ones that meet your standards in both nutrition, taste, texture, etc.

[RShisler]

On 7/1/2021 at 11:09 AM, trents said:

Do you have access to the blood antibody tests results and would you be willing to post them here? We would also need the reference ranges for what is negative and positive in order to make sense of them. Different labs use different reference ranges.

Thank you!

I don’t know if he would be comfortable with me putting test results up, but I can certainly ask!  
 

Either way (celiac or intolerance), I agree with your assessment that a completely gluten-free lifestyle will be best for him.

I’ll definitely look around this site some more to get ideas for how to help him.  Thank you! 

 

[RShisler]

On 7/1/2021 at 1:17 PM, Scott Adams said:

Did you try Barilla gluten-free pasta? Most people can't tell it's gluten-free. There are many types of gluten-free products, and it can take a while to navigate them all and find ones that meet your standards in both nutrition, taste, texture, etc.

My husband and I like the Barilla lasagna and spaghetti noodles.  We think their “elbows” (more like spirals, to me) are OK- though the texture is a little gritty in cold dishes (like pasta salad), especially.  
 

My husband and I thought the Kraft gluten-free Mac n cheese noodles were good as well- no taste difference to us. 

My toddler doesn’t seem to like the Barilla or Kraft much (either hot or cold)- not sure if it’s because she got used to regular elbows or if she’s just being picky.  

[Scott Adams]

Another brand of good pasta is Schar, but they may be harder to find.

[RMJ]

I am gluten free and very sensitive to gluten but my husband is not, so our kitchen is not gluten free.

He and I have separate food preparation areas.  We have separate shelves in cupboards, refrigerator and freezer, with his below mine so his food can’t fall into mine.  We have separate dishes, but that is only because we don’t  have a dishwasher and when he washes dishes I can see food left on them. If he uses and washes a dish that I also use I rewash it. We have separate peanut butter jars.  I put leftovers into two containers; one for each of us. If he wants to get food from my container he must wash his hands first and use my utensils.  I will prepare meals for the two of us, but he doesn’t.

Even though there are crumbs at his food preparation place, and at his place at the table, and bran flakes on the floor where he prepares his cereal, this works for us because he follows my kitchen rules. I think it would be a lot more difficult if it was a young child eating the gluten, or someone who couldn’t or wouldn’t follow strict household rules.

[GodsGal]

On 7/1/2021 at 9:31 AM, RShisler said:

Hello everyone,

My husband had his blood tested, with celiac disease suspected.  He is currently doing the “gluten challenge,” and testing in the next week or so is expected to confirm his diagnosis.

So, he’s been eating gluten-free since October.  Since then, we’ve gotten much of the unnecessary gluten-containing items out of the kitchen (teriyaki sauces, bread, etc.)  However, up until recently (his blood tests), we assumed an intolerance, and we didn’t think cross-contamination would be a concern.

I’m actually not too fond of bread and pasta anyway, so I’m generally cool with the gluten-free diet.  However, I’m not sure how easy a full-gluten-free kitchen will be, because we have a 16-month old daughter.  While she’s not picky with her food by any means, she has seems to have already determined that the gluten-free pasta is “not food,” and definitely prefers regular macaroni.  Also, my husband usually fixes her multi-grain cereal at breakfast, and I feel like the small flakes get EVERYWHERE.  

Sooo… is it completely necessary to get her favorite (glutened) food out of the kitchen?  And what precautions do I need to take to avoid cross-contamination?  I know the other day, I accidentally put a knife that touched a regular (flour) tortilla back into the mayo, thus contaminating the jar.  Luckily, I noticed it, and we bought another jar… but I do have concerns that I may not always catch myself.

Also, what about cleaning?  If gluten touches a counter, will normal kitchen sprays/cleaners work? If gluten touches a pot/pan or spatula, does normal soap and water remove the gluten?  
 

Thanks for any advice you can give me! 

 

I think that you have gotten a lot of good advice from everyone. I just wanted to say that it is really cool that you are so supportive of your husband. 

[Brandy969]

This is an expanding question on this topic, I’m not sure where to put it….

I get mixed answers on this but sense I’m Coeliac and my husband isn’t we do still use the same kitchen and cooking utensils-for the most part. I was told by dietitians and GI dr that only soap and water will “kill” the gluten. I am still so confused about this topic, even after being gluten-free for 3 years. I’m sure I’ve accidentally gotten cross contamination, but haven’t knowingly put anything with gluten in my mouth! I probably get more contamination from eating out than in our “shared kitchen”. I make all my bread in a gluten-free bread machine, and he generally uses a toaster oven to heat up gluten containing items. I bake both regular and gluten-free items in our oven, (Not at the same time). I’m constantly wiping down counters and cabinets with soap and water. I keep gluten-free items in a separate cabinet. I don’t seem to be super sensitive to gluten. I was confirmed by blood and on colonoscopy about 15 years ago, but continued eating Gluten not really knowing the damage I was doing to my body. 

Can anything besides soap and water “kill” gluten? How hot would an oven have to be before killing it? So any kind of soap and any temp of water omit the gluten? That makes no sense to me if a 500 degree pizza oven won’t kill it. How can a dab of soap and lukewarm water do what heat can’t do?  

thank you for putting this where it needs to be if this is the wrong spot! 
sincerely needing advice,

Brandy J
 

[trents]

Eating out at restaurants is the single most risky environment for cross contamination. 

Shared oven racks should be thoroughly cleaned after being used for cooking/baking of gluten containing foods. Better yet, purchase a second set of racks that are used only for one or the other.

[RMJ]

Soap, water and scrubbing won’t “kill” gluten, but it will physically remove it if done well if you also add a thorough rinse step.