What Ingredients Am I Looking for on Labels?

[Ginger38]

Can we only eat things that are marked gluten free or certified Gluten free? For example I use old El Paso mild taco seasoning mix… it does not say gluten free but I don’t see any ingredients that contain gluten. I have a gluten food scanner app that scans barcodes and says if it’s gluten free as well. Not sure if anyone else uses these scanning apps or if they are reliable? I recently saw a dietitian and she said I should not be eating old El Paso taco seasoning bc it’s not labeled gluten free.. I’m so confused.
I thought we could eat things so long as we read the ingredients. What are the sneaky things that contain gluten that I could be missing in ingredient lists? 

[Scott Adams]

It is up to you whether you wish to include naturally gluten-free products. In the USA manufacturers must list the top 8 allergens, including wheat, if there is any chance that the product contains them, so they would have to say: "Allergens: Wheat" on their ingredient label if there were any risk of contamination.

This category has many articles about such products:

https://www.celiac.com/celiac-disease/gluten-free-foods/

This article lists unsafe ingredients to avoid:

 

[Ginger38]

On 7/5/2023 at 2:49 PM, Scott Adams said:

It is up to you whether you wish to include naturally gluten-free products. In the USA manufacturers must list the top 8 allergens, including wheat, if there is any chance that the product contains them, so they would have to say: "Allergens: Wheat" on their ingredient label if there were any risk of contamination.

This category has many articles about such products:

https://www.celiac.com/celiac-disease/gluten-free-foods/

This article lists unsafe ingredients to avoid:

 

Thank you so much!

[Guest Neerajkirola]

On 6/29/2023 at 3:13 AM, Ginger38 said:

Can we only eat things that are marked gluten free or certified Gluten free? For example I use old El Paso mild taco seasoning mix… it does not say gluten free but I don’t see any ingredients that contain gluten. I have a gluten food scanner app that scans barcodes and says if it’s gluten free as well. Not sure if anyone else uses these scanning apps or if they are reliable? I recently saw a dietitian and she said I should not be eating old El Paso taco seasoning bc it’s not labeled gluten free.. I’m so confused.
I thought we could eat things so long as we read the ingredients. What are the sneaky things that contain gluten that I could be missing in ingredient lists? 

No, you cannot only rely on whether something is labeled "gluten-free" or not. Reading ingredient lists is essential to avoid gluten-containing ingredients. Some foods may not be labeled gluten-free but still contain gluten. Gluten can be present in various forms, such as wheat, barley, rye, and their derivatives. Sneaky sources of gluten in ingredient lists may include modified food starch, malt flavoring, and some food additives. Be cautious and consult a dietician or healthcare professional if you have doubts or concerns about gluten-containing ingredients. Gluten-scanning apps can be helpful, but their reliability may vary, so it's still essential to double-check ingredient lists.

[trents]

In the U.S., if a food product is labeled "gluten free" it will have met the less than 20 ppm standard. That works for most celiacs but there is a sub group of celiacs that is much more sensitive who require stricter standards. There are a couple of gluten certification groups that use the label "certified gluten free" that meets a stricter standard of 10 ppm or less.

[Scott Adams]

5 hours ago, Neerajkirola said:

No, you cannot only rely on whether something is labeled "gluten-free" or not. Reading ingredient lists is essential to avoid gluten-containing ingredients. Some foods may not be labeled gluten-free but still contain gluten. Gluten can be present in various forms, such as wheat, barley, rye, and their derivatives. Sneaky sources of gluten in ingredient lists may include modified food starch, malt flavoring, and some food additives. Be cautious and consult a dietician or healthcare professional if you have doubts or concerns about gluten-containing ingredients. Gluten-scanning apps can be helpful, but their reliability may vary, so it's still essential to double-check ingredient lists.

In general, "gluten-free" means gluten-free, and safe for those with celiac disease. Gluten-free products are NOT fortified with gluten up to 19ppm, as some people imply. If any company that labels their products gluten-free discovers 5ppm, or 10ppm in their foods, they will try to find out how it happened and eliminate the source because they do not want to have a product recall, or worse, a lawsuit.

I agree about getting into the good habit of always checking the ingredients. 

The following two lists are very helpful for anyone who is gluten sensitive and needs to avoid gluten when shopping.

It's very important to learn to read labels and understand sources of hidden gluten, and to know some general information about product labelling--for example in the USA if wheat is a possible allergen it must be declared on a product's ingredient label like this: Allergens: Wheat.

 

 

 

[Wheatwacked]

On 6/28/2023 at 5:43 PM, Ginger38 said:

Can we only eat things that are marked gluten free or certified Gluten free?

Almost anything not packaged in a box, can or bag will be gluten free.  Other grains may be cross contaminated in field or transport or processing, so should be approached with caution.