Is this safe for someone with celiac disease?

[Dora77]

When cooking pizza, first a regular (gluten-containing) pizza is baked in the oven. Before the gluten-free pizza goes in, the oven is wiped down with a cloth soaked in vinegar oil. Is this method safe for avoiding cross-contamination?

Similarly, if gluten-containing bread is heated in a pan, and before gluten-free food is cooked, the pan is wiped with vinegar and oil—would this be safe for someone with celiac disease?

I’m asymptomatic, so I can’t tell if I’ve been exposed to gluten, but I’m worried about the potential risk of malabsorption or long-term damage. Would everyone with celiac disease be affected by such small traces of gluten, or could this method be acceptable?

Also I don't eat out anymore due to potential cross contamination. The only thing that could gluten me is the things I mentioned above and that my family is not completely glutenfree. Also I eat spices like pepper which say "could contain traces of gluten" (I live in Germany). Even if they contain traces of gluten, do you think it wold be more than 20mg or be enough to cause damage?

I mainly eat glutenfree, my only risk is cross contamination. Do you think it could still cause damage to my small intestine leading to malabsorption? (my only worry as I never had symptoms even if I ate gluten).

My blood tests for tTG-IgA (I get tested yearly) are negative, but I heard those are not reliable as it could be that they are only high if you ate lots of gluten.

[RMJ]

3 hours ago, Dora77 said:

I’m asymptomatic, so I can’t tell if I’ve been exposed to gluten, but I’m worried about the potential risk of malabsorption or long-term damage. Would everyone with celiac disease be affected by such small traces of gluten, or could this method be acceptable?

My blood tests for tTG-IgA (I get tested yearly) are negative, but I heard those are not reliable as it could be that they are only high if you ate lots of gluten.

I am also asymptomatic. Not everyone with celiac disease reacts the same way to the same amount of gluten, so it is impossible to say for you whether or not such small traces of gluten would be safe.  

I am tested for tTG-IgA and DGP IgA and IgG annually.  My DGP IgA went up once when I was using a certain brand of supposedly gluten free flour, it went back to normal when I stopped using that flour.  My TTG- IgA did not go up at that time.

Is it the cooking surface that is wiped with vinegar and oil? I would not be comfortable with that.  I would want any surface touching my gluten free food to be scrubbed with soap and water.

 

[Scott Adams]

I agree with @RMJ and unfortunately different celiacs have different trigger levels for gluten, and some celiacs have little or no symptoms at all when exposed to gluten.

[Dora77]

On 12/24/2024 at 6:51 PM, RMJ said:

I am also asymptomatic. Not everyone with celiac disease reacts the same way to the same amount of gluten, so it is impossible to say for you whether or not such small traces of gluten would be safe.  

I am tested for tTG-IgA and DGP IgA and IgG annually.  My DGP IgA went up once when I was using a certain brand of supposedly gluten free flour, it went back to normal when I stopped using that flour.  My TTG- IgA did not go up at that time.

Is it the cooking surface that is wiped with vinegar and oil? I would not be comfortable with that.  I would want any surface touching my gluten free food to be scrubbed with soap and water.

 

 

On 12/26/2024 at 8:49 PM, Scott Adams said:

I agree with @RMJ and unfortunately different celiacs have different trigger levels for gluten, and some celiacs have little or no symptoms at all when exposed to gluten.

Hey, the pan is scrubbed with soap and water, and after that wiped with vinegar oil. Is that ok or should I consider switching pans and only cooking glutenfree there?

The oven is wiped with vinegar oil. Is this enough?

Also different celiacs have different symtpoms and reactions, does this also mean that maybe some celiacs only react at lets say 100mg gluten per day? Or will that damage any celiac?

I have no symptoms, but my pancreas elestase was tested extremely low, which indicated pancreatic insufficiency. I dont know if celiac caused it or not.

Also do you guys think a celiac can be safe with other gluten eating family members? like of 5 family members, only 2 eat glutenfree. Can the celiacs still be safe? Does the dishwasher for example usually clean all gluten of the dishes?

[knitty kitty]

Hello, @Dora77,

Pancreatic elastase is a digestive enzyme that requires Thiamine Vitamin B 1 to be produced.  Thiamine is needed to make insulin, too.  Thiamine, Niacin B 3, and Pyridoxine B6 are needed to make digestive enzymes and turn carbohydrates, fats and proteins into energy for the body, and for repair and healing of the body.  The Gluten free diet can be low in the eight essential B vitamins.  Gluten free processed foods are not enriched with vitamins and minerals like their gluten containing counterparts.  Supplementing with the water soluble B vitamins can ensure you're absorbing sufficient amounts of B vitamins to keep the body healthy.  Benfotiamine is a form of thiamin that helps heal the digestive tract.  Benfotiamine and Vitamin D help to reduce inflammation and calm immune responses, so if you are accidentally exposed, your autoimmune response might not be so bad.

Have you been checked for nutritional deficiencies? 

[Scott Adams]

On 12/29/2024 at 9:11 AM, Dora77 said:

 

Hey, the pan is scrubbed with soap and water, and after that wiped with vinegar oil. Is that ok or should I consider switching pans and only cooking glutenfree there?

The oven is wiped with vinegar oil. Is this enough?

Also different celiacs have different symtpoms and reactions, does this also mean that maybe some celiacs only react at lets say 100mg gluten per day? Or will that damage any celiac?

I have no symptoms, but my pancreas elestase was tested extremely low, which indicated pancreatic insufficiency. I dont know if celiac caused it or not.

Also do you guys think a celiac can be safe with other gluten eating family members? like of 5 family members, only 2 eat glutenfree. Can the celiacs still be safe? Does the dishwasher for example usually clean all gluten of the dishes?

Scrubbing with soap and water well should be enough to clean a pan so that it is safe for those with celiac disease. Different celiacs will react to different levels of gluten.

[ShariW]

I would not be comfortable with just wiping down the rack after a gluten-containing food was cooked on it. When I cook pizza in the oven, my gluten-free pizza goes on the top rack - nothing else is ever placed directly on that top rack, gluten or not. Contact with minute traces of gluten cause me symptoms within a few hours.
If I heat a gluten-free roll in my toaster oven, I place it on a small bit of foil so that it does not directly contact the rack that *might* have traces of gluten on it. 

[Scott Adams]

A dedicated rack is a great idea if everyone in the house understands and supports the idea, and just to clarify, I didn't recommend just wiping the rack down, but washing it well in soap and hot water.