Really Gluten Free?

[KristiAnne]

I have been trying to eat gluten-free for about a month now. It seems I mess up constantly. I am not able to handle gluten at all. Even something that contains gluten as 20 parts per million (such as distilled vinegar in Hunts Ketchup) will make me very ill. I have read tons of site where it says something is gluten free, and it ends up being "almost" gluten free. I just want to know what can I actually eat without being ill? I'm pretty tired of the diet I have now which consists of plain meats, fruits, and veggies. I want real food again along with condiments that I don't have to pay $5 a bottle for. I have stopped eating out altogether because I seem to mess up every time when I go out. Restaurants don't seem to understand when I tell them I want plain veggies that haven't come into contact with any gluten. My mother and I have both been diagnosed and I strongly suspect my daughter has it too. I can't afford to spend tons of money going to the health food store to buy all my groceries. I've always shopped at Wal-mart for all my groceries before this. The only support group tha tI know of in the area hasn't met since last December, although I have talked to the woman that was in charge. She's the one that told me that the Hunts Ketchup would be alright to eat. Obviously it doesn't affect her, but it does me.

[penguin]

Heinz ketchup is definitely gluten-free. The vinegar is distilled from corn. Even if the vinegar were made from another grain, distillation makes it gluten-free. Also, heinz mustard and relish are also gluten-free. Hellmans (or best foods depending on where you are) mayo is gluten-free. Kraft ranch dressing is gluten-free. Most kraft bbq sauce is gluten-free, as is Sweet Baby Ray's. Lea & Perrins Worstechire sauce is gluten-free in the US. A1 is gluten-free. Pace picante salsa is gluten-free. There are lots and lots of gluten-free condiments out there

Your problem with hunts may be that you have a sensitivity to yeast, and that's why you react to the vinegar in it.

Mission corn tortillas and corn chips are gluten-free, cocoa and fruity pebbles are gluten-free, trix and cocoa puffs are gluten-free (check the ingredients, their being gluten-free is a recent development), delimex beef/cheese/chicken taquitos are gluten-free.

You can do lots of shopping at Wal-Mart still, I get most of my groceries there or at a regular grocery store. Many companies will clearly list gluten in their ingredient statements as wheat, barley, rye, or oats. Some of these companies are kraft, unilever, general mills, and hormel. Those four companies make up a huge majority of the grocery food market. Great Value will also mark gluten-free on the label. I only get a few specialty foods from the health food store like tinkyada pasta, chebe bread mix, van's waffles, and some cereal.

Did you take care of cross contamination in your home? Gluten can hide in wooden spoons, wood cutting boards, scratched or worn teflon, cast iron, scratched tupperware. Are you the only gluten-free person in the house? You may want to consider making your house gluten-free, it makes things easier.

Also, have you checked your personal care products? They can cause problems too if they contain gluten.

Sorry you're having a rough time, but there is a large learning curve. I'm sure others will chime in to help.

[Ursa Major]

KristiAnne, I suspect that you have other intolerances, and aren't really constantly glutening yourself. You may want to try eliminating dairy, corn and soy for a while and see how you feel. If you feel better, and your 'glutenings' stop, keep off all those for a few weeks. Then, test them one at a time (two weeks apart) to see which one(s) is causing you the problems. It might just be one of them, or it could be all of them. Oh, and try eggs as well.

I find that especially soy, rice and eggs give me almost the same symptoms as gluten. Dairy causes me problems, too, but those reaction are somewhat different. Mind you, others here get 'glutened' symptoms from dairy.

Check out the links in my signature, especially the one on lectins may ring a bell when reading through the site.

I hope you figure it out!

[tarnalberry]

You can eat all kinds of "real" food gluten-free starting from the original ingredients (meats, produce, eggs, dairy (if you can have it), nuts, legumes, and gluten-free grains). Yeah, it'll entail a bit of cooking, but it doesn't have to be a lot, it's healthier, it's cheaper than buying prepackaged stuff, it's got less risk of contamination, and it can just taste better being fresh.

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

Just to chime in,

when you order vegetables at a restaurant, make sure your order them "STEAMED AND UNSEASONED".

this will ensure freshness and less of a chance for Cross contamination.

[kabowman]

When eating out, I order all my food, cooked in its own clean skillet, everything unseasoned--I can add salt at the table if I want, no butter, no bun, no sauces, no dressing, etc. and use the term allergy because people can understand and respect that better.

I am one of those who is intolerant to yeast (and bunches of other stuff) - I cannot have any condiments. I make a lot of my own with lemon instead of vinegar. It really only takes a few minutes.

You might want to try, something that will help immensly but is a royal pain. A food diary with everything that goes in your body and every symptom even if they don't seem related. I no longer have joint pain and unexplained fevers. Different foods were giving me each of those symptoms and I didn't know until they were gone and I had fixed the majority of my diet.

Also, like someone else pointed out, check your cooking surfaces, you lotions (we all put our hands in our mouth), don't kiss hubby/kids on the mouth if they are eating stuff that will make you sick. Your own condiments, if you can tolerate them - don't share!!!

[KristiAnne]

I thought all yeast in general contained gluten?

I think my biggest problem with being gluten-free is that I don't know what gluten is exactly. My doctor just gave me a handout and sent me on my way. That's it. I have went online and printed out just about every list that came up in google about gluten free foods, but none of them have said too much different. I know not to touch anything that says wheat, barley, rye, or oats...nor anything with modified food starch, yeast, starch, malt, or vinegar. I can have corn flour, rice flour, soy flour, modified corn starch, or potato starch. But there are so many things that I just can't figure out. I know that the coffee creamer I was using made me ill. I'm not sure what ingredient it was that caused it though. I don't know what mono or diglycerides are, I didn't even know what whey was until someone said it was in the dairy category. I'm assuming whey doesn't contain gluten...at least I haven't read anything about it on any of the gluten-free lists.

I did contact Wal-mart today to have them send me a list of their gluten-free products. I plan on contacting several other manufacturers to ask them for lists also. Hopefully with the lists I can actually go grocery shopping without wanting to cry because I can't figure out what I can eat. Keeping a food diary of what I'm eating would be extremely simple at this point. So far today I've had some plain Lay's potato chips and about 2 pots of Folger's Coffee with sugar. Now that I'm home for the evening I will most likely have a piece of turkey and cheese on a corn tortilla along with a banana or apple. My eating habits have always been awful, but even more so now that I just can't figure out what I am allowed to eat.

There is only one person is my household that does not have Celiac, but my stepfather also eats gluten-free foods except for he does have his own bread. Other than that, he eats the same foods that my mother, daughter, and I eat.

[penguin]

Yeast is gluten-free in and of itself. A lot of those lists are outdated and are from the days when they thought vinegar had gluten. Unless it's malt vinegar, it doesn't. In ingredient statements, malt vinegar is almost always specified as malt vinegar. Most companies use distilled vinegar.

You have to check on things with modified food starch, it's usually corn, but you have to call the company and check. An exception to that is Kraft, unless otherwise specified, their modified food starch is corn.

[KristiAnne]

Do you know of a list that is actually updated? All the lists I have are obviously outdated since they all state that any vinegar and starch contain gluten. Maybe that's why I'm staying so confused.

[VegasCeliacBuckeye]

Yeast is added to flours to allow the bread to rise.

Essentially, yeast is a bacteria that converts starches and carbohydrates to alcohol or carbon dioxide or both.

Hence, once you introduce it to bread making ingredients, it converts some of the starch into gases which are trapped within the bread and allow the bread to "rise".

Similarly, when sugars or alcohols are introduced to yeasts or acetic yeasts, they will convert liquids to vinegars (I think)... In any event, there are always residual yeasts leftover in both conversions.

However, it is not accurate to say "wherever there is yeast, there is gluten..."

Yeast is a bacteria,

Gluten is a protein molecule of wheat, barley and rye which we can't break down and which causes an autroinnume reaction in our small intestine (our body starts attacking itself)

That is a quick (and likely full of holes) explanation...

[Mango04]

Do you know of a list that is actually updated? All the lists I have are obviously outdated since they all state that any vinegar and starch contain gluten. Maybe that's why I'm staying so confused.

Have you seen the safe and forbidden ingredient lists? They can be found on this website (celic.com) from the site index.

[KristiAnne]

Have you seen the safe and forbidden ingredient lists? They can be found on this website (celic.com) from the site index.

I had been on that site before, but had just clicked on the "Gluten-Free Food" Tab and seen it took me to an online store. It wasn't until I knew exactly what to look for that I decided to dig deaper into the site and looked for the safe and forbidden food lists. That will help a ton. I will be sure to print it off and take it with me when I go grocery shopping this weekend. I'll also check out the foods that I have been eating lately and see what exactly is making me ill. Maybe I do have another type of intolerance that I don't know about. Then again, maybe it's my shampoo or something. I didn't even think to check those out until I joined this forum yesterday and read about it.

[KristiAnne]

KristiAnne, I suspect that you have other intolerances, and aren't really constantly glutening yourself. You may want to try eliminating dairy, corn and soy for a while and see how you feel. If you feel better, and your 'glutenings' stop, keep off all those for a few weeks. Then, test them one at a time (two weeks apart) to see which one(s) is causing you the problems. It might just be one of them, or it could be all of them. Oh, and try eggs as well.

I find that especially soy, rice and eggs give me almost the same symptoms as gluten. Dairy causes me problems, too, but those reaction are somewhat different. Mind you, others here get 'glutened' symptoms from dairy.

Check out the links in my signature, especially the one on lectins may ring a bell when reading through the site.

I hope you figure it out!

I definitely have some other intolerances. I know that the coffee creamer that I used to use at work was making me ill. I just assumed it contained gluten. I called the manufacturer this morning and it does not. Obviously there is something else in it that is making me ill. I know that I'm sick again this morning. The only thing I've had was a cocacola and 2 cups of coffee with sugar. I'm trying to track down someone in the janatorial department here at work so that I can get an ingredients list for the soap in the restroom. Maybe that's part of the problem. For now I'm also going to cut out all dairy and see if that helps any. If not, then I will continue to cut things out until I no longer feel "glutened" everyday.

[kaciemarie]

I'm sorry to hear that you are having trouble with the diet. I have been gluten free for about a year now, and for the first couple of months on the diet I still got sick quite a bit, so I cut out all dairy, eating out and limited my caffeine and alcohol intake to a minimum. I also started reading all of my non-food items. After a few months of cutting out all of these things I started to slowly add them back in, starting with dairy, then caffeine and alcohol. I'm happy to tell you I can now enjoy all of these again. I think in my case, I just needed to let my intestines/stomach heal completely. So, I know that it is hard now, but there is still hope!!! Hang in there!

[rinne]

Sorry, perhaps I missed why you decided to go gluten free, were you ill?

I know that I'm sick again this morning. The only thing I've had was a cocacola and 2 cups of coffee with sugar.

I know how horribly frustrating it is to be hungry and to be afraid to eat because everything hurts. Does this apply to you? One of the first things I realized I was going to have to give up after gluten was coffee. It causes a burning sensation and as much as I love the taste the pain is not worth it. I ate icecream tonight, we'll see how I do, I haven't had dairy in six weeks. Sugar is a major problem for me and other than the rare treat I avoid it.

I went and saw an herbalist and he made me up a root tea with licorice and other good herbs for the burning sensation and I drink a couple of cups of it when I am in pain. It really helps, it has a very cooling and calming quality to it.

I hope you are feeling better, this is a great place with lots of information and support.

[rinne]

As to minor quantities of gluten I feel I am very sensitive, I put approximately 1/16 to 1/8 th of a teaspoon of a homeopathic remedy under my tongue and within five minutes knew that the alcohol base it was in had gluten in it, I checked the web site and it was a grain based alcohol. I have seen a web site that said Scotch was O.K. to drink and I had one ounce and I suffered for it, I found another site later that said sometimes they put a little of the mash back in Scotch for flavour and for some it may be a problem. I am able to drink an ounce of potato based vodka without any problem.

I think there are degrees of sensitivity and reactions, I seem to be very sensitive and yet I don't get as sick as many.

[Luvs to Scrap]

I just wanted to add that I recently bought Shelley Case's Gluten-Free Diet A Comprehensive Resource Guide Expanded Edition. Our dietician had recommended it when Jason got diagnosed back in Oct but it was out of print right then. This book helped me a lot to know how to read labels better as she has researched how things are to be labeled in US and Candada. It calmed some of my fears too because some of the things we had been told to avoid (eg carmel color) she said were gluten-free in the US and that we didn't need to worry about. The book also helps to see the different nutritional values for our substitue gluten-free flours, et. Hope this helps you as much as it did me. Kendra

[majicbunnies]

Heinz ketchup is definitely gluten-free. The vinegar is distilled from corn. Even if the vinegar were made from another grain, distillation makes it gluten-free. Also, heinz mustard and relish are also gluten-free. Hellmans (or best foods depending on where you are) mayo is gluten-free. Kraft ranch dressing is gluten-free. Most kraft bbq sauce is gluten-free, as is Sweet Baby Ray's. Lea & Perrins Worstechire sauce is gluten-free in the US. A1 is gluten-free. Pace picante salsa is gluten-free. There are lots and lots of gluten-free condiments out there

Your problem with hunts may be that you have a sensitivity to yeast, and that's why you react to the vinegar in it.

Mission corn tortillas and corn chips are gluten-free, cocoa and fruity pebbles are gluten-free, trix and cocoa puffs are gluten-free (check the ingredients, their being gluten-free is a recent development), delimex beef/cheese/chicken taquitos are gluten-free.

You can do lots of shopping at Wal-Mart still, I get most of my groceries there or at a regular grocery store. Many companies will clearly list gluten in their ingredient statements as wheat, barley, rye, or oats. Some of these companies are kraft, unilever, general mills, and hormel. Those four companies make up a huge majority of the grocery food market. Great Value will also mark gluten-free on the label. I only get a few specialty foods from the health food store like tinkyada pasta, chebe bread mix, van's waffles, and some cereal.

Did you take care of cross contamination in your home? Gluten can hide in wooden spoons, wood cutting boards, scratched or worn teflon, cast iron, scratched tupperware. Are you the only gluten-free person in the house? You may want to consider making your house gluten-free, it makes things easier.

Also, have you checked your personal care products? They can cause problems too if they contain gluten.

Sorry you're having a rough time, but there is a large learning curve. I'm sure others will chime in to help.

Coco/fruity pebbles and coco puffs have malt flavorings in them. So they're not gluten free.

[cvlanger2]

I am going on almost 2 years of gluten-free and have to admit it was difficult to begin...I couldn't even spell Celiac. I agree that you probably need to heal and be kind to yourself, you will figure this out.

Anyway, I shop a lot at Whole Foods, you can copy their Gluten Free items on line. Trader Joes and Wild Oats have a nice selection of items as well; Check in the Health Food section of your own grocery store, you will be surprised at what you find there. It's all an education :-) Also, about a month or so ago, while on this site, someone posted over the counter items that are Gluten Free:

Mainstream Gluten Foods (Stuff you can find in the food store)

HORMEL SHELF-STABLE FOODS Not Containing Gluten

• CHI-CHI'S® Fiesta Sweet Corn Cake Mix

• CHI-CHI'S® Taco Sauce

• DINTY MOORE AMERICAN CLASSICS®: Beef Stew, Chicken & Rice

• DINTY MOORE® Beef or Chicken Stew

• DINTY MOORE® Microwave Meals: Scalloped Potatoes & Ham, Beef Stew, Corned Beef Hash

• HERB-OX® Bouillon: Beef, Chicken, Vegetable, Spicy Chicken, Garlic Chicken

• HORMEL® Microwave Herb Roasted Rice Cups

HORMEL MEAT Items Not Containing Gluten

• BLACK LABEL® Bacon

• ALWAYS TENDER® Flavored Fresh Beef: Peppercorn, Homestyle Pot Roast

• ALWAYS TENDER™ Flavored Fresh Chicken: Roast, Italian, Lemon-Pepper

• ALWAYS TENDER® Flavored Fresh Pork: Lemon-Garlic, Mesquite, Mojo Criollo, Porketta, Onion-Garlic, Salsa

• ALWAYS TENDER® Non-Flavored Fresh Pork

• ALWAYS TENDER™ Flavored Fresh Turkey: Roast, Italian

• BLACK LABEL® Canned Hams

• CURE 81® Ham: Bone-in, Boneless, Old Fashioned Spiral

• HORMEL® Canadian Style Bacon

• HORMEL® Fully Cooked Bacon

• HORMEL® Fully-Cooked Entrées: Beef Roast Au Jus, Pork Roast Au Jus

• HORMEL® Ham Patties

• HORMEL® Microwave Bacon

• HORMEL™ Snack Size Meats and Cheese: Cooked Ham, Smoked Ham, Honey Ham, Smoked Turkey, Roasted Turkey, Colby & Monterey Jack Cheese, Cheddar Cheese

• OLD SMOKEHOUSE™ Bacon

• RANGE BRAND® Bacon

• RED LABEL™ Bacon

• VALUE BRAND™ Sliced Bacon

• JENNIE-O TURKEY STORE® Deli Chicken Breast: Buffalo Style, Oven Roasted, Mesquite Smoked

• JENNIE-O TURKEY STORE® Smoked Turkey Breast: Mesquite, Hickory, Honey Cured

• JENNIE-O TURKEY STORE® Oven Roasted Turkey Breast

• JENNIE-O TURKEY STORE® Hickory Smoked Turkey Breast

• JENNIE-O® NATURAL CHOICE® Turkey Breast: Oven Roasted, Peppered, Tender Browned

• JENNIE-O® GRAND CHAMPION® Turkey Breast: Oven Roasted, Tender Browned, Mesquite Smoked, Homestyle Pan Roasted, Hickory Smoked, Honey Cured

• JENNIE-O® Turkey Breast: Oven Roasted, Peppered, Smoked, Tender Browned, Italian Style, Honey Maple, Honey Mesquite, Maple Spiced, Apple Cinnamon, Tomato Basil, Mesquite Smoked NORWESTERN® Deli

Meat

Any meat seasoned with individual herbs or spices

Purdue Short Cuts: Honey Roasted, Original Roasted

Eggs

Hard Cheeses (Cheddar, Swiss, Edam, Parmesan)

Soup Products

Swanson Natural Goodness Chicken Broth 14 oz

Swanson Natural Goodness Chicken Broth 14 oz

Swanson RTS Beef Broth 14.5 oz

Swanson RTS Chicken Broth 14.5 oz.

Hain Chicken and Beef Broth

Hannaford Chicken Broth

Campbell Chicken Broth 16 oz

Campbell Hearty Chicken White and Wild Rice 16 oz

Salad Dressings/Sauces/Margarines

Newman’s Own Light Italian

Newman’s Own Ranch

Newman’s Own Balsamic Vinaigrette

Newman’s Own Newman’s Own Parmesan

and Roasted Garlic

Newman’s Own Olive Oil and Vinegar

Newman’s Own Creamy Italian

(Parmesanio Italianio)

Newman’s Own Light Balsamic Vinaigrette

Kraft Italian Classic Free

Kraft Balsamic Italian Free

Annie’s Natural Basil & Garlic w/Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Annie’s Natural Cowgirl Ranch

Annie’s Natural Organic Buttermilk

Wishbone Fat Free Ranch

Wishbone Fat Free Italian

Wishbone Lite Ranch

Cattlemen’s Classic Barbecue Sauce

LaChoy Soy Sauce

Hellman’s Low Fat Mayonnaise

Hellman’s Real Mayonnaise

Heinz Ketchup

Prego Traditional Pasta Sauce – Marinara, Flavored with Meat, 3 Cheese, Tomato, Basil and Garlic, Mini Meatball, Roasted Garlic and Herb, Roasted Garlic Parmesan, Ricotta Parmesan

*A lot of the grocery stores now sell corn and rice pasta. It's not as good as the Tinkyada, but it is very filling. I find that I have to "skim" the starch off of the top and rinse it well.

Ragu Pasta Sauce – States that at this time contains modified CORN starch, but this is subject to change. Read the label.

Mainstream Margarine - (Smart Beat Super Light Margarine; I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Fat Free, Light, Squeeze; Safeway Margarine, Safeway Vegetable Oil Spread; Promise Margarine; Parkay Margarine; Mrs. Filberts Margarine, Smart Balance 37% Light Buttery, 67% Buttery Spread, Light Buttery, Country Crock - gluten-free as of 11/05 – check label in case ingredients changed).

[Rusty]

HEADS UP....

The previous post says Hunt Ketchup is definitely gluten-free however according to the hunts web site their distilled vinegar may contain traces of gluten. Please see:

Open Original Shared Link

I put a little on an omelette this morning and I'm paying for it pretty badly right now

[happygirl]

https://www.celiac.com/st_prod.html?p_prodi...-41106612180.6c

https://www.celiac.com/st_prod.html?p_prodi...-41106612180.6c

distilled vinegar IS gluten free, as defined by the american dietetic association. i wonder if hunts is saying that to cover themselves.

richard-lovegrov-can you chime in here?

[Rebecca47]

Thank you Chelsea (penquin) I learned so much information just by reading your reply. I was also told by someone not to have distilled vinager. Its in rosarita refried beans, So as I now under stand it is safe to consume. I can't wait to go get some cereal and bbq sauce and other things you have mentioned. Yahhhoooo !!

i have been wanting Bbq sauce on anything for a long time.

thank you

rebecca I am in heaven

[Sophiekins]

Regarding distilled grain vinegars and alcohols:

Gluten is a relatively tiny protein, as proteins go. It is small enough to be absorbed through the pores of the skin and through mucal membranes (nose, mouth, lungs, eyes, genitals). Distillation will remove a substantial portion of the gluten protein, however it is CANNOT and DOES NOT remove all of the gluten from the source. In the absence of cross contamination following the distillation procedure, the remaining gluten proteins will not be sufficient to cause adverse affects (either physical or clinical) in about 95% of celiacs. However, the remaining 5% of celiacs are sufficiently sensitive to suffer adverse affects from the consumption of distilled grain products. If you are one of those 5%, your should treat distilled grain products precisely as you treat other grain products. If you are one of those 95%, lucky you. If you have had adverse reactions to distilled grain products (ie Scotch) in the past, please, please, please do not put your health at risk by persisting with them.

So no, in answer to your question, distilled grain products are not 'really gluten free'. They are sufficiently gluten free to do no harm to the majority of the celiac population.

[lovegrov]

First, everything I've read says that the gluten protein/molecule is in fact MUCH too large to be absorbed through the skin. Even if it were to get through the first layer, it simply could not get through the skin barrier. Medications that are applied through the skin have special carriers designed to take them through the barrier, and some medication simply can't be taken that way. You can't just slap them on the skin, otherwise we could take all medications that way.

I'm not a scientist and haven't done personal research on distilled alcohol or vinegar, but EVERY celiac organization, expert, and scientist now agrees that distillation renders a product gluten-free. I bow to their expertise and don't worry any more about distilled products.

richard

[Sophiekins]

Hi Richard,

I'm not looking for an argument, but I will say that from personal experience, gluten can pass through mucal membranes at the very least - my doc inserted a medicated tablet into a, shall we say, very private place, which caused 72 hours of pure hell. . .I never touched the tablet, and nothing made its way anywhere near my mouth, I can guarantee it. I have also had gluten reactions to hand stamps at bars/tourist sites which used a grain-based ink - the skin beneath and around the stamp becomes bright red, impossibly itchy and painful, and a few hours later I start to suffer mild celiac reactions. (But I have been repeatedly tested for grain allergies, and do not have any). I have also had celiac reactions to distilled vinegars and grain alcohol products. That said, I am VERY sensitive. . .(so sensitive that after seven days on a gluten-free, liquid diet - I ate NOTHING my GI hadn't approved - my IgA and IgG counts still came back so improbably high that, if not for the first lot of tests with similar numbers, they would have concluded that the lab had goofed the testing somehow.) I can't even risk taking an ibuprofen because some of the manufacturers use a wheat base in creation of the drug, and although they are officially designated "gluten free" there is sufficient gluten in them to make me ill.

As I said before, the vast majority of celiacs will not have trouble with distilled grain products - and by all means try some to see if you are in the vast majority - because the gluten content is so minimal as to be, for all intents and purposes, nonexistent. But a tiny minority of us will be sensitive enough to suffer.