Kissing

[Guest adamssa]

hola!

i've been reading "against the grain" (i highly recommend it) about celiac by a celiac. she says that you've got to have your significant other brush their teeth after eating gluten. is this something you need to worry about if they haven't just ate? i have no problem talking about this, but i would prefer not to have to go into it on the first date...what have you found out from experience?

Sara

[CarlaB]

I have read that allergens don't live longer than one hour in the mouth -- I believe the theory is that it's washed out by the saliva. I personally, because I play things safe, would trust this after two hours.

I am married, so don't have the first date problem ... my husband brushes his teeth when he gets home, he eats gluten-free at home, and he eats gluten-free on our dates, so he's always "safe" for me.

[Nooner]

Hi Sara,

Personally I would err on the side of caution.

For what it's worth, I'm pretty sure my husband glutened me with a kiss last week. He ate a cookie at work about 30 minutes before coming home, forgot about it, and gave me a kiss when he got home. It wasn't even a "romantic" kiss, just a "hi honey I'm home, how was your day" kiss. I felt the symptoms of a glutening 2 hours later, and I'll never know for sure, but the kiss was the only thing that could have possibly contained gluten. Of course, he remembered the cookie and told me about it, and felt bad. Since then kisses me on the cheek when he gets home, whether he's had gluten at work or not!

As far as the first date thing, I think if I were dating again I would put it out there right away. Not the gory details, but something like gluten intolerance, can't eat wheat/barley/rye/oats or I get sick, something basic like that. (Even though it's not correct I usually use the word allergy when I first tell someone about my celiac disease. People understand allergies to be serious. I find when I say intolerant, they think I just don't like it, but it won't hurt me.) I would rather know right away if my date had an issue with it. I think most people wouldn't have an problem, as long as you don't make a big deal. Again, that's my opinion.

Also, if your date unknowingly glutens you on the first date, you're probably not going to want to trust them in the future, even if they didn't know they could make you sick! Just a thought...

[Sweetfudge]

I have discussed this with my husband, and he has made more of an effort to brush his teeth or chew a piece of gum before approaching me for a kiss

[Aerin328]

Sara,

Probably best to play it safe! Perhaps just mention your gluten intolerance to him briefly during your date : he may even appreciate you're being upfront and telling him something personal on the first date .

Christian

[Guest adamssa]

thanks!

i have no problem telling people about the intolerance. it's just that, for them to know that it is so severe that kissing will do it, you pretty much have to come right out and say "don't kiss me after you've eaten lasagana." but, i suppose that it's best for someone to understand that is that severe to begin with, anyways. otherwise you may have told them but they don't really understand. the last time i kissed someone i was having such all around crappy symptoms anyways that i had no way of knowing if i had been "ccd" or not. but, not taking the chance again

[CarlaB]

thanks!

i have no problem telling people about the intolerance. it's just that, for them to know that it is so severe that kissing will do it, you pretty much have to come right out and say "don't kiss me after you've eaten lasagana." but, i suppose that it's best for someone to understand that is that severe to begin with, anyways. otherwise you may have told them but they don't really understand. the last time i kissed someone i was having such all around crappy symptoms anyways that i had no way of knowing if i had been "ccd" or not. but, not taking the chance again

Maybe when talking about your intolerance you can say that even kissing someone who's eaten gluten will aggravate your symptoms ... not in the context of necessarily kissing THAT particular person, but just that kissing in general will do it. Then it's up to them to take the responsibility of brushing or eating gluten-free!

[Guest adamssa]

that's very good advice and probably a much better approach than saying keep your lasagna to yourself, thanks

[CarlaB]

that's very good advice and probably a much better approach than saying keep your lasagna to yourself, thanks

Of course, if you end up not liking the guy, then you can always use the "keep your lasagna to yourself" line!

[Aerin328]

Of course, if you end up not liking the guy, then you can always use the "keep your lasagna to yourself" line!

lol