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Gluten And Allergen Cross Contamination In "gluten Free" Foods

Tarrenae

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Tarrenae Rookie
Tarrenae
Posted

Hi everyone I was wondering what the laws were regarding food labeling products gluten free,I have been using the Nana's no gluten cookies but see where it says made in a facility that manufacters products containg wheat,peanuts and tree nuts.How then can the product be gluten free?You can view the companies website here--->Open Original Shared Link

It is very important I find out what I am consuming that is causing me to break out in sores and hives and feel terrible..shopping for allergen foods is so frustrating because of the cross contamination issue!

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Guest kivmom3
Guest kivmom3
Posted

i have those cookies as well but will not eat them in fear of them being "contaminated". I got them as a gift from someone who was trying to help me out. I've been giving them to my kids who so far are negative for celiac. I will only buy things that are not manufactured around wheat to avoid the cross contamination. I can't eat Amy's products for that same reason.

One note though, I've just been diagnosed 6 weeks ago so i may still be healing, but I would just rather be safe than sorry.

There are alot of other cookies out there. Enjoy life has some good ones and you can always try Pamela's or make your own. Whole foods has a gluten-free bakery as well. I'd get rid of the Nano's if they are making you sick, not worth it if there are other choices out there :)

Gg

tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

Do you ever allow a Twix bar in your house, or a bagel, or someone's leftover chinese food? Then your kitchen is "a facility that manufacters products containg wheat."

There are procedures for cleaning lines between runs and separating food ingredients to prevent cross contamination from allergens. You're probably saying "but how good is it really? don't they make mistakes?" Yeah, they probably do, and how good they are probably varies from plant to plant and manufacturer to manufacturer. So a shared facility isn't proof positive that there IS gluten in something with gluten free ingredients, but it's not a guarantee that there isn't either. It's a personal decison, and a learned one by figuring out what companies (and foodstuffs) you can trust.

psawyer Proficient
psawyer
Posted
Do you ever allow a Twix bar in your house, or a bagel, or someone's leftover chinese food? Then your kitchen is "a facility that manufacters products containg wheat."

Well said, Tiffany. My kitchen, indeed my whole house, is not "gluten free" since my wife has a few things containing wheat. We store them away from anything else, and on the bottom shelf due to the remote possibility of a spill falling. Oh, wait, we only have one counter, so not only is this "a facility that..." but it even would be "shared equipment."

After seven years gluten-free, I recently had another examination of my duodenum, including some biopsies. The GI doctor told me that he could find no evidence whatsoever of celiac--my recovery was total. So I guess I have survived the "contaminated" facility and equipment just fine. FWIW.

jerseyangel Proficient
jerseyangel
Posted
After seven years gluten-free, I recently had another examination of my duodenum, including some biopsies. The GI doctor told me that he could find no evidence whatsoever of celiac--my recovery was total.

That is such good news! :)

tom Contributor
tom
Posted
It is very important I find out what I am consuming that is causing me to break out in sores and hives and feel terrible..shopping for allergen foods is so frustrating because of the cross contamination issue!

Have u considered that the issue might be intolerance to another food?

If the symptoms aren't constant, nothing will be more valuable than a food/symptom diary.

There is NO way I would've recovered w/out one, and I, for (woohoo!) an entire 7wks have been feeling better than since the early 70s, when I was a kid!!

Celiac, and complications like candida & leaky-gut, made me need to eliminate many many foods to feel good again. "Good" is such an understatement - fantastic is almost an understatement.

Re: food diary - nothing compares to being able to see what was eaten the day of (and for some ppl, a couple days prior) bad symptoms, and comparing it to, 3 wks ago when the symptoms were similar.

Patterns pop out.

Best of luck. :)

gfpaperdoll Rookie
gfpaperdoll
Posted

and then there are people like me that will react to all gluten free grain foods, no matter whether made in a dedicated facility or not. Those Diamond Nut Thins are a huge no no for me.

heck, I even react to my own baked goods made in my own gluten-free house.

I am double DQ1, 3 years gluten-free/DF & bottom line is i just cannot eat grains, except for rice & corn.

well that is cooked rice - I also do not do well with rice flour.

even products made in a dedicated facility the grains have a certain amount of cross contamination...

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Moustique77 Newbie
Moustique77
Posted

The only way to be absolutely sure that you are eating gluten free foods is to buy from companies like Ener-G, Kinnikinnick and Enjoy Life that have gluten free facilities. Especially if they test for gluten. Otherwise there is always a remote chance of cross contamination. I personally don't think that a product should be labeled gluten free if its not made in a gluten-free facility or not tested. It should state something like 'no added gluten'.

My wife is extremely strict with her diet and always buys from safe companies. She also bakes/cooks everything from scratch (or gets me to do it for her!). I'm not so strict and will take chances with companies that state made in a facility with wheat, etc. She did inform me that flour based ingredients have the chance to be airborne, plus how well a company keeps ingredients separated and cleans machines are factors for causing cc.

Its probably best in the early stages of the diet to be more strict and remove as many chances as possible for being glutened. There are lots of safe companies out there with breads, snacks, etc. to choose from. This also takes a lot of worry and stress out of eating. Later when the body has had a chance to recover and there is security with the diet can chances be taken with 'questionable' foods.

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