Why Isn't Gluten In The "top" Allergens?

[JustMe75]

Ok, I'm sure someone has already asked this but I searched like crazy and couldn't find anything.

Why isn't gluten one of the top allergens according to the FDA food labeling? From what I could find it looks like including people with celiac and gluten intolerance it must be as common as wheat, fish, peanut, soy, dairy, eggs and fish allergies. I know it

[Lisa]

Ok, I'm sure someone has already asked this but I searched like crazy and couldn't find anything.

Why isn't gluten one of the top allergens according to the FDA food labeling? From what I could find it looks like including people with celiac and gluten intolerance it must be as common as wheat, fish, peanut, soy, dairy, eggs and fish allergies. I know it

[lovegrov]

"Gluten" is a generic term that covers way too much ground to be an allergen. Grains like corn and rice have "gluten," as do other grains, I'm sure.

richard

[linuxprincess]

Another reason why gluten is not on a top allergens list is due to the fact of the low number of people with an actual ALLERGY to the gluten. Most just have intolerances or Celiac's to some degree. The FDA's counterpoint to this is that because there are such a low number of people with an actual allergy to the gluten, it will not be on a list. They do however, as mentioned above, recognize the fact that millions suffer with these intolerances and are trying to get better labeling standards set for gluten levels allowed in gluten-free labeled foods. It will be a hard slow process here in Amerika where everyone likes their fake sugars and enriched wheat.

[tarnalberry]

Another reason: celiac doesn't cause people to start choking and gasping for air, unable to breath, with death following shortly thereafter. Anaphylactic food allergies do. You can argue that celiac can still kill you, but the death isn't nearly as dramatic, and drama makes a difference...