Jump to content
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):
  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Expandex- Modified Tapioca Starch?


Lisa16

Recommended Posts

Lisa16 Collaborator

Does anybody know about this stuff? I looked up expandex and all I could find was that it is a modified tapioca starch. But what does this mean, exactly? How is it modified and is it something we have to worry about?

Thanks!


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



psawyer Proficient

Modified starch is starch that has been partially broken down. Unless it is from a gluten grain, which tapioca is not, it is suitable for a gluten-free diet.

Lisa16 Collaborator

Sorry Peter-- I didn't mean if we had to worry if it was gluten free or not. I meant if we had to worry about any adverse effects from the "modified" part.

Broken down how? What does this do-- I mean, what is the purpose of modifying it? And what does it do inside of bake goods? And wht does it do inside of you when you eat it?

It seems to me that lots of people are slightly worried about modified starches and this is the first one I have encountered (that I noticed.)

psawyer Proficient

Here is a link to Wikipedia regarding modified starch. Modified starch is very common.

HTH

Lisa16 Collaborator

Hey thanks!

After reading the link, I bet it is the genetically modified starches that people are worried about. I feel better now.

I will go make an angel food cake now.

  • 3 years later...
pennypal Newbie

If Expandex is "just Modified tapioca starch" why does it have a trade name,?

psawyer Proficient

This topic is almost four years old, so I'm unsure why we are reviving it now.

If Expandex is "just Modified tapioca starch" why does it have a trade name,?

"Accent" is just monosodium glutamate. Why does it have a trade name? Answer: So you will associate a specific brand in your mind, and purchase that brand rather than a generic form of the same substance. Marketing 101.


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



pennypal Newbie

I didn't realize it was an old forum. I hope it gets re-activated because today I have what I call a "chemical" hangover. All my muscles ache. I made pizza last night with a very popular brand of commercial crust. I knew better. About 2-3 months age I ate at my favorite Pizza place (gluten free) next morning I ached all over. I ate there one more time before I realized they had changed their crust. I asked their response was "same crust", I checked label, it's ingredients used to say tapioca starch now says "_____'s Best Blend (tapioca starch).

I have sent this question out before because I think Tapioca is being modified like wheat has been. I also have had a reaction to an "absolutely delicious gluten-free cupcake" I now bake all my own products. Your reference to Accent is more accurate than you realize.

kareng Grand Master

I didn't realize it was an old forum. I hope it gets re-activated because today I have what I call a "chemical" hangover. All my muscles ache. I made pizza last night with a very popular brand of commercial crust. I knew better. About 2-3 months age I ate at my favorite Pizza place (gluten free) next morning I ached all over. I ate there one more time before I realized they had changed their crust. I asked their response was "same crust", I checked label, it's ingredients used to say tapioca starch now says "_____'s Best Blend (tapioca starch).

I have sent this question out before because I think Tapioca is being modified like wheat has been. I also have had a reaction to an "absolutely delicious gluten-free cupcake" I now bake all my own products. Your reference to Accent is more accurate than you realize.

Tapioca is gluten free.

pennypal Newbie

Tapioca is gluten free.

I guess I am on the wrong forum. I know it is gluten-free but my issue is that there are a lot of gluten-free things that have "modified starch" in them. Only in the last few years have gluten-free products had modified starches that had a "NAME" like Expandex

kareng Grand Master

I guess I am on the wrong forum. I know it is gluten-free but my issue is that there are a lot of gluten-free things that have "modified starch" in them. Only in the last few years have gluten-free products had modified starches that had a "NAME" like Expandex

If it says modified tapioca starch, then it is tapioca made into a starch. It can't have wheat or some other starch added to it. Not really sure what you are saying?

Not sure why the pizza crust company thinks the brand of tapicoa matters so much that they "name" it in the ingredients. Perhaps they get a discount for listing it by brand name? They could just say tapioca starch and not mention a brand.

I don't think there is anything dangerous about listing a brand name. I have seen products that say "made with real Land of Lakes butter" or "made with Somebody's Sea salt" (Can't remember that salt brand so I guess the advertising didn't work! :blink: )

auzzi Newbie

Expandex® is an American product - a lot of consumers like to know where there food originates. It emphasizes that fact that it is totally gluten-free in the US market-place:

http://expandexglutenfree.com/index.php

  • 5 years later...
ccraigen Newbie

Does anybody have a suggestion where to buy expanded modified tapioca starch in Canada?  I have not found it in stores and any online store (amazon, Modernist Pantry) charges more than the price of the produce in shipping costs. 

Thanks.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):





    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):




  • Recent Activity

    1. - trents replied to science enthusiast Christi's topic in Coping with Celiac Disease
      1

      Sugar intolerance 10 years into gluten-free diet

    2. - science enthusiast Christi posted a topic in Coping with Celiac Disease
      1

      Sugar intolerance 10 years into gluten-free diet

    3. - trents replied to Healthierbody2026's topic in Introduce Yourself / Share Stuff
      1

      New at gluten sensitivity

    4. - Healthierbody2026 posted a topic in Introduce Yourself / Share Stuff
      1

      New at gluten sensitivity

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):
  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,462
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    jjwejackso
    Newest Member
    jjwejackso
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):
  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):
  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @science enthusiast Christi! I don't have a problem with disaccharides but I do with polysaccharides and complex carbohydrates which are so common in many gluten free processed foods. Gar gum, xanthan gum, pea fiber, chicory root, inulin etc. All those "prebiotics". 
    • science enthusiast Christi
      Hey Celiac friends,  I'm wondering how weird I am. About a year ago, I started getting bloated all the time and having extremely smelly gas. Lots of it. I had to avoid people, keep windows open, etc. It really upended my life in a somewhat horrifying way. I figured out that if I didn't eat any sugar, the symptoms mostly resolved. With more experimentation, I found out that I'm intolerant to any disaccharides (things with sucrose, maltose) and some starches. I've since figured my small intestine stopped making some digestive enzymes. Since Celiac causes the immune system to attack the small intestine, I wonder if I was getting low-level gluten contamination from my environment. (My family eats gluten in our home, and I have to use a shared kitchen at work for lunch.)  I am apparently among the 2% of Celiacs who also have a similar reaction to soy. I've been avoiding both gluten and soy for over a decade now, but sometimes you just get poisoned. For example, I love my houseplants and bought an insect-preventing spray online. After spraying it on all my houseplants, I found out it has soybean oil. Sure enough, two days later I was sick. Soy is such a big ingredient used in everything, I doubt it's possible for me to avoid it completely. Everyone uses lotions with soy on their hands, so every doorknob and switch and item I touch is risky for me.  I was just wondering, has anyone else had carbohydrate intolerance after or related to Celiac? My doctor doesn't know anything about it, especially since I can still digest lactose. Wondering if there are other people out there with similar stories. If eating was complicated before, now it's a bit crazy to be honest.  Thanks, Community! 
    • trents
      Welcome to the celiac.com community, @Healthierbody2026! Just let me check something with you because there is still much confusion in the general population regarding the terminology associated with gluten disorders. You say you have recently been diagnosed with gluten sensitivity. Do you mean NCGS (Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity) or Celiac disease (aka, "gluten intolerance")? The symptoms of these two conditions overlap. Celiac disease has an autoimmune base and so, there are tests that can be run to detect antibodies in the blood that are produced. Celiac disease does damage to the small bowel lining because of the inflammation present from the autoimmune attack. This is not the case with NCGS for which there are no tests. Celiac disease must first be ruled out in order to arrive at a diagnosis of "gluten sensitivity". 
    • Heatherisle
    • Healthierbody2026
      Hi I was recently diagnosed with gluten sensitivity I’m very new at this and trying learn everything I can about everything dealing with this any advice suggestions would be appreciated 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.