Cross Contamination

[bear6954]

Ok - I have thrown away all plastic plate, bowls, colenders etc. We use china, glass, metal or cast iron now. I clean the table, counter and anything else with soap and water. Is there anything else I should be doing to prevent cc in our house. I do not bake with gluten products, but my hubby and daughter eat gluten foods. Thanks for the help!

[cbear6301]

Can I piggyback on this? I had no idea I had to throw all that stuff away, I learn more and more each day.

[RiceGuy]

Are you asking because you're getting glutened, or as a preventative step? I think the cast iron might not be such a good idea, since it is porous.

If you toast gluten-free breads, you need a dedicated toaster. Things like wheat flour might be too risky to keep around, but it really depends on how conscientious and careful everyone is about keeping it confined as much as possible. If you have gluten-free boxed items, a separate cabinet, shelf, or drawer is a good idea. Make sure the dish soap is gluten-free, and wash the gluten dishes separately if/when possible. It may also be a good idea to keep a dedicated gluten-free dish sponge.

Have you checked all your skin/hair care products, cosmetics, etc? Lastly, make sure your husband knows not to kiss you too soon after eating gluten. I've read posts suggesting brushing and flossing, and/or waiting an hour or two after eating before kissing. I'm sure a search will turn up many threads about that.

[BRS-07]

I just found out I am Celiac about a week ago. I have ran all of my kitchen stuff through the dishwasher and hand washed them, but not replaced them. I keep my sugars and flours in plastic containers and we use plastic bowls also. Do I really need to throw them all away or is putting them through the dishwasher enough?

[bear6954]

My son is still having issues of cc. I know he is not eating any. We are pretty careful - trader joe organic brown ric noodles, verified chicken stock is gluten-free, pamelas products, oscar mayer hot dogs, gluten free pantry bread, smart balance, Kirkland brand organic soy milk, gerber rice cereal, and enjoy life cookies. My son is not having the issues of bowel problems, but his liver emzymes are still very high leading me to believe he is getting gluten somewhere in my house.

We did get a toaster just for my son and I. If cast iron is seasoned properly it should not contain residue of gluten should it? I do scrub them with soap and water. I kept a few non stick pans for my daughters normal mac and cheese. I do use the cast iron pot to boil her noodles sometimes. I threw away, a long time ago, any gluten flour. I only bake gluten free foods now and no one has complained. I am just wondering - if my daughter eats wheat thins and then goes and plays with toys is she cc everything? Boy that would be a night mare to clean. My kids have friends over and I know they eat gluten!

My daughter only eats her snacks oat the kitchen table in her spot. My son sits across from her.

I will seperate the scrubbing sponges today - that may be part of it. The kids soaps, creams are gluten-free.

He is rather sensitive - playdoh gives him the normal bowel and bloating symptoms. And boy is he mean. And no he does not eat the playdoh and i clean and scrub the area and him after. We make our own now.

I am mostly afraid that he is getting cc by people not washing their hands and I am wondering what I am going to do for him in preschool next year. They wash before, but not after eating. We wash our hands before we eat at home.

Thanks for all the help!

[bear6954]

He will also eat Ians chicken nuggets and french toast sticks.

[Darn210]

. . . but his liver emzymes are still very high leading me to believe he is getting gluten somewhere in my house.

I don't know the answer to this . . . I'm just highlighting it so that someone with experience may address this . . .

Has his enzymes come down at all?? How long does it take them to return to normal?

You sound pretty thorough but I will just add to the list . . . do you have two sets of peanut butter, butter, jelly, cream cheese, etc???

[ang1e0251]

I haven't heard of liver enzyme levels linked to an autoimmune response. How does this work and what should an individual look out for?

[bear6954]

We dont eat pp and j here, but for the butter - I do most of the cooking and if I need to use the butter for gluten stuff, I take a big chunk out of the container and put on the plate. I do not double dip.

My sons gi dr told me that his liver was not functioning correctly (hense the increase liver emzymes) because he is malnurished because of the damage to his intestines. Yes, it is going down. But please understand - there are two blood tests they did for my son (I dont remember the names, something like ALT and AST) and normal range is somewhere between 0-30 and 0-50 for both. My sons were 790 and 1430. They got much better for a time and then started to go back up. Thats why I think he is getting cc. I must be doing something right because his liver has shrunk almost to normal size in the last month, but I am trying to figure out where it is coming from. As his intestines heal and he begins to absorb vits again, his liver emzymes will come down. So the faster his intestines heal the faster his liver heals.

As for the plastic stuff. I still use tupperware things, but as soon as they get scratched etc they go into the garbage. I threw away all of my kids bowl, because I knew gluten had been in those things more than once and they were scratched. When the plastic or wood is scratched, it can hold small pieces of gluten because of how hard it is to clean it. My kids are 3 and 5 so they can start using or normal dishes.