What Snacks Are Safe?

[jasonD2]

there are tons of potato & corn chips & other snacks that are labeled gluten free, but people are still getting sick from them. bottom line, whats safe?

I usually eat tostitos & fritos and most of the popular potato chips, but now im finding that they are not made on dedicated lines. is there ANYTHING safe to eat?

[psawyer]

is there ANYTHING safe to eat?

No, there is NOTHING you can buy that is GUARANTEED to be safe to eat.

We each make out own choices about how much risk we will accept. No company will GUARANTEE that their products are 100% gluten-free, because they all buy at least some of their ingredients from third parties, and do not test them for possible cross contamination with gluten. So there are no guarantees because they will not accept legal responsibility for a possible error by their third-party suppliers.

You must make your own decisions about what is "safe enough" for you. Disclosure of shared equipment or facilities is voluntary. If you see it, fine, but if it is not there don't make any assumptions.

Any manufacturer could, one day, receive a contaminated batch of a normally gluten-free ingredient. Unless they test it, and most don't, then the final product would contain undisclosed gluten.

[hannahp57]

sorry to say the previous poster was absolutely correct. every person is sensitive to a different level and some things bother us more than others.

for instance, i am not a super sensitive but if i get a little bit of cross contamination i usually have a pretty good idea because i will feel a lot of pressure in my stomach and a small cramping feeling in my stomach. nothing serious but it makes me uncomfortable enough that i will not eat that again. tostitos do not give me problems but lay's chips have in the past. i eat cocoa pebbles and fruity pebbles with no problems along with rice chex. but for some reason the flavored chex cereals give me issues. you will soon learn how sensitive you are... and if you get a reaction from a product quit consuming it for a while. you may have gotten a contaminated bag. if you buy it again a few weeks later and have the same issues then maybe you are sensitive enough that they're facility is not safe enough to keep you safe. some even react to gluten free products because they are not required to test down to 0ppm. for some 5 and 10 ppm is still too much. but if you are that sensitive you will probably be able to tell with every product you buy

[jasonD2]

this is very disconcerting because even if you eat something that doesnt necessarily give you symptoms, it could still be doing damage and keeping your anti-gliadin antibodies elevated - the only safe way to live is to just prepare all your own food with raw ingredients, and obviously most people cant live like that- i know i cant. this sucks for me because i dont even get real symptoms so i dont know what im putting in my body

[tarnalberry]

jason, this is where you have to learn that you can only do the best you can, and can't be perfect. could something still go wrong? sure. but you could obey all the rules of the road and still get into a fatal car accident. heck, you could never drive and still be killed in a car (as a passenger) or by a car (as a pedestrian). *nothing* in life is guaranteed, so you learn to develop your judgment, learn to gauge risks, and learn to make choices about what risks you are willing to take based on the judgment you have of the overall scenario.

[captaincrab55]

I've been using Sharkies as a snack. It's labeled as, "Organic Energy Sports Chews"... They are also labeled as Gluten Free, Wheat Free, Dairy Free & Vegetarian.

[hannahp57]

i cant say for sure....(as i am not an expert) but i am thinking if you dont have overt symptoms then you are probably not a super sensitive. again, i could be wrong! but you will probably be fine with products labeled gluten free and most of the products that have been proven to be made on dedicated lines. i am not what i consider super sensitive. my only allergies are gluten intolerance, MSG and artificial sweetners. i eat gluten free labeled products and a lot of mainstream products as well and have been very good about not getting glutened. and i have the digestive symptoms predominantly so i KNOW when i have been glutened. read labels and check with the maunfacturer and you'll be fairly safe. mishaps will still happen but i think as you get used to this you'll do fine