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

Weird Ways We've Been Glutened

OptimisticMom42

Recommended Posts

OptimisticMom42 Apprentice
OptimisticMom42
Posted

Hello everyone,

I know this was stupid and I should have thought of it ahead of time but if it can happen to me maybe it could happen to other busy folks.

A co-worker brought in cherry tomatoes from his garden in a reused plastic grocery bag. I grabbed one out of the bag, rubbed it clean on my shirt and popped it in my mouth. A couple hours latter I'm wondering how I got glutened from cherry tomatoes. It had to have been whatever the bag was used for originally. All I can think of is how flour leaks out of those paper bags and gets all over everything.

Another good reason to stop using those plastic sacks and to wash my veggies!

Hope this helps protect someone else,

RA

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


runningcrazy Contributor
runningcrazy
Posted

I'm only glten free while waiting for enterolab results, so I'm not truly confirmed celiac about 1.5 weeks into the diet and feeing great I made "the cravings place" allergen free cookies and a hot one fell off the sheet coming out of the oven and landed on the floor. I know I saw stuff all over the floor but I popped it in my mouth anyway.

Later I was really sick and I remembered doing that. And I was reminded that my sister made real cupcakes there a little before me and that "stuff" I saw on the floor must have been flour!!

JillianLindsay Enthusiast
JillianLindsay
Posted

Mine's a real bonehead move! It was one of my first days on the diet and my first visit to Starbucks gluten-free. The person I was speaking to couldn't help me so after a long time hemming and hawing I just ordered a regular coffee. When I went to put cream & sugar into it I saw a vanilla powder and thought it would be nice to add a little flavour... duh! I sprinkled it on and could have kicked myself. After spending all that time trying to pick a drink I indiscriminately sprinkled on some random powder lol d'oh :rolleyes:

Mtndog Collaborator
Mtndog
Posted

So many butthead moves here- the latest one was REALLY wanting a fudgsicle, being really tired and not noticing "malt powder" at the end of ingredients.

That and shampoo or conditioner- so stupid!

Lisa16 Collaborator
Lisa16
Posted

I have a short list:

1. vitamins. When I first started I was taking a multi and two days into gluten-free, I looked at the ingredients and it said "derived from wheat."

2. a banana bread lara bar OR the de-icer on the plane. I was going to HI and ate a larabar, once I was firly sure we would be taking off. We were delayed and, well... see the funny ancedotes thread

3. a box of rice chex. I had bought three on special (a 3 for deal) and didn't realize I had gotten one of the old boxes. I was halfway through it and wondering why the heck I was sick when I noticed. DUMB.

4. Teabags. Yep. I got glutened by tea. Always read the ingre3dients-- never assume.

SGWhiskers Collaborator
SGWhiskers
Posted

Eating grapes with freshly washed hands. The soap had vitamin E.

Picking up a bag of garbage with used birdseeds at the bottom. Woosh. Up with a plume of gluten in the face.

Jonbo Apprentice
Jonbo
Posted

I've had a few "duh" ones. One was friend offering some craisins from bag she had. Me knowing they are OK, I eat a handful. Not 1 minute after that, my mind thinks outside the box. She's eating fried food and reached in before me. Needless to say not long after it went a little downhill but recovered by the next day fully. When I inquired, she said "Oh yeah, I also ate some of my cheez-its before also when eating them". <_<

Other time was not long after I was diagnosed and still learning, and same friend offered some doritos. They weren't in bag (plastic baggy from home with some in it). I think "Doritos must be fine, corn chips and cheese powder". Eat a few. Learn the hard way. Reading online, fathoms me the original ones have wheat but most other ones didn't.

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

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


ranger Enthusiast
ranger
Posted

At the hospital with a friend. There was a box of donuts and a pump type coffeepot on the table. She handled several donuts, then got her self some coffee. Then, I got some coffee, opened up my bag of gluten-free crackers and proceeded to eat them. Sick for 3 days - learned that donut crumbs can live on handles! It's a learning curve!

  • 3 weeks later...
StacyA Enthusiast
StacyA
Posted
Eating grapes with freshly washed hands. The soap had vitamin E.

Picking up a bag of garbage with used birdseeds at the bottom. Woosh. Up with a plume of gluten in the face.

I don't understand the concern about vitamin E - or is it just you?

Amyleigh0007 Enthusiast
Amyleigh0007
Posted

This isn't weird but it is stupid. Last Christmas I ate handful after handful of a delicious chocolate and peanut butter candy that was on the desk of a co worker. I assumed they were safe. I got very, very sick and when I checked out a bag of the candy at Walmart one of the first ingredients was wheat flour. I no longer assume!!

SGWhiskers Collaborator
SGWhiskers
Posted
I don't understand the concern about vitamin E - or is it just you?

A lot of Vitamin E comes from Wheat Germ. It also goes by tocopherol and tocopherol acetate. Many companies use other sources though. I call the company. I never thought about it in hand soap.

jabberwife Explorer
jabberwife
Posted

Lisa16 - What is it about a Banana Bread Larabar that glutened you? I'm confused...is there something I should know?

ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted
Lisa16 - What is it about a Banana Bread Larabar that glutened you? I'm confused...is there something I should know?

Hi, I am not Lisa but she was stating that she wasn't sure what got her. The Larabars are gluten free. No worries if you like them keep feeling safe eating them

summerteeth Enthusiast
summerteeth
Posted
4. Teabags. Yep. I got glutened by tea. Always read the ingre3dients-- never assume.

I second you on the tea bags. They didn't happen to be the Tazo green ginger bags, did they? Best tea ever... and now I can't have it.

Also: salad dressing. I was an airhead and forgot to read the label, thinking "Caesar dressing should be safe..." WRONG. I paid for that one... big time.

And lastly, grapefruit shampoo.I wash my hair the morning after I buy it, thinking "Wow - this smells really good". I started to get sick later in the day and couldn't figure out why. I tell Adam, my fiance, and he says "Uhh... your shampoo clearly states "wheat"" (he is allergic to SLS).

jabberwife Explorer
jabberwife
Posted

LOL - I was about to say...

larabars are my go-to snack, just in case I don't have time to make something from scratch, or if I'm going somewhere where I don't know where my next meal is or whether I'll be able to eat it!

:)

Thanks.

  • 4 months later...
grainfree Newbie
grainfree
Posted

I had a reaction after eating a cashew Larabar. The ingredients are cashews and dates. According to the Canadian Celiac Association, dates and other dried fruit may be dusted with gluten powder to prevent sticking. Something to consider when reading labels.

Archived

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

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,692
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Linda M Rush
    Newest Member
    Linda M Rush
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Gigi2025
      How Come Gluten Didnt Bother Me In Italy

      By Gigi2025 · Posted

      Since 2015 we've spent extensive time in Italy and I've been able to eat their wheat products without incident. Initially, I was practically starving thinking foods in Sicily were not gluten-free.  An Italian friend who had lived in the US for over 20 years said she had celiac/gluten-free friends from the US who could eat Italian wheat products without problems. Hesitantly, I tried little by little without issues.  A few years later at a market, I asked a bread vendor if they had gluten-free loaves. Turns out she had lived in LA, said groups believe it's not the gluten that's causing our bodies harm, but potassium bromate; these groups have been trying to ban it.  Bromines and other halogens wreaks havoc to our endocrine system and, more specifically, our thyroids and immune systems. When bromines are ingested/absorbed into the body, it displaces iodine causing other health issues. Potassium bromate is a powerful oxidizing agent (dough 'conditioner') that chemically changes flour to enhance elasticity, bleaches the dough, and ages the flour much faster than open air.   Shortly thereafter while visiting friends in California, one family said they had gone gluten-free and the difference was incredible. The reason they choose this path was due them (a biologist/chemist/agriculturist scientist) having to write a portion of a paper about a certain product for the company he worked. Another company's scientist was directed to write the other portion. All was confidential, they weren't allowed to know the other company/employee.  After the research, they learned gluten was being removed from wheat, sent elsewhere, returned in large congealed blocks resembling tofu, and then added to wheat products. Potassium bromate has been banned for use in Europe, China, and other countries, but not in the US. Then we have the issues of shelf preservatives and stabilizers. What are we eating?  Why? We spend long periods of time in Italy and all has been good.  We just returned from an extended time in Greece;  no issues there either.  There is a man there we learned about on a travel show about Greece who walks the hills, picking herbs, pods, etc.  He is a very learned scholar, taught at the university level in Melbourne. It took a few days to locate him, but were finally successful. He too, is concerned about the additives and preservatives in American food (many of his customers are Americans, haven't been in the best of health, and have become healthier after visiting him). He suggested taking a food product from the US and the same product in Europe, and compare the different ingredients. Then ask why these things are being allowed in the US by the 'watch dog' of our foods and drugs. It would be amuzing if it weren't tragic. I'm presently looking for flour from Europe that I can make my own bread and pasta as the gluten-free bread is now $7.99 a (small) loaf.  BTW, studies are showing that many gluten-free individuals are becoming diabetic. My guess is because the gluten-free products are high in carbs. This is only my experience and opinion garnished by my personal research.  I hope it helps.  
    • knitty kitty
      Taking Probiotics but Still Getting Sick After Gluten – Advice?

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Symptoms that get worse if you don't supplement is a sign of malabsorption, possibly due to Celiac disease. Blood tests for nutritional deficiencies are not very accurate, and should be done when you have been off of supplements for eight to twelve weeks, otherwise the vitamin supplements you've taken will be measured.  The blood circulation system is a transportation system.  It transports the vitamins you've absorbed around the body, but blood tests don't give an accurate picture of the vitamin and mineral stores inside organs and tissues where they are actually used.  You can have "normal" blood levels but still have deficiencies.  This is because the brain demands stored nutrients be put into the blood stream to supply important organs, like the brain and heart, while other organs do without.   If you are taking Thiamine Mononitrate in your supplements, you are probably low in thiamine.  Thiamine Mononitrate is used in many supplements because it won't break down sitting on a shelf.  This also means Thiamine Mononitrate is difficult for the body to utilize.  Only thirty percent of Thiamine Mononitrate on the label is absorbed and even less is able to be utilized by the body.  A different form of Thiamine called Benfotiamine has been shown to promote intestinal healing.   Talk to your doctor about doing a genetic test to look for Celiac markers.   I'm concerned that if you do a gluten challenge (10 grams of gluten per day for a minimum off two weeks) in your weakened state, the nutritional deficiencies will become worse and possibly life threatening.  
    • ElisaAllergiesgluten
      Allergy medication: cetirizine by the HealthA2Z is it gluten free?

      By ElisaAllergiesgluten · Posted

      Hello, good afternoon!   I apologize, I didn’t see a notification and I’m just reading this. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and the link. Yes you are absolutely right, even so trying to get a response from them has been extremely difficult. They don’t answer but I will your practice of “guilty until proven innocent.”   I like and have a sense of trust here in this website, everyone is honest and thoughts are raw. The mutual understanding is amazing!   thank you Scott!
    • Scott Adams
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      I'd go with a vodka tonic, but that's just me😉
    • Rejoicephd
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Rejoicephd · Posted

      That and my nutritionist also said that drinking cider is one of the worst drink choices for me, given that I have candida overgrowth.  She said the combination of the alcohol and sugar would be very likely to worsen my candida problem.  She suggested that if I drink, I go for clear vodka, either neat or with a splash of cranberry.   So in summary, I am giving ciders a rest.  Whether it's a gluten risk or sugars and yeast overgrowth, its just not worth it.
×
×
  • 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.