"gluten Free" Items That "got You"

[bittykitty]

Im pretty new to the gluten-free diet, but when tracing through my food journal I think I may have issues with Pamela's Lemon Shortbread cookies and Rice Chex (all flavors). I consistently mark down periods of bloating and nausea about 2 hours after eating these products.

Did you get a rash from Pamela's cookies? I sure the hell did..and horrible stomach pain. I've been using their products for ages,and never had an issue until last month.

[GFLindsey]

Did you get a rash from Pamela's cookies? I sure the hell did..and horrible stomach pain. I've been using their products for ages,and never had an issue until last month.

No rash for me. I don't have skin reactions from gluten -- at least not yet! (Fingers crossed). I just got a burning pressure in my abdomen and terrible bloating from her Lemon Shortbread cookies. I seem to to eat the others without a problem! WHat kind gave you a rash?

[bittykitty]

No rash for me. I don't have skin reactions from gluten -- at least not yet! (Fingers crossed). I just got a burning pressure in my abdomen and terrible bloating from her Lemon Shortbread cookies. I seem to to eat the others without a problem! WHat kind gave you a rash?

It was the chocolate chunk..the regular,not the double chocolate.Had it all over my feet and ankles,along with stomach pain and nausea.I also had some pain and bloating from their pizza crust mix,but at the time, I wrote it off to something else.Now I'm wondering.

[JNBunnie1]

It was the chocolate chunk..the regular,not the double chocolate.Had it all over my feet and ankles,along with stomach pain and nausea.I also had some pain and bloating from their pizza crust mix,but at the time, I wrote it off to something else.Now I'm wondering.

Pamela's is a completely gluten-free facility, they don't have anything with gluten in the plant. I have to think that if some were somehow getting in, that would be a very serious thing, for the company.

[bittykitty]

Pamela's is a completely gluten-free facility, they don't have anything with gluten in the plant. I have to think that if some were somehow getting in, that would be a very serious thing, for the company.

I know it's a dedicated facility..that's why I can't pin down why that happened, and I'm still willing to venture it was something else..but do not want to take the chance again.

[Nor-TX]

Yes, as one person said, this thread is very depressing. I've been thinking that something I am doing or not doing is causing all this bloating and pain. I have been totally gluten-free, yet I have been experiencing bloating and pain. This past weekend we were having company, so I set myself up with cooked shrimp, gluten-free cocktail sauce, Lays Stax, Glutino pretzels, gluten-free hormel turkey pepperoni, and nut thins. By the time my guests left, I almost crawled to the bed in major pain. My belly has been puffed out since Saturday afternoon and making all kinds of groaning noises here at work. People are looking at me! This morning for breakfast I had half of a Udi bagel, with gluten-free, dairy free margarine and gluten-free and dairy free almond butter and a couple of dried apple rings. My pants are tight and I feel sick...

I am so frustrated with all of this. I buy everything that says gluten free, I have changed my kitchen to gluten-free. I am at a loss for all this pain I am feeling.. *sigh*

[jerseyangel]

This past weekend we were having company, so I set myself up with cooked shrimp, gluten-free cocktail sauce, Lays Stax, Glutino pretzels, gluten-free hormel turkey pepperoni, and nut thins. By the time my guests left, I almost crawled to the bed in major pain.

It really can be so frustrating--and worse because you are so ill I would suspect the Nut Thins--for all the advertising on the box, they are made on lines that also process gluten. I can not tolerate them, and I've read about others having problems with them. If you're very sensitive or still healing, I would omit anything made on shared lines for now--until you are consistently better--and then try things one at a time.

This morning for breakfast I had half of a Udi bagel, with gluten-free, dairy free margarine and gluten-free and dairy free almond butter and a couple of dried apple rings. My pants are tight and I feel sick...

Do you normally eat Udi's with no problems? I can't eat their products because of the tapioca flour/starch. Just a thought--also, were the apple rings made on gluten-free equipment?

Hope you feel better soon Bet you never thought you'd be in the detective business

[skinnyminny]

Yes, as one person said, this thread is very depressing. I've been thinking that something I am doing or not doing is causing all this bloating and pain. I have been totally gluten-free, yet I have been experiencing bloating and pain. This past weekend we were having company, so I set myself up with cooked shrimp, gluten-free cocktail sauce, Lays Stax, Glutino pretzels, gluten-free hormel turkey pepperoni, and nut thins. By the time my guests left, I almost crawled to the bed in major pain. My belly has been puffed out since Saturday afternoon and making all kinds of groaning noises here at work. People are looking at me! This morning for breakfast I had half of a Udi bagel, with gluten-free, dairy free margarine and gluten-free and dairy free almond butter and a couple of dried apple rings. My pants are tight and I feel sick...

I am so frustrated with all of this. I buy everything that says gluten free, I have changed my kitchen to gluten-free. I am at a loss for all this pain I am feeling.. *sigh*

Nut thins make me so so sick! Im not sure what it is in these but I have reacted many different times

[Nor-TX]

I guess I will toss out those boxes of nut thins I stocked up on. Not really sure what made me sick last weekend.. but it was rough.

[GFinDC]

Yes, as one person said, this thread is very depressing. I've been thinking that something I am doing or not doing is causing all this bloating and pain. I have been totally gluten-free, yet I have been experiencing bloating and pain. This past weekend we were having company, so I set myself up with cooked shrimp, gluten-free cocktail sauce, Lays Stax, Glutino pretzels, gluten-free hormel turkey pepperoni, and nut thins. By the time my guests left, I almost crawled to the bed in major pain. My belly has been puffed out since Saturday afternoon and making all kinds of groaning noises here at work. People are looking at me! This morning for breakfast I had half of a Udi bagel, with gluten-free, dairy free margarine and gluten-free and dairy free almond butter and a couple of dried apple rings. My pants are tight and I feel sick...

I am so frustrated with all of this. I buy everything that says gluten free, I have changed my kitchen to gluten-free. I am at a loss for all this pain I am feeling.. *sigh*

I can't do the Glutino pretzels because of the soy in them. Just wondering if you have tried eliminating soy yet? It is one of the top 8 most common allergens so it could be a problem for you. It sure does a number on me!

[mushroom]

It's a sad thing, but once we get rid of the overwhelming gluten response, some of the other things that have been trying to get on the line with their messages are finally able to get through once the gluten is gone. So we say, well I am gluten free so why am I still having problems? You will note from my signature that I have gone through a process of weeding out all the other things that kept getting a busy signal before.... and I am happy to say that apart from a lingering bit of gassiness I have finally started feeling digestively pretty good. Now, not everyone is going to have as many food problems as I have (I have pretty much eliminated all the high-lectin foods, which include gluten, as I think those are actually my problem (gluten, soy, corn, nightshades, legumes, peanuts--fortunately not dairy).

So unfortunately often it is not enough to get rid of the gluten, although that is the first step. The next step is lactose because as GFinDC explained, the ability to digest that is destroyed initially by the gluten. I can now tolerate lactose again. The next most common allergen that accompanies gluten is soy. Because of my arthritis I eliminated the nightshades next, but forgot about the potato starch in flour mixes. This was brought home to me one night when I cheated and had half of my husband's baked potato and woke up itching in the middle of the night--that explained the residual itching I was having on my shoulders must be coming from the (ah-hah) potato starch! Legumes were the last lecin link for me, and that was only after I found out about them.

So you really have to keep a food diary and find out what it is you are eating that bothers you. I finally put the legume link in when I had a dinner of roast lamb, half a baked yam, and green peas. Now I knew lamb and yam were okay, but would never have thought of green peas, except that was all that was left.

This post is not meant to scare you into thinking you will be intolerant of all these things, but just to get you thinking about what it is you are eating and how you are reacting to it. And eating whole, unprocessed foods to start with is a good way to weed out the bad actors as you start adding things back in.

[shepgs]

This topic has been so helpful! I'm only a little over 2 months into being gluten-free and didn't have noticable symptoms to start with. I wasn't sure if I would know if I were glutened or not. Well, I think I found out!

After dinner a few days ago, I began to feel dizzy and have abdominal/gas pains/bloating. The next day it continued till evening, with the headache still here. My dinner was pigs-in-a-blanket made with Ballpark Angus franks and homemade dough (with Arrowhead Mills millet flour included) and Lays Staxx (barbeque flavor). I know, terrible nutrition-wise...

I'm thinking it must have been the millet flour. I used this in the beginning, so I must not have been truly gluten-free at first.

I had had the chips a few days prior with no problem. I would have never thought of the millet flour if I hadn't read this! Do they use a shared facility?

[jerseyangel]

I had had the chips a few days prior with no problem. I would have never thought of the millet flour if I hadn't read this! Do they use a shared facility?

Yes, Arrowhead Mills is shared. The Stax are made on dedicated lines.

[dilettantesteph]

One time I got whole grain millet from a dedicated facility. The said that there weren't any wheat fields within 100 miles and there was no way that there would be wheat contamination. Then I transferred it from the big bag to smaller containers. Millet is small, round and yellowish. There were also greyish rice like grains in there - possibly wheat? On further questioning, they said that the harvesting equipment that they use is also used for gluten containing grains. Millet flour would seem suspect based on this experience.

[newgfcali]

cooked shrimp, gluten-free cocktail sauce, Lays Stax, Glutino pretzels, gluten-free hormel turkey pepperoni, and nut thins.

Nor_TX~ Not to tell you what to do, but to suggest something here...

In looking at this list, the only thing that's a "whole food" is the shrimp. Many of us have found that it's better to eat completely whole, unprocessed foods at first until we get things under control. For this meal, it could have been shrimp, some steamed veggies, and plain white or brown rice. I know it's sounds REALLY boring, but by depending on Lays, Glutino, Hormel and Blue Diamond to be completely contaminate-free in all of their processing is kinda like playing Russian roulette with your health. Better at this point to keep it simple, clean, and totally gluten-free. You won't have to eat like this forever -- just until you feel better for say... a week or two. Then add one thing at a time, testing each food item individually to see whether you can tolerate it. If you still feel good after 4-5 days of the new item, then add another. It's called an elimination diet, and it does work.

[DaffodElle]

True. However, after you have tried (and failed) to be gluten-free long enough, you come to recognize glutenings for what they are. At least I have.

I'm super sensitive. My gluten reaction very rarely includes GI symptoms in the first place. I know that if I experience the "big D", that it was probably something else or a super severe gluten reaction.

I find that this thread has been pretty helpful in confirming that there are many gluten-free labeled foods that still cause problems and that it isn't all in my head... ("but it SAYS it's gluten-free...")

[masterjen]

Ensure, which is labeled gluten-free, got me: "three for three" ie. drank 3 of them, one every 2nd or third day, and got migraines 30 - 90 min. after drinking a bottle.

[Nor-TX]

Nor_TX~ Not to tell you what to do, but to suggest something here...

In looking at this list, the only thing that's a "whole food" is the shrimp. Many of us have found that it's better to eat completely whole, unprocessed foods at first until we get things under control. For this meal, it could have been shrimp, some steamed veggies, and plain white or brown rice. I know it's sounds REALLY boring, but by depending on Lays, Glutino, Hormel and Blue Diamond to be completely contaminate-free in all of their processing is kinda like playing Russian roulette with your health. Better at this point to keep it simple, clean, and totally gluten-free. You won't have to eat like this forever -- just until you feel better for say... a week or two. Then add one thing at a time, testing each food item individually to see whether you can tolerate it. If you still feel good after 4-5 days of the new item, then add another. It's called an elimination diet, and it does work.

Newgfcali,

It wasn't a meal I was preparing.. we had some friends over to play games. I can't do steamed vegetables or brown rice. I have colitis, no veggies, fruits, reduced fiber. You are right about the crackers though, I have eliminated them. Thanks for the suggestions.

[NewGuy]

My daughter had to give up Trader Joe's gluten free mac and cheese (like Kraft's blue box). It took her a while, but she finally realized it was this that was making her sick!

I believe I have been glutened (badly) by "Trader Giotto's Organic, no-salt added marinara." It appears on Trader Joe's list of gluten free items, but the bottle itself doesn't say gluten free or no gluten ingredients used. Perhaps a cross contamination issue... I have used it before and think I was fine, but this bottle is poisoning the heck out of me. Too bad, it's good... frustrating that it appears on the list!!!

[ltaylor882]

When I first found out I was allergic to wheat I went out and got an Amy's pizza, which claims it is gluten-free but if you read the label it states that it was made in a facility where wheat is present. Needless to say, within an hour I was covered in hives and my face and hands were totally swollen. I don't think I will ever attempt to eat anything by Amy's again.

[ravenwoodglass]

1) General Mills/Betty Crocker is NOT a gluten free company. They have made their money off of selling wheat products, such as regular Bisquick, Betty Crocker cake mixes, Frosted Mini Wheats... Are we picking up on a theme here?

2) Betty Crocker Gluten Free dessert mixes are NOT made in the US, they are a product of Canada.

I don't know about General Mills and their cereals but the Betty Crocker mixes are made in a dedicated facility.

Q: Are the Betty Crocker

[StephanieGF]

I don't know about General Mills and their cereals but the Betty Crocker mixes are made in a dedicated facility.

Q: Are the Betty Crocker® Gluten Free Dessert Mixes made in a gluten free processing facility?

Yes.

Open Original Shared Link

Yeah, I noticed that the gluten-free Betty Crocker mixes are made in a gluten free facility in Canada. I suspect (but have no proof) that it is the same facility as Gluten Free pantry or another of the Canadian gluten free manufactures, there are several. I did notice that the ingredients in the chocolate cake mix for Gluten Free Pantry and Betty Crocker are exactly the same.

[ravenwoodglass]

Yeah, I noticed that the gluten-free Betty Crocker mixes are made in a gluten free facility in Canada. I suspect (but have no proof) that it is the same facility as Gluten Free pantry or another of the Canadian gluten free manufactures, there are several. I did notice that the ingredients in the chocolate cake mix for Gluten Free Pantry and Betty Crocker are exactly the same.

I wonder if you might be right about that. They do taste the same and have the same texture.

[NonHuman]

Have you all considered the possibility of it being a reaction to something else? It isn't as if gluten is the only allergy/sensitivity you might have. I used to have that mind set, and for a while I would get sick eating the safest seeming foods... but then I started paying better attention and testing things out. I get a "gluten" reaction from honey, oranges, peanut butter, pea soup (HOMEMADE, and I generally don't have any problems when I eat peas), and some other stuff. You might go through and compare the ingredients of an unsafe food to a similar safe food, and test out any differing ingredients.

Of course I'm not saying that none of these complaints are valid, but rather that you should find out for sure before you scare others away from potentionally enjoyable products.

If someone already said this, I apologize for the redundancy. I just couldn't read through seven pages of this...

[moonflowerpdx]

On 9/9/2009 at 9:49 AM, moonflowerpdx said:

Update 7 years later:

Soy sauce still doesn't seem to bother me in restaurants, but at home I use only gluten free Tamari or Bragg's Liquid Aminos. I no longer eat fast food! I eat corn, it's organic.