Gluten Free Oats

[happybfree]

Never had them until recently my sister thought it would be nice to make me oatmeal raisin cookies out of them... I was real sick and had stomach bleeding for the next week!

Are they really gluten-free?

[sa1937]

Never had them until recently my sister thought it would be nice to make me oatmeal raisin cookies out of them... I was real sick and had stomach bleeding for the next week!

Are they really gluten-free?

How long have you been gluten-free? I've just recently started using Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Oats and don't have a problem with it. I waited to try it until I was 9 months gluten-free. There's a certain percentage of celiacs that cannot tolerate oats, even the gluten-free kind. I think I've read 10 to 15%. I still only plan to eat it occasionally but not every day...don't want to push my luck.

[GlutenFreeManna]

For some of us, no. A certain percentage of celiacs react to gluten-free oats the same as they do gluten. You might also ask you sister about how they were made--did she use the same scratched up cookie sheets and wooden spoons she uses for wheat flour cookies? Did she use spices (like cinnamon) or sugar that she has had in her kitchen and used for regular baking. Some people when they bake they did the measuring spoons int he flour and then dip the same one int eh bag of sugar, for example, so the sugar would be contaminated with traces of flour. The sugar and other ingredients could also get contaminated just by being out and open when she is bakign with wheat flour. Flour goes up int he air for several hours and settles on things so it's very hard to make something gluten-free in a kitchen that has recently made regular baked goods. Even if she used all new ingredients and all new utensils and put parchment or foil over her pans, if shes a frequent baker chances are good that there was hidden flour cc somewhere.

[T.H.]

Just piping up as one of that 10-15% who can't have gluten-free oats (best we can tell). If you have an issue with all oats and it wasn't just gluten cc, you might be helped looking up Avenin sensitive enteropathy - that's the official name for reacting to the oats, I believe. :-)

And IF you have this, I'm afraid things just got much more complicated, at least if you are in the USA. Unless a food is certified gluten-free by the CSA, then they do NOT view oats as a problem. Which means that anti-cc practices for gluten-free oats are typically not in place. Many gluten-free products, flours, and mixes are contaminated with gluten-free oats, sadly. Many gluten-free facilities process gluten-free oats in them and so make it not so good for oat sensitive folks.

Bob's red mill and lundberg rice, for example, are often a problem for oat sensitive celiacs, due to processing for the former and oat cover crops for the latter.

My daughter and I suspect that we may be in this category - I haven't tried any gluten-free oats yet because I react so badly to just mild cc that it frankly scares me some - but we can't have most gluten-free mixes and products.

If you're having a lot of trouble still with getting better, this could definitely be an issue.

If, however, you have been doing just fine with no trouble at all, then potential gluten cc might be more the issue, ya know?

shauna

[Roda]

Just piping up as one of that 10-15% who can't have gluten-free oats (best we can tell). If you have an issue with all oats and it wasn't just gluten cc, you might be helped looking up Avenin sensitive enteropathy - that's the official name for reacting to the oats, I believe. :-)

And IF you have this, I'm afraid things just got much more complicated, at least if you are in the USA. Unless a food is certified gluten-free by the CSA, then they do NOT view oats as a problem. Which means that anti-cc practices for gluten-free oats are typically not in place. Many gluten-free products, flours, and mixes are contaminated with gluten-free oats, sadly. Many gluten-free facilities process gluten-free oats in them and so make it not so good for oat sensitive folks.

Bob's red mill and lundberg rice, for example, are often a problem for oat sensitive celiacs, due to processing for the former and oat cover crops for the latter.

If you're having a lot of trouble still with getting better, this could definitely be an issue.

If, however, you have been doing just fine with no trouble at all, then potential gluten cc might be more the issue, ya know?

shauna

I am with Shauna here. I tried gluten free oats (Bob's Red Mill) after I was 7 months gluten free. I reacted so bad to them. I had reflux, severe abdominal pain/gas/bloating, constipation x 5 days and a blistering rash on my nether cheeks. I refused to eat them again. I still used Bob's products on a regular basis after this though. A little after my 1 year gluten free mark, I started having issues again. This time I was having horrible reflux, a pinching/pulling sensation in my RUQ, burning epigastric region and diarrhea. First thing that came to mind was my gallbladder. Had all the tests for it and found it to be functioning suboptimal, but still not a surgical canidate. Had a repeat scope in April of 2010 and found an ulcer and imflammation from esophagus to small intestine but intact villi now. Doc said it was the ulcer causing me so much problems. I did heal it and still was having the other symptoms. In Aug. I went back because I was having sever D and fat in my stool. Doc said I was having a flare up of my celiac and needed to go on steriods. I refused. I did leave with a RX of creon (which helps a lot. I don't take it anymore) and I decided to go back to square one. This is when I realized that the Bob's may be a problem due to oat cc, and I never gave it a thought back when I tried the oats themselves. Jan this year I went to a gluten free bakery in Downtown Disney and ate a few things. I knew ahead of time they used flours from Bob's. That little experiment definately affirmed that I have problems with all of those products due to the oat cc. All my symptoms came back and I had to start taking the creon again just until my symptoms subsided. I don't even give my youngest son any oats, just because it's easier that way. He doesn't like oatmeal, but he does like it in other things but oh well, I just don't want the risk.

[happybfree]

Thanks, my sister used all new materials (she's terrified for me) and even self-cleaned the oven first

So I guess I have Avenin sensitive enteropathy - thanks T.H. for the word, it helped me read up on it more. 10% is really low! Especially for the reaction it gave me!

Roda - your story, together with all my experiences... I'm thinking of just knocking off all processed foods and going on a bare diet... At this point, it seems so much easier!

[padma]

Thanks, my sister used all new materials (she's terrified for me) and even self-cleaned the oven first

So I guess I have Avenin sensitive enteropathy - thanks T.H. for the word, it helped me read up on it more. 10% is really low! Especially for the reaction it gave me!

Roda - your story, together with all my experiences... I'm thinking of just knocking off all processed foods and going on a bare diet... At this point, it seems so much easier!

This has been a helpful thread. I can not tolerate any oats, so have stayed away from them for almost 10 years. Learning there is oat c.c. is so helpful. This year has been a year of setbacks,and lots of confusion. For many years I was symptom free. After getting info from members here I decided to quit eating any gluten-free products for a while. Within 3 days my symptoms were better. Every once in a while I try a product, like Nature's Gate corn flakes. (I really like the taste of them.) I think this is odd. The first time I tried them I was so excited because I didn't have a reaction. The second time, different box, a few months later, and I reacted. So, now I am just cooking well rinsed organic brown rice and whole organic beans, etc. The suggestions here about sorting them and washing them well has helped. I am back to feeling pain free again and my digestion has balanced out.

One tip: I don't tolerate most drugs so have had to try many herbs, etc. to see what might help. The combination that keeps my gut healthy now is acidophilus at night, chlorella 1 tsp. 2 times a day, and about 4 oz. of Xango juice. They all have different properties, and I can't say it will help everyone, but it has worked well for me. 10 yrs. ago I was very, very ill, in and out of the hospital, without a clue what was causing all the digestive problems. Just quitting eating gluten was not enough for me to get totally well. I also had to get allergy tested and quit eating those foods I am allergic to.