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Safety Of Xanthan Gum?

MerrillC1977

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MerrillC1977 Apprentice
MerrillC1977
Posted

I have been reading a lot about Xanthan Gum lately, because well....it seems to need to go into most gluten-free baked goods. My research tells me that xanthan gum can be used as a laxative, as a cholesterol lowering agent and as a blood sugar lowering agent.

See:

Open Original Shared Link

and

Open Original Shared Link

Last night, for example, I made a chicken pot pie - there was 2 teaspoons (6 grams) of xanthan gum in the crust....The pie was cut into 6 servings, so we each ate about 1 gram of XG last night. There's 2/3 of a gram of XG in 2 slices of my gluten-free bread. Some things I bake don't contain XG at all and so are fine.

But I am worried that we are eating too much of it, being that one of these links above says the safe limit is 10mg/kg per day. At my weight, my daily limit would be 3/4 of a gram.....meaning I had too much last night and 2 slices of bread on any given day would put me very near the limit.

Thoughts?

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mamaw Community Regular
mamaw
Posted

I have used xanthan gum for over ten years . Some who have corn issues could have problems.. If you are worried you are consuming to much switch to Guar Gum....

auzzi Newbie
auzzi
Posted

Xanthan gum is widely used, not just in gluten-free products, but in medications, cosmetics & toiletries, as well as ordinary foods like sauces, dressings, icecream etc. It is also a primary thickener, emulsifier and binder in most low-fat/no-fat dairy products ..

Xanthan gum is polysacharide or complex carbohydrate. It is made up of glucose, mannose [a type of glucose] and glucuronic acid[derived from glucose].

* Glucose is a primary source of energy in the body.

* Mannose, although it is also a type of glucose, is not metabolized in the body, and passes straight through..,

* Glucuronic acid binds with "foreign" substances in the body, making them water-soluble which allows the body to eliminate them through the urine or faeces.

Reading those articles, the words to notice are the number of times "might" is used: and "possibly" .. It's not terribly scientific or informative.

I think about my DN: she's diabetic coeliac .. and has been for 20-odd years .. Xanthan gum has not any effect on her insulin intake ...

If you want to read: try this Open Original Shared Link

The WHO study was focused on weight-loss, so the amount was predetermined, and they didn't go any higher ...

MerrillC1977 Apprentice
MerrillC1977
Posted
  • Author

I have used xanthan gum for over ten years . Some who have corn issues could have problems.. If you are worried you are consuming to much switch to Guar Gum....

Guar Gum is even worse, imo.

fantasticalice Explorer
fantasticalice
Posted

This is from Blackbird Backery by Karen Morgan, one of the newer gluten-free cookbooks:

Guar Gum is made from the guar bean. Water-soluble fiber, recommended for overall intestinal health.

It has very little odor, I perfer it to the more pungent-smelling xanthum which is fermented corn.

MerrillC1977 Apprentice
MerrillC1977
Posted
  • Author

Guar Gum has a high incidence of laxative effects.

larry mac Enthusiast
larry mac
Posted

The only safety issue I have is "does it contain wheat, barley, or rye gluten"? If not, it's good to go.

I've been safely eating it (and guar gum) for 5 years.

best regards, lm

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