Why Gluten Free Toiletries?

[flowerqueen]

Why do you recommend gluten free toiletries as well as food? I can understand why you would not want to use lipstick or lip balm with gluten in, that's pretty obvious, but skin creams etc.? In UK no-one seems to think it's necessary.

[kareng]

For me, I like to have anything that could get in my mouth or on my food gluten-free. So, shampoo can get in your mouth in the shower and often gets on your lips, too. Lotion that sticks on your fingers might get on your food. Things you spray like bug repellant or hair spray, fly in the air and get on your lips. I think we have all tasted hair spray on our lips. I don't worry about mascara and eye shadow. I have found, here in the US, that there really aren't alot of makeups with gluten.

[Salax]

Pretty much what Karen said. Especially with hands. You might find that you lick frosting or something off your hands but you had just put on lotion that has gluten in it..and blam: a glutening can happen at that point. Several folks have mentioned accidentally getting shampoo in their mouths in the shower...it happens and can cause a glutening. Chapsticks and lipsticks are huge like you said. But I think it depends too how sensitive you are and if your careful...I mean stuff happens but I don't use a gluten free shampoo and I think maybe once in my life I have gotten shampoo in my mouth...Ewww. And never had an issue.

It's a comfort level thing I think so go with your instincts on that.

[flowerqueen]

For me, I like to have anything that could get in my mouth or on my food gluten-free. So, shampoo can get in your mouth in the shower and often gets on your lips, too. Lotion that sticks on your fingers might get on your food. Things you spray like bug repellant or hair spray, fly in the air and get on your lips. I think we have all tasted hair spray on our lips. I don't worry about mascara and eye shadow. I have found, here in the US, that there really aren't alot of makeups with gluten.

That's a good point, one I'd not considered. I will have to rethink what products I use. Unfortunately there's not a lot of gluten free products in the UK, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack!

Thanks for advice.

[kareng]

My shampoo, etc doesn't say gluten-free on it. It doesn't list anything like wheat germ oil. Might not be too hard to find. I hope....

[flowerqueen]

I guess I'd not thought about putting fingers in my mouth, but we all do it sometimes. There's a lot more to think about than I realised. I'd considered the lip balm, lipstick thing and toothpaste and changed accordingly. I only asked, as some of my symptoms have returned and I knew my food was all gluten free. So maybe this is where the problem lies?

Thank you!

Pretty much what Karen said. Especially with hands. You might find that you lick frosting or something off your hands but you had just put on lotion that has gluten in it..and blam: a glutening can happen at that point. Several folks have mentioned accidentally getting shampoo in their mouths in the shower...it happens and can cause a glutening. Chapsticks and lipsticks are huge like you said. But I think it depends too how sensitive you are and if your careful...I mean stuff happens but I don't use a gluten free shampoo and I think maybe once in my life I have gotten shampoo in my mouth...Ewww. And never had an issue.

It's a comfort level thing I think so go with your instincts on that.

[flowerqueen]

With moisturisers, it's quite difficult to find one without vitamin E or wheat germ in. I also won't use products tested on animals which makes it even more difficult, as most cruelty free products seem to use natural ingredients like vitamin E.

My shampoo, etc doesn't say gluten-free on it. It doesn't list anything like wheat germ oil. Might not be too hard to find. I hope....

[kareng]

With moisturisers, it's quite difficult to find one without vitamin E or wheat germ in. I also won't use products tested on animals which makes it even more difficult, as most cruelty free products seem to use natural ingredients like vitamin E.

Can you call or email the company and find out what the vit E comes from?

[flowerqueen]

In some instances it's possible, but in others it's much more difficult in getting hold of people to look into it. Some sat they'll ring me back when they've looked it up but quite often they don't get back in touch.

Can you call or email the company and find out what the vit E comes from?

[NJceliac]

Why do you recommend gluten free toiletries as well as food? I can understand why you would not want to use lipstick or lip balm with gluten in, that's pretty obvious, but skin creams etc.? In UK no-one seems to think it's necessary.

When I first went gluten free after my diagnosis I was also instructed to only worry about lipstick/lipbalm. I loved my hair products, they all had gluten and I really didn't want to switch (except I did make sure my hairspray was gluten free since i felt that probably did land on my lips at times). However, 6 months later and no budge of my antibodies. I became very strict --never eating food with my hands except directly after washing them. I also felt I never touched my hair so no real risk of cross contamination. However, I starred realizing how often I touch my hair and I felt it was better at that point to get strict with the hair products and hand cream. Don't forget toothpaste/mouthwash. It is one less source of cross contamination.

[sallyalewis]

Being gluten intolerant, and become sick in several different ways when glutened, I'm not willing to chance a rash, joint pain, headache from lotions/shampoo, or absorption via tp.

[flowerqueen]

I'm having a hard time finding lip products that are gluten free, and I have to rely on postal service to get them as they are not readily available in the UK shops. I get looked at like I've grown another head when I dare to ask sales assistants about gluten in lipstick. I have gluten free toothpaste as that is more obvious. I think I need to become more strict with face creams and hand creams etc., as some of my symptoms have returned and I know I'm being careful with food.

Of course, there'll always be someone who thinks I'm being too fussy, but it's me that's having to 'live it' on a day to day basis. I just want to be well.

When I first went gluten free after my diagnosis I was also instructed to only worry about lipstick/lipbalm. I loved my hair products, they all had gluten and I really didn't want to switch (except I did make sure my hairspray was gluten free since i felt that probably did land on my lips at times). However, 6 months later and no budge of my antibodies. I became very strict --never eating food with my hands except directly after washing them. I also felt I never touched my hair so no real risk of cross contamination. However, I starred realizing how often I touch my hair and I felt it was better at that point to get strict with the hair products and hand cream. Don't forget toothpaste/mouthwash. It is one less source of cross contamination.

[flowerqueen]

Quite right too! I just didn't realise that you could get sick even if you hadn't ingested gluten. In the UK they don't give this advice, they only tell us not to eat food with gluten in. Although, I think recently, they have moved their opinion slightly on lipstick and lip balm, so perhaps they will do more research?

Being gluten intolerant, and become sick in several different ways when glutened, I'm not willing to chance a rash, joint pain, headache from lotions/shampoo, or absorption via tp.

[NJceliac]

I'm having a hard time finding lip products that are gluten free, and I have to rely on postal service to get them as they are not readily available in the UK shops. I get looked at like I've grown another head when I dare to ask sales assistants about gluten in lipstick. I have gluten free toothpaste as that is more obvious. I think I need to become more strict with face creams and hand creams etc., as some of my symptoms have returned and I know I'm being careful with food.

Of course, there'll always be someone who thinks I'm being too fussy, but it's me that's having to 'live it' on a day to day basis. I just want to be well.

Sales assistants in US at most stores do not know which lipsticks are gluten free. It really requires an email to the company and you have to specify a color. So for some of my old lipstick that I loved I sent an email to the company. For any new lipsticks I stick with lines that are gluten free. Even one makeup line that is completely gluten free called NARS, the sales associate at the counter in a very high end department store didn't know there products were all gluten free.

In answering another post you wrote that you didn't realize you could get sick from gluten on your skin. Please let me be clear that the experts in the US agree you can only get sick through ingesting gluten. Please keep in mind if you use a hand cream with gluten as an ingredient then you will most likely ingest some of this unless you never touch your food. It is not that the gluten is touching the skin.