Can Gluten Go Directly To The Bloodstream Through Cuts Etc?

[123glldd]

Lately I've been using the product "After bite" because of bad mosquito bites i received about a week ago...i've been wearing jeans ever since so i don't think i'm accidentally touching it and then my mouth...I keep forgetting to call the company to find out if there is gluten in this product....i do have breaks in my skin from intense scratching of the bites and i'm wondering...can gluten get into the blood stream and cause the autoimmune reaction? I have not been feeling well since the trip i got bitten up on and i'm very curious about this because i started using it practically right away. I had also tried a badger balm stick to keep the mosquitoes away but alas it didn't work. Not sure if that if gluten free for sure either but i heard someone on here had said that so i tried it...i wasn't very well prepared for this trip =\ I've heard cutters is gluten free and picked some of that up but need to call them to confirm as well. But anyhow....can you get glutened from it entering into your bloodstream via an open wound?

[Takala]

Uhm, unlikely. Gluten interacts with your intestines.

Greetings from MosquitoLand, where we have a lot of West Nile problems.

Some people are sensitive to DEET. Do not ever mix "DEET" with sprays containing pyrethins (such as used in horse fly- spray repellants) as the effect is synergistic (multiplied) and you end up with something that can be neurotoxic. This was one of the chemical reactions suspected in "Gulf War Syndrome" when soldiers were using a lot of both kinds of insect repellents/killers on themselves and on bedding and clothing.

By coincidence I was just in the store the other day and saw that the commercial repellants like Cutter are now selling herbal mixtures, as well as the traditional DEET. Herbals can be just as effective at repelling mosquitoes in some situations- I discovered this by using an herbal spray on one of my horses who is allergic to the stronger chemical kind of horse flyspray. (also have the opposite- horses who are allergic to the herbals.... and a lot of horse flysprays also use scents which he reacts to ) The herbal horse spray stuff smelled wonderful, wasn't toxic, and was just some different kinds of essential oils and water, so I tried using it on my self, and I didn't react and it kept the mosquitoes off. I ended up going to the health-food store and getting the different "flavors" of essential oils, the same ones, and mixing up my own mosquito sprays.

This is when I discovered that I needed to be careful of what I put in it, because one of the herbal oils which repels mosquitoes well, eucalyptus.... attracts honeybees. California honeybees really like eucalyptus. They like mint, too. Imagine dousing yourself and equine in Eau du Springtime in the Foothills with mint and euky, and then riding off into the pastures (the first time you've ridden that horse out in the pasture, btw) and every bee in the area is checking you out for pollen and literally bouncing off of you.

I noticed the new Cutter herbal is made of essential oil of Eucalyptus. I laughed. ( I live in a rural area, and I try to attract bees for pollination, but not like that.) So you might want to keep that in mind if using it in a bee area.

What does work is putting a few drops each of oil of citronella, tea tree, cloves, lavender (again, "bee careful" with lavender ) and mint oil, if you want it, and eucalyptus, if you're not in CA, into a spray bottle of water, for mosquito repellant. You can also use oil of grapefruit. I also put in a little bit of some alcohol product (mouthwash works) to help the oils dissolve.

If you don't want to carry around a spray bottle, you can pack a small bottle of essential oil of citronella, tea tree, lavender, or lavender/tea tree oil blend, and some cotton balls with you. What kind depends on what your type of mosquitoes finds distasteful. Citronella is traditional, but tea tree seems pretty effective, and tea tree/lavender is good. I keep this in the car(s) in a little secure bottle or jar. All you have to do then, is wet the cotton, apply a drop or two of oil, and then rub the dilution on your skin.

If you have already gotten bitten, badly, the best thing to do is take a Claritin type antihistamine to knock down the reaction, then slather the area with Caladryl, which is this most wonderful concoction of calamine lotion AND liquid Benedryl in one bottle. The one-two whammy of oral and topical antihistamine usually gets this itch killed pretty quick. You would want to wash and dry the area carefully, first, to make sure that it does not get infected. You can also try applying that green aloe gel with lidocaine, but the Caladryl lotion is the one which will work the best.

edited to fix spelling.

[ravenwoodglass]

I am not sure. Gluten only has to cross a mucuous membrane and enter the bloodstream to start the antibody reaction. In some countries they use a rectal gluten suppository and then biopsy the area to look for the antibodies. That prevents people from having to make themselves ill with a challenge as the antibodies can be found in the membranes a couple hours later. Would gluten enter the bloodstream through open sores I just don't know for sure. Celiac is an autoimmune reaction not just a GI disease. It is in our bloodstream that the antibodies are produced which then attack many organs which is why I am not certain that it wouldn't be an issue.

If you have worries about the anti-itch stuff you are using maybe go with ice packs and see if that helps while you check with the company.

There are so many ways to get CC'd that you could have gotten glutened in any number of ways.

Hope you stop itching soon.

[CeliacMom2008]

Gluten absolutely cannot enter your bloodstream through cuts. You MUST ingest it through your digestive system. The only harm would be through touching the cream and then getting it in your mouth, and in my personal opinion, you would have to be eating a lot of it unless it contained a very large amount of gluten (say a paste made from wheat flour and water).

[IrishHeart]

for what it is worth, I use After bite. We live in bugsville. There is no gluten in it as far as I know.

If you are itching, it is likely the bites or you may be sensitive to the chemicals in the products.

Celiac Disease is not an allergy and injecting gluten into the blood stream will not have the effect that gluten has on the digestive system. You need to swallow it. (food or inhaled, ingested down into the throat)

I have searched and searched to find this answer --about it possibly entering the bloodstream---and no one can say for sure and there is no research on it anywhere.

But if someone finds it, please tell us!!

I am thinking if it were a major health concern, the celiac research centers would tell the celiac community.

[kareng]

Here are the emails I recieved in May of this year

i like my repellent to be gluten-free, not because I'm worried that the tiny amount of wheat germ oil will go thru my skin, but because I don't want to swallow it. Seems lke when you spray, it goes everywhere or the rub on stays on your hands.

[123glldd]

Thanks everyone..tried Badger Balm and it didn't work. Tried Repel when I read the thread that was just posted to me...but it said to not apply to face so i didn't..mosquitoes went for my face *sigh* I dunno what to do anymore. We also have Cutters to try out. Haven't really wanted to experiment lately as I already have well over 20-30 bites on my body that need to heal. For the most part though...i'm not itching now. I just cannot relax since that trip and have been feeling sick on and off. I am having a hard time in the car especially.

I would love it if herbal stuff worked but alas....i am always seeing bees around and the other thing that worries me about herbal is sometimes we Live Action Roleplay here locally..there are black bears locally...are herbal repellents going to be like leaving a sandwich out to a bear and will it come after me then? lol

[kareng]

A lot of the Natural ones are citronella. i dont think that would attract bears. some are also made of chrysanthemums.