Jess

Hello, and welcome to the forum!

I am originally from Germany myself (Cologne area). Labeling in the US is indeed a bit more tricky than in Germany, but especially the big companies are pretty good about listing gluten ingredients and not just wheat.

I guess, if you have any questions about a specific product or group of products (e.g. cereals), you can write me a message, and I'll try to help.

I'm originally from Germany, and I can tell you that you won't have anything to worry about. You should be able to find gluten free products in most regular supermarkets (e.g. two common brands are Schaer and Glutano), and for sure at organic stores such as the Reformhaus chain, Alnatura, and DM (which is Budni in Hamburg).

I've been having both the plain and the honey Kix for a while, since they don't list any gluten ingredients on the package. I have to admit that I am not the most sensitive celiac, but I have never had a reaction to either of the two Kix.

Hello.

I already contacted Willy Street Co-op about this via e-mail, but I also wanted to get some feedback from some of the Madison members here.

Does anyone have any experience with buying products, such as grains (buckwheat, millet, etc.), legumes, nuts, and naturally gluten free flours from the Willy Street Co-op, and if so, do you happen to know, if they are considered safe for celiacs? I really like the prices that the co-op has on its website, but I am concerned about cross-contamination.

Thanks in advance.

Hi.

After looking at all sorts of lentils, organic and non-organic, I've pretty much given up on finding gluten-free lentils. With some brands, it is so obvious, that I was literally able to spot whole grains of wheat. I read that lentils are pretty much bound to always be cross-contaminated, since they are grown together with wheat. Is that true? Are there any non-cross-contaminated, officially safe lentils? Canned once would be okay as well, as long as they don't have too many other ingredients added (tomato paste, broth etc.). I live in Madison, WI, does anyone know any sources for my city?

Thank you so much in advance.

Thank you all for your responses. The next Whole Foods market is a bit further away, but if I ever happen to be in the same part of town, I will definitely have a look at their lentils. I'll also see if I can find the Best Choice lentils.

I am not sure where you have gotten your information but lentils, on their own, are gluten free and there has never been any issue with cross contamination.

I include lentils quite often in my diet and never, ever have had any troubles with them. I am as sensitive a Celiac as they come and if there were a problem with lentils, I would be hospitalized by now. Oats have a problem with CC but not lentils.

Maybe I just picked the wrong brands. As I already wrote, all the packages that I looked at clearly stated that there was a chance of cross-contamination and the one package that I bought, just to "give it a try" clearly had wheat kernels in it. Until I actually saw with my very own eyes how obvious the contamination was, at least with that one brand, I was hoping that cross-contamination of lentils was only an issue in Germany.

Here are two links that deal with the same issue:

Open Original Shared Link

Since your lentils seem to be safe, what brands do you buy?

I found a post here that recommends Rancho Gordo. They are supposed to grow only beans. I haven't tried them yet.

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any lentils on their website. It would also be more convenient, if I could get them at a physical store, although chances for that being the case seem pretty low.

Still, thanks a lot.

Hi.

After looking at all sorts of lentils, organic and non-organic, I've pretty much given up on finding gluten-free lentils. With some brands, it is so obvious, that I was literally able to spot whole grains of wheat. I read that lentils are pretty much bound to always be cross-contaminated, since they are grown together with wheat. Is that true? Are there any non-cross-contaminated, officially safe lentils? Canned once would be okay as well, as long as they don't have too many other ingredients added (tomato paste, broth etc.). I live in Madison, WI, does anyone know any sources for my city?

Thank you so much in advance.

I'm from Germany and I have found it very easy to live gluten free over there. You can get a lot of products at the Reformhaus, but a lot of big supermarket are carrying gluten free products as well. It seems like the most widely available brands are Schaer (my favorite!!! they even have orange soft cakes and all sorts of other yummy stuff) and DS (they also have lots of frozen foods). Check out their websites:

Open Original Shared Link (just click on the images)

Open Original Shared Link (just click on the product categories in the white box on the left)

There are other brands as well, but spontaneously, I only remembered those two.

Once you know the ingredients that you can eat and which you have to stay away from, the labeling is very good, maybe even better than in the US. Just ask if you encounter any problems.

Does anyone have any other brand or store suggestions for gluten free lentils? I noticed that the packages we have at home and all the ones we saw at the store had a note saying that the product may contain other grains (or something along those lines). Even the red Bob's Red Mill lentils appear to be processed in the same facility as other grains. I'd really appreciate if any of you knew any safe brands.

Has anyone had any experience with the Sa-Bai Thong in Madison, WI? Before calling them, I just wanted know your opinions, since a lot of places claim to know about our condition when contacted, and turn out to be clueless.

Thank you, Judyin Philly. I'm sure this information will be helpful if someone needs help again. The person that I was posting for already found someone in Colorado though.

Thanks again to all of you for your help!

Thank you so much for your help. I am going to "hand the information over" to the person. I'll also try to find out were the person is going to stay, so that I can find out, if your, Judyin Philly, East coast contact might be useful. Again, thank you so much for your help.

This is not the first time it happens that one of my posts receives many views, but no one is posting a response.

I could understand if none of the people here knew where one could find information for exchange students, but I think answering my question about an official celiac magazine shouldn't be difficult. I did some research of my own, but I am pretty sure that due to the fact that I am not an official member of the US celiac disease organization, this might be something that I wouldn't have access to. I don't want to be rude or anything. I just feel bad trying to help people from the other forum, without even getting a simple "Yes", "No", or even "I don't know".

Thank you.

Hello.

Someone from the German celiac forum was asking me whether there was something like a magazine for celiacs that she could place an ad in, as she is looking for a host family for her high school year in the US.

Thanks in advance.

I just read in a German forum that there is supposed to be a World Celiac Disease Day. I figure, it would be on the same day as in Germany (May 16th, 2009), but does anyone know where it's going to take place in the US?

Thanks in advance.

Thanks to everyone that posted. I guess I'll have to try and see what works best for me.

Is there any way that you can still have brain fog although you're on a gluten free diet? I'm pretty sure I have brain fog symptoms and it really bothers me, but I've been on a gluten free diet since the diagnosis 22 years ago. The only reason why I know that there's something wrong with me is because it's not always like that and there were times when it was very rare that I was in this state.

Someone from the German celiac disease forum is going to New York City soon and would like to know, if there are any restaurants that have gluten-free AND lactose free dishes.

Thanks a lot.

Sorry, problem solved. Someone else already responded to the person.

Someone from the German celiac disease forum is going to New York City soon and would like to know, if there are any restaurants that have gluten-free AND lactose free dishes.

Thanks a lot.

I agree. I like Butterfinger, but I don't have it too often. I was just curious. Isn't it also genetically modified? At least that's what I read when I heard about it the first time.

The only reason why I care is because I love chocolate and I haven't found any other decent chocolate here yet. I also think that Lindt is still pretty high quality in comparison to most chocolate (especially here. Hershey's is extremely cheap.). I don't know if Lindt is to be trusted, but in the end I'm not sure whether there is any food company that you can trust. I just want chocolate and I don't care how "unwholesome" it is. It tastes good and it's way better thank food like fries or burgers. I already pay a lot of attention to what I eat and the nutritional value of the food and I think a little treat every once in a while doesn't hurt...

I contacted Lindt Germany again, since I noticed that in Germany it always says "barley malt extract" (gluten-free) while here it says "barley malt" although the chocolate is made in Germany. They told me that the "barley malt" on the US chocolate is the equivalent to the German "barley malt extract"... Really confusing. I wonder if it's a translation mistake. Anyway, the most important thing is that I am able to have most Lindt chocolate now after all.

I know. I would never rely on Wikipedia for something like that, but I was surprised, that that information came from a link to a "Celiac Disease On-Line Support Group". I'm just asking you guys to make sure since I can't rely on my stomach (I don't feel anything when I eat tiny amounts of gluten by accident) and some probably outdated information alone...

Hi. I just read the Wikipedia article on "Gluten-free diet" and it said that Pamela's cookies are cross-contaminated. They also give a link but the information seems to be from 2002. I really hope that it's outdated since I love Pamela's cookies. Does anyone know what this is about and whether they are safe again?