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| Do you know how much hidden gluten you're eating daily? The answer might surprise you! |
Do you know how much hidden gluten you're getting when you eat a typical gluten-free diet?
Probably not.
This is one topic that you won't hear the gluten-free community talking about, even though the answer to the question thoroughly legitimizes a lot of the claims that those of us with super sensitivity to gluten often make.
It also explains why we react to what seems like so little gluten.
With a huge chunk of the funding for celiac organizations and individual experts coming from the manufacturers of gluten-free products, the gluten-free community has been totally silent on the latest research to come out about gluten consumption on gluten-free diets.
None of them want to rock the boat, I guess, because the only ones who reported the gluten-free diet study published by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last February (2018) was the media and Tricia Thompson, a registered dietitian that owns the Gluten-Free Watchdog site.
It's no secret that celiac disease patients are consistently exposed to low levels of gluten on a daily basis. Nor, that patients have trouble healing, with many experiencing symptoms for several years after going gluten free.
In general, those who have symptoms that persist are simply told they either haven't given the diet enough time to work or they have additional food sensitivities.
Given the results for the latest study, neither one is probably true -- except in rare instances.
It's also agreed upon that a gluten-free diet is difficult to maintain because fermented and hydrolyzed foods can't be measured accurately, so the research scientists are now saying that just being as gluten free as you can might not be enough.
Low levels of constant exposure to gluten can lead to anemia, malnutrition, and even lymphoma (cancer).
The medical profession is well aware of the problems, so the meta-analysis conducted by Jack A. Syage and colleagues took a close look at how much gluten is accidentally eaten by the average, yet well-cared for, celiac.
Needless to say, the results were quite shocking!
Even to me.
Data was pulled from some of the best celiac centers across the United States and abroad.
These well-cared for patients enabled the research scientists to take a good look at exactly how much residual gluten people eat when they are compliant to going gluten free.
Two types of studies were used:
1) Measurements of gluten in stool and urine for celiac disease and non-celiac populations;
2) Analysis of trials for therapeutic latiglutenase.
The patients used for the data were experiencing moderate to severe reactions, and gluten was being detected in the stool for over 4 days after a gluten challenge. Gluten in urine could be seen for up to half a day.
Results were consistent.
Patients who received a placebo actually had their symptoms improve, which pointed to them consuming significant amounts of gluten before the trial began.
The average exposure to gluten residue was 150 to 400 mg a day!
Stool tests can detect gluten starting at 50 mg of gluten. They showed an average of 100 to 150 mg a day for 4 days, or more. Urine tests are more limited. They can only detect gluten at 500 mg, or more, which is why the urine tests turned negative for everyone after half a day.
The data for latiglutenase showed that patients ingest an average of over 200 mg a day of gluten!
To put this into perspective:
The FDA upper limit for gluten for those with celiac disease is a maximum of 10 mg a day. Individual servings of gluten-free food must contain less than 20 parts per million.
These measurements are a bit different, as parts per million is a dilution instead of an absolute quantity. However, the guidelines put out by the gluten-free community have quantified 10 mg as being no more than 17 one-ounce servings of gluten-free food that contain up to 20 ppm.
If 10 mg is a whopping 17 servings per day, how are people getting 100 to 400 mg, or more?
The Fasano study that was used to make the FDA determination of 10 mg being the upper safe limit for "most" celiacs showed that at 50 mg a day, almost everyone (including those NOT super sensitive to gluten) sustain damage to the villi.
Yet, these research results are showing that the average celiac on a typical gluten-free diet of up to 20 ppm is actually getting 100 to 200 mg a day, and sometimes more!
Keep in mind that the 100 to 200 mg is just an average. The statistics get worse.
The data showed that 3 to 19 percent of celiac patients on a gluten free diet are consuming over 600 mg of gluten a day!
This means that between 3 and 19 patients out of every 100 celiacs on a gluten-free diet are ingesting over 600 mg of gluten a day!
How is that possible?
Across the studies, the researchers also learned that 30 to 40 percent of the celiac population on a gluten-free diet are still experiencing moderate to severe symptoms!
And 30 to 50 percent continue to have intestinal mucosal atrophy!
Patients do heal, eventually, if monitored closely.
You don't need daily exposure to gluten to trigger atrophy.
Even occasional exposures at very low levels of gluten can prevent the villi from healing.
However, these individuals believed they were following a gluten-free diet, so what do the results say about how gluten-free foods are tested?
If products are really coming in at at 19 ppm, or less, (up to 20 ppm of gluten is the law now) then where is the rest of the gluten in the diet coming from?
People in the gluten-free community tend to trust products that don't have a "may contain . . ." statement, as well as products that don't say they are made in a facility that also processes foods with gluten.
These types of labels are voluntary, so just because they're missing doesn't mean the product is free of gluten.
Even though this was a meta-analysis, the researchers were quick to point out that a real study is already underway to directly measure the gluten that people on gluten-free diets are consuming.
For super-sensitive celiacs, this is actually good news because it means that the gluten-free community will have to stop living with their heads in the sand and eventually admit that a standard gluten-free diet that allows up to 20 ppm of gluten is not safe, even for them.
With a huge chunk of the funding for celiac organizations and individual experts coming from the manufacturers of gluten-free products, the gluten-free community has been totally silent on the latest research to come out about gluten consumption on gluten-free diets.
None of them want to rock the boat, I guess, because the only ones who reported the gluten-free diet study published by The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last February (2018) was the media and Tricia Thompson, a registered dietitian that owns the Gluten-Free Watchdog site.
It's no secret that celiac disease patients are consistently exposed to low levels of gluten on a daily basis. Nor, that patients have trouble healing, with many experiencing symptoms for several years after going gluten free.
In general, those who have symptoms that persist are simply told they either haven't given the diet enough time to work or they have additional food sensitivities.
Given the results for the latest study, neither one is probably true -- except in rare instances.
It's also agreed upon that a gluten-free diet is difficult to maintain because fermented and hydrolyzed foods can't be measured accurately, so the research scientists are now saying that just being as gluten free as you can might not be enough.
Low levels of constant exposure to gluten can lead to anemia, malnutrition, and even lymphoma (cancer).
The medical profession is well aware of the problems, so the meta-analysis conducted by Jack A. Syage and colleagues took a close look at how much gluten is accidentally eaten by the average, yet well-cared for, celiac.
Needless to say, the results were quite shocking!
Even to me.
How Gluten in the Diet was Tested
Data was pulled from some of the best celiac centers across the United States and abroad.
These well-cared for patients enabled the research scientists to take a good look at exactly how much residual gluten people eat when they are compliant to going gluten free.
Two types of studies were used:
1) Measurements of gluten in stool and urine for celiac disease and non-celiac populations;
2) Analysis of trials for therapeutic latiglutenase.
Results were consistent.
Patients who received a placebo actually had their symptoms improve, which pointed to them consuming significant amounts of gluten before the trial began.
Meta-Data Analysis Results
The average exposure to gluten residue was 150 to 400 mg a day!
Stool tests can detect gluten starting at 50 mg of gluten. They showed an average of 100 to 150 mg a day for 4 days, or more. Urine tests are more limited. They can only detect gluten at 500 mg, or more, which is why the urine tests turned negative for everyone after half a day.
The data for latiglutenase showed that patients ingest an average of over 200 mg a day of gluten!
To put this into perspective:
The FDA upper limit for gluten for those with celiac disease is a maximum of 10 mg a day. Individual servings of gluten-free food must contain less than 20 parts per million.
These measurements are a bit different, as parts per million is a dilution instead of an absolute quantity. However, the guidelines put out by the gluten-free community have quantified 10 mg as being no more than 17 one-ounce servings of gluten-free food that contain up to 20 ppm.
If 10 mg is a whopping 17 servings per day, how are people getting 100 to 400 mg, or more?
The Fasano study that was used to make the FDA determination of 10 mg being the upper safe limit for "most" celiacs showed that at 50 mg a day, almost everyone (including those NOT super sensitive to gluten) sustain damage to the villi.
Yet, these research results are showing that the average celiac on a typical gluten-free diet of up to 20 ppm is actually getting 100 to 200 mg a day, and sometimes more!
Keep in mind that the 100 to 200 mg is just an average. The statistics get worse.
The data showed that 3 to 19 percent of celiac patients on a gluten free diet are consuming over 600 mg of gluten a day!
This means that between 3 and 19 patients out of every 100 celiacs on a gluten-free diet are ingesting over 600 mg of gluten a day!
How is that possible?
Across the studies, the researchers also learned that 30 to 40 percent of the celiac population on a gluten-free diet are still experiencing moderate to severe symptoms!
And 30 to 50 percent continue to have intestinal mucosal atrophy!
Patients do heal, eventually, if monitored closely.
Potential for Cross Contamination on a Gluten-Free Diet is HUGE!
You don't need daily exposure to gluten to trigger atrophy.
Even occasional exposures at very low levels of gluten can prevent the villi from healing.
However, these individuals believed they were following a gluten-free diet, so what do the results say about how gluten-free foods are tested?
If products are really coming in at at 19 ppm, or less, (up to 20 ppm of gluten is the law now) then where is the rest of the gluten in the diet coming from?
- Naturally gluten-free foods?
- Gluten-free grains?
- Beans?
- Dairy products?
- Store brands?
- Condiments?
- Buying from bulk bins?
- Food people assume is gluten free, but isn't?
- Contaminated kitchen?
- Contaminated barbecue grills?
- Sharing a home with people who eat gluten?
- Gluten contamination at the grocery store?
- Air-borne flour and pasta steam?
- eating out or eating at social gatherings?
- contamination at the workplace?
People in the gluten-free community tend to trust products that don't have a "may contain . . ." statement, as well as products that don't say they are made in a facility that also processes foods with gluten.
These types of labels are voluntary, so just because they're missing doesn't mean the product is free of gluten.
Even though this was a meta-analysis, the researchers were quick to point out that a real study is already underway to directly measure the gluten that people on gluten-free diets are consuming.
For super-sensitive celiacs, this is actually good news because it means that the gluten-free community will have to stop living with their heads in the sand and eventually admit that a standard gluten-free diet that allows up to 20 ppm of gluten is not safe, even for them.
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