Did you know that foods can contain up to 2% gluten and still be stamped Gluten Free?
For some 2% is nothing.
It’s a pad of butter for the vegan.
A tablespoon of milk for the dairy-free individual.
A bite of steak for a vegetarian.
For one with Celiac Disease, 2% is the difference between feeling great and ending up in the hospital with Leaky Gut Syndrome or worse. LGS sounds pretty serious and is no joke.
A gluten free diet is difficult to maintain no matter how disciplined the individual.
On average most people, once diagnosed with Celiac or gluten intolerance, last less than five years – on a 100% gluten free diet.
Slowly a touch of gluten enters the diet here and there. Dining out. Dinner with friends. A slice birthday cake during a celebration. And then a bit more until once again symptoms return and gluten becomes a health problem.
And symptoms come fast for those with gluten intolerance.
Gluten has been linked to miscarriages and fertility issues in women.
Nutritional deficiencies and intestinal symptoms in both children and adults.
Gluten can cause mild weakness, bone pain, abdominal bloating, and weight loss.
In some cases, studies have shown that a person who has a gluten disorder or Celiac Disease increases their changes of gastrointestinal cancer by 40 to 100 times someone able to digest gluten.
Those odds are not good for the gluten intolerant.
Neither are the gastrointestinal carcinoma or lymphoma which has been shown to develop in up to 15 percent of people who go untreated or who ignore their Celiac Disease diagnosis.
So to go untreated and to continue to consume gluten is like playing Russian Roulette with one’s health. With one’s very life.
Yet gluten is allow into our “gluten free” foods because just a touch is deemed “safe”.
I mean really, how concerned are you with that 2%?
That 2% shouldn’t matter to a pregnant woman with Celiac Disease, right?
And if that tiny percentage of gluten increases your risk of life threatening diseases, well it’s not that big a deal, right?
Otherwise they never would have allowed 2% of something that can make you sick to be present in your foods without alerting you clearly through labels, warnings and a big neon sign!
So why are food labels, which are meant to inform us and keep us safe, able to ignore this potentially dangerous oversight?
Why is that 2% allowed to even be a possibility in a product labeled as free from gluten?
Products made in the same location where peanuts and other nuts must be clearly marked.
A drop of dairy is not considered acceptable in lactose-free milk.
Isn’t it about time gluten-free got a little of the same respect so that those who need to steer clear of it could safely eat without endangering their very life?
If you feel strongly about this issue or have something to say please leave a comment and help us create a possibility for healthy, life-saving change.
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Sign in nowI agree! It is time that labeling is more strict when it comes to gluten. I have Celiac Disease so it is imperative for me.
This is why i was sick the other day when I add something new that was #gluten free to my diet.
HI Julia, Did it turn out to be that hidden 2% do you think? So sorry you got sick. I hate to say this happens to so many of us all the time. ~ J.
Hi Michelle, Thanks for your vote! It’s so important and I’m glad you’re on the site supporting Gluten-Free needs for yourself and others. ~ J.
Great article! People should write more about this topic. Too many times people get sick because of too much superficiality. Even in the restaurants, I have gotten sick too many times because of that!
I never realized that 2% is the “passing grade.” I can see how the conveyer belt dusted with wheat starch can fall into the gluten free grade. I does seem like there needs to be some better legislation on the 2% rule..but how do we make that happen?
Good point about peanut and milk allergy regulations and food labeling.
I totally agree! I could never understand why sometimes I got sick after eating! This actually makes me upset because it does put a damper on your daily life. I hope they make it more strict for our safety!!!!
My mother is 83 years old and has had celiac deasese for about 4 years. She does real well now with her diet, but she knows what it is like to be deathly sick when eating something with gluten. I agree the food needs to be better labeled.
that explains alot!!!!! That’s why it’s almost impossible for someone else to cook ofr you. People with good intention go out and buy “gluten free” items and they still make me sick!
This is one more example of the FDA’s greed.
Hi Sonia, I’d like to think the FDA is there to protect us.
When we speak loud enough they do. ~J.
Brenda, I’m so glad you mother is doing well on her gluten-free eating. It’s so important and once one has experienced that “deadly sick” from gluten that you mentioned, it’s so much easier to stay away from. ~J.
Hi Tim, Yes and there are varying studies that show 2% to .2% to .02%. But the difference between those percents are huge. We need to talk about it, be mindful of products that say “gluten-free” and yet make us sick. We need to be highly educated on those big words that often contain trace amounts of gluten… ~J.
Hi Laura, I too have gotten sick by eating out. It’s amazing how all it takes is a very small amount. Much like sugar, gluten can hide easily in sauces and soups without us being aware. ~J.