It’s Hard to imagine there’s Gluten in that!
There may be gluten in:
Flavored Potato chips
Tea Blends: May contain barley malt
Veggie Burgers and dogs
Caramel Color: Found in many items, cola drinks etc.
Pickles. “The problem with pickles is beer. Some pickling processes include malt vinegar (a beer-like liquid), which may contain gluten.
Bouillon cubes. This seemingly harmless soup base can be a gluten landmine. As with many packaged spice combinations, you’ll find it in some bouillon cube brands. The ingredient to avoid is maltodextrin.
Gravy. Homemade gravies made with flour are obvious sources of gluten, but so are many instant gravy packets, making this cooking convenience not so helpful after all. At home, you can use cornstarch as a thickener.
Bleu cheese. There are conflicting messages about these blue-veined cheeses. Bread mold may be used to make them, but any potential gluten they contain is a miniscule amount, below the 20 parts per million considered the FDA uses as a cut-off for “gluten free” labeling.
Hot dogs. Yes, your favorite ballpark snack could be hiding gluten. Read package labels to find a variety without it.
Soy sauce. Wheat is perhaps the last thing you associate with salty soy sauce, but it is a key part of the manufacturing process, making the condiment problematic for people with celiac disease and gluten insensitivity. Try gluten-free tamari instead.
Frozen veggies in sauce. What could be easier than popping a bag of frozen vegetables into the microwave and getting back a hot, tasty side dish? Check the ingredients first — many of the sauces contain gluten products or soy sauce. Look for unadulterated frozen vegetables when shopping.
Hot chocolate. There’s something so comforting about a warm cup of hot cocoa on a cold day — if you’ve made it yourself from scratch with cocoa, sweetener, and milk. Beware of handy prepackaged cocoa mixes, which may be processed on machines exposed to wheat products and subject to gluten cross-contamination. Good news when making your own steamy brew.
French fries. When you eat out, you also run the risk of cross-contamination. While an order of French fries is gluten-free (made from potatoes, oil, and salt), if the fries are dipped in the same frying oil as breaded onion rings or hush puppies, it’s gluten-free no longer.
Items labeled “wheat free.” Gluten comes from wheat, right? So that labeling should make shopping easy. Gluten also comes from other grains and grain combinations, including spelt, barley, and rye. So, just because a product is labeled wheat free doesn’t mean it is gluten-free.
Medications. This one may surprise you. “When you look at the word gluten, think glue. It is often used as a binder,” explains Alice Bast, executive director and founder of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness. The group has successfully educated the public about the issue, leading to an effort on the part of the FDA to address medication labeling, which today does not include specific mention of gluten or wheat products.
Beauty products. Research presented at the 2011 annual meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology demonstrated how difficult it is for consumers to find out whether their cosmetics contain forms of gluten. Even though you’re not actually eating cosmetics, even a small amount of gluten in a lip balm could cause a problem — think of how often you bite or lick your lip. Researchers have raised the question of whether gluten-containing lotions and moisturizers might trigger a response in the skin of a person with celiac disease. The investigation was prompted by case studies of two women who had contact irritation on their skin that went away when they stopped eating gluten in their diet and stopped using beauty products containing gluten. In beauty products, hydrolyzed gluten is used to make both emulsifiers and stabilizers. This is an area of research that requires further exploration, but people with celiac disease who want to live a gluten free lifestyle should be aware of the ingredients in their cosmetics.
Vitamin supplements. As with prescription medications and cosmetics, gluten may appear in vitamin supplements purely as a binding agent.
Link to good article on Gluten below.
