Wheat (and
gluten)
PLEASE
DO NOT CONSIDER THIS MEDICAL ADVICE.
CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT ANY ALLERGY CONCERNS, NOT WITH A FRIENDLY
BLOGGER.
Wheat allergies are not uncommon in
children. A wheat allergy can result in
hives, rashes, breathing problems, watery eyes, stomach problems and even
anaphylaxsis (a reaction that can include throat swelling and other
complications that can lead to death), thus a wheat allergy is treated like any
other allergy. Avoid wheat and be ready
to treat if there is an exposure.
Another big problem with wheat is the
skyrocketing number of people with gluten sensitivities. Gluten is the protein in wheat, barley, and
rye. People with celiac disease are
unable to digest gluten and need to avoid all foods with gluten. Some people
have a gluten intolerance or sensitivity for other reasons (such as overgrowth
of intestinal yeast). Gluten can cause
both physical and behavioral changes in these people. Some kids have seizures with gluten exposure.
Gluten was not in the common man’s
vocabulary twenty years ago. But now we
can marvel at the products labeled gluten free (“Look honey! Milk is gluten free!”). Other products are labeled “wheat free,” but
remember that this is not the same as gluten free. The food could still contain rye or
barley. Also know that wheat can be a common
“cross contaminant.” Wheat flour is used
to keep foods from sticking, thus it has been used to dust conveyor belts that
process other foods (such as rice at times).
It is also used to keep frozen French fries from sticking together.
Thus, even though potatoes do not have gluten, frozen French fries or fast food
fries probably do. Wheat is also in soy
sauce and soy sauce is in lots of other sauces, dressing, and marinades (we do
not think of wheat as being in liquids, but there it is). Wheat hides as “starch,” “natural flavoring,”
and “hydrolyzed vegetable protein” to name just a few. Gluten is also in art supplies, play dough
and glue (gluten is where glue got its name).
There is a lot written on hidden
sources of gluten. We can be thankful
that “gluten-free” labels are increasingly common. Magazines, such as Living Without, have pull-out ‘cheat sheets’ to help you check
those strange ingredients, such as ‘textured vegetable protein’ (yep, that is
often gluten). Because of increasing
number of gluten sensitivities, you get a lot of help spotting gluten. Many
restaurant menus also mark their gluten-free items.
The Kids
with Food Allergies website also has a quick ‘cheat sheet’ for wheat
(though this does not give you all the possible sources of gluten)
The WebMD
site has a list of hidden sources of gluten.
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