Study Finds Some Naturally Gluten-Free Products To Have Gluten

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Although grains such as oats, millet, and rice don't inherently have gluten, a new study has found that some of these grains, seeds and flours had picked up traces of gluten - probably from being grown or processed near grains that do naturally contain gluten.

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. In people with celiac disease, gluten triggers an immune reaction that causes damage to the small intestine and keeps the body from absorbing nutrients.

Lead Author and Celiac Disease Nutrition Consultant Tricia Thompson and her colleagues analyzed 22 naturally gluten-free grains, seeds, and flours off supermarket shelves, only looking at products that weren't specifically advertised as being gluten-free. They tested the amount of gluten in those products against a proposed Food and Drug Administration ruling limiting gluten-free-labeled products to 20 ppm limit.

The study found that seven of the 22 products wouldn't pass the FDA's gluten-free test - and one product, a type of soy flour, had a gluten content of almost 3,000 ppm. Other products from the sample that weren't truly gluten-free included millet flour and grain, buckwheat flour, and sorghum flour.

The study was too small to determine the potential of a product to be contaminated. But "it is a red flag," said Cynthia Kupper, the executive director of the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America, who was not involved with the research. Even companies that explicitly label their products as gluten-free, might not always test products they assume won't contain any gluten. The study "is a wake-up call to the food industry," said Kupper. Companies "need to make sure (their products) are truly gluten-free."

Under the proposed gluten-free labeling rule, the FDA could conduct inspections of manufacturers that claim their products are gluten-free and analyze those products.

Access the study at Journal of the American Dietetic Association.