Still Sick on a Gluten Free Diet?

If you are still sick on a gluten free diet it may be because you are getting sick from gluten cross-contamination or it may mean the food your are eating still has a small percentage of gluten in the product.  In August 2013, the FDA Administration finalized regulations that better defined the term “gluten free” on foods that contained less than 20 ppm of gluten.  Which means things defined as “gluten free” can have small traces of gluten.

Unfortunately, those “small” percentages of gluten can add up throughout the day.

While attending Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s Celiac Awareness Day in 2013 the Celiac Center’s Director, Dr. Ritu Verma, MD, stated that intestinal damage can be seen in those with Celiac Disease that have consumed as little as 50 ppm of gluten daily.

What does that mean for you?

You can be getting glutenized while eating what you think is “gluten free” and not know it.  For example, if you wake up and eat 2 pieces of “gluten free” pancakes (20 ppm), then consume a “gluten free” sandwich  with 2 piece of bread (10 ppm) & then finish off the day with 2 “gluten free” beers (38 ppm) after dinner  –  all those trace amount of gluten can add up to over 50 ppm and all along you are thinking you are eating gluten free!

Choose fruits, vegetables, protein and calcium throughout your day instead of all processed gluten free breads, pastas and flours because you’ll know they are naturally 100% gluten free.

Thanks for reading.  If you found this post to be valuable, please SHARE it along to anyone newly diagnosed with celiac disease or someone with a gluten intolerance that is still NOT feeling well even though they are eating “strictly” gluten free.  These few simple tips may be just what they need to getting them back on a road to recovery.