Sources of Gluten & Foods to Avoid on a Gluten-Free Diet

The hype over gluten-free foods has taken a toll on food manufacturers who relied heavily on gluten-rich ingredients such as wheat, barley, and rye. Some have even opted to conceal such ingredients from their labels, something that besides going against food regulations exposes people with celiac disease and gluten sensitivity to potential health risks.

The current information on gluten and its sources, as well as other tips regarding gluten-free living, will give you the power to steer your health in the right direction.

Grains Containing Gluten

Grains are ground to provide flour which is then used to make or bake a wide variety of tasty foodstuffs. Therefore, most of these food items may contain gluten from the wheat and barley grains. This is why it is advisable always to read the labels especially if the manufacturers do not specify whether or not the food is gluten-free.

The following grains and their derivatives contain gluten and should be avoided by any frontier of gluten-free living.

Wheat and its derivatives such as durum, wheat berries, emmer, spelt, semolina, farina, graham, farro, einkorn wheat, and Kamut Khorasan wheat. Wheat starch if not processed well usually contain gluten levels above the 20ppm minimum required by the FDA. Besides wheat, other common grain sources of gluten are rye, barley, brewer’s yeast, and triticale.

Malt, in its various forms, can cause a reaction to people who have gluten sensitivity. These forms include malted barley, malt extract, malt flavoring, malt syrup, malt vinegar, malted milk, and milkshakes.

Common Foods You Didn’t Know Contain Gluten

If you thought that grains were the only sources of gluten, you will be surprised to learn that some of the most common foods you consume daily also contain this protein.

Such common foods include pasta of various varieties such as ravioli, dumplings, gnocchi, and couscous. What is even more surprising is that foods we thought saved us time during preparation are not really the “saviors” we thought.

On that note, think of noodles, while they might save you time in the kitchen they tend to be high in gluten especially those made with a high amount of buckwheat. Note, however, that not all noodles contain gluten. If you are a fan of noodles, stick to the gluten-free ones such as mung bean and rice noodles.

We’ve only scratched the surface, and you may not like what you’ll learn (beer can also contain gluten!), but it is important to know all the hidden sources of this protein if your body is not able to process it correctly.

For a complete list of gluten-rich foods and their alternatives, check out the following infographic provided by medalerthelp.org.