I have been thinking a lot about cross contamination recently as many patients report having problems with so-called gluten free grains like amaranth, quinoa etc. See Anthony’s comments here, for example.
I thought, then that you might be interested in this blog post from Dr Osborne at the Gluten Free Society: Packaged-food-high-risk-for-cross-contamination-of-gluten.
Here is the start of it for you:
“Twenty-two inherently gluten-free grains, seeds, and flours not labeled gluten-free were purchased in June 2009 and sent unopened to a company who specializes in gluten analysis. All samples were homogenized and tested in duplicate using the Ridascreen Gliadin sandwich R5 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with cocktail extraction… Nine of 22 (41%) samples contained more than the limit of quantification, with mean gluten levels ranging from 8.5 to 2,925.0 ppm. Seven of 22 samples (32%) contained mean gluten levels >/=20 ppm and would not be considered gluten-free under the proposed FDA rule for gluten-free labeling. Gluten contamination of inherently gluten-free grains, seeds, and flours not labeled gluten-free is a legitimate concern.(my emphasis)”
This comes from a pilot study published by the Journal of the American Dietetic Association and you can read the reference here.
Doesn’t make for good reading, does it?! No wonder people react to so-called naturally gluten-free packaged ingredients, it is somewhat of a lottery, it seems.
Continue reading the post which includes Dr Osborne’s take on it and some really interesting comments beneath.