Gluten and Cross-contamination Issues

Cross-contamination occurs when a gluten-free food comes in contact with a food or a surface than contains gluten. Cross-contamination is a very real problem for those who follow a gluten-free diet. There are steps you can take to avoid cross-contaminating of your food. Gluten is invisible to the naked eye, but can contaminate surfaces such as counters, cutting boards and utensils.

A good example is making two peanut butter sandwiches. One sandwich is with wheat bread and the other is with gluten-free bread. You set two pieces of wheat bread on the counter. Then, you spread the margarine and peanut butter on the wheat bread. You cut the sandwich in half and place the halves on the plate. You remove the knife you used, the margarine and the jar of peanut butter. Now you are ready to make the gluten-free peanut butter sandwich. You take out the gluten-free margarine, the gluten-free peanut butter, the gluten-free bread and a new knife. You set the bread on the counter..... and you've just contaminated the gluten-free bread with the gluten that is on the counter from the previous sandwich! You can't see the gluten, but it's there on the counter.

If you are going to make toast with gluten-free bread, you will need two separate toasters. Once you place a slice of wheat bread in a toaster, it is contaminated and cannot be used for gluten-free bread. You cannot share utensils (knives, forks, spoons) between gluten and gluten-free foods. You need to use separate utensils for each type of food. It is not necessary to purchase a new set of pots, baking pans or utensils to be used specifically for the gluten-free food. However, you do need to pay close attention to how you take care of these pans and utensils. A thorough washing will remove the gluten from them. If you use wooden spoons, I would suggest using separate wooden spoons for both foods as gluten can be absorbed into the wood. Plastic storage containers need to be separated, also. Plastic can absorb gluten (the same way they absorb orders and colors) and will contaminate any gluten-free food you store in it. Be sure to mark the gluten-free plastic containers clearly. Foods that will not be consumed in one serving, such as margarine, peanut butter, mayonnaise, etc. need to be kept separate. If you use a knife to spread margarine on a piece of wheat bread, the knife is contaminated and cannot be put back into the margarine without contaminating the entire container. We keep separate containers for each of these types of foods. The same "keep it separate" rule applies to gluten-free flours. Do not store gluten-free flours in the same cupboard as the wheat flours. The possibility of cross-contamination is too high. We store all non-perishable gluten-free foods in a separate cupboard. We also separate gluten-free foods in the refrigerator - they have their own drawer.

Cross-contamination can also be a problem when eating in restaurants. A restaurant may advertise that they offer gluten-free foods. However, if they cook their gluten-free foods alongside the other foods, you no longer have gluten-free food. It has been contaminated. If a restaurant uses the same utensils on both foods, your food is no longer gluten-free. Many people understand that foods need to be prepared with gluten-free ingredients. Unfortunately, they don't understand the cross-contamination issues. Always check WHERE the restaurant is preparing their gluten-free foods, and if they use separate cutting boards, pans and utensils. Do they prepare the gluten-free foods in a separate area in the kitchen? If not, your food may be exposed to gluten cross-contamination.

Joyce Nielsen has over 30 years of experience researching and coooking for food allergies and special diets. She believes in a holitisic approach to health that deals with the whole person rather than treating symptoms. She is inspired to write for others with food allergies to share her experiences and offer insight. She has a granddaughter with Celiac diesease and a Casein allergy and Joyce was diagnosed with Celiac disease in March 2010. She created to provide information to others who are dealing with various food allergies.