Many Sources of Hidden Gluten
May Surprise You

Hidden gluten may be the toughest part of maintaining a gluten free diet.

On top of avoiding the obvious gluten sources, and fending off the questions and raised eyebrows of disbelievers, if your gluten sensitivity is severe you have to be constantly on your guard for gluten that’s hidden in not-so-obvious places.

Examples of Hidden Sources of Gluten Inside and Outside the Kitchen, And In The Foods Themselves

• Hidden Gluten In the Kitchen

  • Toasters, grills, pans, cutting boards, utensils, appliances and oils that were used for preparing foods containing gluten may have bits of gluten that could contaminate your food.

  • Flour dust that remains in the air and on your counters after using gluten flour can land on your food.

  • Double dipping knives into food like butter, peanut butter, or mayo after spreading on bread can leave crumbs that will be picked up by someone with gluten sensitivity.
  
  

• Hidden Gluten Outside The Kitchen

  • Beware of the glue used on some envelopes, stamps and labels. I use a wet sponge instead of licking...

  • The powder coating inside rubber gloves may be derived from wheat. Even the ones your dentist or doctor uses could be a problem. You may want to request they use unpowdered gloves.

  • Art supplies, such as paints, clay, glue, and playdough can be transferred to the lips if hands aren’t washed. This is especially important to watch out for with children.

  • Personal products may also be unwittingly transferred to the lips and ingested. Especially shampoo if you let the rinse water run down your face, or it may splash off the walls.

  • Ditto for household products.

  • Medications can also be a problem, whether they are prescription or over the counter.

  • Nutritional and herbal supplements may also contain gluten.
  
  

• Gluten Hidden In the Foods Themselves

  Here’s my page on the sources of gluten in foods.
  

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Disclaimer: I won’t pretend that this is a complete list of the hidden sources of gluten.

Because these sources are hidden, it’s impossible to know for sure when or if they change. Think of this as a reference of some types of things to watch out for.

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