The Latest Gluten-Free News

So much in one round-up!

I like to compile a round-up of gluten-free news every couple of months, but it’s actually been three months since the last one. That’s not because there’s been a lack of news! Quite the opposite, as you’ll see as you read on. Here’s the latest from around the world.

“‘How Can You Label That?’ Woman Asks a Question About Truffle Fries at a Restaurant. Then She Catches the Server in a Lie”: In December, I wrote a piece called “The Trouble With ‘Gluten-Friendly’.” Here, in a Daily Dot article by Jack Alban, is a perfect (and perfectly sad) example of that trend in action. Spoiler alert: the restaurant in question marked menu items as “GF” even though they were preparing them in the same fryer as wheat-based foods. This article does a great job explaining why cross-contamination is a serious issue for celiacs and other gluten-intolerant people.

“Restaurant Review: Indus Chai: A Gluten-Free Retreat Steeped in Indian Tea Traditions”: Writing in the Taipei Times, reporter Hollie Younger notes that Taiwan’s capital city is a tough town for celiacs, making Indus Chai a welcome addition to the local dining scene. This café is 100% gluten-free, and its sabudana vada — Indian-style hash browns served with a mint-yogurt dip — sound like a crisp slice of heaven.

“Fighting for My Right to Receive Communion as a Catholic With Celiac Disease”: Writing in America the Jesuit Review, Rosie La Puma Lebel details her struggle to reconcile the requirements of her religious faith and her gluten-free diet. As she writes, “Church teaching holds that for bread to be valid matter for the Eucharist, it must ‘contain enough gluten to affect the confection of bread’ but there is no strict minimum amount.” While the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has approved the use of ultra-low-gluten hosts — which contain less than 20 parts per million, the US standard of what gluten-free means — that doesn’t mean every parish priest accepts them.

“‘I Can’t Tolerate Gluten in the US, but I Can in Europe’: Experts Unpack the Phenomenon”: If there’s one myth I wish would die, it’s this one. Writing in HuffPost, Erica Sweeney talks to experts about the claim (often heard on TikTok) that it’s okay to eat wheat in Europe even if you can’t in North America. Spoiler alert: IT’S NOT OKAY. The first clue should’ve been the fact that celiac disease is taken seriously in Europe — Italian celiacs, for example, are not eating wheat in Italy. But lots of people who don’t have celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity experience bloating after eating a big plate of pasta — and that might not happen in Europe for a host of reasons (different pesticides, fewer preservatives in food, more exercise).

“Luke Combs Reveals the Lifestyle Change he Made for His Health: ‘It's Changed My Life Mentally’”: In this ABC News interview by Stephen Hubbard and Carson Blackwelder, country music star Luke Combs talks about going gluten-free after undergoing some medical tests that showed he was highly gluten-sensitive. Combs calls going gluten-free “the least country thing,” but this feel-good piece makes it clear that it’s been a truly positive change in his life.

“K-State Researchers Lower Gluten Content, Maintain Dough Quality in Bread Wheat”: Did you know that researchers at Kansas State University are using a gene-editing technique to reduce the presence of gliadin? (That’s the problem protein for celiacs in wheat.) This piece by Pat Melgares in Farm Talk details the process and the intriguing results. The research is still in progress, but researchers hope that it may help those with gluten sensitivity down the road.

“From the Kitchens of Colorado”: The staff of Colorado Parent put together their own roundup of food-allergen-aware businesses founded by Colorado parents. This list includes several gluten-free companies, such as Canyon Bakehouse, Bella Gluten-Free, Binnie’s Coconut Butter, Noosa, and Quinn Snacks.

“Charting the Path: Psychological Factors and Diet Adherence in Adolescents With Celiac Disease”: This peer-reviewed scientific paper published by Cureus is a very long read, but it will be of interest to parents. The paper does a great job explaining the problems that adolescents have with adhering to a gluten-free diet, and some of the maladaptive behaviors that can result from it (such as avoiding new social contacts and events). The study was conducted in Europe with kids who have a confirmed biopsy diagnosed, and while the kids themselves were evaluated their parents also answered questions about their psychosocial functioning.

“At Ketojiak, Even Diabetics Can Enjoy Some Ice Cream”: Straits Times journalist Poong Qi Tao reports on Ketojiak, a healthy café that is the first diabetic-, keto- and celiac-friendly ice cream and waffle boutique in Singapore. Ketojiak’s owner Galvin Sng, was inspired by some health issues of his own, and he wasn’t satisfied with the low-flavor treats meant for certain diets. Maybe it’s too cold for ice cream in some places right now, but not in Singapore!

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