Celiac and Grain Allergy Sufferers Must Watch Out for High Fructose Corn Syrup and Modified Food Starch

People who have celiac disease, as I do, have an intolerance to gluten, a substance in wheat, barley, rye, and oats. For us, eating gluten can ignite a process which can cause damage to our intestines. Thus, most people who have celiac have to avoid these standard glutenous grains, but can enjoy corn and rice. Some celiac sufferers, however, such as myself, have both this gluten problem and allergies to corn and rice. Why, I have both-- I do not know. It is possible that long-term damage to the small intestine led to a variety of food allergies. But regardless of cause, having identified and eliminated all grains from my diet, I have been successful in eliminating symptoms.

For people like me, who must avoid absolutely all grains, there are hidden ingredients in many foods that must be totally identified so that they can be avoided. Perhaps the most pervasive of these are high fructose corn syrup and modified food starch. High fructose corn syrup is derived from corn starch (http://www.westonaprice.org/motherlinda/cornsyrup.html) and modified food starch can be made of wheat, corn, rich tapioca or potatoes (http://missourifamilies.org/quick/nutritionqa/nutqa54.htm). High fructose corn syrup is definitely out for those with corn allergies, and because one doesn't know what type of starch has been used to make modified food starch, it must also be avoided.

It is noteworthy that these two ingredients never appear in home-cooking and home-baking recipes. As the excellent article about high fructose corn syrup: Sugar Coated , by Kim Severson of the San Francisco Chronicle, Feb. 18, 2004 describes, it (and the same can be said about modified food starch) is an industrial-grade food products meant to enhance, stretch and preserve foods as well as lessen the expense of food production. Thus, even for people who don't have grain allergies, both products have presented a problem: they add sneaky unwanted calories to innumerable products which once did not contain these substances.

From Severson's article:

Because high fructose corn syrup mixes easily, extends shelf-life and is as much as 20 percent cheaper than other sources of sugar, large-scale food manufacturers love it. It can help prevent freezer burn, so you'll find it on the labels of many frozen foods. It helps breads brown and keeps them soft, which is why hot dog buns and even English muffins hold unexpected amounts.

High fructose corn syrup and modified food starch are so pervasive that as I have eliminated items with these substances from my diet, along with the forbidden gluten-based items, I find that there are whole categories of supermarket items that I cannot even consider buying and eating. For anyone else with this combination of dietary requirements, here are a list the products for which ingredients must be carefully checked. Almost all have one or both of these products:

All frozen prepared dinners and desserts; salad dressings; frozen vegetables which have sauces; all canned soups; all canned vegetables with any kind of flavorings; flavored yogurts; flavored potato chips (such as those with cheese and other enhancements); nearly all soft drinks; jams and jellies; juices; sliced deli meats; cheese spreads; flavored coffees; jars of sauces, pre-basted or marinated meats .

The best rule of thumb if you have celiac plus allergies to all grains, is to stick to pure foods: fresh fruit and vegetables, plain meats and specialty ingredients made to eliminate grains. Use your own cane sugar and pure spices, herbs for flavor.

While it might benefit most people to cut down on foods laced with modified food starch and corn syrup, for those with both celiac disease and grain allergies, it is a pure necessity.