Are Chex really gluten free?

[suzieq]

Hi all,

I've been in a flare for the past three weeks or so and I have been what I thought was gluten, dairy, soy and egg free for a while now and have been eliminating fodmaps. I've been eating Rice Chex and the Apple Cinnamon Chex for breakfast and as a snack, it says that it is gluten free. Are they really? It's got me wondering.

I can't seem to get myself under control.

Thanks,
Susanne

[MaggieRedwings]

I eat Chex all the time and have no problems with it. Don't remember if anyone else here has had problems.

Maggie

[mzh]

I eat it too; no problems.

[Martha]

I've eaten Rice, Corn, and Honey Nut Chex with no problem. I haven't tried the Apple Cinnamon.

Martha

[Polly]

Hi Susieq,

I looked at the GF Chex box while shopping the other day and noticed that it contained tocopherols (I think that's a vehicle for adding vitamins). Tocopherols are usually made from soy. At least that's what I was told by the manufacturer when I checked to see why I couldn't tolerate Sunbutter. You might want to call the manufacturer and ask them the origin of their tocopherols.

Hugs,

Polly

[tex]

Hi Susanne,

Chex cereals are a somewhat controversial subject among celiac groups. Some react to them, while others don't.

IMO, the problem is that in this day and age, nothing is truly gluten-free. Due to ubiquitous cross-contamination problems, virtually all processed foods contain some level of gluten and/or other food allergens/antigens. Even the labeling laws reflect that dilemma. Products containing up to 20 parts per million (ppm) can be labeled as gluten-free.

I have personally tested a sample from a box of Honey Nut Chex and it tested below 10 ppm, so that box was safe, at least for most celiacs. Of course that says nothing about all the other boxes that I didn't test. I have no idea if anyone has actually tested a box that had more than 20 ppm, but if they have, I've never read or heard about it. But my testing also says nothing about any other gluten-related antigens that might be lurking in that box. It's also possible that some other ingredient (or combination of ingredients) in Chex cereals might cause some people to react. In general, it's never a good idea to eat any commercially-processed food that contains more than 5 ingredients, because the risk of a reaction increases exponentially with increases in the number of ingredients. Chex cereals (like most cereals) contain roughly twice that many ingredients.

But that may all be irrelevant, because here is my theory of why some boxes of the Chex GF cereals may be contaminated. I doubt that they actually contain an excess level of gluten. Gluten is easy to test for. My guess is that they contain barley, in the form of barley malt. Most cereals use malted barley as an ingredient, because malting enhances the flavor of cereal grains. I'm guessing that when General Mills decided to remove gluten from certain Chex cereals, they took most of the right steps, but their Achilles heel lies in the fact that barley malt is so ubiquitous in the cereal manufacturing industry that it tends to show up where it shouldn't, as a cross-contamination item, and it remains undetected, because there are no readily-available tests for it, nor are there any allergy labeling requirements for barley(hordein).

When a product is cross-contaminated with gluten, ELISA tests are readily available to detect the gliadin peptides in it to which most celiacs react. Such tests are not readily available for the peptides in hordein (the storage protein found in barley) to which celiacs react. Furthermore, the labeling law does not require that any such testing should be done, nor that any certification concerning barley (hordein) content must be posted on the label. If barley malt is intentionally added as an ingredient, then it must be included in the ingredient list, but no allergy-related statements about it are required. Therefore, if cross-contamination with barley malt exists in a product, it will never be detected, because it will never be tested for.

Please don't tell everyone that this is the problem with Chex cereals, because this is just my theory. I believe it may well be true, but I have no proof -- it's strictly a theory. Also, not everyone who is sensitive to the gliadins in gluten, react to any or all of the peptides in barley (hordein). The alpha gliadin peptide is the primary antigen for most celiacs, and presumably that's true for us, also.

We can thank our legislature for failing to include barley, rye, and oats in the labeling law changes that require allergy-specific labeling.

Tex

[wonderwoman]

Tex writes,

I have personally tested a sample from a box of Honey Nut Chex and it tested below 10 ppm, so that box was safe, at least for most celiacs. Of course that says nothing about all the other boxes that I didn't test.

I'm curious, how did you test for gluten in the cereal?

[tex]

Hi Charlotte,

I used one of the ELISA test kits that I ordered from here.

Tex

[Christine.]

I have motored through multiple boxes of every rice and corn chex I can find. No adverse reaction.
Christine

[Sheila]

Chex is the only GF cereal I've eaten. No problems. At this point my diet is minimally paleo and my weight has finally stabilized. Still adhering to no nightshades, no legumes, but I've added rice, sweet potatoes, GF bread, almond milk.

Is there another reliable GF cereal that tastes good?

Sheila W

[suzieq]

Hi all,

I previously had eaten Cinnamon Chex for a long time and had no problem. When I was told to remove fodmaps from my diet in the end of June, there was something in the Cinnamon Chex (I think fructose) that was on the fodmaps list that the Dr. gave me. So I changed from Cinnamon Chex to Rice Chex and then added the Apple Cinnamon Chex a week or so later. Apple Cinnamon Chex doesn't list fructose.

I saw my Dr. the end of June and have been up and down with this flare for a good 4 weeks. Perhaps the Apple Cinnamon Chex is the culprit? I am removing that from my diet to see what happens.

Thanks to all,
Susanne

[mzh]

Chex is the only GF cereal I've eaten. No problems. At this point my diet is minimally paleo and my weight has finally stabilized. Still adhering to no nightshades, no legumes, but I've added rice, sweet potatoes, GF bread, almond milk.

Is there another reliable GF cereal that tastes good?

Sheila W

I've eaten the Walmart Chex look-alikes. Haven't read the labels (my bad) but still no problems.

[tex]

Is there another reliable GF cereal that tastes good?

Kellogs is making a GF version of Rice Crispies, using brown rice instead of the traditional white rice. I tried a box last winter. They're OK, but I'm not a brown rice fan, so I've stuck with the Chex cereals, mostly.

Tex