Hello, Tex. When I was initially diagnosed and I didn't realize the extent of what foods I would have to eliminate from my diet I bought a gf flour blend. I haven't eaten baked goods since my first experience some months ago gave me pain in my stomach (I used almond flour at that time.) I looked at the bag of gf flour today and one of the ingredients is tapioca starch. I remembered from your book that you have tapioca listed as a no. Can you tell me what the deal is with tapioca and if tapioca starch in a flour blend would be harmful? Thanks!
Marcia
Tex- question
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Hi Marcia,
I honestly don't know why tapioca would be a problem, but it seems to bother some of us. When added to GF flour mixes it apparently adds some of the glutenous qualities of wheat gluten, so I assume that it's added to mixes to help baked goods hold together. I seriously doubt that the immune system perceives it as wheat gluten, but maybe there's something about the adhesiveness in general that causes the problem for some of us. After all, quite a few of us also have problems with all of the gums used in GF baked goods. If you don't have a problem with gums, maybe you wouldn't have a problem with tapioca flour.
Sorry that I don't have a more definitive answer to your question.
Tex
I honestly don't know why tapioca would be a problem, but it seems to bother some of us. When added to GF flour mixes it apparently adds some of the glutenous qualities of wheat gluten, so I assume that it's added to mixes to help baked goods hold together. I seriously doubt that the immune system perceives it as wheat gluten, but maybe there's something about the adhesiveness in general that causes the problem for some of us. After all, quite a few of us also have problems with all of the gums used in GF baked goods. If you don't have a problem with gums, maybe you wouldn't have a problem with tapioca flour.
Sorry that I don't have a more definitive answer to your question.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
