Oats and Gluten Intolerance - Is It Safe to Eat?
There has been some doubt over the years whether or not oats are safe to eat if you are gluten intolerant.
My son has been on a strict gluten-free diet for ten years due to his autism, but I discovered early on that he was able to tolerate a small amount of oats regularly in his diet.
I decided to do some research and am now confident that oats can be included as part of a balanced diet, even if you are gluten intolerant.
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, triticale (hybrid of wheat and rye) and oats.
The component of gluten that causes problems for people with celiac disease and autism is the prolamine fraction.
The prolamine fraction in wheat is called gliadin; in rye, it is called secalin; in barley, it is hordein; and in oats, it is avenin.
Oats lack many of the prolamines found in wheat, however oats do contain avenin.
Avenin is a prolamine that is toxic to the intestinal mucosa of avenin-sensitive individuals and can trigger a reaction, however avenin sensitive individuals are rare.
Testing and research around the world indicates that those who have gluten sensitivity are able to tolerate the avenin portion of oats*.
This means that the consumption of pure, uncontaminated oats is safe in limited amounts for adults and children with gluten sensitivity, unless you are one of the small number of individuals who are sensitive to the gluten portion of oats (avenin).
As oats are very beneficial for overall health, I recommend including a limited amount of oats in the diet, but only after you have stabilized on the gluten-free diet and can accurately assess whether you have a reaction to them or not.
If you do decide to add oats or oat products to the diet you must ensure that the oats are uncontaminated from wheat, barley or rye.
Even if you don't have any adverse reaction to oats, current recommendations are that adults consume no more than ½ - ¾ cup of dry rolled oats daily, and children no more than ¼ cup of pure uncontaminated oats daily.
It is possible to buy gluten free oats within the United States of America however oats are not able to be labeled gluten free in Australia or New Zealand at this time.
Oats are considered to be very soothing for the nerves and contain a wide range of nutrients such as; B vitamins, iron, selenium, calcium, essential fatty acids, vitamin E, zinc, copper and are a great source of dietary fiber.
So if you have been avoiding oats because of gluten, maybe it is time to reconsider.
*(2002-05-07).
"Adult celiac patients do tolerate large amounts of oats".
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 57.
*(2002-05-01).
"No harm from five year ingestion of oatas in celiac disease".
GUT Journal Online.
My son has been on a strict gluten-free diet for ten years due to his autism, but I discovered early on that he was able to tolerate a small amount of oats regularly in his diet.
I decided to do some research and am now confident that oats can be included as part of a balanced diet, even if you are gluten intolerant.
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye, barley, triticale (hybrid of wheat and rye) and oats.
The component of gluten that causes problems for people with celiac disease and autism is the prolamine fraction.
The prolamine fraction in wheat is called gliadin; in rye, it is called secalin; in barley, it is hordein; and in oats, it is avenin.
Oats lack many of the prolamines found in wheat, however oats do contain avenin.
Avenin is a prolamine that is toxic to the intestinal mucosa of avenin-sensitive individuals and can trigger a reaction, however avenin sensitive individuals are rare.
Testing and research around the world indicates that those who have gluten sensitivity are able to tolerate the avenin portion of oats*.
This means that the consumption of pure, uncontaminated oats is safe in limited amounts for adults and children with gluten sensitivity, unless you are one of the small number of individuals who are sensitive to the gluten portion of oats (avenin).
As oats are very beneficial for overall health, I recommend including a limited amount of oats in the diet, but only after you have stabilized on the gluten-free diet and can accurately assess whether you have a reaction to them or not.
If you do decide to add oats or oat products to the diet you must ensure that the oats are uncontaminated from wheat, barley or rye.
Even if you don't have any adverse reaction to oats, current recommendations are that adults consume no more than ½ - ¾ cup of dry rolled oats daily, and children no more than ¼ cup of pure uncontaminated oats daily.
It is possible to buy gluten free oats within the United States of America however oats are not able to be labeled gluten free in Australia or New Zealand at this time.
Oats are considered to be very soothing for the nerves and contain a wide range of nutrients such as; B vitamins, iron, selenium, calcium, essential fatty acids, vitamin E, zinc, copper and are a great source of dietary fiber.
So if you have been avoiding oats because of gluten, maybe it is time to reconsider.
*(2002-05-07).
"Adult celiac patients do tolerate large amounts of oats".
European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 57.
*(2002-05-01).
"No harm from five year ingestion of oatas in celiac disease".
GUT Journal Online.
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