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Hi All,

>I have been reading with interest the controversy over malt flavoring.
>Personally, I find it strange that thousands of people in other countries
>are able to eat foods with malt flavoring (and I have to assume that they
>are doing so >"safely"),

The issue of safety is the important one. The increased risk of malignancy
alone, should discourage this kind of thinking. My belief is that the opioid
peptides from gluten, in the form of gliadomorphin function in much the same
way that morphine and endogenous opioids have been demonstrated to
function..... they slow or halt the activation of natural killer cells.
These cells are the body's first line of defence against malignancy.

I don't understand why anyone would knowingly ingest substances that would
downregulate their immune systems, often rendering them incapable of warding
off cancer.

>Considering how restrictive the Celiac diet can be, if we could find a
>study as to the percentage of people who react to malt flavoring, we may
>find that it may be better to label it as something to be used with caution,
>as opposed to something that is strictly "off limits", thereby increasing
>the variety of allowable foods for many people.

The literature and doctors' comments I have heard and read have repeatedly
indicated that there is considerable scepticism about how compliant celiacs
are.  In many cases, there appears to be an attitude of disdain for celiac
patients, for that reason.  Yet many of these patients claim to be following
the diet.

Let me give you an example:
When I started on this list, vinager was touted as quite safe. Since I
continued to have some very mild symptoms, and since I read a dissenting
post on that issue, I tried changing to apple cider vinager. Voila! my
symptoms went away completely.

I appreciate Don Kasarda's contributions to the list, and he qualifies his
opinion, so nobody is misled. He is a highly respected scientist. Still, my
lab results differ from his.

>The fact that they have not done so suggests that perhaps we need to study
>this topic a bit more in the future.

I am certainly in favour of almost any celiac-related research, but I will
not be eating foods that may increase my likelihood of malignant disease,
regardless of the research results.

Best Wishes,
Ron Hoggan   Calgary, Alberta, Canada