<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
 
In the past few days there has been active and sometimes impassioned discussion
about how much gluten contamination a Celiac can tolerate, and whether Celiacs
are being needlessly alarmed by possibilities of remote gluten contamination.
As a listowner, I welcome and encourage discussion on this important issue.
However, I hope that we can all keep calm and dignified while we discuss this
critical issue.
 
Both sides need to understand that there is no scientifically proven correct
answer to this question, and hopefully we can all be tolerant of each other's
position, even if we do not agree with it.
 
Here are a few substantative points which should be made clear, in response to
posts made in the past few days:
 
1.  If you make a post claiming that a particular product is, or is not, gluten
free, it is very important to state in detail how you came to that conclusion.
As we stated in the Welcome Message each of you received,  it does no one
any good to make a naked claim.  Ideally, you should include in your post the
name and phone number of the person at the company that you spoke with.
 
2.  It has been asserted that:
 
>all National Celiac Groups agree that persons with Celiac disease
>should not ingest gluten/gliaden. NO EXCEPTIONS.
 
Actually, this is the case in America, but not in England and in Europe.  The
national Celiac support groups in these nations generally have a more relaxed
set of standards, and allow "well washed wheat starch" and other ingredients
with measurable amounts of gluten, as long as certain maximum standards are not
violated.
 
3.  Even the experts cannot agree on how much gluten a Celiac can tolerate, and
whether or not a Celiac should intentionally ingest small amounts of gluten.  I
posted a long file with the CEL-PRO discussion on this topic many months ago,
it is available by sending an email to [log in to unmask] with the body
GET CELIAC MXGLUTEN
 
4.  It was also posted that (in reference to a post by Don Kasarda)
 
>I am also concerned that the USDA/ Government e-mail address of the
>person who posted this, may lead people to believe that expressed
>opinions are some kind of "official" Government statement.
 
Don Kasarda has always made it very clear that he speaks for himself, not for
the U S Government.  I do think that people give Don's statements alot of
weight, because he has a tremendous amount of experience and expertise in this
field.  He has been very generous with his time on this List, and as an advisor
to various Celiac groups.
 
Although I personally tend to agree with Don on most Celiac issues, I happen to
be one of those who has a "zero gluten" tolerance attitude for my own 9 year
old son with CD.  Adam does not get to eat McDonald's french fries because they
are fried in the same oil as the wheat-filled hash brown potatoes.  But I
accept that there are thousands of celiacs in Europe whose daily diets contain
more gluten (from wheat starch) than my son would have received from those
McDonald's french fries.  I realize that those who disagree with me are not
violating accepted scientific wisdom .... its a grey area, and a personal
choice.
 
Bill Elkus
Los Angeles