<<Disclaimer:  Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

In regard to the following statement by Michael Jones in a recent communication:

"I know a well respected celiac who walked through a rice flour mill
while they were also processing wheat flour.  She had a definite
celiac reaction and never finished the tour."

I know Mike Jones personally and have great respect for the excellent and
vigorous work he is doing for celiac patients, but I have some concerns
about this incident and statement in relation to celiac disease.  Perhaps
some discussion by way of the bulletin board would not be out of order.

I don't question that one person had a reaction when she/he walked through a
plant that was processing wheat.  But does this have significance for the
vast majority of celiac patients? When you say "a definite celiac reaction,"
what does that mean exactly?  As far as I know, celiac patients react to
wheat they have eaten.  I haven't heard of a reaction from inhalation
(although granted that may well just be because of my limited knowledge in
the area).  There are allergies to flour that has been inhaled (baker's
asthma, for example), but this is something other than celiac disease.  I
wonder if any of the celiac patients reading this bulletin board have ever
been in a kitchen where someone was making bread, cake, or cookies with
wheat flour?  If they have, did they notice any reaction?  Perhaps we could
have some response on this. Perhaps I am quite wrong in thinking that
probably most celiac patients do not have such a reaction. I am not
recommending that manufacturers co-process wheat and wheat-free products in
the same room. I don't.   But, on the other hand, I wouldn't like celiac
patients to be overly concerned about something that may not be a major
problem.  They have enough to worry about as it is.

Don Kasarda