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    I have been a list member for almost 7 months now.  I have read many many
bits of great information in this forum.  However, I have also read many many
bits of misinformation, outdated information, heresay and opinion stated as
fact.

I personally have called a few different companies to ask questions directly
from them over the last several months.  I am convinced the problem scope is
wide and there are many many issues that are not being addressed.  And these
issues only serve to confuse the manufacturers and Celiac sufferers at the
same time.

Here are a few of the main issues that I have come across that lend EMPATHY
to BOTH  sides of this issue.

    1.  The studies that claim that Celiac is more prevalent than reported in
medical studies  is a problem.  Celiacs are often times not "heard" when they
speak to the medical community.  They are often times scoffed at or ignored
despite the seriousness of the disease and the believed prevalence of the
disease.

    2.  From what I have read,  The FDA does not clearly address the issues
of the Celiac Community.  Who, if any, are  giving GF certification or status
to a product? Where does the FDA set there standards for GF tolerance?  Is it
so many parts per million?  Do they allow the potential for Cross contamation
in certified products?   Who inspects the machines that manufacture these
products? What if any measures are required between batches of different GF
products being made and non GF products being made?

    3.   Just because a company claims a product is GF free.....does that
mean it was certified or are they just telling you that there are no
ingredients in the product that contain known Gluten?    One of the
manufacturers I spoke with directly refused to release a list of products
that were GF free because they could not guaranteed their suppliers of raw
ingredients were actually GF free.( they might be ..but they wouldn't take
the chance to say with certainty that they were GF free..for fear of being
sued for misrepresentation)    They had five suppliers for each raw
ingredient....and this company stated it was next to impossible to get
certification because they never knew if even vegetable oils or any oils
they were using could possbily have cross contamination at the supplier
level.  Which leads me to my next point.

    4.  How critical is the cross contamination issue in determining the GF
status of all products?  There are some who believe even the slightest chance
of cross contamination would warrant the product NOT to be declared GF
free.... others disagree.

    5.  How stringent should the guidelines be on products that are NOT being
 ingested?  There is debate as to whether anyone who DOES NOT HAVE the DF
variety of Celiac needs to be  concerned with the topical solutions on their
skin.

Is more research needed in this area to determine if all Celiacs should
obstain from using topical products that contain gluten?

    6.  Even if all manufacturers provided a list of products that were GF
free......how often should those lists be updated and at whose expense?
Where could every person go to get that knowledge in a public forum?  By the
time a book would be published the chances of the products being changed is
very high.  Which lends great weight to manufacturers being required to list
GF status directly on the labels of every product.  Again, assuming they had
specific guidelines to work within.


    With all the confusion surrounding GF status  I think we should be able
to empathize with these manufacturers and try to get them to work with us.
We are struggling as a group to figure out the best method to protect our
heath and the health of our loved ones.  But while we fight to get these
answers....lets not condemn the people who don't possess any more of the
answer than WE  do.  Lets work with them to come up with suitable answers to
our needs.  I personally believe fighting with the manufacturers is a waste
of good time and energy.  Lets work on clarifying what the needs of the
Celiac community are at the FDA level and on the medical level.  That is not
to say that manufacturers should not be made aware of the challenge that
Celiacs face and that they should not be keep educated.  I believe educating
everyone is critical in solving these issues.  I also believe there are many
many manufacturers out there who wholeheartedly want to support our cause,
manufacturers who truly care about the consumer...but they are at a loss on
how to do that.  Lets work on giving them clear cut answers.

Sincerely
A Baker