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Grains: Which grains contain gluten?

If you sprouted a wheat berry and popped the grain open with your fingers, you’d find the inside sticky and white. That’s gluten, the substance responsible for aggravating people with Celiac’s disease and those with gluten sensitivities. Many experts feel that GMO-wheat has been the contributing factor in the rise of the gluten intolerant. Luckily, however, only a few grains are truly glutinous: wheat, spelt, rye, barley, and, in some cases oats, due to agricultural cross-contamination.

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Featured

 An Easy Way to Remember Which Grains Contain Gluten

If you, like me, constantly find yourself asking, "Is such-and-such grain gluten-free?," you'll be relieved to know that there's an easy way to remember, at a basic level, which grains and flours contain gluten. Just think of the acronym B.R.O.W.S.

 What Are Gluten Grains?

It's getting pretty common these days for people to report that they're avoiding the three gluten grains: wheat, barley, and rye. These three grains contain the gluten protein, which causes celiac disease and may cause non-celiac gluten sensitivity. But unfortunately, not everyone—even some who have been diagnosed with celiac or gluten sensitivity—has a clear idea of what these "gluten grains" actually are. There's a lot of misinformation out there, with some people (mistakenly) saying that grains like corn and rice should be counted among gluten grains (they do not contain the form of gluten that makes people react).

 Which Ancient Grains Contain Gluten?

Farro is just one of the ancient grains to make its way into restaurants and supermarkets over the last few years. Some of these newly exciting ingredients, including amaranth, buckwheat, millet, quinoa, and teff, are naturally gluten-free and can add new dimensions to GF cooking. But the ancient grains bulgur, einkorn, emmer (another word for farro), khorsan, kamut, spelt, and freekeh do contain gluten and must be avoided by those on a gluten-free diet.

Articles of Interest

Wheat, Gluten + Grains – Good, Bad, or Misunderstood?

The war on gluten seems to be never-ending, and low-carb proponents claim we should avoid all grains – gluten-free or not. However, gluten is misunderstood, and not all grains are created equal.

Which Grains Are High in Gluten?

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. Technically oats do not contain gluten, but they are often cross-contaminated with gluten-containing grains during food processing. Triticale, a grain consisting of both wheat and rye, contains gluten, too. Wheat products can be labeled with other names, such as bulgur, durum flour, spelt, semolina, kamut, graham flour or farina...

Resources

Gluten Free Watchdog

Imagine if “hidden” gluten were a thing of the past and gluten-containing grains had to be declared.

Gluten Free Society

Educating the world about the broad reaching nature of gluten on human health and disease.