• You are here:
• Home
•  »  About Food Allergies
•  »  Wheat Allergy

Print Page

Tell a Friend

Wheat Allergy

Wheat allergy most commonly affects children and often is outgrown by age three. Wheat, a type of grain, contains four major proteins that can cause an allergy: albumin, globulin, gliadin, and gluten.  Gluten is also found in barley, rye, and oats.  You or your child may not necessarily have to avoid foods that contain grains other than wheat.  However, about 20% of wheat-allergic children also are allergic to other grains.  Be sure to ask your doctor whether foods containing barley, rye, or oats are safe for you or your child to eat.

A wheat allergy should not be confused with “gluten intolerance” or celiac disease. Celiac disease (also known as celiac sprue), which affects the small intestine, is caused by an abnormal immune reaction to gluten. Usually diagnosed by a gastroenterologist, it is a digestive disease that can cause serious complications, including malnutrition and intestinal damage, if left untreated.

How to Avoid Wheat*
The federal Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) requires that any packaged food product that contains wheat as an ingredient must list the word “Wheat” on the label.  The law states that any species in the genus Triticum is considered wheat.  Please be sure to read all product labels carefully before purchasing and consuming any item. Remember, also, that ingredients change from time to time, so check labels every time you shop.  If you are still not sure whether or not a product contains wheat, call the manufacturer. Always take extra precaution when dining in restaurants or eating foods prepared by others.  If you are ever in doubt about any product or dish, don’t eat it.

The following ingredients indicate the presence of wheat protein:
Bread crumbs
Bulgur
Cereal extract
Couscous
Durum, durum flour, durum wheat
Emmer
Einkorn
Farina
Flour (all wheat types, such as all-purpose, cake, enriched, graham, high protein or high gluten, pastry)
Kamut
Semolina
Spelt
Sprouted wheat
Triticale
Vital wheat gluten
Wheat (bran, germ, gluten, grass, malt, starch)
Whole-wheat berries

•  Wheat may be found in ale, baking mixes, baked products, batter-fried foods, beer, breaded foods, breakfast cereals, candy, crackers, frankfurters and processed meats, ice cream products, salad dressings, sauces, soups, soy sauce, and surimi.
• The following flour substitutes are available and may be used by people with wheat allergies if tolerated:  amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, corn, millet, oat, potato, rice, soybean, tapioca, and quinoa flour. Please check with your doctor before including these in your diet.
  

* FAI wishes to thank the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine (New York, NY) for providing the allergen avoidance information in this article.