Today we’re going to take a look at what 20 Parts Per Million means, in relation to a gluten free diet. I’ll also be sharing lots of helpful resources (including a free course you can enroll in), plus I’ll be answering your gluten free questions.
When you’re new to food allergies and Celiac Disease, the term PPM will make its presence known. PPM stands for parts per million. That means if we had 1,000,000 parts of something, 20 are represented.
In the case of the term gluten free, the FDA in the US has set a legal limit of 20ppm of gluten present in a product to be considered gluten free. If you’ve ever seen the USDA gluten free seal, this is in reference to the threshold they’ve set.
However, there are other ways to have your product certified as gluten free. Personally, I take gluten free certification with a grain of deliciously smoked salt because of shared equipment (more on that later).
If you really want to know if your product is gluten free, reach out to manufacturers to learn about their process and food safety where gluten is concerned. You’ll need to assess their answers, compare that to your level of sensitivity, then decide if the product is worth purchasing.
Let’s Take a Bigger Look at the Image.
As the image says, there are 1,000,000 pixels inside the blue border of the image above. The very small square, where the arrow is pointing, is 20 pixels. THAT is 20ppm in a visual representation. It’s important that you understand that a crumb of food can cause chaos in the system of someone who has Celiac Disease, or induce anaphylaxis in someone who has a food allergy to wheat (and to any other food).
Now I want you to think about how small trace amounts can be that cause a reaction in an individual with Celiac Disease or food allergies. This representation is why I take a firm stance on making sure people understand how serious food allergies are. Many people don’t realize just how small 20ppm is, yet, from gluten-free studies, we know this can elicit a reaction.
For those who can not tolerate trace amounts of what they are allergic/intolerant to, all foods should be made at home with only raw materials and select packaged foods being purchased. Once they’re comfortable cooking at home, they can branch out to look for brands that use equipment free from what they’re allergic to, and see if purchasing pre-made food makes sense.
Alternatively, you should only purchase pre-made foods (or raw materials) from companies that don’t have your allergen on-site. Whilst this may seem overwhelming at first, it does get easier over time. Prepping and freezing extra food goes a long way in making restricted diets manageable.
Related: Starting a Gluten Free Diet
This article is so helpful. It will explain to you what gluten is, where gluten is found, how to start a gluten-free diet, and more.
How Do I Know If I/My Child Can Handle Trace Amounts?
The sad news is, you’ll generally find out the hard way. Some allergists will see your results and suggest no trace amounts right from the get go. Others won’t mention it all. The problem with that is many patients wall away only partially informed, and are caught completely off guard when they have a reaction.
I’ve found through my own research that about 30% of people with food allergies can’t tolerate food made on shared equipment. Already, the odds are in your favor that you’ll be in the 70% group.
Sadly, you’ll probably find out the hard way if you’re in the 30% group. You’ll eat food that’s been prepared on shared equipment and have some kind of allergic reaction or recognize symptoms you experienced when you were still eating gluten. If this happens, be sure to follow your action plan.
Related: Wheat Free & Gluten Free Swaps
This article shares products and brands that you can check out if you need to follow a gluten-free diet.
Trace Amounts Aren’t Distributed Equally
Think about a cutting board. If the left side is covered in apple juice from cutting apples, then you cut carrots on the right side, most likely, only a few carrots will have trace amounts of apple on them. Then the question is, did you happen to eat those few pieces of carrot, or did someone else get them?
That’s what it’s like in food manufacturing. Take shared equipment as an example. Just because the equipment is shared doesn’t mean that every item will contain trace amounts over all of its surface area.
It means that there may be some particles here, and some particle there. It’s why some people can eat a food for months, then suddenly react to it one day. They are probably in the 30% group and got a “bad batch”.
I had to learn this lesson the hard way for both myself and one of my kids. With said child, it took this happening two separate times (different products) for me to make the connection to shared equipment. Once I did, we NEVER purchased food made on shared equipment for them again. The risk wasn’t worth it. Of course, it meant managing a mixed allergy household, but I’ll tell you right now, I have ZERO regrets.
If you’d like to learn more on this topic, check out this article on Cross Contact/Contamination.
Use This Visual to Help Others Understand
I want to encourage you to bookmark this article and share it online and in groups as much as possible. Many of you will encounter people in your life who don’t understand your free-from lifestyle. Let the image I shared today be those thousand words for you.
If you’re finding the free-from life to be incredibly challenging, check out the Food Allergy Help 101 courses I’ve made available online.
Reading a Label for Gluten (in the US)
Here in the United States, gluten is not a major allergen which means that based on current food labeling laws, it doesn’t have to be called out in bold or put in a contains statement.
Wheat however is one of the top 9 allergens, which contains gluten, but rye and barley are not. They also contain gluten.
What that means is if you see “contains wheat” in the contains statement on the ingredient label, the product contains gluten.
You should also be reading the ingredient label for any gluten containing grains (wheat, rye, barley). If you see a product that contains oats and it doesn’t say “gluten free oats” or “purity protocol oats”, you should contact the company before making a purchase. There’s a very high risk for cross-contact with wheat and oats due to how they’re processed, so you need to make sure the product contains gluten free oats.
Reading a Label for Gluten (in the EU)
In the EU, they have what’s called the top 14 allergens. Part of that list includes all gluten containing grains, including oats. When you’re reading a food label in the EU, it should call out “contains gluten” since it’s a major allergen.
You’ll still want to read the label carefully for any gluten containing ingredients or wheat derivatives.
Shared Equipment with Wheat
It’s important that you know that manufacturers don’t have to disclose shared equipment when they create and sell a food product. You’ll read a label and it may not say “contains wheat”, nor will it contain wheat in the ingredient list. However, it may have been made on (cleaned) shared equipment with wheat and you wouldn’t know.
The only way to find out is to contact manufacturers directly. Some have this information on their website (check the FAQ), and some don’t. Depending on your level of sensitivity, you may have to ask if each raw ingredient was processed on shared equipment with wheat before arriving at the manufacturer’s facility.
Since wheat is a major allergen, manufacturers will be able to trace wheat through their supply chain.
Why I Don’t Give Much Weight to Certification
Gluten free certification is important, as it signals to the community which food products may be safe to consume. However, many years ago, I did some digging. Here’s what I learned: you can have gluten free certification, have your product made on shared equipment with wheat, and you don’t have to disclose this on the label.
To make the story a thousand times worse, I called a lot of food companies that had gluten free certification. About 75% were using shared equipment with wheat and wait for it…. only a few disclosed it on the label.
Oh, the story gets even worse. One manufacturer shared with me that they only test their product for the presence of gluten once per year. ONCE per year. Not per batch, per year, and yes, they were using shared equipment with wheat.
I realized that there are great companies with gluten free certification, and awful companies with gluten free certification. Since I purchase gluten free because of a wheat allergy where shared equipment isn’t an option, the certification means nothing to me. I still call manufacturers, ask about copackers, raw materials, and so on.
You’ll have to decide how to proceed for you and your children who need gluten-free products. Remember, most people are OK with shared equipment, we just happen to be in that 30% group.
Gluten Free & Wheat Free Recipe Articles
 |
 |
 |
 |
Answering Your Questions About Managing a Gluten Free Diet
I have a wheat allergy. Do I need to eat gluten free?
No, you don’t. However, if you can’t tolerate trace amounts of wheat, you’ll struggle to find pre-made, convenient foods that are safe for you. Wheat is commonly milled with ingredients such as rye, barely, and oats. When you purchase wheat free, rye bread, you’ll have to talk to the bakery first. If wheat is on site, there’s a good chance that rye bread is contaminated.
Now, if you’ve got the elbow grease, you can make all sorts of awesome wheat free foods at home that contain gluten (barley and rye). Look up recipes online, and contact flour companies before making a purchase (shared equipment with wheat is highly likely).
If you find that it’s overwhelming, I’d suggest going gluten free since you know that will be wheat free and give yourself some peace of mind. Know this however, you’ll need to be on the lookout for products that say they contain “wheat starch with the gluten removed”. It’s becoming a little more prevalent in gluten free products, and this would not be safe for you. Sorry there are all these hurdles to jump over.
Is there medical treatment (cure) for Celiac Disease?
No, there’s no cure for Celiac Disease. The only “treatment” is full avoidance of gluten. Doing that will allow your body to heal and help you live your best life.
I know it’s a hard diagnosis, but there’s a community of people in the same boat that are happy to share advice, give you moral support, share recipes, and more. Be sure to scroll through this article for all the related articles I’ve shared. Also, if you’re new to all of this, be sure to enroll in this free Food Allergy Help 101 Course for Wheat Allergy & Celiac Disease.
If I have a wheat intolerance, is that the same thing as Celiac Disease?
No, these are two different medical conditions. A wheat intolerance is mediated from the Igs in your immune system (like a food allergy, but an intolerance is a different mechanism).
Celiac Disease is an autoimmune disorder where the body attacks itself when gluten is consumed. The overlap in the two is the avoidance of wheat.
In your case, with a wheat intolerance, you’d still be able to consume other gluten containing grans. In the case of Celiac Disease, wheat and all other gluten containing grains are off the menu.
What’s the best gluten free bread?
That feels like such a loaded question. So, here’s the thing about gluten free bread: everyone’s preferences will be different, but also their specific dietary needs. If you can have eggs, Canyon Bakehouse has been overwhelmingly deemed one of the top gluten free bread options by the gluten free community.
For more bread options, check out this article.
