If you or a family member are gluten-intolerant and suffer from celiac disease, a gluten-free diet is essential. Celiac disease is a genetic autoimmune disorder that damages the small intestine and prevents certain foods and nutrients from being absorbed properly, according to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. Gluten consists of proteins in wheat, rye and barley, ingredients you might be surprised to find in foods such as some candy bars, licorice, veggie burgers, sausages, soy sauce and meatballs. If you love sweets and have celiac disease, you can still enjoy candy bars and other sweet treats.
Dark Chocolate
Many dark chocolate candy bars are gluten-free, including Dove Dark Chocolate bar, Mounds, Boom Choco Boom Dark Chocolate Bar, BinGo! Divvine Chocolate Bar, Snickers Dark bar, York Peppermint Patties, Boom Choco Boom Dark Chocolate Bar and Midnight Milky Way -- but not the original milk chocolate Milky Way. Always read the labels and if you are not sure, contact the company and ask. Even if a regular-sized chocolate bar is gluten free, the snack size or special holiday variety may not be.
Eating candy bars or any foods containing even a small amount of gluten can begin to destroy your small intestinal lining and cause immediate or eventual symptoms such as gastrointestinal distress, weight loss or weight gain, fatigue, anemia, bone or joint pain, tingling and numbness in the legs, hands or feet, muscle cramps and premature osteoporosis, according to the American Gastroenterological Association.
Milk Chocolate
Also gluten-free are Hershey bar with or without almonds, Baby Ruth Bar, Snickers, Dove Milk Chocolate, Almond Joy, Mister Goodbar, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Three Musketeers, Crispy Cat Mint Coconut Candy Bar and Toasted Almond Candy Bar. Original Butterfinger is gluten-free, but Butterfinger Crisp, Crunch and Stixx varieties contain gluten. Clark Bars are gluten free but Clark Bar Wicked Mix contains malt flavoring, wheat and barley.
Gluten-intolerant individuals and parents of children with celiac disease have to learn to read labels carefully, because eating foods or allowing your child to eat foods such as a Halloween treat that is a candy bar with gluten can cause gastrointestinal symptoms such as abdominal bloating and pain, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, says the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse.
Non-Chocolate
Some non-chocolate candy bars are gluten-free but many of them contain nuts and may be problematic for people with gluten intolerance, because the candy is made in facilities that use wheat, milk, eggs, peanuts and treenuts, according to Sure Foods Living's 2010 Gluten-Free Halloween Candy List. Some non-chocolate gluten-free candy bars are the Big League Chew, Bit O' Honey, Charleston, regular size Big Hunk and Pay Day.
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