Gluten is a common ingredient in a wide range of foods. People with gluten intolerance disorders, such as celiac disease, may experience severe reactions after eating gluten and need to follow a gluten-free diet to avoid symptoms. Finding foods that are gluten free can be challenging, since gluten can be present in many foods you might not expect to contain it.
Definition
Gluten, which is also known as glutenin, is a protein found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. When dissolved in water, gluten forms a thick, elastic, spongy substance. Gluten is important in bread and other baked goods because it traps pockets of gas inside the dough, causing the dough to rise. Gluten also gives bread and bread products a spongy, stretchy texture.
Baking
Gluten is naturally present in any type of flour made from wheat, rye or barley. Different types of flour are refined to contain different amounts of gluten. These differing levels of gluten result in different properties of the finished product. For example, all-purpose flour contains lower amounts of gluten and is used in baked products that do not need to rise a lot, such as cakes or pastries. Conversely, bread flour contains high levels of gluten, which yields high-volume, fluffy bread, the Carnegie Mellon Dinner Co-op explains.
Hidden Gluten
While bread and baked goods are easily identified as containing gluten, anything that is made with wheat products may also contain gluten. The list of ingredients may include wheat products that contain gluten; these include vegetable protein, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, malt, malt flavoring, starch, soy sauce, emulsifier, stabilizer and vegetable gum, according to Eastern Michigan University.
Other Uses
In addition to foods made with wheat products, many foods or health supplements may have purified gluten added to modify the texture or consistency. Vitamins, salad dressing, toothpaste, french fries, bouillon cubes, packaged rice dishes, lunch meats, potato chips, gravy, sauces and brown rice syrup may all contain added gluten, reports the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearing House. If you have celiac disease and are purchasing any of these items, it's important to find products labeled as gluten free.
References
- National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse; What I Need to Know About Celiac Disease; March 2011
- Exploratorium.edu: Goodness Gracious! Great Balls of Gluten!
- Carnegie Mellon Dinner Co-op: A Guide to Ingredients
- Colorado State University: Gluten-Free Baking
- Eastern Michigan University: Healthy Options
