• Identify additional dietary proteins to which the Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitive (NCGS) or Celiac Disease (CD) patient is sensitized
• Detect cross-reactions in the patient non-responsive on a gluten-free diet
• Categorize the 1-in-2 NCGS or CD patient who is also sensitive to dairy products

If you have celiac disease and have said goodbye to gluten, yet you’re still experiencing symptoms, you may have what is called gluten cross reactivity. In this article, I define gluten cross reactivity, list what foods are most susceptible to cross reactivity, and discuss how you can determine if you’re having a reaction.

A subgroup (about 30 percent) of patients with celiac disease following a strict gluten-free diet report still experiencing symptoms similar to gluten exposure. These symptoms include bloating, gas, diarrhea, constipation, brain fog, fatigue, joint pain and more. Why is this?

In some cases, it means the celiac disease patient is experiencing a phenomenon called gluten cross reactivity. This occurs when the body thinks the person is eating gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye and sometimes oats, even though they are following a strict gluten-free diet.

Patients with celiac disease produce anti-α-gliadin and anti-tTG antibodies, which are detectable in standard blood tests that test for celiac disease. These antibodies are only present in people with confirmed celiac disease and not in patients with non-celiac gluten sensitivity.

Gluten Cross Reactive Foods List

Gluten cross reactivity can happen with many foods, but the 2017 study on cross-reactive foods by researchers Aristo Vodjani and Igal Tarash found that the following foods can become confused for gluten by the body’s immune system:

• Corn
• Dairy (cow’s milk, milk chocolate, milk butyrophilin, whey protein, casein)
• Instant Coffee
• Millet
• Oats
• Rice
• Yeast (brewers and bakers)

Other foods were tested in the study, but did not exhibit gluten cross reactivity.

Researchers said, “In this study, we identified antigens and peptides from milk, yeast, millet, corn, rice, oats and tissues that strongly reacted with … antibodies produced against gliadin. The reactivity between gliadin peptides and various food antigens are pathogenetically relevant because if the presence of these cross-reactive substances are left untreated, an individual may develop multiple autoimmune reactivities.”

The researchers went on to conclude that if celiac patients following a gluten-free diet do not show symptom improvement, they may need to potentially eliminate cross-reactive foods.

The researchers add, “The present study supports the hypothesis that if the high prevalence of antibodies against dietary proteins and peptides and their cross-reaction with various tissue antigens are not taken seriously, and if proper measures are not implemented, the result may be the development of autoimmunity in the future.”

How to Identify Foods Causing Gluten Cross Reactivity?

If you suspect your body is reacting to a non-gluten protein in a similar way it would react to gluten, consider getting tested. 

Order a Gluten Cross Reactive Blood Test

The Cyrex Array 4 test – also called the Gluten-Associated Cross-Reactive Foods and Foods Sensitivity – test can be a first step in identifying potential foods causing gluten-cross reactivity.

The test will look for potential cross reactivity with the six foods listed above – corn, dairy, millet, oats, rice and yeast. 

It will also check for cross reactivity to foods that are newly introduced or over consumed when following a the gluten-free diet (foods not typically consumed outside the GF diet), including amaranth, buckwheat, hemp, potato, sesame, sorghum, tapioca, teff and quinoa.

The test also checks for a reaction to egg and soy, which are also very common “antigenic” foods.

Recommended for Patients Who

• Have Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity or Celiac disease
• Are experiencing limited improvements or are non-responsive on a gluten-free diet
• Have gut dysbiosis, which appears to be resistant to standard therapy