Some Gluten-Free Beers Aren’t Really Gluten Free

On the Friday BeerBuzz we featured gluten-free beers & ciders, and it’s been a topic I’ve been following…gluten-free beer, gluten-free pizza…the trend is increasing in a big way.  While many beers use sorghum & buckwheat, some have attempted to use the traditional Barley and remove the gluten from it for brewing purposes…but word comes today from USA Today that a new test now more accurately measures “hordein” (a form of gluten) in beer.  This new test was used on 60 commercial beers and surprisingly, some beers labeled specifically as “gluten-free,” in fact contained as much hordein as regular beer.

For the full article…

Beer is made using barely, which contains a form of gluten called hordein. However, some beer companies contend that the brewing process eliminates gluten or reduces it to very low levels, according to a release from the Journal of Proteome Research, where the new study appears.

Because existing tests for detecting gluten in malted products are not very accurate, the research team developed a new test that’s highly accurate for hordein.

They used this test to analyze 60 commercial beers and found that many of the regular brands contained significant levels of hordein.

Eight brands labeled "gluten-free" did not contain hordein. However, the researchers were surprised to discover that two of the brands labeled "gluten-free" actually had about as much hordein as regular beer.

People with celiac disease need to avoid gluten, a protein that triggers a reaction that damages the small intestine. Diarrhea, constipation, fatigue and abdominal pain are among the symptoms experienced by people with celiac disease when they consume foods and beverages with gluten.

The only treatment for people with celiac disease is to remain on a lifelong gluten-free diet.