Know your oats!

"Are your gluten free oats really gluten free?"

The answer to this question may surprise you. 
Turns out some of the oat brands we know and trust are actually not gluten free at all.  
Let me explain, according to Tricia Thompson over at The Gluten Free Watchdog, some of our favorite brands are mechanically separating their oats and labeling their product gluten free.
And we thought General Mills only did this, I guess not!.  (I know, I am just blown away by this.)

This is what Tricia had to say about gluten free oats:
 "Over the past five years Gluten Free Watchdog has tested 35 different oat products labeled gluten-free that list oats as the first or second ingredient. Bottom line: Based on testing data from Gluten Free Watchdog, oat products labeled gluten-free are at a higher risk of gluten contamination as compared to labeled gluten-free foods as a whole." 

Did you know, that grain millers have been mechanically sorting their oats and selling them to gluten free manufacturers since 2012, that right there is a HUGE SHOCK. 

 

So, this is what the manufacturer recommends we do and I have to agree with them on this one.

• Know your oats! Make sure you are sourcing oats from a supplier of purity protocol oats (e.g., GF Harvest, Avena, Montana Gluten-Free). At this time Gluten Free Watchdog does not recommend any of the commercial suppliers of mechanically and optically sorted oats (e.g., Grain Millers, LaCrosse Milling).
• Ask for test results. Regardless of where you source oats, ask your supplier to provide you with test results, including how frequently oats are tested and what assay is used for testing.
• Test the oats. There is no such thing as too much testing. Send samples of oats to a third party lab for testing using the sandwich R5 ELISA and cocktail extraction. Labs include Bia Diagnostics and FARRP.

Now obviously not everyone has the time or the money to send out samples of the oats they bought at the grocery store before they bake their grandmas famous oat meal muffins, but at least we can request test results and do more research before hand.


Gluten Free Watchdog also states: 

• Oats not grown under a gluten-free purity protocol are in our gluten-free food supply and have been for many years.
• The labeling claims “gluten-free oats” or “certified gluten-free oats” or a certification symbol* on product packaging do not necessarily mean the oats are produced under a purity protocol.
• It is very difficult–if not impossible–for a consumer to know whether the oats used in a product are grown under a gluten-free purity protocol or mechanically sorted.

"Commodity oats are highly likely to be contaminated with wheat and barley."-The Gluten Free Watchdog

I have to admit these studies are rather alarming and I honestly do not know why I didn't look into this further. I have always heard about how for some, oats make them sick, and to make sure they are being sourced from a trusted mill, however I was under the impression that CERTIFIED meant, that they have already made sure that the grains were 100% under 20ppm and safe for us to consume. 
This makes me upset because little by little I am loosing trust in so called gluten free food. Manufacturers started labeling products gluten free which transformed into labeling products certified gluten free thanks to the FDA regulations. So now I question why the FDA ignores the huge risk associated with using mechanical separation, specially after studies have proved over and over and over again that this way of milling the grain doesn't work and will most likely make celiacs extremely sick?.

According to Watchdog, these brands use mechanical separation:

-General Mills 
-Quaker Oats 
-Grain Millers 
-La Crosse Milling 
-Bob's Red Mill 
Manufacturers and Suppliers using mechanically or optically sorted oats 

If you want to purchase oats from a supplier or manufacturer who source oats grown under the purity protocol, click on the link below.  *Keep in mind, you must still call the manufacturer and confirm that they are still following the purity protocol before consuming.*
 Purity Protocol List

We are in charge of our own bodies and our own health, and with that said, I ask that you do your research before consuming any oats & always label check.

"GLUTEN FREE DOESN'T ALWAYS MEAN IT'S GLUTEN FREE"-THE GLUTEN FREE MOMMA