Hi, I’m Katie Kennedy, and I’ve been a registered dietitian for over 20 years, working in lots of different areas of medicine, but more recently interested in gut health and supporting the gluten-free brand, Glutafin.

One of the most common questions that my gluten-free patients ask me is, “How can I tell what foods are safe for me to eat?” It’s really important that people with celiac disease know how to navigate a food label, so let’s take a look at that now.

Some food products have a gluten-free claim on pack. This shows that these products contain less than 20 parts per million of gluten, and that’s a level that’s considered safe for people with celiac disease to consume freely. It means that manufacturers of these products have got certain safety measures in place in their factories to make sure that they are free from gluten contamination.

Some foods are naturally gluten-free, and these foods won’t declare a gluten-free claim on pack because that information is just assumed. But we can just check the label on this rice packet, just to be sure.

So, moving on to talk about food products where we might need to do a bit more of a thorough check: food allergen labeling law states that any food product that contains a gluten-containing cereal in any quantity must declare this clearly within the ingredients panel of the label, in either bold, italic, or highlighted font.

Let’s take a look at this can of beans. They’re in a sauce, so we might just want to do some checking on the ingredients deck. Here, we can’t see any food ingredients which are gluten-containing highlighted on the ingredient deck, so we know that this food product is safe for us to eat.

Remember, we’re looking for wheat, rye, barley, or oats. Gluten-free oats are actually safe for people with coeliac disease to consume. You must make sure they are gluten-free oats because standard oat products are often contaminated with gluten during growing, processing, or manufacturing.

Now, let’s move on to talk about food products where we can be a little more certain they contain gluten. This is a wheat-based breakfast cereal, so let’s turn it around and have a look at the ingredients deck. Here, we can see clearly the words “whole wheat” in bold font, so we know that this product isn’t suitable for a gluten-free diet.

You might be tempted to only refer to the allergen warning advice boxes on food packaging. Whilst these are helpful for alerting us to the presence of gluten, they might not always be present because manufacturers aren’t obliged by law to include these, so always refer to the ingredients panel instead.

Something else that you might see on food packaging is a “may contain” warning. Take note of these, and if it’s a “may contain” a gluten-containing cereal — wheat, rye, barley, or oats (unless of course gluten-free oats) — please avoid these.

Glutafin is a brand of products available on prescription for people with a diagnosis of coeliac disease. Check out the Glutafin website to see if you might be eligible for gluten-free products on prescription.