Baked goods made from hydrolyzed wheat flour are not toxic to
celiac disease patients, according to a new study in Clinical
Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official journal of the
American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. Celiac
disease occurs in the digestive system when people cannot
tolerate a protein called gluten, which is found primarily in
wheat. "This is the first time that a wheat flour-derived
product is shown to not be toxic after being given to celiac
patients for 60 days," said Luigi Greco, MD, PhD, of the
University of Napes, Italy, and lead author of the study. "Our
findings support further research that explores therapies that
could reduce the toxicity of gluten for celiac patients beyond
the standard gluten-free diet." Gluten is also primarily found
in barley and rye, but may be in everyday products such as soy
sauce and salad dressing, as well as some medications and
vitamins. Celiac disease was, until recently, thought to be a
rare disease. However, recent research has