Why some types of coffee should be avoided by those with Celiac disease or gluten sensitivity, as they contain cross-reactive proteins that can trigger the same inflammatory response.
If you drink coffee and have gluten sensitivity or Celiac disease, be aware that this hot beverage can worsen symptoms.
Even bulletproof coffee can trigger problems.
There is a surprising connection between gluten and coffee that is, by and large, ignored by the health community.
This revelation holds ramifications for other autoimmune disorders as well.
The problem has nothing to do with caffeine, so decaf coffee would be included in this discussion.
In a nutshell, lab research has revealed that 10% of coffee is a protein that cross-reacts with gluten antibodies.
This means that if you are gluten sensitive or Celiac and are avoiding gluten-containing grains or perhaps have even gone completely grain-free…if you still drink coffee, there is a strong likelihood that the protein in the coffee is triggering the very same gluten-related health problems you are trying to avoid.
In other words, even if you think you are doing fine with your current gluten-free diet, it is very possible that skipping the coffee could take your health to the next level.
Symptoms of Gluten Sensitivity
Most people who are gluten sensitive don’t realize it because gastrointestinal problems like burping, gas, tummy upset, or toilet issues are the least common way for gluten issues to present themselves!
The most common symptoms of gluten sensitivity are actually migraines and other neurological issues – even MS!
Hormone and endocrine problems are another common way for gluten issues to manifest themselves.
How Coffee Triggers Autoimmunity
So what exactly happens when a gluten sensitive person eats gluten?
Folks with gluten antibodies react to any gluten in the diet by mounting an immune response.
This means that gluten is perceived by the body as an invader and the gluten antibodies attack the gluten itself trying to destroy it.
This gluten attack is an inflammatory response that can occur anywhere in the body and in any tissue or organ.
Here’s the real shocker I came across when researching the coffee/gluten connection:
According to Dr. David Clark DC, functional neurologist and endocrinologist:
There’s not a disease or health condition you can think of that does not have an association – in the research literature – with gluten sensitivity.
That’s a very strong statement!
In essence, if you are gluten sensitive in any way, shape or form, gluten antibodies have the potential to react to proteins in other foods, triggering an immune and inflammatory response.
The protein in coffee is the most common cross-reactor to gluten.
Because it is the protein in the coffee that is the trigger, switching to decaf coffee does not solve the problem.
Worst Types of Coffee for Gluten Sensitive/Celiacs
Is it possible to be gluten sensitive or Celiac and not cross-react to coffee?
Yes, it’s possible, but you may need to do some expensive lab testing to find out for sure. (1)
If you prefer not to shell out of your own pocket for this type of testing (insurance likely will not cover it), avoiding coffee is the easiest route to go! The good news is that skipping coffee saves adrenal health too!
If you choose to drink coffee anyway, research published in the Journal of Food and Nutrition Sciences has identified the worst offenders for coffee cross-reactivity with gluten: (2)
- Instant coffee
- Preground coffee
The “Good Stuff”
According to Primal Body, Primal Mind author Nora Gedgaudas CNS, CNT, if you are gluten sensitive or Celiac, it is very important to drink the “good stuff” if you choose to drink coffee at all.
This means buying organic roasted coffee beans and grinding them yourself to make a cuppa at home!
Definitely skip the Starbucks drive-through and other coffee vendors where the quality is unknown or suspect.
References
(1) Cyrex Labs
(2) Cross-Reaction between Gliadin and Different Food and Tissue Antigens, Journal of Food and Nutrition Sciences
More Information
You Probably Need to Change WHEN You Drink Coffee
Coffee Enema
Morning Coffee Fix
Caffeine and Chronic Back Pain
Healthy Coffee Substitutes
I am getting very confused. I believe Dr. Clark did publish a correction to his original statements and clarified it is “instant coffee” that cross-reacts with the antibodies. Regular coffee has no association with gluten intolerance. After reading that wine is also linked with this problem, the prospects of living on water and vegetables for the rest of my natural life appears bleak indeed.
And also, I wrote Starbucks and asked them to deny that their coffee was a wheat product. They replied very quickly trying to change the subject, but when that failed they said they would get back to me. They never did. They never denied it.
Interesting. Do you know the exact name of the published research article that uncovered this association? I’d like to review it further. Thanks.
Tyffanie if that comment is directed at me (? better to have hit reply … ) but if it was …
I don’t know why you would look for a scientific study, when there 145 suppliers listed on Alibaba, which sell artificial coffee beans *by the ton*, and there are many patents in the database held by important companies. Here are two example suppliers:
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/935216735/artificial_coffee_beans.html
http://www.alibaba.com/product-gs/950428916/Export_original_artificial_coffee_beans.html
I love the patent on “natural coffee flavor” made from fermenting wheat. I gather they say it is natural because wheat is natural:
https://www.google.com/patents/US4867992
.. note that a probable cause of celiac disease is a poison created by a mold that grows on wheat .. this type of wheat is called myciated wheat and the percent of myciation apparently affects price.
general foods patent on making coffee from wheat:
https://www.google.com/patents/US4072765
I believe this patent is held by, or was recently held by Starbucks, but that is my opinion:
http://www.google.com/patents/WO2005072535A1
See also:
http://www.google.com/patents/WO2007131106A2
and note:
are my coffee beans fake? :
https://forums.digitalpoint.com/threads/are-my-coffee-beans-fake.2492386/
“Nestlé Caro is made of roasted barley, malted barley, chicory, and rye and enjoyed as a coffee substitute.”
..There is a story of a man who was caught selling artificial coffee from his grocery story for twenty years. His defense? If it mattered why hadn’t anyone complained in twenty years?
TL my comment was directed at the author of this blog post, not at any other commenters. It was mentioned in the article that at a conference this research was discussed. I want to know what research articles it came from.
Are you sure that you are looking at coffee. I would wager that most, if not all, coffee on the market today is artificial in full or in part. Artificial coffee beans and artificial coffee is readily available for wholesale purchase and costs much less than real coffee. It is made from pressed carbohydrates that are flavored and then roasted like other coffee. It lacks the rich flavor of coffee but surprisingly few people notice, so it is typically sold at high prices and thus high profit margin.
Because of the prevalence of artificial coffee, I woudl also wager that many labs of have tested it rather than having tested the real thing.
“10% of coffee is a protein…” That would be coffee BEANS, yes? But brewed coffee? It seems counter-intuitive.
Not a scientist here, but am thinking that when we make broth, we benefit from the vitamins, minerals, trace elements…but not protein.
So I guess my question is, does this caution truly reflect the effect of coffee in the from of a drink brewed from coffee grounds? Or is it based on the nutritional analysis of the whole coffee bean itself, which the body would encounters as quite from a brew?
I hope you’re going to post a proper retraction of statements you made. It seems you completely misunderstood what was being said.
The study indicates that the “instant coffee” samples were contaminated with gluten, and that “drinking pure coffee, but not instant coffee, may be safe for individuals with gluten sensitivity and celiac disease as long as they do not have classical allergy to coffee.” (page 27 of the periodical)
Youstated: “lab research has revealed that 10% of coffee is a protein that cross reacts with gluten antibodies.” Dr. Vojdani actually stated in his research paper that coffee beans contain 10-14% protein total. He does not state what types of proteins are included — just the total by dry weight, and that it is possible to be allergic to coffee. Here’s the quote:
“Despite the fact that a considerable amount of protein, ranging from 10% – 14% of the dry weight, is found in green and roasted coffee seeds [30-32], there is not enough awareness of the fact that both an immune reaction and an allergy to coffee beans is possible.”
Food and Nutrition Sciences, 2013, 4, 20-32doi:10.4236/fns.2013.41005 Published Online January 2013 (http://www.scirp.org/journal/fns)
Cross-Reaction between Gliadin and Different Food and Tissue Antigens
Aristo Vojdani1,2*, Igal Tarash
I’m pointing this out because I think you’re both discreditting yourself and the researcher you misunderstood and you likely have a wider fan base than he does 🙂
BTW I only drink coffee about once a week as a treat because I know it’s hard on my stomach/gallbladder. I try to save my real consumption of it for medicinal use – it helps with both my asthma and once a month migraine headache. I’m not posting this as a diehard can’t give up my morning coffee type of person.
Thanks for this .. will look into it. This article was published long before this paper was published in Food and Nutrition Sciences so perhaps there has been additional delving into the problem since that time shedding further light onto the situation. I definitely did not misunderstand at PaleoFX .. the information came from Nora Gedgaudas author of Primal Body Primal Mind. I will email her about it 🙂
While I found the 2013 publication mentioned in my comment above, I haven’t found an earlier publication on this topic. It may be because I am only searching in databases for peer reviewed journals. What criteria do Clark & Gedgaudas (& this blog for that matter) use when evaluating “cutting edge research”?
She indicates she got the info at the PaleoFX12 conference, and it appears she completely misunderstood Dr. Vojdani’s conclusion on coffee & gluten. I don’t know if Dr. Vojdani was misquoted by a speaker, or if she misunderstood him directly.
Luckily, she did give Dr. Vojdani as her source, & the name of the lab, Cyrex, where his research was conducted. This paper is available in its entirety via google scholar (I searched “aristo vojdani gluten”, it was 3rd from the bottom. I included the reference info below).
The study indicates that the “instant coffee” samples were contaminated with gluten, and that “drinking pure coffee, but not instant coffee, may be safe for individuals with gluten sensitivity and celiac disease as long as they do not have classical allergy to coffee.” (page 27 of the periodical)
She stated: “lab research has revealed that 10% of coffee is a protein that cross reacts with gluten antibodies.” Dr. Vojdani actually stated in his research paper that coffee beans contain 10-14% protein total. He does not state what types of proteins are included — just the total by dry weight, and that it is possible to be allergic to coffee. Here’s the quote:
“Despite the fact that a considerable amount of protein, ranging from 10% – 14% of the dry weight, is found in green and roasted coffee seeds [30-32], there is not enough awareness of the fact that both an immune reaction and an allergy to coffee beans is possible.”
Food and Nutrition Sciences, 2013, 4, 20-32
doi:10.4236/fns.2013.41005 Published Online January 2013 (http://www.scirp.org/journal/fns)
Cross-Reaction between Gliadin and Different Food and Tissue Antigens
Aristo Vojdani1,2*, Igal Tarash
So I guess pretty soon we’ll be allergic to EVERYTHING. I don’t think I can stop drinking water!
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This saved my life! I wasn’t getting my period for two years. I stopped my daily coffee and two weeks later I got my period. I am celiac and I happened to see this sight and wow am I thankful!!!