Evaluating Dietary Supplements: What Should Celiac Patients Know?
Dietary supplement "ingredients"
The 14 products identified by the Celiac Disease Center contained different types of proteases. Eleven of these products had lipases and carbohydrates that do not actually reduce gluten proteins at all, while other products also had probiotics.
Since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires the manufacturers of the supplements to disclose the “major allergens” of their products, a review of these stated allergens was conducted. During the review, fungal, plant, and bacterial sources were identified, but the origins or sources of these ingredients were not all identified. There was even a product that listed wheat as one of its ingredients.
Because of these identifications, attention then focused to the manufacturers’ claims on the said products. Only one product implied no claim at all, while all the other products claimed that they can reduce fragments of gluten. Thirteen of the products made different claims that also include alleviating GI symptoms.
