Tell Me About Your Corn Sensitivity.

[GFAnnie]

Now that I've been gluten free for five months I'm starting to suspect I may be having a problem with corn as well. I've been having occasional severe stomach pains and massive bloating (of the 8 months pregnant variety) that is becoming less and less "occasional".  It's starting to appear to me that this is happening after eating foods with corn.  Ugh! 

So anyway, after reading about corn I realize that it's in everything!  I was wondering, from those of you who are corn intolerant, are you having to avoid any corn/corn derived ingredients?  Or is simply avoiding the obvious stuff (sweet corn, corn chips, corn meal, corn starch, etc.) enough to avoid any symptoms?

Yes, I want you to tell me you can just avoid the obvious stuff!

Thanks in advance!

[dilettantesteph]

I thought that I had corn sensitivity at one point.  Then I noticed that I could eat corn on the cob without issues and it was stuff like chips that bothered me.  I concluded that it was gluten contamination of corn crops that bothered me rather than corn itself.  That might be worth checking out before eliminating it entirely.  I hope that you get things figured out and feel better soon.

[w8in4dave]

I avoid all corn and corn derived ingredients. Especially High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) , I recently thought I'd try a few corn chips, but no can do. Just a lil handful sent me to the loo. So still staying away. I read every label, and look up every ingredient if I don't know what it is. it's hard so about frustrated I decided to go on an all natural or all mostly natural diet. The only thing I eat out of a bag is potato chips. I get a Mi. brand that is good. Other than that I eat fresh vegetables, frest fruit and meat. It sure eliminates alot of hassle.  

[1desperateladysaved]

Coming from a Super-Sensitive viewpoint:

 

Even our own homegrown sweet corn makes me bloat to 5 months pregnant size last try.  I avoid all corn that I find.  I even avoid iodized salt.  I found out the hard way that it had magnesium stearate derived form corn-at least in the brand I used.  That caused me a week and a half of fatigue until I figured out that I had switched salt brands about then!  I also avoid products made in a factory that also processes corn.

[kareng]

You know what?  Corn is hard for lots of people to digest.  You may have to cut back on it for a while.  Maybe you will have better luck with it in a year or so.  Maybe not.  When I was first gluten-free, I found that corn bothered me some.  I scaled back and didn't eat as much.  Now, I don't worry about it.

 

You probably don't need to go to extremes of worrying about the teeny amount of corn starch that might be in the teeny amount of salt in something or your ibuprofen.  That level of sensitivity to corn is pretty severe and rare.

[IrishHeart]

Corn is tough to digest for everyone. I did not eat it the first year post DX,  but  I can eat it now.  Maybe you just need to give it some time.

[GottaSki]

I couldn't eat it for a very long time...but can eat a small amount of fresh corn, corn pasta or pop corn without issue now.

[Gemini]

I have to agree with the 3 of the smartest ladies on this forum.......corn is hard to digest and contains a lot of sugar, which can be problematic to a healing gut. That is most likely the reason for some of the problems experienced by some here. And to make it clear to anyone reading this thread......the corn crop is not cross contaminated with gluten. Not one reliable celiac organization has ever come out with that one and I'm sure if it were a problem for us, it would be mentioned in numerous publications. Let's not go off in the weeds any further than this forum has been headed lately because this kind of information is not helping anyone!

[GFAnnie]

Thank you so much everyone.  It seems like the answers run the gamut.  I am thinking that probably I do fall under the "corn is hard for everyone to digest" category.  For the past 48 hours I've given up all obvious corn (corn, corn meal/flour, corn starch) and haven't had any pain or bloating at all.  I'm sure that some of the foods probably had some of the hidden ingredients and it doesn't seem to be bothering me, thank goodness!  This is oddly my first experience with digestive symptoms caused by food ever because my celiacs is of the DH variety, and I never had an obvious digestive symptom.  Now I see what you all deal with when you get glutened.  (and probably what I would deal with if I were to get glutened now that I've been gluten free)

[dilettantesteph]

......the corn crop is not cross contaminated with gluten. Not one reliable celiac organization has ever come out with that one and I'm sure if it were a problem for us, it would be mentioned in numerous publications.

 

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

 

I did not say that the corn crop is always contaminated with gluten.  It does look like it can be contaminated with gluten.  I think that was why I had problems with some corn containing products while I did not have problems with corn on the cob.  I should clarify and say that I am super sensitive to gluten as well as avenin.

[Gemini]

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

 

I did not say that the corn crop is always contaminated with gluten.  It does look like it can be contaminated with gluten.  I think that was why I had problems with some corn containing products while I did not have problems with corn on the cob.  I should clarify and say that I am super sensitive to gluten as well as avenin.

I did not say the corn crop is always contaminated with gluten either so please stop with the word games...save that for the other forum you frequent. 

 

If someone is buying certified gluten free grains, then this issue is not even a concern.  Most grains, if not all, are contaminated from processing and storage issues with gluten containing grains, which is taught in Celiac 101.  I recommend all Celiacs buy certified gluten-free grains because of the obvious.......to protect themselves against small hits which will add up over time and cause problems. Sensitivity level has nothing to do with this. I am also extremely sensitive and become violently ill from a few crumbs but rely on real information from reputable sources, which backs up the reality of how some grains are contaminated. Not one has raised a red flag on seeds or planted crops but stress the manufacturing/storage issue, which makes perfect sense.

 

So......rule of thumb for the newly diagnosed, who I really want to have the most up to date, reality based information.....buy certified gluten-free grains and do not rectally challenge yourself with gluten as detailed in one of those links!  Sounds nasty! 

[dilettantesteph]

Talk about a straw man argument!  Open Original Shared Link

 

I never suggested that anyone rectally challenge themselves with anything!  The links were given as published peer reviewed scientific evidence for gluten contamination of gluten free grains including corn being a problem for some celiacs.
 

[IrishHeart]

 I do not wish to pick a bone here, but you did say this:

 

  I concluded that it was gluten contamination of corn crops that bothered me rather than corn itself.  

 

and then, this:

 

 

 

I did not say that the corn crop is always contaminated with gluten.  It does look like it can be contaminated with gluten.  I think that was why I had problems with some corn containing products while I did not have problems with corn on the cob. 

 

and honestly, I am not seeing the distinction here. 

 

Corn - produces corn crops--so, if you can tolerate corn, you can tolerate corn crop products. 

 

Are you saying that the "production of corn products" is the problem? Then, that is not the growing process --ie. the corn itself that is contaminated, right?

 

The article by Tricia Thompson,  Anne Lee, et. al....is often used as evidence for the "scary possible gluten content in uncertified grains", but if you really look at the evidence, you will see in the table:

 

 

Enriched corn meal  ....< 5 ppm.

 

Under 5 --well, this could be negligible. We all know zero isn't measurable.

 

Open Original Shared Link

 

 

Just watching the discussion and making an observation. 

 

[dilettantesteph]

 

 I do not wish to pick a bone here, but you did say this:

 

 

and then, this:

 

 

and honestly, I am not seeing the distinction here. 

 

Corn - produces corn crops--so, if you can tolerate corn, you can tolerate corn crop products. 

 

Are you saying that the "production of corn products" is the problem? Then, that is not the growing process --ie. the corn itself that is contaminated, right?

 

The article by Tricia Thompson,  Anne Lee, et. al....is often used as evidence for the "scary possible gluten content in uncertified grains", but if you really look at the evidence, you will see in the table:

 

 

Enriched corn meal  ....< 5 ppm.

 

Under 5 --well, this could be negligible. We all know zero isn't measurable.

 

Open Original Shared Link

 

 

Just watching the discussion and making an observation. 

 

 

 

Thank you for the observation, Irish.  I must have typed that up too quickly.  Clearly the corn on the cob I ate without problems was also a corn crop.  I should have said gluten contamination of some corn containing products or something like that.

 

I don't know at what point in the process the contamination occurs.  I do know that I have bought whole corn and found wheat in it.  In that case, it was not the processing that contaminated the wheat.

[dilettantesteph]

In the 4th link above, the corn was found to contain 82 ppm gluten.  At the time, that was considered too low a level to cause a gluten reaction, so it was concluded that some celiacs react to corn.  Now we know that some celiacs react to 82 ppm gluten.  I gave it as an example of celiacs reacting to contamination in corn products.

[dilettantesteph]

This link: Open Original Shared Link

was for a study where 7 of 148 samples labelled gluten-free in Canada were found to contain more than 20 ppm gluten.

 

Being aware of possible problems like this is important when we are trying to figure out why we are having symptoms.  When I got constant assurances that things were safe for all celiacs when they were not safe for me, I kept getting sick.  When I finally was told the truth, I was able to recover.

[kareng]

This is getting silly. the OP has been gluten-free for four or five months. Let her cut out the obvious corn sources and see if she feels better. I doubt every corn product she is eating is from 1 of those 7 that might be contaminated.  She even mentioned that she hasn't had any obvious corn for a couple of days and feels much better.

[GottaSki]

I am of the gluten is possible many places in our world camp...yet, let us use common sense - please.

Those newly diagnosed should not be scared away from corn, rice or other alternative grains to wheat.

There is a small percentage of folks - me included- that need to remove more than gluten, investigate why they aren't improving...but my guess - opinion and personal experience only - is corn is the least of these folks issues.

[dilettantesteph]

Sorry guys.  I wasn't trying to scare anyone away from corn.  I was trying to do the opposite by suggesting that she may still be able to eat corn in the form of corn on the cob.  I found that to be the case for my son and me. 

 

I made some poor word choices and got a little carried away feeling like I needed to defend my position.

[Scott Adams]

No worries, there is genuine corn (Avenin) intolerance, and then there is a possible cross-contamination issue, but just to help out the OP--it is a fairly normal for celiacs to have additional food intolerance issues, and keeping a food diary to try to track them down is important. Most people eliminate the top 8-10 offenders for a few weeks, then slowly add them back and keep a diary as they go. This may be helpful in your case.

[IrishHeart]

No worries, there is genuine corn (Avenin) intolerance, and then there is a possible cross-contamination issue, but just to help out the OP--it is a fairly normal for celiacs to have additional food intolerance issues, and keeping a food diary to try to track them down is important. Most people eliminate the top 8-10 offenders for a few weeks, then slowly add them back and keep a diary as they go. This may be helpful in your case.

 

I agree. As I said to the OP. I managed to get corn back after a while and I was very glad about that. I love corn!

 

Just to add: Some celiacs do have a problem with oats which contain the prolamin avenin and/or  corn which contains the prolamin zein.

 

As to the never ending "possible cross contamination issue"--which comes up on nearly every single thread lately--I will quote a very wise man who said this: "The Earth itself, is a shared facility". I just think sometimes, we carry this fear too far. In my humble opinion, of course.

[w8in4dave]

It's been a year of DX for me. A few months into my healing I figured out I was corn intolerant. From eating gluten-free corn chips. and another time drinking a soda that had HFCS in it. I have heard I could eat corn on the cob even tho corn products bother me. Even gluten-free corn products. But I guess the pain I go thru just isn't worth it for me. I had some tea at a restaurant the other day , they said they made it in home. I am usually ok with in house made iced tea. Not this time! Bam! Hit me like a rock! Nope I will stick to hot tea from now on! I bring my own tea bags. My point is after a few months of going gluten-free you may ,<--(May)  figure out you have other intolerances. I think a food diary is an excellent idea, write down the sources of the food in the diary. Some times it just isn't in black and white for us.  I tried to eat some gluten-free chips a couple months ago and nope! Just a lil hand full sent me to pain!