Allergies Health Center

Living With a Wheat Allergy

Avoiding wheat if you or your child is allergic to it can seem like a big challenge. It's easier if you know where you're likely to find wheat and what you can eat instead.

Foods With Wheat

These foods have wheat protein:

• Bran
• Bread crumbs
• Bulgur
• Couscous
• Durum, durum flour, and durum wheat
• Einkorn
• Farina
• Farro (also known as emmer)
• Kamut
• Semolina
• Sprouted wheat
• Triticale
• Wheat (bran, germ, gluten, grass, malt, starch)
• Wheat berries
• Wheat flour (all types, including all-purpose, cake, enriched, graham, high protein or high gluten, and pastry)

Foods That May Have Wheat

Check labels when buying food or ask at restaurants whether a dish has wheat or wheat products in it. These foods often do:

• Acker meal
• Ale and beer
• Baking mixes
• Baked goods, including cookies, cakes, and crackers
• Breaded and batter-fried foods
• Cereals
• Hot dogs and processed meats
• Ice cream
• Salad dressing
• Pasta
• Sauces and soups
• Soy sauce
• Surimi (mock crab meat)

Ingredients With Wheat

If you see any of these listed on a label, the food may have wheat in it:

• Gelatinized starch
• Gluten or vital gluten
• Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
• Natural flavoring
• Starch, modified starch, modified food starch
• Vegetable gum or starch

4 Wheat Allergy Tips

• Ask your doctor about other grains. When you have a wheat allergy, you may or may not be allergic to some other grains, too. Gluten, one of the wheat proteins that can cause a reaction, is also in barley, rye, and oats. Ask your doctor if they are safe to eat.

• Always check labels. Allergic reactions to wheat can range from stomach upset to asthma-like symptoms to anaphylaxis, which is an emergency. Foods that have wheat must say so on the label. Check them to avoid a reaction.

• Beware of wheat outside the kitchen. Wreaths and garlands may include wheat or wheat products as decorations. Some children's play dough also has wheat in it. Other non-food items may, too.

• Bake with other flours. If a recipe calls for wheat flour, try rice flour, potato starch flour, corn flour, or soy flour instead. Experiment to find the one that gives you the best texture.