Sweethearts Candy Blog's

One of my blogger/writer buddies, Wendy, from the wonderful blog Celiacs in the House, sent me an alert about a gluten-free pasta that contains an ingredient called "lupin."

Some of you may have heard of a product in gluten-free pasta brands that can cause an allergic reaction in people allergic to nuts--lupin is that ingredient. It contains proteins that are similar to the ones that cause an allergic reaction in people with nut allergies. So we definitely want to avoid it.

Click here to read a previous post I wrote about lupin and gluten-free pasta.

Wendy shared the above photo with me to illustrate that brands of gluten-free pasta, such as Bi-Aglut now has a peanut allergy advisory warning. Progress, definitely! In the past, no such warning was listed on the package.

However, Wendy did tell me that another gluten-free pasta that she uses called "Schar" does not have a nut allergy advisory warning on the package, though it definitely should since it does contain lupin as an ingredient.

The bottom line--if you're nut-allergic and also have allergies to wheat or celiac disease, be very careful of gluten-free pasta. If lupin is an ingredient, avoid it. And of course, ask your allergist for more details. This is a fairly new ingredient but with the influx of gluten-free foods on the market these days, it's something we should be aware of.

Thank you, Wendy, for your consideration in letting us know about this. It's really important info! Anyone living gluten-free should check out Wendy's blog for terrific GF recipes, photos, info and much, much more.

Also, a big thank you to all of you who commented on my previous post asking you about your top concerns as a nut allergy parent or caregiver! I will spend the next several weeks addressing them. And of course, keep your comments and questions coming, either by commenting on the blog or e-mailing me.

And just one word of encouragement to the nut allergy "newbies" out there: You can do this. It does get easier with time and soon you'll see that your child and/or you can live a full life despite the occasional glitches or pitfalls. Don't get discouraged. :)