Barley contains gluten. It contains around 5 to 8 percent gluten, so it shouldn’t be consumed by people with celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity. Gluten is found in many whole grains, including wheat and rye.
Barley products that contain gluten include most beers (made with fermented barley), malted milk, malted candy, other malted products, barley flour (used sometimes in baking), and barley pearls. Store-bought soups also frequently contain barley—vegetable barley and beef barley flavors are common.
A frequent query we ran across in our research was “Is barley gluten free?”.
I learned of the gluten-containing grains, only wheat must be put on the food label of a product regulated by the FDA. Products made with barley or with an ingredient derived from barley are not gluten-free. This includes a variety of common ingredients. Barley malt and barley malt extract are also not gluten-free.
The next thing we wanted the answer to was is barley harmful to celiacs?
Barley was studied a couple decades later by researchers… These researchers include Baker and Read in 1976, and Anand and colleagues in 1978. Both studies concluded that barley is harmful to patients with celiac disease.
Barley and wheat are both important domesticated crops belonging to the grass family. Wheat is ground into flour before use in baked goods and other foods, while barley is mostly eaten in whole grain or pearled form. Both contain gluten, making them unsuitable for people with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.
What foods are gluten-free?
Popular snack foods like crackers, pretzels, and some types of chips have gluten. Beer is made from malted barley, which has gluten. Some liquors have added wheat, so be sure to research the ingredients. Gravies and ready-meals containing gravy contain gluten. Powdered gravy mixes also contain gluten unless specifically labeled “gluten-free.”.
Yet another inquiry we ran across in our research was “What grains are not allowed on a gluten-free diet?”.
There are three grains that cannot be eaten on a gluten-free diet: wheat, barley and rye. These three grains contain the protein gluten, which triggers the autoimmune response seen in people with celiac disease. Barley can be included in many foods, but it’s not required to be listed on a food label.
Why is barley not listed on food labels?
These three grains contain the protein gluten, which triggers the autoimmune response seen in people with celiac disease. Barley can be included in many foods, but it’s not required to be listed on a food label. In fact, only the “top 8 allergens” must be declared on a food label in products regulated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).