Gluten contamination in gluten-free bakery products: a risk for coeliac disease patients

Objective: The present study aimed to assess the safety of gluten-free bakery products for consumption by coeliac patients. Design/setting: In the current exploratory cross-sectional quantitative study, a total of 130 samples were collected from twenty-five bakeries in Brasilia (Brazil). For the quantification of gluten, an ELISA was used. The threshold of 20 ppm gluten was considered as the safe upper limit for gluten-free food, as proposed in the Codex Alimentarius. Results: The results revealed a total of 21.5 % of contamination among the bakery products sampled. Sixty-four per cent of the bakeries sold at least one contaminated product in our sample. Conclusions: These findings represent a risk for coeliac patients since the ingestion of gluten traces may be sufficient to adversely impact on their health.