Evaluation of the Presence of Gluten in Beans Served at Self-Service Restaurants: A Problem for Celiac Disease Carriers

The aim of this study is to evaluate the gluten contamination in beans served in self-service restaurants. The study was conducted in self-service restaurants in Brasilia, where samples of common beans were collected and later analyzed using the ELISA technique. The results showed that 16% of the samples were contaminated by gluten and almost 45% of the restaurants showed at least one day of gluten contamination. This shows the lack of standardization of the preparation of beans, a fact that exposes celiac disease (CD) patients to great risk. Therefore, public health actions are necessary to ensure safe access to gluten-free food in order to avoid further complications related to celiac disease and improve quality of life for these individuals.