From Clan Thompson newsletter:
Quote:
Hi, I just tried to get information from GlaxoSmithKline on whether their product Flonase is gluten free and was told they could not give that information out to consumers, only to healthcare professionals. So today I went to my pcp to help me find a gf allergy medication. She said she couldn't help me out with that as she has no idea what I'm talking about. Then she asked me if I really thought that the tiny amount of gluten present in just one pill would affect me (she was insisting that amount ingested is no big deal). Lastly, she told me that Flonase is not taken orally therefore, it does not matter if gluten is in it, because it won't be going into my digestive track.
First, it's just disturbing that GSK will not give out gluten info to consumers and that I'm left having to rely on a PCP who really knows very little about celiac disease! But my main question is can a small amount of gluten in a medication (just one pill) cause a reaction? And secondly, is the information my pcp provided about Flonase erroneous (that medication taken through the nose would not cause a gluten reaction)?
I left my doctors office today feeling like a hypochondriac and at the same time wondering whether this woman really knows anything about celiac disease! Thanks, Chantal
Dear Chantal, After doubling over in abdominal pain for 24 hours after trying a digestive enzyme given to me by a dentist not knowing it had barley malt enzyme in it, the answer is yes!! GSK is out of line in not dealing with consumers, and yes any route into the body to react with the immune system: inhaled into lungs, nose, eaten, or on skin or scalp can cause gluten reactions.
We have to accept that the medical profession is dreadfully behind the understanding of these issues.
I would like to see you pursue a dietary regimen that might indeed be less mucus forming or immune stimulating that itself might obviate the need for flonase. This is how I got off that medicine. Be conscious about what foods seem to cause nasal congestion and try to limit or avoid them. generally they are dairy, grains, some nuts, and legumes, among few others.
Good luck. Dr. Ken Fine
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Good grief! They won't tell you?