Question: Can There Be Gluten In Breast Milk?
Answer: Yes, gluten has been found in human breast milk. This means that if a non-celiac mother is nursing a baby or a toddler with confirmed celiac disease, the mother needs to maintain a gluten-free diet.
If neither the baby nor the mother has confirmed celiac disease, the mother should continue to eat gluten, even if there is a history of celiac disease in the family, because there is a chance that exposure to gluten in breast milk will actually help the baby to develop a normal immune response to gluten.
For more information about breastfeeding and gluten, see Facts About Breastfeeding, Gluten, and Celiac Disease.
Sources:
Chirdo FG et al. Presence of high levels of non-degraded gliadin in breast milk from healthy mothers. Scandinavian Journal of Gastroenterololgy 1998; 33: 1186-92.
Troncone R et al. Passage of gliadin into human breast milk.
ACTA Paediatrica Scandinavica (Stockholm) 1987; 76: 453-6.
