Gluten, also known as glue or gluten protein, consists of the protein components gliadin and glutenin. Gluten is found in cereal grains, especially wheat. Some people have gluten intolerance. Celiac sprue, or celiac disease as it is medically called, lasts a lifetime and means not being able to eat grains containing gluten.
The protein structures in oats have a different composition than that of wheat. Oats contain the oat-specific protein avenin (avena, Latin = oats), which contains less prolamin – which is effective for celiac disease – than the wheat-typical gliadin. During cultivation, harvesting, storage and processing, oats may be slightly mixed with grains containing gluten. Therefore, conventionally produced oats cannot be described as “gluten-free”. When it comes to gluten-free oats, care is taken to ensure that no other types of grain can be mixed in, from the seed to the packaging.
