People with celiac disease often have to adopt strict diets to avoid contact with gluten, but what happens if a person with this condition kisses someone else who has just eaten a gluten-filled snack? This question may seem trivial, but it causes anxiety among many people living with celiac disease. Thankfully, new research has challenged this worry: it seems you can enjoy a smooch with a gluten-eater, even if they have just eaten.
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder that affects around 1 percent of the population. It is typically characterized by digestive issues after ingesting food containing gluten. This can include abdominal pain, indigestion, and diarrhea. For people with celiac disease, gluten ingestion can cause intestinal damage even if it does not cause immediate symptoms.
This is why people living with this condition go to great lengths to control their diet and the types of food they are exposed to. Similar to people living with nut allergies, the concerns of contamination can become quite overwhelming. Ultimately, it is easier for people with celiac disease to ensure their food is gluten-free when they make it at home rather than when it is prepared by other people. As such, eating out can become quite a concern for people with celiac disease.
“Everyone worries about whether gluten is getting into their food at a restaurant, but no one really looked at what happens when you kiss afterwards,” Dr Anne Lee, assistant professor of nutritional medicine at Columbia University, said in a statement.
“The advice we gave about kissing and celiac disease was based on precaution and assumptions. We were using our best judgment. I felt it was important to do research to see if there was any actual risk.”
The extent to which people with celiac disease worry about a contaminating kiss was identified in a study from 2022, which showed that over two-thirds of their participants reported that the condition impacted their dating life “a moderate amount”, “a great deal”, or caused “a lot” of concern. Around 52 percent of the participants felt uncomfortable about going out on dates, and 39 percent were specifically worried about kissing their partner due to their celiac disease.
In this latest two-part study, which will be presented today at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2025, 10 couples were recruited by Lee and colleagues to examine the impact kissing had on celiac disease. Each couple had one partner who had the condition. In the study, the non-celiac partner ate 10 saltine crackers and then kissed their partner for 10 seconds. However, in one session, the partners waited five minutes before they kissed, while in the other, they drank 4 ounces of water before they kissed.
In both situations, researchers found that the gluten transfer – measured in the saliva of the partner with celiac disease – was minimal in the majority of participants. Gluten was still found in the saliva of participants who kissed their partner after they drank water, but in all cases, the amount was less than 20 parts per million – this is the level allowed in gluten-free products and is considered safe.
Understanding how gluten can pass through kissing is useful not just for people with celiac disease but also non-celiac gluten sensitivity. This gluten intolerance can lead to less severe symptoms, such as bloating, fatigue, or brain fog, after eating gluten.
“For clinicians, we can now say to patients, ‘You don’t have to go to extreme measures,’” Lee added.
“Patients with celiac disease can be more relaxed, knowing that the risk of gluten cross-contact through kissing a partner who has consumed gluten can be brought down to safe levels if food is followed by a small glass of water.”
The study will be presented today at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2025.
Source Link: A Gluten-Free Kiss: Can People With Celiac Disease Ingest Gluten From Kissing?