I hope everyone had a wonderful and delicious Thanksgiving! Today, I’m continuing my series on common food additives.
Last time, I discussed the health effects of carrageenan, a food additive that is commonly used as a stabilizer, thickener, or emulsifier. Another additive that shares many of these functions in commercial foods is xanthan gum, which is also popular in gluten-free baked goods for the elasticity it lends to dough.
Although it isn’t as heavily discussed in the blogosphere as the other additives I’ve covered thus far, many health-conscious people see it on ingredient lists and wonder what it is, and whether they should be eating it. In this article, I’ll do my best to answer those questions.
Should you avoid xanthan gum in gluten-free baked goods? Find out in this article.
Xanthan gum is a largely indigestible polysaccharide that is produced by bacteria called Xanthomonas Camestris. (1) Manufacturers place the bacteria in a growth medium that contains sugars and other nutrients, and the resulting product of bacterial fermentation is purified, dried, powdered, and sold as xanthan gum. (Makes you wonder who first thought to put it in food, doesn’t it?)
Animal Studies
Overall, the results from animal studies on xanthan gum aren’t very concerning. In one experiment, rats were fed xanthan gum for two years in concentrations of 0.25, 0.50 or 1.0 g/kg body weight per day. (2) The only notable difference between the xanthan gum groups and the control group was that rats fed xanthan gum experienced soft stools somewhat more frequently than the control rats, but even that barely reached statistical significance. There were no differences in growth rate, survival, blood markers, organ weights or tumor incidence.
Another experiment followed a similar design but used dogs instead of rats, and the results were the same: no changes other than occasional soft stools. (3) In a three-generation reproductive study, rats were fed either 0.25 or 0.50 g/kg per day, and there were no significant changes in the parents and offspring from the xanthan gum-receiving groups. (4)
Based on those initial studies, it was concluded that xanthan gum is a perfectly safe food additive. Since then, a few additional animal studies with different aims have been published.
One study, conducted to evaluate the effects of xanthan gum on digestion in rats, found that a diet containing 4% xanthan gum increased the amount of water in the intestines by 400%, and also increased the number of sugars remaining in the intestine. (5) Another study found that in rats fed 50 g/kg of xanthan gum (an incredibly high dose) for 4 weeks, the stool water content and short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) content increased significantly. (6)
This last study actually relates to the potential anti-tumor properties of xanthan gum, and researchers found that orally administered xanthan gum was able to slow tumor growth and prolong the survival of mice with melanoma. (7) The mechanism is unclear, but it’s interesting nonetheless.
Human Studies
Due to the lack of harmful effects observed in animal studies, there are few human studies on xanthan gum. The first study aimed to determine the safety of xanthan gum when consumed by humans in an everyday dietary setting, but at levels much higher than people would normally encounter in their diet. (8) For 23 days, 5 adult men with no GI issues consumed between 10.4g and 12.9g of xanthan gum daily (based on the subjects’ weight), which is 15 times the current Acceptable Daily Intake of 10mg/kg. Overall, they experienced a reduction in serum cholesterol, an increase in fecal bile acid, and an increase in stool output and water content.
Another study had volunteers consume 15g of xanthan gum per day for 10 days. (9) They found xanthan gum to be a “highly efficient laxative,” and subjects experienced greater stool output and gas. That’s not very surprising considering the high dose, but what I found particularly interesting about this study was their measurement of the ability of subjects’ fecal bacteria to metabolize xanthan gum.
The researchers found that before the trial period, bacteria from the stools of only 12 of the 18 subjects could break down the xanthan gum, while after the trial period, bacteria from 16 of the subjects could break it down. (10) Additionally, the stool samples containing bacteria that could break down the xanthan gum showed a much greater production of hydrogen gas and SCFA after the trial period as compared to baseline, indicating that the intestinal bacteria of the subjects quickly adapted to this new food source. Clearly, xanthan gum (like many indigestible carbohydrates) can have a profound impact on the gut microbiota in large doses.
Colitis in Infants
The only concerning research I found on xanthan gum relates to the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in infants. Earlier this year, the New York Times published an article relating the tragic deaths of infants who had developed NEC after consuming a diet of formula or breast milk that had been thickened with a xanthan gum-based product called SimplyThick. This product was widely used in hospitals to thicken feed for infants with swallowing difficulties.
Two papers reviewed the cases of xanthan gum-associated NEC, and while there isn’t enough data to establish causation, the general consensus seems to be that the xanthan gum caused increased bacterial production of SCFA in the newborns’ intestines, and this contributed to the development of NEC. (11, 12) Although SCFA are vital to colon health, the immature digestive systems of newborns appear to be extremely sensitive to them. (13, 14) Since then, general practice guidelines suggest avoiding manufactured thickening products in babies under 12 months old, and rice cereal or baby oatmeal is used instead.
I wanted to address this because while it’s clearly important to avoid giving xanthan gum to infants (especially in large amounts), I’d like to emphasize that none of this changes the fact that xanthan gum appears to be relatively harmless in adult humans. None of the animal or human studies found damage to the intestinal mucosa following xanthan gum consumption, even in large doses, so this danger appears to be unique to newborns. For everyone else, SCFA aren’t something to be afraid of, and they are actually beneficial for the gut and for metabolic health, as I mention in previous articles here and here.
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Wheat, Corn, Soy, and Dairy Allergies
I mentioned in the opening section that xanthan gum is produced by bacterial fermentation of a sugar-containing medium. Unfortunately, that ‘medium’ is often a potentially allergenic substance such as corn, soy, dairy, or wheat. Many xanthan gum manufacturers aren’t eager to share what their ‘medium’ is, but one common supplier, Bob’s Red Mill, discloses their production practices.
It looks like they originally used corn or soy as a medium, but they’ve since changed their medium to a glucose solution derived from wheat starch. However, they claim that the xanthan gum is still gluten-free, and it continues to be marketed as such.
It can be difficult to find production info online, but just be aware that if you have a severe allergy to corn, soy, wheat, or dairy, it would be prudent to either avoid xanthan gum entirely or check with the manufacturer to see how it’s produced.
Conclusion
Based on the available evidence, the worst xanthan gum seems to be capable of (in adults) is causing some digestive distress in those who are susceptible by increasing stool bulk, water content, and sugar content. But as I just mentioned, those with severe allergies should also be careful.
I recommend that people with digestive problems generally avoid xanthan gum, not because there’s evidence that it could damage your gut, but because its structural properties make it likely to produce unpleasant gut symptoms. Unlike carrageenan, there’s no evidence that xanthan gum can cause serious harm (even in human studies using doses much higher than people would normally encounter), so if you are able to tolerate it, I see no compelling reason to strictly avoid it. I wouldn’t recommend consuming large amounts every day, because xanthan gum appears to have a high propensity for altering the gut microbiome, and it’s unclear whether that alteration could be problematic in the long run. But the small amounts that you would normally encounter in the context of a real-food diet shouldn’t present a problem.
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Is there anyone else who suffers from insomnia after eating products containing xanthan gum or guar gum? This has been happening to me for some years now but I can’t find anyone else who suffers the same? I am very intolerant of caffeine so am wondering if these products also contain caffeine.. I would love to hear from anyone else who can verify this.
One evening after work I was too lazy to cook, so I had some gluten-free brownies (which contained xanthan gum). I went to sleep for 10pm as usual. That night I found it IMPOSSIBLE to fall asleep. I was up until 2am just lying in bed, wide awake and alert, with thoughts rushing through my head. My brain felt hyper-alert/A.D.D., overwhelmed at times because of how fast my thoughts were rushing (or at least it felt that way). Finally around 2:30am my mind became fatigued from the rushing thoughts and I fell asleep.
Every other night before this I would fall asleep within 10 minutes of lying in bed.
So only eat xanthan gum products in the day as an alternative to coffee. But even then, I find the rushing thoughts midday to be overwhelming.
Hi yes i am the same. I can not tolerate xanthan gum or preservatives additives. I find i have insomnia. Also i find coffee affects my guts badly.. makes things seize up of you know what i mean ?
Hi Sharon, I can’t tell you how incredible it is to finally hear someone else with the same problem. I’ve been having this condition where my bottom swells up gets black and peels for years now. Still an unknown as to exactly what’s happening, but caffeine definitely fires it up.
I tried a new organic pea protein powder tonight, and the next thing I know I was anxious and paranoid like a free basing crackhead. Couldn’t sleep, I was bug eyed like I swallowed a big gulp full of coffee, and my lip blew up. Fortunately the only thing it could’ve been was the pea powder caked in freaking xanthan gum. I took an antihistamine just now and the throat tingling, lips and fat tongue subsided, but Hello! I had no idea xanthan gum was an issue for me.
It could have been BOTH the pea protein AND the xanthan gum. Both contain FREE GLUTAMATE. Excess glutamate can cause insomnia and many other symptoms I’ve read described here. Glutamate is an “excitotoxin”. Xanthan gum contains free glutamate.
Xanthan gum contains FREE GLUTAMATE which is an excitotoxin which can cause insomnia.
I’m intolerant of gluten, milk protein, lactose, lamb and sugar alcohols (sorbitol, manitol etc.), and I too can’t tolerate this stuff (xanthan) – none of the other thickening gums cause any adverse effects for me at all but xanthan gum certainly does – at first the effects were negligible but they intensified over time with further exposure quite rapidly so that now even trace amounts can give me horrendous wind, diarrhea, cramps and just generally crappy ill-feelings. I love hot sauces and they give me no digestive problems at all on their own account, but unfortunately it’s now in almost all of these – got one the other week that had none listed on the label, but even 2 tiny splashes/abt. 1/4 tsp (it was a scotch bonnet and habanero sauce and VERY hot) in my meal caused me drastic wind, runs and rough feelings generally for a couple of days or more. I double checked the ingredients ‘Thickener E415’ – looked it up and sure enough that’s xanthan gum! Horrid stuff – even ‘Genius’ the British based gluten free bread company has dropped it from their ingredients (as have a couple of other GF bakeries) though this decision is causing them no end of technical difficulties trying to turn out a loaf that doesn’t become crumbs within a day! Don’t be fooled fellow sufferers, our numbers are not as small as you may think!
Hi, Genius have not removed xanthan gun. I have had severe IBS for over 20 years and for the first time every I bought two loaves of white gluten free bread last week: one was M&S gluten free and the other was Genius. I was ok with M&S, but had two slices of Genius this morning and have had severe bloating and diarrhoea ever since and am now curled up in bed on a Bank Holiday 🙁 I compared the ingredients, and the main thing is that Genius contains Xanthan gum whereas M&S doesn’t. I’ve wondered for a long time if I’m intolerant of xanthan gum – I often react badly to it if it’s in Philadelphia for example. Now I’m even more convinced.
I have IBS and celiac disease…needless to say, I have suffered for many years with stomach disorders. I never followed the traditional approach to healing because I only believe in holistic medicine, but after what has seemed like “forever” I have educated myself on all the trigger foods and determined what I am able to eat (unfortunately I do not have much in the way of variety but it’s better than suffering). I am a gluten-free vegan who cannot have any wheat, dairy, eggs, soy, wheat, yeast, high mannitol or lectin content foods…and the list goes on I bake all my own muffins, pie crusts etc. and fanatically read every food label – even canola oil is a toxin for me. However, I recently had a craving for pizza. please note, I also need to avoid foods high in FODMAPS, but I didn’t think the garlic(a high fructose fermentable) content in Udi’s pizza would be catastrophic. I was actually fine the first few times I ate the pizza, but that soon changed and each time I ate it I would be sick the entire next day…it has a cumulative effect. I had not realized that xanthan gum was one of the ingredients because I was “determined” to enjoy some pizza…yes, very careless of me…in any event, I was violently ill as a result. I bake with gluten-free flour and have never used xanthan gum to make my baked goods rise – although every gluten-free site says to do so…instead, I use one and a half teaspoons of baking powder and i/2 teaspoon of salt for each cup of lour to achieve the same results. I now understand why I reacted so adversely to the xanthan gum…I hope my post can be of help to others who may have had a similar reaction.
I have many of the same issues! Thanks for the tip of using baking powder and salt. I have to make everything from scratch and this will help with my baking.
I am so glad I was able to help…people don’t understand how difficult it is to go gluten-free…it’s a whole new lifestyle with a lot of trial and error, isn’t it? I also use the egg substitute replacer because i can’t eat real eggs anymore…it works great for cookies, muffins, breads etc…
Thanks for the tips!! I, like you, cannot eat any of the foods you mentioned in your original post, and sometimes find it difficult to cook for the day. I went from South Africa to Serbia, where it is VERY difficult to find products and/ people to understand what you are even talking about. It is now considerably easier than it was 2 years ago but it is still a huge problem. As my sister lives in the UK, I too get lots of ‘bare products’ from there, but then soon run out of ideas as to what to make out of them and thus revert to rice and potato – as they are easy to take whereever you go. I have for the past 10 years suffered from UVEITIS and have developed additional food intolerances due to either my ‘condition’ or as consequence of medication. Lots of people do not believe that food plays a part in either one but my experience tells me otherwhise. I hope that you will carry on with the posts and suggestions for us!! Thanks a million!!
thank u so much. i wish to make my own and was looking for what i can use instead. this is great. thank you so much.
I am an RN that works primarily with medically fragile disable children of various congenital disease/muscoskeletal disorders such as Cerebral Palsy.
I have been increasingly concerned about the dose, frequency, and duration of Miralax ordered for these children (ages from infants as young as 12 months up to young adult). Most receive it routinely b/c of routine medications that cause medication induced constipation, others simply b/c they are immobile and prone to constipation. Most receive it for numerous years consecutively. Now that I have worked with this patient population for > 5 yrs, I am noticing a trend.
We have had 3 deaths, and multiple hospitalizations r/t to paralytic bowel. I’m beginning to wonder if there is a correlation?
Has anyone tried arrowroot instead? I did a search and found no comments about it. Thanks
Wikipedia says that the Xanthan is fermented in a medium containing Isopropyl alcohol:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xanthan_gum
Dont eat propyl alcohol.
We use arrowroot as a thickener quite often. It’s a little slipperier or slimier, but doesn’t cause bad reactions in us.
No, Roger, this is what Wikipedia says:
“After a fermentation period, the polysaccharide is precipitated from a growth medium with isopropyl alcohol, dried, and ground into a fine powder. Later, it is added to a liquid medium to form the gum.”
Isopropyl alcohol is used to remove the oxygen from the element, thus preserving the shelf life, this is called esterification. This produces an element that can be dried and last virtually forever. but the body cannot react to the element since there is no oxygen to produce a reaction. As a result with the use of zanthan gum it appears to draw large amounts of H2O from the body, to bind with the oxygen, and cause diarrhea, along with electrolyte imbalances, for children this can be deadly. For adults with fluid balance problems, hypertension, or cardiac disease this can also be deadly. Esterification is used in the production of all fat soluble commercial vitamins.
I am a Research RN of 40 years, look for my new book “You Are What You Eat” Human body Function in Relation to Food. And Read Your Labels.
Xanthan gum gives me terrible abdominal cramps, diarrhea, bloating and gas for three days after consuming even small amounts.
My daughter is now in the hospital after eating food that had only small amounts of it. Her colon swelled to a very large size (she has a colostomy and part of her colon would come out into her bag each day.) After eating the food with the xanthan gum, it got so big that it popped off her colostomy pouch.
Why do I think xanthan gum is the culprit? A couple years ago, my daughter was in the hospital for gastrointestinal issues. She had been vomiting for three days straight and her intestines shut down. After about a week on IVs, things started moving again and she was going to get to go home in another day. The doctor decided to add thickener to her juice. She took one sip and wouldn’t drink any more. I also took a sip to see what it was that made her not want any more. Nasty feel and taste. I flushed the remainder down the toilet. That night was the worst I’ve ever seen her. She cried and signed stop, stop, stop…no, no, no, and swelled up to the point that I didn’t know how she could stand it. She writhed around in the bed, almost yanking out the IV tubes still in her. It was horrendous to watch. I was having my own problems, having to go to the toilet with explosive diarrhea and having painful stomach cramps. I had these for three days. The doctor agreed to have the nurse put a nasal gastric tube back down my daughter’s throat and they sucked out a large amount of green slime. Finally at 6 in the morning, she calmed down and was able to sleep after suffering the whole night.
As awful as that experience was, I learned that xanthan gum is a big problem for us. I later found an article online that described others who have had similar trouble. For those with gastro troubles, I would encourage you to stay away from this additive.
Hi Amy:
I stumbled upon this site to read about Xanthan Gum and I found your comment about you and your daughter. It was tough to read. I am not a doctor but since young adulthood, I have struggled with intestinal issues – not super bad but whether it was bloating, gas, yeast infections or pain – it always tied back to intestinal flora. I have been to many doctors and read much on the subject. It seems that over the years, our society’s diet has been leaning toward refined and sugared up carbohydrates. We have trashed our intestinal flora.
As well, my best friends son had the exact symptoms that you described with your daughter. Absolute excruciating intestinal pain and his intestinal walls would overlap and they opted for surgery. Then last year, my Mother in Law was hospitalized for extreme intestinal illness and she described it the same way that you did in that her intestines “just shut down.”
So, my point for mentioning all this is first to relate and identify with you but to also encourage you to learn EVERYTHING you can about intestinal health because at the end of the day, all of my symptoms, my friend’s son’s symptoms as well as my Mother in Law’s symptoms, all had to do with diet and intestinal flora – even my yeast infections and yeast sensitivities had to do with intestinal flora. For starters, get yourself and your daughter the best strains of probiotics. Not the ones you get at regular grocery stores! Go to Jimbos, Whole Foods or Henry’s or a place like that. Only get the kind in the refrigerator sections because they are live cultures. Then switch stains from time to time. It sounds like your intestines have lost the ability to defend themselves. Anyway, I hope that helps and I wish for you and your daughter to recover and oh, stay away from sugar and refined carbohydrates! God Bless 🙂
Thanks for the reply. I’m thankful to some degree to know we are not the only ones with intestinal struggles, though It’s sad anyone should have to experience this.
I believe that oral antibiotics have been accomplices with less than optimum foods and additives in causing the harm we are seeing. Shots didn’t affect the gut the way oral antibiotics do. Big use of oral antibiotics began at about the same time as “New and Improved” food did. As a kid, I was thrilled when science allowed me to swallow my medicine instead of getting a needle. Now, I’d love to see a many year study comparing groups who get injections from birth versus those who get theirs orally.
For many years I’ve been learning all I can absorb about gut health, healthy eating, yeast, intestinal bacteria and on and on. With the changes I’ve made, we should be SO healthy! Instead, we seem to have become more reactive to the bad things. Probiotics (refrigerated and in the billions of cells), organic food, whole food, pasture raised eggs and meat, drinking good water vs. sugary drinks, cooking homemade from scratch, etc. have us on the right road, but once compromised, it seems the gut is difficult to repair.
Twice I was given clindamycin and both times it took off all my skin on the outside and I thought I was dying on the inside. Had the hospital where I received it (and Levaquin and large doses of Tylenol) taken greater notice of the effects, I might never have taken it again. It wasn’t until 14 years later and after only four days of taking it, that I realized I had Stevens-Johnson syndrome. What this antibiotic does to me on the outside, it also does to some degree on the inside. Perhaps this is why xanthan gum is so hard on me now.
A more recent episode with cafeteria prepared food has me realizing this is even more serious than I previously thought. I ate a chicken salad sandwich after asking about the ingredients and thinking it was pretty safe. It wasn’t too much later that night that I knew it had xanthan gum in it. The bloating was so bad that my heart didn’t have enough room to do its job and I began experiencing heart attack-like symptoms. Pain in my chest and pain in my upper arms. I was keeping my daughter company in the hospital and never thought to have them take my blood pressure. No one was too concerned when I mentioned how I was feeling. ( If I’d ended up on the floor, at least I was where I could get quicker care.) The pain eventually worked its way down the intestinal tract and after three days of hurting, burping, acid reflux, farting, and diarrhea, I began to feel better. Now I’m even more someone who reads all the ingredients labels. My daughter and I might be in the minority in the herd, but we are the majority at home. We’re voting with our dollars and time for real food without additives.
I used to use Jarrodophulus probiotics for years, always buying them because the “refrigerated kind” were supposed to be better. I cpould never see ant real difference in my digestion while taking them. About a year ago, I switched to a brand called “PB8” that needs no refrigeration. I take two with breakfast and two at bedtime. If I have some gastrointestinal upset, I take two every few hours. I can see an actual difference taking them whereas I didn’t with the former brand. For me, any digestive upset clears up far more rapidly using PB8. Who would have thought? Apparently, some probiotics do not need refrigeration to work well.
Is xanthan gum safe while breastfeeding?
I believe I’ve consumed products in the past that have contained either carrageenan or xanthan gum and wasn’t bothered physically…last night I drank a rice drink containing xanthan gum and had severe abdominal cramping right after…I was perfectly fine before I had that drink and there was no other ingredients in the product that I thought would have caused it.
Hi great information I am reading. Just wondering whether anyone has had problems with gerd or heartburn, reflux when having anything with xanthan gum in it? Thinking this may be my problem?
Possibly? I’m trying to narrow down some of my symptoms, and recently I’ve noticed I get heartburn and also kind of a caustic feeling in the mouth from my usual salsa, but not from snack foods with spicy-salty powders that are almost identical in ingredients. The xanthan gum is kind of the only culprit left, so I guess I’m going to start exploring that. It seems this is pretty uncommon, though, so I was glad to hear someone else saying it, just so I know I’m not crazy to have this thought. 🙂
Yes, and also when I eat starchy or sugary things. Anything that feeds overgrown bacteria or yeast allows them to produce above normal amounts of gas which pushes acids up where they don’t belong. Lot of gas can be a very strong force against valves that don’t ordinarily let acidic liquids pass.
I have been wondering what ingredient in certain brands of gluten-free bread still gives me terrible gas. So I ate about 1/2 teaspoon of xanthan gum several days ago, and by the next day I was stinking up my office so bad I had to leave work for the day. I wasn’t having pain, just nauseatingly foul flatus. Culprit identified.
I have found that xanthan gum for me acts like carrageenan, I get severe abdominal cramping
I’ve discovered another hiding place for xanthan gum! I noticed my joints were achy &wondered what I had eaten to hurt me. I had made tuna salad using mayo (because salad dressing has xanthan gum) & pickle relish instead of chopping up pickles. When I went grocery shopping, I was reading the ingredients of various relish brands, because some dill relishes are cabbage instead of pickles. Suddenly I saw it! ALL the relishes had xanthan gum! Ouch!
I hadn’t made tuna salad for a few months, so when I did make & eat it, with the relish included, and suddenly am in pain, I know it was the xanthan gum.
Maybe an alternative for you to use instead of mayo is to just use plain greek yogurt which is thick and add some pickle juice to the desired consistency and perhaps spices.
The mayo is fine. It’s the relish that was a problem. I was using as a shortcut, due to fatigue from Hashimoto’s & years of undiagnosed Celiac damage.
Now I’ll be back to chopping my own pickles or using the rare relish that has no xanthan gum (if I can find any).
I’m so tired that cooking is not the joy it used to be. Pair that with so many foods being off limits for me, I often just go hungry, or eat half a can of beans & some plain tuna.
mydaughter might be allergic to xanthan..allergist says theres NO TEST for this….HELP
eliminate xanthan gum from her diet completely for 4 weeks. See if it makes difference. There’s your test.
I have an allergy that no traditional test was able to detect for my entire life and once I found out what it was it completely changed my life. My allergy was diagnosed -finally!- by an integrative doctor who used ART (autonomic response testing). This is the kind of test that you may find people who don’t know what it is; people who will be skeptical; and then people like me who simply had an amazing experience with it and that is why I am sharing this info with you. Hope this is helpful!
Excellent information, I’m currently researching what food additives to use in salad dressings and dips and have been reading all about Xanthan Gum. It’s literally the best there is.
Sure some people are going to have issues with it but these people are in a very small minority, they make a lot of noise but in the grand scheme of things they’re irrelevant.
Xanthan is in almost everything these days, it’s just so stable, especially when compared with other bonding agents.
It’s the best there is !
How rude ! Can’t you tell you have never lived with a food allergy !
Rude and insensitive, Xanthan gum is intolerable for many people and they (we) are very relevant. If Xanthan was that amazing chances are this site would not be so popular or relivent. But it is because Xanthan isn’t what you or others say it is. It is a filler/thickener used (more often then is necessary) to help stop separation of other ingredients, because people are too lazy to quickly shake, remix or mix it themselves before consumption. It is derived from many known allergens e.g. Corn, wheat, dairy and soy, and if you have a condition simular to mine none of those are an option. Since it’s nearly impossible to know or find out which version Xanthan is used its best to stay away all together for those who suffer from those food allergies. Bottom line it is overused and unnecessary in many of the supposed healthy food items on the market
Why would that comment be rude somehow. Honestly, there are people allergic to even water out there. Are they the majority? No. There’s not one ingredient or chemical or raw material where you can say no one has an allergy to it. Whether it’s the food industry or cosmetics industry (xanthan gum in shampoo) most manufacturers with morals use ingredients that are generally considered very safe. I saw a food store the other day that had banned xanthan gum. Now, fair enough if this is food you are talking about and your customers have tons of allergies. However, many ingredients (xanthan gum included) do nothing to those customers when used in a shampoo topically for instance. They aren’t eating it. I always go back to when people with gluten intolerance started freaking out about wheat protein in hair conditioner… it’s an isolate of wheat. There is ZERO gluten in wheat protein used in a conditioner. So in our case we had to switched to rice protein. Honestly, it doesn’t make a difference to the customer in the end (there’s no allergic reaction to the wheat protein) except the price goes up as rice protein is more expensive. Tons of debate now with the big rise in allergies in people. Now they are telling us to eat peanut butter so our children don’t have an allergy, etc. Science always changes. I get that, but sometimes we are freaking out about nothing. Back to cosmetics, many ingredients when added to a cosmetic blend into the formula, they react with the other ingredients. Simply reading an MSDS as a consumer – you could say this or that ingredient is not safe at 100% concentration on your skin. Well, water isn’t safe at 100% on your skin over a certain time of exposure. If you aren’t a chemist basically you can’t make conclusions from MSDS, etc. A lot of ingredients have been misaligned over the last decade due to consumer-written scare articles that don’t follow the science. It took us a few years to find a replacement preservative for organic grapefruit seed extract (supposedly adulterated with benzylkonium chloride). A couple years ago EWG poopoo’d Ashland’s suttocide-A preservative saying it’s a formaldehyde donor… ok, but in practice the adverse reaction reporting was zero with an associate of mine in the industry, in fact way less than phenoxyethanol that replaced parabens…. don’t get me started on preservatives I could talk all day.
Really! Your comment, “they’re irrelevant…” is very badly stated to say the least, and grossly insensitive at best. They are people, and anything but “irrelevant ” whether they have a sensitivity to this product or not.
I don’t believe I have a problem with xanthan gum, but clearly a lot of people have had very severe reactions. I do not wish to gamble with my health and consume this product, and your comment that diminishes those who do is reprehensible.
Ignore the troll. Trolls take up your time purposefully, and share their conquests with other trolls as to what they posted, how upset people get, etc. Their actions are designed to upset the group and tie up their attention and time. Ignore, do not feed the troll.
Neil – where do you work? For whom do you work? I have a feeling you work for the processed food industry!!
After developing severe problems consuming wheat, milk,
soy (all those soy-based dairy alternatives were so yummy until.. :/ ), sugar alcohols (forget beans, don’t even go there!) I was astonished they finally caught up with my problems and created a cocount whip like the popular dairy whip (well it says no dairy, but still seems to have some bad ingredients anyway). Except, in the midst of some kind of bowel infection, while eating very little, I put a couple spoons in my poor little meagre rice protein drink, and felt later as if someone were inflating a basketball inside my stomach. Thank goodness I was finally able to begin to belch..so here I am, learning about these thickeners that I have been so good at ignoring while eating my wheat free, milk free, soy-free bread, cookies, deserts, etc.. Both guar gum and xanthan gum were in the coconut whip. But I sure was enjoying it while it lasted! (No rest for the wicked, I guess). Eating mostly liquids to rest my bowels, I think it caused a quick reaction, due to the cleansing effect of mostly drinking my meals, and that knowledge is bound to be helpful down the road, so thank you for this. All these comments are amazing, to be sure.
Look into and maybe try Agar-agar, it seems to be the only additive that is safe for me. My issue is very similar to yours as Gluten protein or similar (oats), all dairy and all beans (legumes) in any form are bad (food poisoning) a reaction which takes my system up to 48 hours to recover from.
Look for coconut milk that does not have additives added to it. You are more likely to find it in coconut cream than coconut milk. If you put it in the fridge it will separate to solid coconut cream at the top and coconut water at the bottom. You can use the coconut cream at the top in any way you would use cream; you will just need to let it soften first. It has a melting point of about 76 degrees, so it is solid in the fridge. If you have a high speed blender you can also make it yourself in the blender by whipping flaked, unsweetened coconut. I think I read that 7 cups of flaked coconut makes about 2 cups of coconut cream. I have been looking into it a lot because I am allergic to dairy
Has anyone else found that Xantham Gum/Guar Gum contains caffeine? I am highly intolerant of caffeine and if I eat anything with Xantham Gum or Guar Gum in it, then I’m awake all night!!
I doubt xanthan has caffiene, but I’ll be sleepless for days after ingesting it. Restless legs and extreme agitation are 2 ways it attacks me. It attacks the nervous system.
Xanthan gum contains FREE GLUTAMATE, an excitotoxin that can cause insomnia, hyperexcitability, racing heart (tachycardia), pounding heart (palpitations), migraines, visual disturbances, destruction of pancreatic beta cells, gout, tinnitus and many, many other symptoms!
Well, well. I just found this discussion. I went to the pantry to see what’s in the containers of “Coconut Dream” fake milk (that my family consumes, as I don’t care for the taste).
It conains FOUR – 4 – thickeners: Carageenan, Gellan, Xanthan and Guar gums.
Thanks for nothing, Dream company. There’s virtually no nutrition in this “milk” in any case. It’s basically white, fatty water. We can’t get unpasteurized milk here, so don’t as a rule consume cow’s milk.
Why not try almond milk? I believe it has more calcium than cow’s milk even if that’s a concern. (Of course it’s lacking in other areas of nutrition still)
Some brands of almond milk contain xanthan gum. At this time, Almond Silk has no xanthan gum.
I have a hard time finding coconut milk that doesn’t contain xanthan gum.
If you like coconut milk or cream try “AROY-D” it’s from Thailand and its 100% coconut milk. No BS additives. The purist milk alternative Dream makes is the Rice Dream original or vitamin enriched all others contain binding agents guar, x-gum and/or carageanan. Costco’s rice milk is also made without gums or carageanan binders. There is only a couple of almond milk brands that I have found that is made without such binders and they are manufactured in Europe and are not sold here in the U.S. It’s tough but there are products out there. Cheers
Anything processed contain harmfull additives , i would prefer almonds to almond milk ,coconuts to coconut milk, all these foods are to be eaten in moderation.you cannot replace natural cow milk with almond milk.
My husband realised this at a cost when he developed gaut due to the extra proteins consumed.
Care full ewith these modern foods they sell us .go back to what your grandparents ate.
I think gout can be secondary to other issues, such a Celiac, gluten intolerance and thyroid disease. When primary issues are addressed, secondary issues often disappear. My Dad cuts back on wheat when his gout flares up. That works better for him than any diet normally prescribed for your.
When my thyroid levels are good, I don’t have gout. I’ve not had any gout issues since going gluten free.
thanks for this info-that must be why i got gout when my thyroid levels were low. I also couldn’t hear very well & my eyes were just seeing weird.
What happens when you leave xanthan out of a wheat free bread recipe? Would you notice something is different?
Yes, it would crumble apart and be dry. It makes an enormous difference
Is there a healthy alternative to xanthan gum- i want to make my own buns-I have had a lot of gas since going gluten free and the products I buy are so expensive!
I’m just getting into gluten free baking and I’ve read that ground flaxseed, chia seeds or psyllium husk (or any combination of these) can be substituted in equal amounts for the xanthan gum in gluten free recipes.
Sharon If wheat is your problem, rather than gluten as a whole, you can eat 100% rye bread, no horrid gum thickeners necessary and it won’t crumble at all. Had some fantastic bakers near my house in Japan that baked additive free all rye that I had no digestive problems with whatsoever. Anything processed on the other hand and I swell up to about 6 month pregnancy size in the space of an hour, until my skin feels like it will crack and my organs feel like they will explode.
I have dealing with IBS for over 30yrs until it became intolerable. To cut a long story short, I’ve had every test possible to find out the cause of my symptoms. All negative. I had my blood tested privately and they said I was wheat intolerant. Wheat free diet has nearly sorted it but I’ve just come across this blog and now wondering it it’s the ‘Gums’ in ‘wheat-Free ‘ foods, ie bread. I’ve had a Banana Sandwich for my lunch and I’ve had bloating and pain all afternoon. Do the Gums come under any other name? I’m at the hospital tomorrow for a follow up ( the specialist is very interested to see if I am better after being wheat free). I am in general but the so called wheat free foods are making me think if it’s the gums and not wheat.
I’m so happy that you are fortunate enough to be able to breastfeed, there are a lot of mothers who can’t. People never think about that, they just feel that some women do and some don’t, but many don’t have that option.
Leslie, I would not be at all surprised if it’s the gums. In addition to the (now) life threatening allergy to xanthan, I have severe reactions to gellan and guar gums, all reactions beginning in the gut with cramps, followed by pure liquid diarrhea. After eliminating the gums, my gut functions normally and I’m feeling great, eating anything I want as long as it doesn’t contain the gums (I do choose whole, organic foods now as a result).
I thought maybe I was allergic to gluten (seems like everyone is) so I quit eating it. My symptoms actually got worse!! my physical therapist put my many inflamatory issues together and asked if I had ever been tested for food allergies. I really did not think I had any. I had an Immunoglobulin allergy test done where they take your blood and intoduce it into known allergins then test how much it reacts. I am allergic to corn…..guess what the main ingredient is in gluten free foods? CORN!! Its in everything! Xantham gum, and other thickeners are madde from corn so maybe there is a corn allergy there for you also??
It seems to be a frequent mistake of people with food intolerances like gluten or wheat to “replace” these with what are basically fake foods that inevitably contain a bunch of additives, which are by definition artificial and were never intended (by nature) for human consumption. Everything I’ve read on forums and experienced points to the additives being far worse than the originally suspected food. So my question is why even “replace”, why do you need bread when it isn’t even real bread? To me that’s kind of like trying to get drunk on non alcohol beer. So if you can’t tolerate gluten or wheat why not eat rice instead of bread? Why not eat more veggies instead of bread? That’s what I’ve been doing and I’ve been largely successful. Not only am I able to avoid gi symptoms, but I’ve also lost 2 inches at the waist, as a side effect of quitting wheat, because in the end I eat very few carbs.
I’ve also had worse symptoms from additives than from the “usual suspects”- to my surprise I’ve even eaten even wheat bread or pasta without symptoms when they were home made and additive free. In the end I think I’m allergic to additives rather than wheat! I think doctors are often very limited in their knowledge and what they’re willing to go To the trouble of researching.
I am a breastfeeding mom of a baby that’s allergic to so many different things. I have used elimination diet to control his symptoms. However I didn’t know what xanthum gum was so kept using products that had that. I noticed he would get an eczema every time I ate something with xanthum gum in it which lead to me to research and I landed on this page. Thank you so much for posting this. My breastfeeding experience has been a struggle but I am motivated. It’s people like you who makes mom’s like me even more motivated through your support
Xanthan was approved by the FDA in 1968, the year I was born, then in early 1970 (at 18 months old) I was diagnosed with T1 diabetes (which has NEVER been an issue for me). A great deal of research is currently being done on the “triggers” for the immune system to attack the pancrease. My doctors don’t at all doubt that xanthan contributed to my autoimmune system killing mine. So glad you are breastfeeding, and eliminating his allergens, you will both be better for it. 🙂
I’m so happy that you are fortunate enough to be able to breastfeed, there are a lot of mothers who can’t. People never think about that, they just feel that some women do and some don’t, but many don’t have that option.
Hi-
I am also a breast feeding mom on an elimination diet to try and clear up my baby’s GI tract and eczema. I am avoiding too many foods to list here but I’ve started to think that it’s either the millet flour or the xantham Gum in the gluten free goods I buy and bake that may be causing his risidual issues (avoiding all gluten free baked goods seems to have cleared up his skin a bit but still see xantham gum in some of the dairy free alternative foods I’m eating). Curious about other moms successes or lack there of once they avoided xantham gum? Thanks!
Hi Tiffany, I can’t comment on the breast-feeding aspects, but I’m an adult male who’s had problems with eczema all my life. I feel for you– my parents had to deal with me as a kid with bleeding hands/elbows/face all the time; it’s got to be hard to watch your child suffer.
For about the last 10 years, I’ve had my eczema under ~80% control, with rare flare-ups once every few months, rather than the never-ending flare-ups through my childhood and young adult years.
I wish I’d figured this out much earlier! My secret is simple. I figured it out by accident in 2003, when my employer sent me out of town for a month on a project, separating me from my normal foods. They were paying the bills, so I ate the “better” options at each meal– steak instead of hamburgers, salad instead of fries, real juice instead of sugary pop. I noticed results in a few days (though I didn’t realize the significance for a couple of weeks).
I’ve cut out most (as in 3/4) of the refined flours and sugars in my diet. I don’t drink sugar-sweetened drinks at all (diet drinks are OK in my book). I occasionally drink “100% juice” kinds of juice. Sugar-sweetened drinks, if I have an appreciable amount, will result in my hands itching a few hours later, and an eczema flare-up the next day.
I rarely eat bread, as it causes itchy hands and flare-ups. Gluten-free bread is no better for me. Same goes for most white rices (though basmati seems OK). Corn seems OK. Potatoes are marginal– OK in small amounts only. Lentils and beans (including chick peas) are OK. I eat lots of lentils these days.
I’ve been using xanthan gum regularly (morning mocha smoothies; soups and sauces) for ~8 years. I haven’t noticed any skin issues with it. Bob’s Red Mill, in case the brand is important, but that’s the only brand that stores here seem to carry.
My suggestion for you to is to try removing wheat, sugar, and rice from your diet. It might work, it might not, but it doesn’t hurt to try.
Good luck!
While I am prone to serious GI issues, few things make me swell up like a basketball and then explode in watery diarrhea the way Xanthan gum does, so I would definitely recommend trying to see if your baby gets better when you eliminate it. I honestly don’t understand people’s need to artificially thicken food at all anyway, food is so good without it. Thickeners are certainly not natural food for your baby, thus potentially harmful. Avoiding would be safer no matter.