If you look on the ingredients list of cereals you pick up you know that there are certain No-No’s right off the bat.  Wheat, Rye, Flour, and ( for the most part) generic oats.   Rice Krispies and Corn Pops should be safe though!  WRONG

Barley Malt is a flavor ingredient in not only cereals but also unsuspecting places such as Celestial Seasonings teas.  Is it safe?  The reader’s digest answer is ‘Maybe?’.

My layman understanding from my research and reading (google polypeptide toxicity celiac for more info) is this:

A)   Barley malt is made from barley grain that has been germinated and it is reasonably certain to be less toxic than barley itself. The Proteins, AKA the Big Bully Gluten, are actually the fuel for new little Baby Bullies and gets used during germination.  However, the trace amounts left during early germination leave broken pieces of proteins called Peptides (think of them as post divorce proteins needing counseling).  There is no completely solid evidence for or against there being a ” safe level” of consumption of these Complex little guys.

B)   The next factor is that Barley Malt is a product commonly used in highly processed foods but in a very minor amount.  Does the processing of the foods also reduce the ‘toxicity’ of this heart broken delinquent? As before, is there an ” acceptable” amount?

This all wraps up to the answer ” each individual must make an educated decision for their own needs”.  My needs says that the answer is NO.  This of course comes after a day of devouring the best  homemade rice krispie squares  EVAR made with REAL butter and more marshmallows than the recipe called for.  Sighs… time to track down those Crispy Rice Puffs again.