Snickers don’t contain any gluten in the ingredients, which is typically all I care about. I don’t have celiac disease, just a gluten sensitivity, so I typically don’t worry TOO much about cross contamination. I just had a Snickers, though, and my stomach hates me now which is fair warning that if you have even the mildest sensitivity, you should probably avoid them unless you don’t mind getting sick.
I too have a gluten sensitivity and like you check the ingredients and eat if it does not show gluten ingredients. Generally I stick to foods that I know don’t cause me trouble and can pin point if I have had something new.
So this week I had a snickers for lunch and stomach and intestines hated me for it pretty much for a day.
Peppermint tea is the only thing to help ease any reactions for me and I absolutely swear by it. I have it close by at all times.
I read with worry on some web sites with claims that it is gluten free!
Well, TECHNICALLY it is, I just notice unusually high levels of cross contamination. I’ve never tried peppermint tea though, that’s an awesome tip! I’ll have to see if it works for me. Of course, that means eating gluten in a controlled experiment. This could be somewhat problematic 😛
I remember when I was first diagnosed with Celiac Disease, my great grandparents sent me a big box of snickers…and I did eat them, every last one 🙂
Do you think maybe it could be the nuts that bother you? Or the sugar? When I eat alot of sugar I get stomach pain and shocks in my legs/feet (though I still eat sugar).
Also I have heard when your body is sick for a long time (say before you were diagnosed) that you can develop other allergies…like I get a horrible skin rash (just like when i eat gluten by accident) when I use any tanning lotion…even the ones without wheat or oats. It is possible you allergic to another substance in the snickers bar?
I am sorry to hear your stomach was upset with snickers, they are so good too 🙁
– Jessika : Celiac Speaks – Symptoms, Recipes, Restaurants and Daily Life
According to some quick research I just did, Snickers are produced on shared equipment with Milky Way bars, which contain malt. If only Mars was better at labeling their products and fully disclosing that information, none of us would be in this mess.
My boyfriend has an entire bag of mini-Snickers for Halloween that he expects me to help him eat. Haha, sucker!
It’s a mixed bag. On the one hand, Snickers are delicous. On the other hand, that’s just one more unhealthy snack you don’t have to worry about being tempted by :).
For the record, I woke up feeling so so this morning. I tried some peppermint tea, and this stuff is fantastic.
I have had a few snickers in the years since discovering my gluten sensitivity and haven’t had any issue. Do you have any issues with milk products? I have heard that some coeliacs also have issues with casein, and snicker’s has dairy.
I suppose it’s possible that if there is gluten cross-contamination, that some snickers may have it and other may not, depending on where/when they were made. Maybe I just got lucky.
Do you have acid reflux, gastritis, or any other acidic type issues? I am not supposed to eat chocolate due to gastritis and I eat Snickers anyway despite dealing with a burning stomach from time to time but don’t experience celiac symptoms. I figured this may help.
Be well,
Ry
I looked up Snickers to see if they were gluten-free and ran into this posting. I looked it up because I ate one today and had the reaction I always have to gluten which was a sudden mood swing. When I know I’ve had gluten exposure, I take an enzyme supplement that specifically breaks down gluten (DPP-IV). It did the trick, so I know it was gluten and not sugar or milk. I get my enzymes from vitacost.com and swear by them. The cheap ones work just as well as the expensive ones. I use them everytime i eat out or eat at somebody’s house.
I am Coeliac and for a while I was ok with Snickers. Then every once in a while *bang* you shouldnt have eaten those.
So now, for safetys sake I just avoid them. I am living in Ireland as different manufacturing locations may have different operating procedures.
Just to let you know there is a cake often sold in Sainsburys, Asda and other big stores called Almondy Daime Bar cake or Almondy snickers cake. This cake for a coeliac is unbelievable, you almost dont believe its gluten free. Please try this, extra yummy with cream.
You just made my day. I am from the US and currently live in Germany, but I’m visiting England in a few days. I’ll be sure to stop by and grab one (or many, gotta stock up!)
Howdy there,this is Rob Hiney,just observed your web-site on google and i must say this blog is great.may I share some of the Post found in this web site to my local people?i am not sure and what you think?anyhow,Thx!
I have been told that the “snack size” Snickers as well as all the snack size candy bars all contain gluten, so stick with the full size versions.
GF Mom – Here is the Mars Snackfood US Policy on Allergen Labeling – http://us.mms.com/us/legal/allergen.html – even the \snack size\ are clearly labeled and tested.
Great link, thanks!
I sure learned a few things TY for sharing your hints which I will try. I was offered a snack size snickers glad I didn’t accept.
Thanks so much for sharing this information! I was about to have a mini Snickers after reading the ingredients but after reading this I am very greatful that I didn’t!
Deanna, I was wondering how you found out about the sharing of equipment with Milky Way. Did you email the company? I am curious for future researching – this type of information is most valuable.
Stephanie,
Mars only clearly labels the top eight allergens which do not include rye or barley, both no-nos for those with Celiac disease.
Milky Ways have malted barley and if the same equipment is used to make Snickers, the chance of cross-contamination is high enough that I wouldn’t chance it.
I’ve been eating snickers for quite some time now. I was diagnosed with Celiac 4 years ago and I have never had a problem with the snickers bars.
We are a group of 3 that are very sensitive to any exposure, and have been GF for 7+ years now. “Snickers and a Coke” are not an uncommon roadtrip meal for us, as at times it is the only safe food to be found! However, there is something about the ‘fun size’ that is not right. We tried it again this year (Halloween)…we’ll trade them in for full size bars. We have not had trouble with the full size bars.
Re: fun size bars…I recall reading where many different ‘fun size’ bars are made on the same equipment. I even recall the base ingredients being slightly different, for the ‘smaller’ form perhaps? We are finding ‘soy protein’ entering more candy that ‘used to be safe’ for us, and finding that to be problematic. (BTW we are GF, potato free, soy protein free)
My husband and cousin are celiacs and I am constantly searching ingredients for the both of them. My cousin ate a snickers last night and had a reaction to it. She thought maybe it was the artificial flavor that did it. I believe it was a mini bar (from Halloween) and I will need to pass on all of this info about these snack sizes and the possibility of cross contamination with Milky ways and other candy.
This is a great blog, I am always curious to see how other celiacs or gluten sensitive people feel about certain foods. Thanks!!
Also I have heard when your body is sick for a long time (say before you were diagnosed) that you can develop other allergies…like I get a horrible skin rash (just like when i eat gluten by accident) when I use any tanning lotion…even the ones without wheat or oats. It is possible you allergic to another substance in the snickers bar?
they say that certains lotions and even toothpaste contain gluten!
I too am wheat/gluten intolerate and was also staying off dairy products, until recently. being able to have a little bit of dairy has been great recently and for the last 4 weeks i havent had a reaction … and enjoying a bit of chocolate … i’ve found galaxy chocolate bars not to react with! mmm ;-0)
I;ve just tried a Snickers and stupidy i forgot to google before eating … anyway half way through eating i felt my nose getting bunged up and body reacting in other ways as it usually does … BUGGER!!! Hoping the flare up doesnt last for long and will stay of the snickers now!
I have been avoiding gluten for the past 3 months due to inflammation, primarily in my feet. The past couple of days I have been eating the fun size Snickers and, sure enough, my feet are hurting (plantar facitis)…it occurred to me that the Snickers are the only thing that I have changed, so it must be that. I decided to check online to see if there was gluten in them, and found this board. Interesting….no more fun size Snickers for me! Thanks for all the information!
Is there any chocolate for people with Celiac Disease? I just love Almond Joy, Hersheys, Snickers, etc….:)
I get awful migraines with gluten & snickers give me them. I swear that they have gluten, whether they say it or not. It lists all allergens, but the headaches that are strictly from gluten are undeniable.
Pia Lee, some maybe all of the Endangered Species chocolate is gluten free. I buy the 88%
Well, I ended up here after wondering if the snickers I grabbed on the way to work is the reason I yawned through my morning and came home and took a 4 hour nap- which I cud easily return too! I feel drugged, and all I had was snickers and a pepsi. (Nutritious, I know) I think I will stay away from the snickers from now on!
MitziG–I get that kind of feeling when I eat too much sugar. It’s an insulin thing, as far as I know.
I thought I had done my homework this morning and found out Snickers does “not” contain gluten. I was so happy I ran out and bought one. I ate the full-size candybar and now I am having problems staying awake. I have also had my severe stomach/intestional reaction. I have been trying to figure out what caused my gluten reaction and I found your blog. Good to know what it is so I can avoid it in the future. Gonna go take a long sleep. Thanks 🙂
Thanks to everyone posting on this blog! I am gluten intolerant and one of my reactions is acne which has recently flared up – right around the time that I bought a pack of “fun-size” Snickers. I have had the normal size on many occasions without any noticable or worrying side effects so I jumped online to check out the Mars website for some answers. Unfortunately I was a bit disappointed in their lack of information such as ingredients listings covering all products and allergens but after reading other peoples experiences on here regarding the “fun-size” bars I am now fairly certain the I have found the cause of this dreaded ance! Many of you would know how hard it is to pinpoint the cause of a reaction if you don’t get symptoms until 24-48 hrs later and then you have to try and remember everything you have eaten! So thanks again, I appreciate all of your blogs!
Hi I found this blog informative. I had a bad reaction and I now i realize it must be a gluten issue. I believe I ate them before with no reaction. But this was the small sized one. So stay away frOM them.
has anyone found a candy bar they can eat?
Hi i was just about to have a fun size snicker but after reading this blog i m planning to get a full size snicker as soon as possible coz i m craving for it …and Jennifer thanks for sharing that reaction can cause Acne coz i m facing Acne from sometime …not a serious Acne issue but like one pimple or two so i m just wondering if this has something to do with Celiac or its just regular pimples…!! Mars should certainly improve its labeling and i guess Celiacs all around the world should write a petition or something to make an impact on Mars company coz we are also part of Choclate eating community.
I have Celiac and have been searching for safe candy bars too. I asked Nestle Candy if they have any gluten free products, and they sent the link below which opens a two-page list of products they believe are gluten free. They wrote, “We consider “gluten free” to mean no gluten ingredients are in the product, whether directly added, or potentially present due to cross-contact. In other words, if a product label has an allergen advisory statement such as “made on equipment” or “facility that also processes wheat etc… “, we do not consider that product to be gluten free. It is important to always read product labels/packaging for the most accurate information.”
I’d love to hear responses from others about any of these products. Here’s the link to the pdf: http://nestle-consumerservices.casupport.com/eglutenfree.pdf
Thanks much for the info! I had a few snack-sized Snickers today and terrible stomach problems. It is very helpful to know that they were likely caused by the Snickers and not something else.
I have occasionally eaten things that did not contain gluten in the list of ingredients but could contain gluten due to cross-contamination and did not feel any adverse affects. My gastroenterologist frowned on that and told me that even though such foods might not make me ill, there could still be trace amounts of gluten entering into my body. He said he is not so much concerned about my becoming ill, because I feel better and the villi bounce back once I get back to a strict gluten-free diet, but he is concerned that even trace amounts of gluten can increase my chances for developing lymphoma. That did it for me. I am trying to be very strict these days.
PS – Regarding tea, I recently found out that even though most teas do not contain gluten, the glue in the tea bag might. Fortunately for me, my favorite is Honey Vanilla Chamomile by Celestial Seasonings, and they confirm on their website that their packaging and bags do not contain any gluten and most of their teas do not (they give a list of those that do contain malt).
Snickers has gluten–absolutely! Was diagnosed at Mayo Clinic with celiac disease this year. Mayo Clinic has an excellent algorithm to detect celiac disease, even for people who have been gluten-free! Snickers makes my dermatitis herpetiformis rash come back with a vengeance–the rash specific only to celiac disease!
P.S. Snickers also causes me plenty of other celiac symptoms, including severe tingling, pain, and burning in my hands and feet (worsesns my peripheral neuropathy and bilateral plantar fasciitis, respectively) along with joint pain, headaches, body-temperature problems, earaches, and GI issues in addition to the dermatitis herpetiformis previously mentioned. And it is a cumulative effect! So no more Snickers or Milky Ways ever for me! Here’s to Gummi Bars!
Sounds like the consensus is too stay away from Snickers! When in doubt, throw it out. Of course i eead this blog after my own mishap. I had not had one of these in years. Well I had a weak moment yesterday at work and ate a full size bar. I have NEVER in my life experienced such horrid mood swings (other than pregnancy hormones, lol), and today i am totally unable to get out of the bed. I don’t care what the company says or not on their labels. Something is not right here! I have eaten other candy bars with zero side effects.
I just found this blog (too late) while trying to figure out what triggered my body’s severe reaction today… I have been so good lately and not “cheating”. So, I was surprised and started researching. I grabbed one of the fun size snickers out of my daughter’s Easter basket this morning and within an hour or two I was not doing well and thought I wouldn’t make it to work…. Ugh! Avoid!!!
I was sure about that Snickers contains gluten until last weekend, when an other gluten-free friend convinced me it has no gluten in side. So I just ate one, and I feel horrible again. This was a normal (full) size one. I live in Europe though, and the Snickers made in Nederlands.
Before I had two other full-size one last year and I felt terrible afterwards, but they forgot my diät food on the airplain, so I had to buy two of them at the airport to somehow survive the 5 hour trip.
So, after the second experiment Im sure it has gluten.
And it was really great to find this blog. I also had several problems due to gluten. It is unbelivable, but I am still not diagnosed yet, although I know it since a year on now. (I visited different doctors already, the first one said i was throwing up because of pregnancy, altough i told her it is not possible. Then she said it was a virus, finally she gave me drops against pregnancy caused dizyness. The next one said: ‘Oh, than is soo easy, I just simply should avoid eating gluten. I also went to an allergie centrum, they diagnosed histamin intolerance only. Finally, I end up gluten free, paprika free, onion free, and histamin free. And I am still looking for a good doctor….) So after reading this blog i realized that i was suspecious about already. ie. mood changes, swallen knee, acne, sudden sleeping, etc. are really happened because of my intolerance.
And you made me clear why I always loved soo much peppermint tea. :))
Well, like many of you I found this site doing a search to find out if a Snickers bar I ate today when I felt like my sugar was dropping contained gluten. I ate it around 6:00 pm – it is 1:00 a.m. and I am having all of “my” gluten intolerance symptoms; intestinal tract out of whack, nausea, joint pain, weird headache. I’m sure I will feel terrible all day tomorrow as well. So good to find this board and at least be reassured that it was indeed the Snickers. Can’t BELIEVE at ate that thing but I was at work and only a vending machine handy with food to raise my blood sugar.
Hey, did any of you had “gluten symptoms” after drinking milk? Normaly, i have no Problem with milk, but today. I almost 100% sure it was that. I only ate my gluten Free cereal and Nespresso coffe. I eat/drink both regularly whith milk without any Problem.
I have been doing a lot of research on gluten free because as we all know it is expensive to buy…… What I have discovered is Aldi’s has a TON of naturally gluten free labeling….corn chips, ranch doritos, cheetos, dark chocolate, peanut butter, jam, soy milk, chicken tender strips, ground beef and patties, cappucino, mayo, ketchup, corn tortillia chips, hotdogs, lunch meats (all carl budding are too 🙂 There prices are usually cheaper then Walmart too!!…. Ps… If you google the stores name and put in gluten free ex: gluten free foods at Aldi’s…many of the manufacturers or researchers have lists prepared for you!!!
Hi, Thank you all for posting this info. I had about 4 or 5 of the mini snickers two days ago, thinking they were gluten free. Now today, I know beyond anything that they contain gluten. I’m very sensitive, even if something is just contaminated. For me, whether it is a big one or a small one, they are made in the same factory which in turn means they are all contaminated. Yes, they are tasty, but having my health and feeling vibrant and full of vitality is much tastier than a candy bar. Thanks for the sharing. It has helped me greatly! Much Love & Gratitude, Gretchen
Well its good to find this site…my mom has been diagnosed CD years ago…I stopped about a year ago and it made incredible changes for me…scary one was 20 lbs in one month loss…people got concerned…anyway Ive been using the snickers as a backup for when Im caught needing a quick boost and wondered IS IT REALLY GF? The other day at a worksite I raided their ceramic pig full of the bite size snickers and really felt bad and got hit hard with asthma early in the morning…and the usual stomach issues…I work at a redwood mill and the dust just causes lots of wheezing etc..when I do well on being gluten free the symptoms (asthma) are reduced…is there a connection? thanks Allen
My husband has a gluten sensitivity as well as IBS and is lactose intolerant…I have learned so much by reading these responses…so thank you….now I have a question…he loves coffee but it irritates his stomach…we have tried..decaf…mild roast etc and everything we have found doesn’t work…does anyone know of a type of coffee or similar drink that might be ok for him? Thanks!
im 11 and i have celiac disease i eat snickers everyday nothing happened
Thank you for this info! I am sensitive to gluten, and love Snickers. But after eating it I feel a bit odd, my lips are tingling, and my stomach gets bloated. Thought it was because of something else, as there isn’t supposed to be any gluten in Snickers. Oh well, another reason for not eating that crap and grab a healthy apple instead 😉