Say “wintertime” during the broiling heat of summer, and the word evokes romantic mental images of bright stars twinkling in a cold, clear sky, crackling fires in the fireplace, and hot cider tantalizingly scenting the air as it simmers on the stove. Let winter weather set in for a few days, though, and cold reality hastens to remind us that there are unpleasant side effects that accompany the season. Two of those unpleasantries are chapped, peeling lips and dry, cracked skin. For most people, dealing with these discomforts is a trivial matter. For the gluten intolerant, the common solutions of slathering lips with thick layers of lip balm and massaging skin with generous quantities of hand lotion can present a risk of accidental gluten ingestion. That may seem far-fetched since we do not intend to eat our skin care products. Most of us quit trying to chew on our mother's lipstick and our siblings' lip balm years before we gave up eating Play-Doh and school paste. We would never consider slipping open a bottle of scented lotion and sneaking a few sips, despite the fact that there are some brands of lotion that smell enticingly edible. Even so, it is possible for the products we use on our skin to wind up in our digestive tracts.

It is particularly important for celiacs to check ingredients on everything they put on their lips, including creams, salves, lipstick, and lip balms. People lick their lips, and they lick their lips more often when their lips feel dry. One lick and whatever was on the lips is on its way through the digestive system. That is easy enough to understand, but what about lotions? Hand lotion finds its way into the mouth in a more subtle manner. A person wearing hand lotion while preparing food is likely to transfer some of the lotion onto the food, especially if the food is moist or wet. The person who licks her fingers while cooking or eating puts hand lotion directly into her mouth. The child who bites his nails or sucks his thumb, the person who cups water in her hands to rinse her mouth after brushing her teeth, and the person who licks a finger to aid in turning pages are potentially ingesting small amounts of gluten if they have used a skin care product that contains it. Though each incident involves only a tiny amount of gluten, the effect is likely to be cumulative, especially in the wintertime when people use moisturizing products frequently.

Winter is not the only time when we should be wary of externally applied substances that contain gluten, nor are hand lotion and lip balm the only culprits. Make-up, facial creams, and sunscreen are among other products to investigate. While it is rare to find skin care products with ingredients derived from rye and uncommon to find ingredients from barley, it is quite common for make-up and skin care products to contain ingredients derived from wheat and oats. Though we do not intentionally eat these items, we run the risk of accidentally ingesting them later if we do not wash our hands after applying them.

Some celiacs have raised the question about whether gluten can be absorbed through the skin. At this time, there does not seem to be enough evidence to justify this concern. The Web site of Columbia University Celiac Disease Center states, “An area of controversy is whether or not gluten can be absorbed through the skin. Most medical experts say no, only dietary gluten is of concern.” The argument is that protein molecules are too large to be absorbed through the skin. Regardless of the general consensus, some celiacs are convinced that they do suffer adverse effects from using products containing gluten, even if they do not ingest the products. For those people, the sensible solution is complete avoidance of gluten-bearing products. There is no need to run the risk when there are a number of gluten-free skin care products on the market.

Does this mean giving up a favorite hand lotion or lipstick? Not necessarily. All products applied to the lips must be gluten free. Hand moisturizers should be gluten free unless the user does not mind being constantly vigilant to identify and avoid possible avenues through which the products can get into the mouth. For other skin care products and makeup, celiacs should wash their hands after application. As with all things, final judgment is up to the individual.