Andorran Celiac Association Launches Street Campaign on Cross-Contamination Risks for International Celiac Day

The Andorran Celiac Association (ACEA) ran a street awareness campaign from Friday through Sunday in Escaldes-Engordany and Andorra la Vella to spotlight cross-contamination and gluten traces, marking International Celiac Disease Day on 16 May.

The effort featured interactive elements to drive home risks for celiacs. Volunteers staffed an information stand outside the Viena bakery in Escaldes-Engordany, offering games on gluten traces and a raffle with sponsor prizes. Three volunteers roamed commercial streets, including Avinguda Carlemany, bearing trays of tempting items like sweets, fuet, pâté, and desserts. They asked passersby if they would eat the food, then added: what if it contained arsenic traces? The stunt underscored how even tiny gluten amounts—via shared utensils, surfaces, or processing—can harm celiacs, despite "gluten-free" labels.

ACEA technician Ona Olaskoaga stressed the goal of zero traces, especially in restaurants. She noted that small quantities build up, inflaming the intestine, hindering nutrient uptake, and causing digestive or skin issues that may not appear right away. The group, with nearly 200 members, described celiac disease as a chronic autoimmune disorder triggered by gluten—not an allergy or intolerance—where the immune system attacks the gut lining. A strict lifelong gluten-free diet remains the sole remedy, with vigilance against myths that minimal exposure is safe.

Posters with everyday foods and the arsenic message, plus QR codes to videos and details, appeared across parishes from 4 May. The campaign combats gaps in restaurant protocols, where dishes may lack gluten in ingredients but not safeguards against traces.

ACEA secretary Laura Prados pointed to annual extra costs of up to €1,200 per person for safe basics like bread or pasta, calling it economic and health discrimination since "our diet is our medicine." She highlighted how trendy gluten-free trends dilute real needs and obscure risks, like lentils with wheat traces from cultivation. The association plans to revive its "safe restaurant" initiative, training eateries on handling, documentation, and processes—stressing knowledge over dual kitchens. It seeks government support, noting aids emerging in Catalonia, Spain, and France, while pursuing outreach to families, schools, and businesses.

Celiac disease affects 1-2% of the population, but up to 75% of cases go undiagnosed, worsened by unwitting exposures.