Hi, I'm Krista, and while I don't have any health issues that prevent me from eating gluten, I have been trying to cut it from my diet.
I get random stomach pains at times, triggered by foods containing gluten, so I have been trying to see if I feel better removing it from my diet altogether.
A device called Nima actually tests food in minutes to see if it contains gluten.
According to Nima, the device has a an accuracy of 99.5% to detect 20 parts per million of gluten.
There is also a free Nima app where people can share their results with the gluten-free community.
People have shared their gluten results from food at certain restaurants, as well as foods bought in stores. The below image is an example of the "gluten-friendly" rating of restaurants on a map.
So, I wanted to see how well the device actually worked IRL. It features a rating system that indicates if foods contain zero, a low amount, or a high amount of gluten.
You place a small amount of the food you want to test into each capsule before placing it into the food sensor.
Once the capsule is inside, the Nima determines if the food contains gluten.
For me, it took approximately three to five minutes for each result.
For my trial purposes, I decided to simply test out a few "gluten-free" items from the grocery store.
Test #1: Caulipower pizza
The Caulipower pizza failed the gluten-free test. It had one wheat symbol, which means it does contain a low amount of gluten.
Test #2: Realgood cauliflower pizza
Realgood pizza also failed the gluten-free test, showing it also contains a small amount of gluten.
Test #3: On the Border chips
HOORAY!!! The Nima found that On the Border chips do not contain any gluten.
Test #4: Organic blueberries
After running this test, I read that the Nima cannot test liquids, so I think the fact that the blueberry was crushed when twisted into the capsule made it impossible for this item to be tested.
Test #5: Trader Joe's cauliflower pizza
I am happy to report that that Trader Joe's brand of cauliflower pizza is completely gluten-free.
Test #6: Bada Bean Bada Boom snacks
I'm not sure why, but the results for these snacks came out inconclusive...so we may never know.
Overall, I really think this product — along with the app — is very beneficial for people who cannot eat gluten because, as I found out, some foods that claim to be gluten-free may not be completely free of gluten.
If you don't want to purchase the food sensor, I think just downloading the free app could be useful, because people share the results of their food within it.
You can purchase the Nima gluten-testing device for $289, and the company also sells a peanut-testing device for the same price.
