CHICAGO - Responding to consumer demand, firms are making more "gluten-free" products, or those having no wheat, rye and barley proteins. But rules on gluten-free claims are vague, putting consumers with allergies at risk.

What is considered "gluten free?"

The Food and Drug Administration doesn't define "gluten free," but generally "free" means a product contains none of the substance in question. The FDA has proposed adopting a 20 parts per million standard. In July, an international health commission recommended a similar standard.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which has jurisdiction over meat products (including those below), has no policy specifically addressing "gluten-free" claims. The agency OKs labels before products go to market.

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Gluten found in "gluten-free" products:

The Chicago Tribune bought three popular Wellshire Farms products advertised as "gluten free" and sent multiple samples to a lab for testing.

Chicken Bites: Tested at 204 parts per million and 260 ppm

Chicken Corn Dogs: Tested at 116 ppm and 2,200 ppm

Beef Corn Dogs: Tested at 191 ppm and 1,200 ppm

Wellshire Farms provided the Chicago Tribune with its own testing results, conducted in the spring. Their results showed: chicken nuggets tested at 200 ppm, chicken corn dogs 150 ppm, and beef corn dogs 120 ppm.

(c) 2008, Chicago Tribune. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.