--- ---  # Scientists Developing Pill That Could Let Gluten-Free People Eat Pasta ## Video: Should You Adopt a Gluten-Free Diet? [Watch (HLS stream): Should You Adopt a Gluten-Free Diet?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xZZyXLYN.m3u8) (2:27)  _Published 2015-05-15. More people are avoiding foods that contain gluten, a protein in wheat, barley and rye. But is gluten really bad for most of us? Our Healthy Skeptic has the facts._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 23, 2015 3:01 PM UTC  Plate of sea food pappardelle with cherry tomatoes Plate of sea food pappardelle with cherry tomatoesGetty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 23, 2015 3:01 PM UTC People who suffer from [celiac disease](http://time.com/3854589/celiac-gluten-neuropathy/) may not need to avoid pasta forever: scientists are developing a pill that would allow them to eat gluten. Scientists at the University of Alberta are working on a pill made from chicken egg yolks that could help people with celiac disease digest gluten, [Quartz reports](http://qz.com/460135/a-pill-may-soon-allow-celiac-disease-sufferers-to-eat-bread-and-pasta/). Hoon Sunwoon, associate professor in the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, who worked on the project, explained to Quartz how the pill works: “This supplement binds with gluten in the stomach and help to neutralize it, therefore providing defence \[sic\] to the small intestine, limiting the damage gliadin causes.” Gliadin is a component of gluten that causes digestive trouble for people with celiac; gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. But celiacs, don’t rejoice just yet: the drug is still in development. A trial is slated to begin within the year. Celiac Disease: A Pill Could Let Gluten-Free People Eat Pasta ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/"},"headline":"Scientists Developing Pill That Could Let Gluten-Free People Eat Pasta","datePublished":"2015-07-23T15:01:03.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T09:31:42.105Z","description":"A trial is slated to begin within the year","url":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/","keywords":["Research"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7b56f0df6cb6a10e/69885c2f524fc004c2df3b64/pasta1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7b56f0df6cb6a10e/69885c2f524fc004c2df3b64/pasta1.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Plate of sea food pappardelle with cherry tomatoes","caption":"Plate of sea food pappardelle with cherry tomatoes","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/research/","name":"Research"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/","name":"Scientists Developing Pill That Could Let Gluten-Free People Eat Pasta"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Should You Adopt a Gluten-Free Diet?","description":"More people are avoiding foods that contain gluten, a protein in wheat, barley and rye. But is gluten really bad for most of us? Our Healthy Skeptic has the facts.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xZZyXLYN/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-05-15T21:16:59.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xZZyXLYN.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/","duration":"PT2M27S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3969598/gluten-free-celiac-pill/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```