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Claritin’s labels list no wheat, barley or rye ingredient and name corn as the source of the tablets’ starch, but Claritin isn’t labeled gluten-free and Bayer no longer makes a public gluten statement.
It depends on the form and on how sensitive you are. The current DailyMed labels for Claritin list no gluten-containing grain, and where Claritin tablets use a starch, the label names corn as its source; the grape and bubblegum chewables use potato. But Claritin isn’t labeled gluten-free, and Bayer’s gluten statement is no longer on its website.
This page used to give Claritin a plain “yes,” because Bayer’s FAQ said all Claritin products are gluten-free. When we re-checked it, that FAQ page was gone, and we couldn’t find any gluten statement anywhere on Bayer’s Claritin site. Without the maker’s word, we’ve moved Claritin to “depends.” The labels themselves name no gluten grain, and they’re more specific about starch sources than most medicine labels.
Check your medicine cabinet for gluten
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What Bayer Says About Gluten in Claritin
Right now, nothing. Bayer makes Claritin, and the page we used to cite now returns an error. The current Claritin FAQ covers ingredients but has no gluten question, and none of the Claritin pages we could reach mentions gluten. If Bayer puts a gluten statement back in writing, we’ll update this page.
What’s in Claritin, Form by Form
These lists come from the current Bayer labels on DailyMed. None of them names wheat, barley, rye or malt, and every starch on them is coded with its source.
- Claritin 10 mg tablets, older formula: corn starch, lactose monohydrate and magnesium stearate. DailyMed codes the starch as corn (DailyMed label).
- Claritin 10 mg tablets, newer formula: lactose monohydrate, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose and sodium starch glycolate, which DailyMed codes as made from corn (DailyMed label). Both formulas are on shelves; the box’s NDC tells you which you have.
- Claritin RediTabs: anhydrous citric acid, gelatin, mannitol and mint flavor. No starch and no lactose.
- Claritin Liqui-Gels: no starch. Gelatin, glycerin and sorbitol, among others.
- Children’s Claritin syrup (grape): no starch. It’s sweetened with maltitol and sorbitol.
- Claritin chewables: sodium starch glycolate, coded as corn in the Cool Mint chewables and as potato in the grape and bubblegum chewables, plus mannitol and aspartame.
If You Also Avoid Lactose
Lactose isn’t gluten, but some readers avoid both. On the current labels, lactose monohydrate is in both formulas of the plain tablets, in Claritin-D 12 Hour, and in one of the two Claritin-D 24 Hour labels. The other Claritin-D 24 Hour label lists none. RediTabs, Liqui-Gels, the chewables and the children’s syrup list no lactose. An earlier version of this page called Claritin-D 24 Hour milk-free across the board, which is only true of one of its two labels.
What the FDA Says About Gluten in Medicines
The FDA’s gluten-free labeling rule only covers food, and the agency has set no gluten-free standard for medicines. Its Medications and Gluten page and draft guidance on gluten in drugs explain why Claritin’s coded starch sources are useful:
- Derived starches don’t name their plant: on the printed Drug Facts, sodium starch glycolate never says what it was made from. Only plain wheat starch must say “wheat starch.” Claritin’s DailyMed labels go further than the box and code the source as corn or potato.
- No added wheat gluten: the FDA knows of no oral drug sold in the US with wheat gluten or wheat flour added as an inactive ingredient.
- A small worst case: in the very rare drug with a wheat-derived ingredient, the FDA’s high estimate is no more than 0.5 mg of gluten per dose.
- No “Contains: Wheat” rule for drugs: the food allergen law behind that line doesn’t apply to over-the-counter drugs, per the FDA’s allergen labeling guidance.
The FDA says that when a medicine’s ingredient list doesn’t mention wheat gluten or wheat flour, it shouldn’t contain gluten in an amount that would harm a typical (non-refractory) person with celiac disease. Claritin’s labels don’t mention either. What’s missing is the maker’s own confirmation, which matters most to readers who react to very small amounts.
Cross-Contamination Risk
- No current Claritin label names wheat, barley, rye or malt.
- The labels code every starch as corn or potato.
- Bayer makes no current gluten statement for Claritin.
- Store-brand loratadine has its own inactive ingredients. Compare its Drug Facts before you swap.
- Keep the box. Its NDC number finds the exact label on DailyMed.
How to Check the Claritin You Bought
- Read the Drug Facts on your box: the “Inactive ingredients” line shows which formula you have.
- Look it up on DailyMed: search the NDC number from the box at dailymed.nlm.nih.gov. The “Ingredients and Appearance” table further down the label shows the coded starch source.
- Ask your pharmacist: the NIH’s digestive diseases institute tells people with celiac disease to ask a pharmacist about ingredients in over-the-counter medicines.
- Call Bayer: the number under “Questions or comments?” on the Drug Facts label reaches the maker, if you want its gluten answer in writing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Claritin gluten-free?
Claritin isn’t labeled gluten-free, and Bayer no longer makes a public gluten statement for it. The current Claritin labels on DailyMed list no wheat, barley or rye ingredient, and where Claritin uses a starch, the label codes its source as corn or potato. If you react to very small amounts, ask your pharmacist.
Are Claritin RediTabs gluten-free?
Claritin RediTabs list only anhydrous citric acid, gelatin, mannitol and mint flavor as inactive ingredients. There’s no starch, no lactose and no gluten-containing grain on the label. They aren’t labeled gluten-free.
Is Children’s Claritin gluten-free?
Children’s Claritin grape syrup lists no starch and no gluten-containing grain; it’s sweetened with maltitol and sorbitol. The chewables list sodium starch glycolate coded as corn or potato, depending on the flavor. None of them is labeled gluten-free.
Does Claritin contain lactose?
Some forms do. Lactose monohydrate is in the plain tablets, Claritin-D 12 Hour and one of the two Claritin-D 24 Hour labels. RediTabs, Liqui-Gels, the chewables and the children’s syrup list no lactose. Lactose is a milk sugar, not gluten.
Is store-brand loratadine the same as Claritin?
The active ingredient is the same, but each maker chooses its own inactive ingredients, and many labels don’t name their starch source the way Claritin’s do. Compare the inactive ingredients on the store-brand box, or look up its NDC number on DailyMed, before you switch.
Didn’t Bayer say all Claritin products are gluten-free?
Bayer’s FAQ used to, and an earlier version of this page relied on it. That FAQ page now returns an error, and no Claritin page we could reach mentions gluten. Until Bayer puts a statement back in writing, the labels are the best evidence we have.