Diagnosing wheat allergy can be tricky. Wheat is prevalent in many processed foods, making it difficult to determine its role as a potential allergen. In diagnosing a wheat allergy, a physician will conduct a medical examination of the patient as well as compile a medical history and a list of symptoms.

If an allergy is suspected, the physician will perform one or more of the following allergy tests:

• Skin test. This test involves scratching, pricking or injecting an individual’s skin with a wheat extract. The tested area will react with redness or swelling to indicate an allergic response. This test can be too dangerous to use on highly sensitive individuals.
  
  
• RAST (radioallergosorbent test). This type of blood test allows a laboratory to directly test a blood sample from an individual in an attempt to detect antibodies that correspond to a wheat allergy. This test can be used on those people who have reactions that are too sensitive for a skin test.
  
  
• Elimination diet. This test involves removing wheat from an individual’s diet for several weeks to see if allergic reactions persist. If the reactions do indeed stop, it can be presumed that wheat is the culprit.
  
  
• Blinded food challenge test. Different foods are placed within capsules to hide their identity. The patient consumes the capsules and the physician looks for signs of an allergic reaction. This is considered the most effective way of determining the cause of a food allergy because it supplies the most convincing results. Since the patient is unaware of what foods they are consuming, their inherent bias cannot influence the results. Although this testing method is more reliable than open testing, it is time–consuming and difficult. It is often reserved to confirm suspicions that a patient's symptoms are not caused by a food allergy.  

In addition, a food diary may be kept by someone with a suspected wheat allergy. This diary is used to keep track of all foods consumed by the patient and record what, if any, symptoms are experienced after consumption. It can be a useful tool for the patient’s physician to refer to in diagnosis.

Once a physician has pinpointed wheat as a problem allergen, patients should remove all wheat and wheat-based products from their diet. The services of a dietician may be necessary to ensure that wheat is kept out of the patient’s diet and necessary nutrients are provided.

The only form of treatment for wheat allergy is the complete removal of problem foods from the diet, known as avoidance. There are no drugs available that can prevent a wheat allergy from taking place.

Patients can also try to avoid wheat by checking ingredient labels on foods at the grocery store, and asking about ingredients and preparation techniques at restaurants. Consistently reading labels is vital because companies may add or delete ingredients from time to time, and may add or delete warnings. Patients should not assume that a label checked six months ago will appear the same. Patients should also learn alternate names that indicate the presence of wheat. This will help prevent the accidental consumption of wheat. A number of food companies have toll-free customer service centers to answer questions about specific ingredients and to provide nutrition updates about their products.  

New legislation may make it easier for people to determine if a food item contains a potential allergen. As of January 2006, food manufacturers are required by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to clearly list food allergens on their product labels.

Various drugs can help treat symptoms related to wheat allergy once they have appeared. These include antihistamines, corticosteroids, mast cell stabilizers and epinephrine.