lbsteenwyk

Here are some links to information on celiac disease from reliable medical sources. You might print these out and take them to your doctor.

Open Original Shared Link

The CORE slide set is shorter (29 slides)

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

I think this is a CYA statement. Manufacturers have to follow certain standards to clean their machines between batches. I think there is a risk, but it's probably very small.

A few other things that impact iron absorption:

Vitamin C improves absorption. Drink 4 oz of OJ or have another good source of vitamin C when you take your multi with iron (or even when you eat a food source of iron).

Don't drink milk or eat yogurt at the same time. Calcium interferes with iron absorption. Take your iron 2 hours apart from a calcium source. That includes calcium supplements.

Tamara:

Plan on spending a lot of time researching and visiting preschools. Plan to spend several hours observing the teachers in the classroom setting. This will help you see which ones really have the best handwashing policies and are least likely to cause contamination issues. I chose a preschool where all the children bring their own lunch, so my daughter wouldn't be singled out as being different. They have a no food sharing policy, and so far cross-contamination has not been an issue for us. I also send a daily snack for my daughter, since the preschool does provide snacks (almost always gluten-filled) for the kids. I was also fortunate enough to find a school with a stringent hand washing policy - kids wash when they come to school, after art projects, before using the sensory table (table filled with rice, beans, etc), before and after meals and of course after using the bathroom.

I think it is entirely possible to find a preschool that will work with you to keep gluten accidents to a minimum. The key is doing thorough research ahead of time.

Michele,

I don't think every celiac needs a multi-vitamin. If you eat a well-balanced diet that includes good sources of iron, folic acid and B vitamins you probably will be fine. The government requires the fortification of refined grain products because deficiency in the US used to be a problem. In this day and age, with our abundant food supply in the US, most people probably get adequate amounts of these nutrients, even without fortification.

WHOLE GRAINS are the best source of the B vitamins, so make an effort to include brown rice and some of the whole grain gluten-free flours - sorghum, buckwheat, brown rice flour - in your diet. Riboflavin (B-2) is found in dairy products, eggs and soy milk as well. Nuts, sweet potatoes and pork are good sources of Thiamin (B-1). As far as iron - any fresh meat, dark green leafy vegetables and legumes are good sources. If you are a woman of child-bearing age, I would consider taking 400 mcg of folic acid daily.

It might be prudent to have your Hemoglobin and Hematocrit checked after you have been gluten-free for a while, just to be sure your iron levels are ok. (You can have these checked for free just by donating blood.)

Hope this information helps!

Michele,

I don't think every celiac needs a multi-vitamin. If you eat a well-balanced diet that includes good sources of iron, folic acid and B vitamins you probably will be fine. The government requires the fortification of refined grain products because deficiency in the US used to be a problem. In this day and age, with our abundant food supply in the US, most people probably get adequate amounts of these nutrients, even without fortification.

WHOLE GRAINS are the best source of the B vitamins, so make an effort to include brown rice and some of the whole grain gluten-free flours - sorghum, buckwheat, brown rice flour - in your diet. Riboflavin (B-2) is found in dairy products, eggs and soy milk as well. Nuts, sweet potatoes and pork are good sources of Thiamin (B-1). As far as iron - any fresh meat, fish, dark green leafy vegetables and legumes are good sources. If you are a woman of child-bearing age, I would consider taking 400 mcg of folic acid daily.

It might be prudent to have your Hemoglobin and Hematocrit checked after you have been gluten-free for a while, just to be sure your iron levels are ok. (You can have these checked for free just by donating blood.)

Hope this information helps!

Remember that most gluten free foods are not fortified with iron, while mainstream breads, cereals, etc are fortified. Your child is probably not getting as much dietary iron now that he is gluten-free. I give my daughter a gluten-free multivitamin that contains iron. My child is a picky eater and doesn't eat much meat - one of the best sources of iron, so I feel that a multivitamin is a good strategy right now.

Shannon- this is such wonderful news! It is so difficult to see your child suffering; I know you must be so happy to see such a rapid improvement. Keep us posted on Ella's progress!

Here is a link to an activity book for kids 4-11 about celiac disease. I have not used it myself, so I can't give any specifics about it. It may not be age appropriate for your 3 year old.

Open Original Shared Link

I know there are some other books out there, but I can't think where I saw references to them. I'll let you know if I find something else.

I think Walmart injects some of its meat with a sodium and preservative solution. I know it adds a significant amount of sodium to the meat. I can't remember now what the specific ingredients are, but when I read the label I thought it was ok for my daughter. Maybe sodium benzoate?? I'll be sure to double check next time I am there.

Another thought: have you tried eliminating dairy, too? Often newly diagnosed children have a temporary intolerance to dairy products due to malabsorption. As the gut heals, they can often tolerate dairy again.

Pediasure is gluten free.

Children usually respond more quickly to the diet than adults, but it may take several weeks or even months to see a major improvement. Some of my daughter's symptoms subsided within 2 weeks, but she continued to have a bloated belly for months. I guess each person responds differently.

Frequent urination is a common symptom of diabetes. An increased appetitie without weight gain is also a possible symptom. Other common symptoms of uncontrolled blood sugar are excessive thirst, blurred vision (feeling like you need glasses) and weight loss. People with type 1 diabetes can become very ill quite quickly, so please get your blood sugar checked soon. If you are in school, the school nurse may be able to do it.

Sources of cholesterol include red meat, especially liver, sausage, bacon, higher fat lunch meats, and eggs. Lower fat sources of cholesterol are shrimp and other shelfish. But before you start a high cholesterol diet, I suggest getting your cholesterol checked again. Low cholesterol levels, particularly levels below 100 are an indicator of malnutrition. Since you had undiagnosed celiac disease when your cholesterol was tested, you could well have been suffering from malnutrition.

I think it is certainly worth pursuing testing of your child for Celiac Disease. Your child has several common symptoms of celiac disease: failure to thrive/failure to gain weight and frequent, foul smelling stools. Celiac children often have other food intolerances as well. Insatiable appetite is not one of the more common symptoms, but I have read other posts here about celiac kids who had a voracious appetite before diagnosis.

Most doctors have very little knowlege about celiac disease and still believe it is a rare disorder. Do your homework ahead of time. Here is link to a publication from the children's digestive health network that reviews appropriate screening and diagnosis of children with celiac disease:

Open Original Shared Link

You may also find the NIH Concensus Panel on celiac disease helpful:

Open Original Shared Link

Good luck in finding an answer to your child's health problem.

Hi Robbiesmom and welcome to the board!

My daughter is also 3 and goes to preschool. At her school everyone brings their own lunch and they have a policy that there is no food-sharing. The school provides snacks, so I do send a snack with her everyday. Some of her favorites:

Glutino pretzels and cheese cubes

MiDel Animal Crackers

Blue Diamond Nut Thins & Cheese

Snyder of Hanover Eat Smart Veggie Crisps

Lara Bars, cut into small squares

Balance Bar - Peanut Butter or Choc Raspberry (they do make wheat containing products on the same equipment, so use your judgement)

EnviroKids Crispy Rice Bars

(on all the bars, I only give her 1/3 of a bar and cut it into squares)

Also, here is a pamplet from the Gluten Intolerance Group of North American (GIG) designed to explain celiac disease to teachers. I've given this to my daughter's teachers and the director of her preschool.

Open Original Shared Link

Good Luck and don't hesitate to ask more questions as they arise.

Hello and Welcome, DeAnne:

Have you been to a local health food or natural foods store yet? Most places carry a variety of both wheat free and gluten free items. You should be able to find cookies, pasta and breakfast bars and cereals that meet your needs. Newman's Own makes wheat free cookies that are sometimes available in mainstream grocery stores. You may also be able to find rice pasta, cereal and gluten free waffles in a mainstream grocery store. I suggest contacting customer service of your local grocery store chain and inquiring what products they have available. Most grocery chains have a dietitian who can help you.

Here are some websites where you can find more gluten free items:

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link free.com/index.htm

Thanks so much, celiac3270. I knew YOU would know

My daughter started the gluten-free diet at 26 months. She is now 3 1/2. I didn't even try to explain it to her until she was 2 1/2, because I didn't feel she was ready to understand. At 2 1/2 I started saying things like: Some foods have gluten in them and it makes your tummy hurt. I also started talking about her foods being "special." I think it is best to give a very simple explanation to a child at this age. As adults we tend to feel that we must explain what we do, but children really don't question things as much at this age. If you say gluten will harm her, she will believe you. Just keep it very simple, be matter of fact about it when she can't have something and try to provide a substitute. We certainly didn't flaunt gluten containing foods in front of her, but as she got older she began to understand and accept that sometimes her food is different from ours. I can honestly say we have never had a meltdown because she wanted a food she couldn't have. Last night she saw some regular cookies in the cupboard. The first thing she said was "do those have gluten?" When I said yes, that was the end of it. We found another snack and she never asked about the cookies again.

Be thankful that your child has been diagnosed at this young age. The gluten free diet will be second nature to her. I'm guessing this transition gets much harder as kids get older!

This diet may seem overwhelming at first, but it does get much easier. You will get a lot of valuable information from this site. Welcome, and don't hesitate to ask questions as you have them.

I bet you could do a completely gluten free meal for your friends baby shower and no one would even know it. If you can plan the menu yourself and your friend doesn't have to have any particular foods you could try this menu:

*BBQ chicken breasts w/ gluten free BBQ sauce - there are lots of brands that are gluten-free- Kraft has several.

*PotatoSalad - you may be able to purchase this if you call the company to verify it is gluten-free - or you could make your own with a gluten-free Mayo (Hellman's is gluten-free)

*Bush's Baked Beans - all are gluten-free except their Chili beans

*Corn on the Cob

*Green Salad - there are many mainstream dressings that are gluten-free (again, Kraft makes several)

*Ice Cream Sundae's for dessert - Hershey's choc syrup is gluten-free - nuts, pineapple, fresh strawberries, marachino cherries, etc. Bryers and Edy's Ice Cream are gluten-free, except for some of the flavors that contain obvious gluten.

Good luck, and welcome to the board. You will find tons of useful information here. And, of course, lots of support when you need to vent!

OK, folks--someone out there must know how to do this. celiac3270?

I'm new to blogs, but I'm sure I'm not the only one with this question.

Do I use the Fast Reply Button??

Help!

Have you looked at the lists of safe and forbidden foods/ingredients on this website?

https://www.celiac.com/st_main.html?p_catid...-36105028321.14

The main ingredients I always investigate further are:

Modified Food Starch

Caramel Color

Natural Flavor

Artificial Flavor

Foods with these ingredients are often gluten free, but you need to verify that they are gluten-free with the manufacturer.

My daughter has used a prescription topical med called hydrocortisone valerate which seemed to improve her itching and helped her heal. This was prescribed for eczema, so I'm not sure it would be appropriate for your child.

Eucerin Calming Creme lotion has oatmeal in it. This is a pretty obvious one though as it says it right on the bottle!

Does anyone know if other Eucerin Products contain gluten?