Did a Misguided Gluten-free Diet Kill Belgian Infant?

What killed the baby was lack of nutrients, not a GFD. Babies should have breast milk, unless a doctor says otherwise. Foolish parents killed the baby.

Let's be very clear: this tragedy has nothing to do with a gluten-free diet. Two mentally disturbed individuals starved a child to death based on crackpot theories of nutrition and outright ignorance of normal infant development. Combine that with a distrust of conventional medicine and the child was doomed. The mother's statement says it all: "Lucas had an eating disorder" - infants don't get eating disorders. He may have had colic, or just plain old gas, both of which are common for infants. Instead of seeking advice from a doctor, nurse, or even an experienced mother, they ignored his nutritional needs and starved him with ignorance. I hope they serve serious prison time for his suffering and death. And I wish the media (this site included) would stop referring to the issue in this case as being a "Gluten-free Diet" - it was a nutrition-free diet that killed the child.

Breast milk is gluten-free, formulas are gluten-free, and yet even this site asks the question if gluten-free diet could have killed this boy? And semolina usually refers to wheat, so how sure are you his diet was even gluten-free? It was nutrient deficient vegan diet and his parents ignorance that killed him.

Hell has a special place for people like this - people who would deliberately starve a child to death.

Casey and Amy M said all I had to say and more.

Let's be very clear: this tragedy has nothing to do with a gluten-free diet. Two mentally disturbed individuals starved a child to death based on crackpot theories of nutrition and outright ignorance of normal infant development. Combine that with a distrust of conventional medicine and the child was doomed. The mother's statement says it all: "Lucas had an eating disorder" - infants don't get eating disorders. He may have had colic, or just plain old gas, both of which are common for infants. Instead of seeking advice from a doctor, nurse, or even an experienced mother, they ignored his nutritional needs and starved him with ignorance. I hope they serve serious prison time for his suffering and death. And I wish the media (this site included) would stop referring to the issue in this case as being a "Gluten-free Diet" - it was a nutrition-free diet that killed the child.

Excellently stated Casey. There is no "gluten milk" to which you need a Gluten Free Milk alternative!!! They are a necessary diet for those of us who cannot eat wheat/gluten when this story is about alternative MILKS that two negligent parents fed their infant instead of the proper nutrition he needed. This is not about gluten free. It's misleading and inappropriate for the focus of the story. It's these kinds of horrible stories that makes people think that my required GFD is a "fad" or a "lifestyle choice" instead of what I must do to avoid getting desperately ill and destroying my intestines. God rest the soul of that sweet little boy. He tragically suffered starvation, malnutrition and neglect for so long. It's sickening. Gluten Free had nothing to do with it.

Maybe not a gluten free diet did it per se, but certainly it cant be denied the whole gluten free hysterical fad promulgated by supermarkets stocking shelf after shelf of "gluten free" products , including milk, and juice, that a very tiny percentage of people need, IS a large part of the lack of nutrition problem...