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Help Explaining Celiac Disease To A Little Kid?

pretty in paleo

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pretty in paleo Apprentice
pretty in paleo
Posted

My friends' daughter is 7 or 8 I think. Whenever I come over now she puts a snack in my face, usually a cupcake or something and is like "Here you go!" And I am always like No thank you! We tried to explain to her, nothing with wheat or dairy but she doesn't understand really what that means. We also said I mostly eat fruits and vegetables too. Her parents also feel guilty that they couldn't find anything in their kitchen that I can eat ( take out, tv dinners and cereal) and she might have caught onto that. Its an interesting situation, since even adults are clueless about wheat ( "can u still have white bread?") so explaining my condition to a small child is especially challenging. Anyone else went thru this?

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gfreemarketingguru Rookie
gfreemarketingguru
Posted

7/8 is not too young to understand. My 6&7 yr old r gluten-free & completely understand what food is safe & what food is dangerous for them and that different people have different problems with food. May I suggest u arrive with your own snacks to share... maybe something they can relate to as "normal" like tortilla chips & salsa, ice cream, cut up fruit w/ caramel dip or delicious cupcakes that happen to be gluten-free..that way they don't think you are "odd" just eat a little different.

tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

While she's not too young to understand, she also doesn't have to deal with it every day, or REALLY live with it, since you are a friend, so it's going to be hard for her to internalize.  That said, I don't find her behavior of offering bad - that's an excellent behavior!  But not asking if you want it and respecting your answer (of no) is the problem.  (Well, this is my approach for teaching my 3-year old, anyway.)

 

What we say to my 3-year old is that wheat makes mommy sick, and it's not something that vitamins or medicine can make better; wheat will just make me sick for many, many days, so mommy doesn't eat wheat.

 

It's an over simplification, but I think it's suitable for very young kids.

NotMollyRingwald Apprentice
NotMollyRingwald
Posted

"What we say to my 3-year old is that wheat makes mommy sick, and it's not something that vitamins or medicine can make better; wheat will just make me sick for many, many days, so mommy doesn't eat wheat."

Going to remember this, my son loves sharing his snacks with mom & dad, it will be easier to say no w/o breaking his little heart by telling him like this.

tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

"What we say to my 3-year old is that wheat makes mommy sick, and it's not something that vitamins or medicine can make better; wheat will just make me sick for many, many days, so mommy doesn't eat wheat."

Going to remember this, my son loves sharing his snacks with mom & dad, it will be easier to say no w/o breaking his little heart by telling him like this.

 

My daughter CAN have wheat, though, so when I go off to teach yoga Saturday mornings, she has taken to asking daddy to have lunch "with wheat", since she knows she won't get it if I'm home. :P  It's hilarious.

Nikki2777 Community Regular
Nikki2777
Posted

Kids that age know about allergies.  I just say, no thanks, I'm allergic to that.

notme Experienced
notme
Posted

my grandson, now 9, picked up on the whole concept really fast.  he could already read by the time i got diagnosed.  he would ask me if i could eat something and i asked him what's in it?  then he would read the ingredients and when he got to 'wheat' he said NOPE.  he is actually pretty educated about it for a kid his age.  the 4 yr olds do not care as long as i make enough for them :)

 

edited to say:  actually, he 'gets' it better than many adults!!  hahaha

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julissa Explorer
julissa
Posted

tarnelberry, I teach yoga too!

 

my granddaughter is 4 1/2 and whenever I go over there I bring my own food. sometimes we eat out, and take my food with me. about a month ago she asked why I am always eating my own food, and I told her I have food allergies and some foods make me sick. she was happy with that answer, as she has allergies so she knows what they are.

 

last week I was eating with them and she turned to my daughter and said in the course of conversation, you know mommy, grandma has allergies so she can't eat what we eat. 

howlnmad Newbie
howlnmad
Posted

edited to say: actually, he 'gets' it better than many adults!! hahaha

HEY! What's that posta mean?

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

My daughter CAN have wheat, though, so when I go off to teach yoga Saturday mornings, she has taken to asking daddy to have lunch "with wheat", since she knows she won't get it if I'm home. :P It's hilarious.

Too cute!

Actually not much different at my house - 17 & 20 yr olds - "Dad, can we go out for gluten food?"

howlnmad Newbie
howlnmad
Posted

Too cute!

Actually not much different at my house - 17 & 20 yr olds - "Dad, can we go out for gluten food?"

Answer: Yeah, bring me back something good, I'll pay you later.

kareng Grand Master
kareng
Posted

Answer: Yeah, bring me back something good, I'll pay you later.

This means they want money for food or Dad to take them to this bar with pool tables and steak sandwiches.

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    • Resada
      Work friends & food

      By Resada · Posted

      Yeah, that one is always hard, especially since life seems to revolve around food. That happened to me 2 weeks ago with hibachi and with Hungarian hot dogs. I used to be more picky, but now I would love to try all the things if I could. On the bright side, my husband is absolutely wonderful with it, and his mom often brings a few certified gluten-free things to family get-togethers just for me (and tries to make sure main dishes are safe too). Having the people closest to you be supportive can make a huge difference. 
    • trents
      Work friends & food

      By trents · Posted

      I hear you. My extended family is very good about factoring in my celiac disease safety needs when making family celebration meal plans but sometimes it breaks down in the spur of the moment decisions to "Oh, let's go out and get some teriyaki" or the like. Especially when my brother in law comes into town 'cause he's pretty particular about what he likes to eat. So, sometimes I just say, "You guys go ahead without me. I'll find some leftovers." But, still, I admit to feeling a little left out at such times and a little like a 5th wheel.
    • Resada
      Work friends & food

      By Resada · Posted

      Same, and I appreciate your comments. I just needed to get it off my chest. Sometimes, even when its a genuine mistake, it can feel all too hurtful and I didn't want to go back to work tomorrow still in my feelings. 
    • trents
      Work friends & food

      By trents · Posted

      Yes, probably slipped his mind. Grace is in order here is my thought.
    • Resada
      Work friends & food

      By Resada · Posted

      I should have added that, while I dont have access during the meetings, I do as soon as I leave them (same for him) so I would have seen before I even left work. He has my number since we've needed to coordinate by cell a few times for work and other stuff. I usually have a protein bar or two in my desk for emergencies so I could have grabbed one of those and gone to meet them at the right restaurant.  Someone else decided on the change of restaurant and it must have slipped his mind that I wasn't coming back to my desk.
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