Celiac Signs In 3 Year Old ~

[mhadd015]

Hi everyone!

I am new here, although a long time lurker  Our daughter is 3 and I am convinced she is gluten intolerant.  Here are the reasons why:

 

Only weighs 27.8 #; She is on the charts for her height, but no longer for her weight.

Protruding tummy

Flat bum

Her arms and legs are so tiny, it looks as if they will break at any minute

Very rarely eats, says she's not hungry

Very whiny, cling, and angry all the time.

Dark circles under her eyes.

 

We removed dairy from her diet about 6 months or so ago due to chronic constipation.  Now her stools are all over the place (although no longer constipated), gray/chalky; fatty blobs ~ sorry if TMI.  My hubby says he thinks it's all just genetics.  He wants me to have her tested.  I made the appt. for this coming Monday, but she has basically been gluten free since yesterday (other than a half piece of bread this morning).  Will a few days without gluten affect the bloodwork?  Do I need to have her eating it?  I would rather not even have her get all the testing done and just go with the gluten-free diet...

 

We also have a son who exhibits many signs of Aspergers/Autism ~ rolling, pacing, OCD tendencies, very loud all the time,  etc. We have agreed to put him on a gluten-free/CF diet to see if there are any improvements.  CF should be easy because we have several children with dairy issues.  But, for some reason, my hubby isn't being so agreeable in regards to our daughter.

 

 

[tarnalberry]

You have an appointment in three days - I would keep her on gluten until then, and do everything you can to get her blood tests, but know that they aren't as reliable in kids. (Under two is the really difficult gae for blood tests.)

[nvsmom]

Welcome to the board.

 

Right now, the DGP IgA and DGP IgG tests are the best at picking up celiac disease in toddlers. You might want to request those tests as part of her celiac panel.  Good luck!

[Try2LiveHealthy]

My daughter is also about to be 3 and I have the same suspicions. I started a gluten free diet about a month ago and it has helped me tremendously despite a negative biopsy. My grandmother had celiac so I know it runs in the family. And the fact that I'm responsive to a gluten free diet leads me to believe that it could be the problem for her as well.

As a baby she had to be on special formula

She had blood in her stool as an infant and we never figured out why

She has been drinking cows milk but I recently switched her to almond

Se has had terrible constipation for the past few months and every day cries about how much it hurts

The past week it's changed over to diarrhea but she still cries in pain

She is a normal weight of 31# BUT she has only gained a pound this year

She likes to chew on crushed ice so I wonder if she is anemic? I always catch her sticking the metal part of toys in her mouth- even at age 3

She hardly eats even though I offer her healthy food all day

She also has the dark circles under her eyes and I've noticed she is started to bruise a lot

I'm becoming pretty worried, although she still has plenty of energy and spunk. But I hate to hear her crying in pain every day I've talked to the dr already and a few nurses and they keep telling me to give miralax daily and do a suppository. I don't know if I'm on the right track suspecting celiac/gluten intolerance or I just have it on my mind because I am going through it right now.

I hope you find out what's going on with your little girl. I take mine for her 3 yr appt next week and will talk to her dr then.

[mhadd015]

Thank you everyone for your replies!  After more research, my husband decided against the testing.  He didn't want her to go through all of that for results that may not be correct, and especially since the only "cure" is a gluten free diet.  We don't need an official diagnosis for a school or special programs because we homeschool.

 

So far things are going amazing!  After three days of being gluten free she went from weighing 27.8# to weighing 28.2#!  Her stools are normal, her tummy hardness and bloating have decreased and the black "allergy" eyes have all but disappeared!  We are both so excited for her!  I haven't weighed her since Monday morning, but I know now that we are on the right track.

 

I love this forum and have found a wealth of information on it!  Thank you all so much for everything!

[cyclinglady]

Thank you everyone for your replies!  After more research, my husband decided against the testing.  He didn't want her to go through all of that for results that may not be correct, and especially since the only "cure" is a gluten free diet.  We don't need an official diagnosis for a school or special programs because we homeschool.

 

So far things are going amazing!  After three days of being gluten free she went from weighing 27.8# to weighing 28.2#!  Her stools are normal, her tummy hardness and bloating have decreased and the black "allergy" eyes have all but disappeared!  We are both so excited for her!  I haven't weighed her since Monday morning, but I know now that we are on the right track.

 

I love this forum and have found a wealth of information on it!  Thank you all so much for everything!

That's terrific news!  I'm only recently diagnosed, but my hubby's  has been gluten-free for 12 years at the recommendation of his GP and my allergist.  He refuses to get tested now, because he doesn't want all his old symptoms to come back.  I can't blame him.  I only got tested because 1) I was there for a routine colonoscopy and 2) I thought it would help the rest of my extended family.

 

I'm so happy for your daughter.  Our family is doing well on the gluten-free diet.  Just this morning, I told my daughter I'm going to attempt my chocolate mayonnaise cake in gluten-free form  this afternoon and she was happy about it.   Her friend was over yesterday  and I had purchased Annie's bunny grahams snack bags (full of gluten) and afterwards before they started on soybeans and carrots, I heard her tell her friend to wash her hands as she doesn't want to gluten her mom or dad.  Wow!

 

Have a great day!

[tarnalberry]

Thank you everyone for your replies!  After more research, my husband decided against the testing.  He didn't want her to go through all of that for results that may not be correct, and especially since the only "cure" is a gluten free diet.  We don't need an official diagnosis for a school or special programs because we homeschool.

 

So far things are going amazing!  After three days of being gluten free she went from weighing 27.8# to weighing 28.2#!  Her stools are normal, her tummy hardness and bloating have decreased and the black "allergy" eyes have all but disappeared!  We are both so excited for her!  I haven't weighed her since Monday morning, but I know now that we are on the right track.

 

I love this forum and have found a wealth of information on it!  Thank you all so much for everything!

That's wonderful news!,