Does Anyone Have A Child With Autism Or Adhd And Celiac Disease?

[dotsdots]

I am relatively new to the forum and am in the process of having blood tests run for celiac disease. I am a senior citizen with 4 adult children and an 11 year old granddaughter. My youngest daughter and granddaughter have problems with gluten. My daughter sent me literature urging me to get tested.

 

I have been reading that mothers with celiac disease that has not been diagnosed are 3 and 1/2 times more likely to have a child with autism than the general population. My youngest son is a person with autism, and all of my children as well as my granddaughter have ADHD. 

 

Also, mothers that were not diagnosed are also more likely to have a child with asthma than the general population, according to my reading. Two of my children have asthma. My oldest daughter has a sensory processing disorder.

 

I'm wondering if there is anyone else who is discovering that perhaps many conditions affecting their children and family have been caused by celiac disease?

 

I was diagnosed in my early thirties with chronic fatigue syndrome and irritable bowel syndrome. I understand that now many doctors screen people with these diagnoses for celiac disease. I also have had a myriad of oxalate calcium kidney stones and high liver enzymes as well as dermatitis herpetiformis, heartburn, and night blindness.

 

I would be interested in hearing back from anyone. Thank you! 

[frieze]

do you have an actual diagnosis of dermatitis herpetiformis ?  If so, you have already been dx'd with celiac....

[dotsdots]

do you have an actual diagnosis of dermatitis herpetiformis ?  If so, you have already been dx'd with celiac....

I had the blisters on my fingers and scaling on my hands and made an appointment with my doctor. I also took pictures of it on my phone to show her. When I got to the appointment, the blisters were no longer fresh and she was unable to do a biopsy. But she said it looked like dermatitis herpetiformis and ordered blood tests.

 

So then I started reading up on celiac disease and was amazed to find out all the symptoms I had.

[1desperateladysaved]

Oh, I hope you and your family can be helped by your discovery!  It is exciting to think you may delivered from your symptoms.

[come dance with me]

I was tested when my daughter was and don't have it, but she has Autism and ADHD.

[nvsmom]

I had undiagnosed celiac when I had my boys. My oldest has mild asthma, some allergies, mild aspergers, and NCGI. My youngest also has gluten issues but tested negative. I just made the whole house gluten-free and they are doing better.

[dotsdots]

I had undiagnosed celiac when I had my boys. My oldest has mild asthma, some allergies, mild aspergers, and NCGI. My youngest also has gluten issues but tested negative. I just made the whole house gluten-free and they are doing better.

Our son who has autism is now an adult and lives in the duplex next door to us. He has support services from a company here in Oregon to help with his daily needs. (We moved to Oregon from Arizona in 2010 as he lost services there during the Great Recession and we had two other children and a granddaughter here. When we lived in Arizona, he lived at home with us.) He's pretty severely involved. We are getting him tested too. When we get all the results back, and if they are positive, we'll get rid of gluten everywhere. I'm glad to hear your family is doing better. It's encouraging! Thank you.

[GFinDC]

Our son who has autism is now an adult and lives in the duplex next door to us. He has support services from a company here in Oregon to help with his daily needs. (We moved to Oregon from Arizona in 2010 as he lost services there during the Great Recession and we had two other children and a granddaughter here. When we lived in Arizona, he lived at home with us.) He's pretty severely involved. We are getting him tested too. When we get all the results back, and if they are positive, we'll get rid of gluten everywhere. I'm glad to hear your family is doing better. It's encouraging! Thank you.

 

The test results may not show a gluten sensitivity, in fact they usually don't.  But more people have a gluten sensitivity than people have celiac disease.  Another thing to keep in mind is that healing from gluten exposure is not an overnight process.  Nerve/nueral type issues seem to be the slowest to heal.  You might be interested in reading up on gluten ataxia.  It is a condition where gluten affects the brain and can cause various problems.

 

Dairy can also cause problems for some people.  There are quite a few alternatives to regular cow diary available now.  I suggest avoiding the soy products to start with, and not trying them until 6 months or so after doing the gluten-free diet.

 

One of the problems celiac disease can cause is mal-absorption of nutrients.  It  is a good idea to have vitamin and mineral levels checked.