I Have Alot Of Questions

[youngmum3nz]

Hi all,

I have a few questions that if anyone could help me answer them itd really help

1 - When looking for gluten free food what ingredients do you look for on the label things like maize, cornflour n starch ect (plus the multitude of other ingredients around ) are confusing.

2 - does chocolate have gluten?? i found muslei bars that have gluten free writen on the box but theryre chocolate coated (i thought chocolate contained gluten)

3 - are other food intolerances/allergies common in kids with celiac? (today my son had a red rash round his mouth which appeared n disappeared very quickly) i know you can do allergy tests but can you test for food intolerance? is it worth doing the tests?

4 - my youngest (10weeks) is lactose intolerant and has ecexma (spell check!) at what age can/should i have him allergy tested as i want to know what to be careful to exclude from his diet, ive heard the more strict you are at keeping certain foods out of there diet it will lesson the chance of them developing the allergy when there older and or helping them grow out of it

i short (or long!) im struggling to figure out what to do for my boys, its not helping waiting for a ped appointment (its been a month and could still be another couple months) i cant take michael of gluten or oliver off his particular formula unitl i see them so im looking at a couple hundred dollars to get them seen privately (near on impossible being a single mum) so excuse my vent but if anyone can help on one or all questions id be very grateful

thanks

[kevsmom]

Hang in there mum, this site is a wonderful place to come to for answers.

If you click on the site index, there is a list of safe and forbidden foods. This list can be a little overwhelming, but it gets easier with time.

Good luck,

Cindy

[dionnek]

This website (celiac.com) has a great list of food ingredients that are forbidden - I have to take it to the grocery store with me and read labels (takes a long time to shop) since I am new to this, but I think you'll get used to it and just know what to look for. The main things I've been looking for in the ingredients (to avoid) is anything with malt (except maltodextin is ok), and anything that has the words wheat, barely, oats, and rye in them. You also have to be careful if something (like lunch meat) says it has broth in it b/c the broth could contain wheat - then you just have to call the manufacturer (I've found the Campbells hotline to be great - they will send you a list of ALL their products that are gluten free).

I have a 19 month old daughter myself. I have heard that getting kids tested before 3 for celiac can be inconclusive - not sure about the other allergies. I've asked my GI doctor and her pediatrician about getting her tested and both say not yet since she is "thriving" (i.e. she is at the 50th percentile in weight). Check out the website www.babycenter.com for foods to avoid and what ages for your baby. You can join for free and they'll send you emails with all kinds of information. I' joined when I was pregnant and still love getting the monthly emails on my toddlers stages.

Chocolate should be ok - from what I've seen, chocolate does not contain gluten, although it does have dairy so if you have a dairy allergy you should avoid it. Good luck and hope this helps a little.

[Guest nini]

chocolate is safe, it's just the additives that are sometimes added to chocolate bars, like barley malt that are no no's... you just need to verify that the brand and flavor of chocolate you get is gluten-free.

yes other food intolerances are possible and even common, if you don't want to wait for the ped. appt. and just want to do this on your own, and save money, you can try an elimination diet... keep a food journal and track any patterns that may occur with certain foods.

My opinion and personal experience is that the testing is very iffy in children, you could wait all this time, spend all kinds of money and still not get any answers. I took my daughter to a ped. GI and he insisted she did not have Celiac and that she just had IBS, and I'm sorry, but he was WRONG. I took her back to her pediatrician and told her I wanted to try the gluten-free diet. She agreed to a 3 week trial of the diet and after ONE week I had a totally different healthier happier child. Her Dr. dx'ed her with gluten intolerance officially but told me "we know it's Celiac we just can't prove it" The diet and how they respond to it is the most valid diagnostic tool there is.

[VydorScope]

1 - When looking for gluten free food what ingredients do you look for on the label things like maize, cornflour n starch ect (plus the multitude of other ingredients around ) are confusing.

This page:

https://www.celiac.com/st_prod.html?p_prodi...-06106110868.04

should help withthat. I printed it out and bring with me to the store.

[TCA]

my daughter also gets the rash around her mouth and was just diagnosed with eczema. She was also just tested for allergies and was positive for dairy and eggs. She also has celiac disease. Other problems with foods might be causing the rash. My heart goes out to you. I hope things get easier for you soon.

[youngmum3nz]

Thanks everyone for your help, were getting there slowly, i have an appointment booked with a private specialist (which will cost $220 ouch) which i can cancel if we get a public appointment before then. My sons blood results, im told almost certainly officially dx Celiacs he has the antibodies and the three levels (normal 0-20) were 24,52 and 204. Its written on his blood results that those levels support the dx of celiacs. As soon as i start the gluten free diet i will try the elimination diet so fingers crossed gluten is the only problem. Im so glad i came across this site what an awesome resource. Thanks again!!

[AndreaB]

My son developed eczema just after he was two months old. He is now six months old. I talked to a friend of mine who is a doctor and she recommeded another doctor to me in our area that does allergy testing. He wanted to test me since he was reacting to something I was eating. I tested allergic to soy & wheat/gluten which I had been eating a lot of plus other things. Once I cut those out his eczema cleared up. We still have small flair ups but those are the main culprits. The allergy testing is expensive and basically is a quicker way to do an elimination diet. It can also let you know what you are mildly allergic to. As a caution, if your infant has a sensitivity to soy the pnuemococcal (prevnar) has soy protein in it.

Let us know how your little one does.