Any Way To Help Feel Better After Being Glutened?

[mom-to-claire]

My daughter is 11 months old and has just started a gluten free diet. She was a miserable child until we discovered this. She was clingy, needy, fussy..just plain miserable. She is a different child now BUT I think she might have accidentally been glutened (because I'm not a crumb fanatic and I know I should be). I'm not sure if she was glutened but she certainly has not been herself for the last 2 days. Is there anything I can do for her to help her feel better. Obviously she is too young to tell me how she feels but it seems that just being with me (in my arms) helps her. That would be fine if I didn't have a 2.5 year old as well.

Does it just take time for whatever she is feeling to go away? Will it take longer and longer to get back to normal after being glutened the longer she is gluten free? I'm so overwhelmed and scared and freaked out about raising a child who can't have gluten.

[GlutenWrangler]

Getting glutened is never good, but it is something that will happen for the rest of your daughter's life. When I get glutened, I don't really deviate from my normal schedule. There's not much you can really do, but it is good to drink plenty of good water. It just needs time to work its way out. Each time a celiac gets glutened, their immune system goes on overdrive. It needs time to settle back down to normal. Since your daughter is so young, she will heal much faster in comparison to an adult. Getting glutened really won't set back her healing process. It is really important to pay attention to every crumb. Continued consumption of even small amounts of gluten will slow down her healing. Also, has your son been tested? Celiac disease is a genetic condition, so it is a good idea to get all family members tested. But overall, you shouldn't be too concerned about the accidental gluten. She should improve within a few days. Good luck with everything.

-Brian

[Guest AutumnE]

I drank red bull and lots of propel water before my problem with corn. But I dont think it would be a good recommendation for her since she is only 11 months old. Plenty of water as the previous poster suggested would be good.

Does she have diarrhea or diaper rash from it? When my daughter or I get accidentally glutened I put bag balm on her and it seems to help keep rashes at bay. Also soft foods always feel better with an upset stomach. I eat chicken broth with tinkyada pasta and mashed potatoes. It helps soothe my stomach by it not being hard to digest.

We tried only my daughter and I going gluten free and it was just too hard to keep everything spotlessly clean and I get a reaction from the smallest amount so I figured my daughter does too. So we went gluten free and I started cooking gluten free pantry bread *sandwich bread* and everybody has adjusted. I just cook more frequently. At first I felt like I was depriving my husband but realized it really wasnt good for anybody and he liked the homemade foods better with no preservatives.

As the previous poster suggested on how its genetic. I thought I was the only one but my daughter, sister, mom, dad, nephew and my niece all has it. Me and my nephew are the only ones with very obvious symptoms though. It has made family functions alot easier when everybody follows the diet.

[Sweetfudge]

yes, drink lots of liquids. i like to curl up with a hot bean bag on my stomach area, or soak in a warm bath. don't eat any "intense" foods. just easy to digest stuff like rice and chicken.

[Rob.]

when i get glutened i get a serve depression, which is usually cured by consuming a massive dose of olive oil! not sure why, or if it helps in the long run but it does the trick!

[acousticmom]

You might check with her doctor to see if there's anything that can help with the pain when she does get glutened. I know several prescription meds have been mentioned in past discussions; I don't know if any of them would be appropriate for an 11-month old, but her doctor might have suggestions if her pain is very bad. It's awfully hard to watch your kid in pain when there's not much you can do to help it go away.

My son (13) sometimes finds a heating pad comforting as well.

Carol