Does This Sound Like A Dairy Reaction?

[Nic]

My 6 year old son has celiac and we recently relized he is most likely dairy intolerant as well. He has been completely dairy free for 1 month and has been symptom free. His symptom was chronic constipation. Last week he had strep throat and a stomach bug at the same time. On Saturday he was completely fine, no vomiting, no more diarrhea. We went out to dinner for his brothers birthday and he was very upset he could not have ice cream. Well, I gave in when I shouldn't have, I gave him a lactaid pill and let him have a little ice cream. The next morning he was extremely tired like he couldn't get out of bed. He barely ate anything all day and then after going to sleep, he accidentally pooped in his underwear. Then this morning he has diarrhea again. I am so confused because I don't know if it is the virus still lingering or was it the ice cream. Does this sound like a reaction to dairy?

Nicole

[gfgypsyqueen]

I would have him checked out by an allergist. He sounds a bit like my kids - neither handle milk well. The oldest is probably lactose intolerant.

My oldest ALWAYS got severe constipation from too much milk, cheese, yogurt etc. And she love yogurt and cheese!!! We used to monitor how much milk she ate and still battled tummy aches, crying, constipation, lathargic, and strong adult dosages of medication for poops etc. The pediatrician wanted to do xrays, MRIs, etc. We pulled her off all milk and no more poop problems at all. No more meds. Nothing! Only change is the milk.

The youngest stopped growing at 9mths. She grew slightly but always dropped in percentages. She is now 2 and still fit 12 mth old clothes before we pulled her off milk products. Within a month she has gained 2 lbs and grown in height. Now she has clear signs of a milk allergy - diarrhea and rash. She goes to the allergist for testing soon.

The original allergist told me that it was unlikely the youngest had a milk allergy. I wish I forced the issue back then and head her tested a year ago!! She has been checked for Celiacs and is negative for now.

Good luck!

[Felidae]

I could be wrong, but I thought only some of the Lactaid pills were gluten-free. Also, if he is casein intolerant, Lactaid won't work. Lactaid is only for people with lactose intolerance. So, if he can eat cheese without any reaction, he is most likely lactose intolerant. But, if he has a reaction to cheese than he may be casein intolerant.

[missy'smom]

This source lists some Lactaid products that are gluten-free. It may not be a comprehensive list. It does list contact numbers for many companies.

Open Original Shared Link

I haven't used the Lactaid type products since going gluten-free but the storebrand ones used to bother me, whereas the Lactaid brand ones didn't. I never figured out why.

Everyone's reaction to gluten and dairy can vary. I don't want to add to your confusion but from the symptoms you described, if it was me, it would be a reaction to gluten[the extreme fatigue and diarreah in the morning(I was usually constipated during the daytime)]. It could be both. For me the diareah at night would have come from the dairy. Was the ice cream gluten-free? You also mentioned that you went out for dinner. Could there have been a problem with gluten in his dinner?

[Nic]

This source lists some Lactaid products that are gluten-free. It may not be a comprehensive list. It does list contact numbers for many companies.

Open Original Shared Link

I haven't used the Lactaid type products since going gluten-free but the storebrand ones used to bother me, whereas the Lactaid brand ones didn't. I never figured out why.

Everyone's reaction to gluten and dairy can vary. I don't want to add to your confusion but from the symptoms you described, if it was me, it would be a reaction to gluten[the extreme fatigue and diarreah in the morning(I was usually constipated during the daytime)]. It could be both. For me the diareah at night would have come from the dairy. Was the ice cream gluten-free? You also mentioned that you went out for dinner. Could there have been a problem with gluten in his dinner?

Hi, we went to cheeseburger in paradise and so far we were never glutened there. But, the gluten theory does make sense because prior to going diary free a month ago he was always constipated even after being gluten free for 2 years. So anytime he was glutened we never saw any change. Now that the constipation is corrected maybe the symptoms of being glutened will be more obvious.

Nicole

[missy'smom]

I'm completely out of commission today with fatigue from cross contamination at home. Somebody touched their pizza crust and then touched the cheese yesterday. The only foods I ate were completely homemade whole foods. We have so little gluten in our kitchen and very infrequently now that it's easy to see what the problem is. I have gotten sick from touching a tortilla, rinsing and patting dry my hands(instead of washing well with soap in drying them well) and touching my gluten-free tortilla. I never noticed this kind of reaction before. Only now that I'm strictly gluten-free for a longer period of time has this become a noticable problem for me.

[rinne]

I can't eat dairy, constipation and bloating are the consequences.

Sorry to hear about your little one, it is such difficult situation for adults and for children even more so.

[Nic]

I can't eat dairy, constipation and bloating are the consequences.

Sorry to hear about your little one, it is such difficult situation for adults and for children even more so.

But do you get the tiredness like when you are glutened? I think the reason I am so confused on whether this was a reaction or not is because he was so sick last week. He started the week out with strep throat and by the end caught his brother stomach virus. So on Friday he was running a fever and had diarrhea, on Saturday, the day we went out, he was ok, just a little tired, but then on Saturday not eating well and very tired again. So I don't know was it the dairy or just still feeling yucky due to the virus.

Nicole