Red Ears

[AliB]

I have been wondering for some time if my son might be either celiac or at least very gluten intolerant due to certain health issues. As a child I noticed that he often would get very red ears and I recognised back then it was probably to do with his digestion but didn't know why.

My youngest grandson who is four also gets very red ears quite regularly, and also has other indications of possible Celiac/GI.

Has anyone else experienced this with their kids before they were diagnosed with Celiac or went gluten-free? I wondered if it is a common symptom or indicator.

[RiceGuy]

That was me! I would frequently get red ears, and of course nobody knew why. So yes, I'd say it is an indicator, perhaps of immune response if nothing else.

[curlyfries]

Hmmmm...my son always had red ears when he was little. We never knew why either. But so far I don't think he has any other issues.

[Mom23boys]

Red ears are a pretty standard sign of allergies/sensitivities. Dr Rapp addresses this and other "non traditional" symptoms in her book "Is This Your Child".

[ShayBraMom]

Wow, good to know! Celiac is though not an Allergic reaction, it's an autoimmuneresponse, it could be however that he does have real allergies and that would explain of coure the red ears. Often cause of red ears is a constant low grade inflammation due to allergies! Is he gonna be really tested for celiac, it can never hurt!

[AliB]

I have thought of suggesting that all my family gets tested. These things have a habit though of coming back negative unless there is major damage so whether there would be any point I'm not sure.

My test came back negative but I am wondering if I might ask the doctor if she can arrange for me to have the DNA test. It would be interesting to see what the outcome is of that, and that may be a better option than the IgA/tTg tests for the rest of my family too.

Both my grandsons seem to be getting a definite reaction - the elder at 6 has been getting diarrhea and stomach aches for the last few months and the younger one is now reacting too. My daughter has been trying to implement gluten-free at home and the older one is on gluten-free at school. Both boys have had quite a bit of gluten this week and that may well be an indicator that they both really need to go gluten-free. I think she needs to go back to the doctor and get her to sign the form for the younger one to have gluten-free at school too.

The boys' father has also had stomach problems for years and I am wondering if he also has gluten issues. If that is the case, then the boys have inherited the problem from both sides!

My Mum was Celiac, my Dad was GI, I am definitely GI possibly Celiac, my husband is GI, my son is almost definitely Celiac, my daughter is definitely GI possibly Celiac and both boys are GI. Who says this is a small problem limited to just a small percentage of the population??? The statistic in my family is 100%!

[rick-spiff]

My son used to get red ears all the time. Allergy tested and found out he has a lot of food allergies.

Allergy testing is a good idea, if you are neg for celiac you can still be allergic or intolerant.

Good luck. We took my son off of all his allergens, including gluten and dairy and they haven't been red except for the 2 times he was glutened by his grandma.

[JennyC]

My son gets red ears too! He got them more frequently before he went gluten free, but he still gets them occasionally. He always gets red ears as he is getting sick. I've had him tested for common allergies and he was negative. If he does have an allergy, I have no idea to what! Very interesting!

[Sollysmom]

Hi my son also gets a red ear (just the left one) when he eats something that he shouldn't. This happened last night and today at breakfast he doubled over with stomach pain the minute his first bite hit his stomach. Almost like a person with an ulcer would react. I think he got some gluten yesterday or it could be the pinto beans he tested sensitive to whichever it was something damaged his stomach and noticed the red ear.