When It Rains, It Pours....now 3 Year Old

[kim26]

hey everyone!

here's the deal, my 7 year old daughter was recently diagnosed w/ celiac....and she's doing great! I've gone on the diet with her and im feeling better as well after years of dealing with "IBS"..big surprise right lol!

so the issue now is my son..... since my daughter's initial tentative diagnosis 2 months ago I've been paying more attention to my son and watching for any symptoms, he shows no signs of celiac...he's healthy, energetic, eats well and definitely doesn't have any growing issues. HOWEVER, in the past month I've noticed some oddly colored stools. pale i guess you would say. (he's fully potty trained but i still wipe him when he poops).first they were like light yellow or pale brown color, now they are sometimes green and orange. and i truly cannot attribute it to anything he's been eating.. sometimes yogurt will turn his stool strange colors but he hasn't had any at all lately. I've read that this can sometimes mean that there is an issue with the bile and be indicitive of food moving through the system too fast, but he's having no diarrhea. ugh, im wondering if i should be concerned or consider testing him? he's only three, he'll be four on april 18th. thanks in advance for any advice or thoughts you can share!!~K

[Ridgewalker]

I'm so glad your daughter and yourself are doing well!!!

If you read the dates in my signature, you'll see that that's similar to how it happened with us too! Looking at the members on this forum, Celiac is apparently much more hereditary than doctors believe.

I'm not sure about your son, but I would urge you to remember that not all Celiacs get diarrhea. My 4 yr old never has had diarrhea from gluten so far, although his neuro symptoms are very... dramatic, shall we say? And he is more likely to have accidents when glutened.

Also keep in mind that symptoms can evolve. My older boy only had diarrhea sporadically before going gluten-free. Now if he gets glutened, he has severe diarrhea.

Have you looked over any symptom lists lately? Some symptoms common in children are:

-Diarrhea

-Constipation!!!

-Dark circles under eyes

-Overly emotional/temperamental

-Difficulty concentrating

-Symptoms similar to ADD, ADHD, and even Bipolar Disorder

-Fatigue, even when getting plenty of sleep

-Short stature, slow growth

-Skinny arms and legs with a pot belly

-Bedwetting, difficult to potty train

-Severe diaper rashes, mouth thrush

-Dental enamel problems, many cavities

These are just symptoms I know right off the top of my head, I'm sure there are others that I'm forgetting.

Also remember that testing in small children is not always accurate. False negatives are more common than is reported my doctors/scientists.

I hope some of this helps-- keep us updated!

[kim26]

I'm so glad your daughter and yourself are doing well!!!

If you read the dates in my signature, you'll see that that's similar to how it happened with us too! Looking at the members on this forum, Celiac is apparently much more hereditary than doctors believe.

I'm not sure about your son, but I would urge you to remember that not all Celiacs get diarrhea. My 4 yr old never has had diarrhea from gluten so far, although his neuro symptoms are very... dramatic, shall we say? And he is more likely to have accidents when glutened.

Also keep in mind that symptoms can evolve. My older boy only had diarrhea sporadically before going gluten-free. Now if he gets glutened, he has severe diarrhea.

Have you looked over any symptom lists lately? Some symptoms common in children are:

-Diarrhea

-Constipation!!!

-Dark circles under eyes

-Overly emotional/temperamental

-Difficulty concentrating

-Symptoms similar to ADD, ADHD, and even Bipolar Disorder

-Fatigue, even when getting plenty of sleep

-Short stature, slow growth

-Skinny arms and legs with a pot belly

-Bedwetting, difficult to potty train

-Severe diaper rashes, mouth thrush

-Dental enamel problems, many cavities

These are just symptoms I know right off the top of my head, I'm sure there are others that I'm forgetting.

Also remember that testing in small children is not always accurate. False negatives are more common than is reported my doctors/scientists.

I hope some of this helps-- keep us updated!

Ridgewalker,

Thank you for your quick reply ! I do know that celiac rears its ugly head in many different forms. in fact many of the improvements we've seen in our daughter are neuro! she is feeling better physically for sure, but emotionally she is an entirely different child! i always just thought she was clingy and over sensitive, she's not it was the gluten the whole time!

My son is not really clingy, but he is very particular about things...to put it very diplomatically lol! we always refer to him as being OCD. And he can turn his emotions on and off like a light switch, one minute his world is crashing down the next he's fine. i guess until recently i just assumed this was his personality, and it may very well be, but my daughter's diagnosis and huge turn around really makes me wonder. its a lot to think about! i appreciate your input!

[taweavmo3]

I would definately keep a close eye on him, and consider testing at some point. My dd was dx'd first, then I noticed symptoms in my other children. However, my other children were not as obviously sick as my dd had been. The boys just had loose stools, but never diarrhea. They also displayed skin issues (eczema, then psoriasis) and behavioral issues. I had them both tested, which came out negative. I went ahead and tried the diet anyway, and all their symptoms improved. I don't really think they were full blown Celiac like my dd, but at the very least they are intolerant. I couldn't just sit by and wait for things to get bad. I figure they can make that choice when they are older....for now, I just want to keep them as healthy as possible.

Like you, I also went on the diet with my kids and felt much better. I too think that it may be more hereditary than doctors think, at least based on my family tree full of auto immune disorders, lol. Good luck with what you decide!