Looking For Some Answers

[A&Z'S MOM]

Hi!

I have been on this board before and found it to be a great source of strength and help.My kids were diagnosed three months ago.They have been gluten free for two months and dairy free for a month.It seems like a huge accomplishment but tiny compared to what the other members have achieved.

My son is 12 and showing signs of improvement,his dark circles have began to fade,he is happier,active child.My daughter is six,her tummy was quite bloated and her skin was very dry and her asthma bouts were quite frequent.Now her tummy is not bloated any more,her asthma is not as bad,her skin has improved abit too,she has no constipation.There diagnosis was a fluke,my little girl was having constipation problems,anemia,and the GI ran some tests ,and the celiac panel was one of them.

There numbers[antibodies for gluten]have a fallen a tiny bit,but my little girl seems to have a constant sore throat,she does have mornings where she has a stuffy nose too.I am careful about their diet,sometimes her bowel movements are also not well formed,I was wondering if you guys in the forum could provide me with something I could have missed or overlooked.Their supplements are Gluten-free Casein-free too and there teachers have been informed at school too,so the kids stick to their lunch boxes.

Some of the things I use are ghee[indian clarified butter for baked goods],rice flour,homemade almond milk,fresh juices and fruits,i was able to locate some glutenfree flour which I use only for breakfast pancakes.I think I have mentioned here in this forum before that we are asians and eat curry and rice as part of our diets.

I am also tempted to try dairy with lactacid bc they miss their glass of milk so much and yoghurt,which they absolutely loved.I do keep a food diary but have been unable to clearly make out patterns.Sorry for going on and on...but have found this forum to be more helpful them my GI.

[RiceGuy]

Well, I don't know if ghee might still be too much like dairy, but perhaps you should try something else in its place for a while and see what happens. Coconut oil is great for baking, frying, etc, and it is also very healthy.

Something else to consider is if you are using any utensils which might be harboring gluten. Anything wooded (like spoons and cutting boards for example), and any cast iron pans should be replaced. Same goes for the toaster and toaster oven. Non-stick pans tend to hold gluten in tiny scratches too.

If dairy is a problem, lactaid milk may not work out, because there are other things in dairy which the body may not be able to deal with, such as casein.

Lundberg makes a rice milk which they may like, and there's also coconut milk.

I'm sure others will have some helpful suggestions for you.

[ShayFL]

I believe I got glutened from "pre-sliced" fruit from a store. Better to buy "whole" fruit, wash and slice yourself.

Curry powders could have fillers with gluten in them. I wouldnt use them unless they list all ingredients. Things like "spices" are suspect. And "natural flavor". The curry powders could be a significant source of gluten.

You can find recipes online and make up your own curry powders and pastes. Dont know what "asian" area you are from. But Thai and Indian curries are easy to make from scratch without pre packaged powders and pastes.

I agree that ghee should be out for now. And I know you are tempted to add the milk. But I would wait. You can make ice cream from cashews, apples and (peaches) in a high powered blender. Adding some sweetener. You can even make yogurt out of your homemade almond milk. Some googling is in order.

I would recommend finding a few good recipe books with simple ingredients (not too complicated).

My daughter is loving the gluten-free baking I am doing.

[fedora]

as far as the sore throat,

it could be air allergies. I have a slight sore throat on and off and a post nasal drip. fun. It is pollen, pet fur, dust, dirt. I hope it improves the longer I am gluten free. It did improve for my friend next door.

[A&Z'S MOM]

  RiceGuy said:

Well, I don't know if ghee might still be too much like dairy, but perhaps you should try something else in its place for a while and see what happens. Coconut oil is great for baking, frying, etc, and it is also very healthy.

Something else to consider is if you are using any utensils which might be harboring gluten. Anything wooded (like spoons and cutting boards for example), and any cast iron pans should be replaced. Same goes for the toaster and toaster oven. Non-stick pans tend to hold gluten in tiny scratches too.

If dairy is a problem, lactaid milk may not work out, because there are other things in dairy which the body may not be able to deal with, such as casein.

Lundberg makes a rice milk which they may like, and there's also coconut milk.

I'm sure others will have some helpful suggestions for you.

i will find a substitue ghee for some other Gluten-free Casein-free option for now,I did change my teflon pans.As for rice milk tried that but kids didnot like it too much,so started making my own almond milk at home,which I slip into pancakes,shakes etc.Thanks for your response

[A&Z'S MOM]

  ShayFL said:

I believe I got glutened from "pre-sliced" fruit from a store. Better to buy "whole" fruit, wash and slice yourself.

Curry powders could have fillers with gluten in them. I wouldnt use them unless they list all ingredients. Things like "spices" are suspect. And "natural flavor". The curry powders could be a significant source of gluten.

You can find recipes online and make up your own curry powders and pastes. Dont know what "asian" area you are from. But Thai and Indian curries are easy to make from scratch without pre packaged powders and pastes.

I agree that ghee should be out for now. And I know you are tempted to add the milk. But I would wait. You can make ice cream from cashews, apples and (peaches) in a high powered blender. Adding some sweetener. You can even make yogurt out of your homemade almond milk. Some googling is in order.

I would recommend finding a few good recipe books with simple ingredients (not too complicated).

My daughter is loving the gluten-free baking I am doing.

i do buy whole fruit,my son is more than happy to have it as snack,my little girl is not too keen so i give her fruit smoothies instead.Is it possible some of the fruit are more difficult to digest for her now,she has bowel movements which are not well formed after mango shakes.I am from pakistan ,close to india.I make my own curry powders.I feel very blessed that most of my cuisine can be easily addapted to be gluten and dairy bfree.But breakfast are hard and so are snacks.Its like the kids being bombarded with lots of junk options everywhere.Even my hubby thinks I am a nut . I do love working hard for every meal and snack for my kids,but it can be overwhelming...

[A&Z'S MOM]

  fedora said:

as far as the sore throat,

it could be air allergies. I have a slight sore throat on and off and a post nasal drip. fun. It is pollen, pet fur, dust, dirt. I hope it improves the longer I am gluten free. It did improve for my friend next door.

Air allergies,well she does have asthma so i guess its possible but it has manifested itself when she went gluten-free free.Maybe i never chronicled it beofre.There is just so much to look out for

[missy'smom]

I always thought I had some kind of allergies but when I eliminated dairy my nasal stuffiness cleared up quite a bit and I started to notice the other environmental triggers, dust mites, pollen etc. more clearly. I'm not impying that she has a problem with dairy but removing one irritant can cause others to be more noticable. My husband brought home a very common brand(SWAD) of individual ground spices from the Indian market in hopes of making our own curry powder but the label said they are processed on equipment that also processes wheat. That would be more than enough to cause me to have a reaction.

[ShayFL]

I went into an Indian market just yesterday that was next to my daughter's summer camp. Every package said it was processed on machinery with wheat!! Even the plain herbs and spices. So I got out of there. I felt gluten everywhere. Everything felt powdery.

Mangos are from the same food family as poison sumac. Many people are sensitive to them. You might try a different kind of fruit smoothie.