Any Ideas?

[ashlee's mom]

Hi, my daughter is 5 and has been gluten free for almost a year now. She started showing symptoms again and I don't know where any gluten could be coming from. I am in the process of doing blood tests again, but I also started keeping a journal of foods eaten and the GI symptoms. She always seems to have a tummy ache, but I noticed that the real diarrhea would start when she would eat yogurt. We use the Kroger brand and I have been told when I rechecked that all their yogurt is gluten-free. I would think it was lactose intollerance, but she drinks milk all day without getting the same reaction. I know food sensitivities are common among Celiacs, but I can't figure out what would be in yogurt that would cause a problem. Could someone please help me figure out the connection here?

Michelle

[plantime]

The only brand of yogurt I have found to be gluten-free is Yoplait. Could it be that the yogurt is getting cross-contaminated at the manufacturer?

[MySuicidalTurtle]

I thought I should add in something, my Mother and I are both lactose intolerant but react very different to cetain things. She can drink milk anytime without a problem but has issues with cheese and choclate candy. I can't drink any cows milk at all but can eat choclate candies and some cheeses. We both use lactiad.

Your daughter may be like my Mom and is fine with milk but have issues with other dairy.

[Merika]

This is a little out there, but yoghurt has acidophilus in it/added to it. Some folks just don't tolerate them well (like me), which I discovered by taking probiotics, which made me very very sick. My mom, also celiac, reacts too. Some strains are ok, some not, it depends what they're grown on, the phase of the moon (just kidding), and so forth. It's very individual.

Also, the fruit in yoghurt is processed with alcohol, so if she has a yeast (?) issue, that may be the culprit. Does she have a problem with plain yoghurt too or just the flavored ones?

Just some thoughts,

Merika

[ashlee's mom]

Thanks, this is at least giving me some ideas! I called Kroger's again and not only are all their yougurts gluten-free, but the only other things made there are milk and cheese, which are also gluten-free, so I really don't think it is gluten. Although I am wondering if she is getting gluten somewhere else, which is making her have some symptoms constantly and therefore more sensitive to whatever is bothering her in the yogurt. Right now I am keeping her off all yogurt, although it was the flavored kind she reacted to so I can see what symptoms we still have. She still complains of a tummy ache most of the day and occasionally gets bloated. Her stools are still not quite back to normal either. The acidophilus is an idea. I thought that was good for the digestive tract, but it makes sense that some people could be sensitive to it. It is also good to know that different people react differently to lactose intollerance. I just figured milk would have even more lactose then yogurt so it couldn't be that. This is really helping, any more ideas?

[angel-jd1]

I'm sure that if you would like to post a list of what your daughter has been eating (along with brand names) people would be happy to go through and point out any problem spots. Be sure to include any medications, toothpastes, anything that goes into her mouth.

Also, if she is in Kindergarten, you may want to think about her getting something at school. Possibly someone is being "nice" and giving her something out of thier lunch.

Also if there is playdough in the classroom, she could be getting contamination from the tables or work area where it is played with. AND if she is playing with it, it could be staying underneath her fingernails or hands aren't washed properly.

Just some thoughts......

-Jessica

[Carriefaith]

It is very possible that she may have lactose intolerance and may have a worse reaction to yogurt than milk. Everyone is different.

[paula]

Hi Michelle,

We chatted a few times last year our daughters were diagnosed about the same time and are the same age. I am struggling with the same problem with Amy as well. Her tummy has even started to swell. We too are awaiting blood test results.

One thing we found out was she was coming into contact with play doh at school. Our dr also said that one gluen accident can produce symptoms that last 2 to 4 weeks (the physical appearance that is). Good luck. I hope that she is going to bounce back quickly.

Paula

[angel-jd1]

I found this article today while looking for something else, but thought of this thread when I saw it.....maybe it will help a little:

PRE-SCHOOL AND CELIAC DISEASE

by Tracy Keegan

President, Celiac Support Group

Boston Children's Hospital

As September approaches  I wanted to talk about how to make the pre-school

experience both physically safe and emotionally positive for the celiac

child.

As a parent, your first mission is to secure a gluten free environment for

your child.  The typical pre-school classroom holds several hidden dangers

to beware of.

Start by sitting down with the teacher before the beginning of the school

year. Give her some literature about Celiac Disease (GIG prints  brochure

for teachers).  Ask her to have every adult who will be serving as an

instructor or an aid read this information before school starts.  Have her

post a notice about your child's food intolerance's for any substitutes

who might be in the class room during the year.  Talk about the various

OK snacks and offer to supply gluten-free snack or ingredient substitutions.

Request that  on occasion gluten-free snacks be offered to all of the students

instead of constantly singling out your child as different by giving him

a separate snack from the rest of the class.  I think this issue is

incredibly important to children with celiac disease.  Their first

preschool experience is a chance for our children to develop their own

identities and a sense of self confidence.  Our job as parents should be

to make this experience as emotionally secure and positive as possible. 

We should attempt to minimize the isolation our toddler must feel at

being singled out as different from his peers during one of the most

social periods in his day.

True, our children will always have to think before they eat but the

preschool experience can also reassure them that they can eat the same

things as all the other children too. There must be a balance between

the differences and the similarities.  My personal solution to the issue

was to supply a gluten-free snack which could be enjoyed by the entire class once

or twice a week.

The following list of gluten-free snacks may be served to the typical preschool

class:

l.  fresh fruit slices together or separately

2.  most canned fruit

3.  cheddar cheese cubes

4.  raisins

5.  pumpkin or sunflower seeds

6.  nuts (but other children might have allergies)

7.  Popcorn

8.  Corn chips and corn nuts  (If kids are over 3 yrs)

9.  peanut butter on rice crackers or with carrot sticks as a dip

10. gluten-free yogurt

11. Cinnamon apple rice chips (Hain's)

12. Fruit popsicles (Always check to see if still gluten-free )

13. Dietary specialties makes a cracker bread my daughter loves called

    Bi-Aglut Swedish cracker bread*

14. Dietary Specialties sells a 'saltine 'like cracker called Wel-Plan

    Crackers*

15. Health Valley Fat free rice bars in three flavors (Orange Date,

    Raisin Apple & Tropical Fruit) are currently gluten-free*

16. Bette Hagman's  Mock Graham Crackers  are a huge hit with my

    daughter and anyone else who can get their hands on them -the recipe

    is found in the More From the Gluten Free Gourmet.I sprinkle them

    with a little cinnamon sugar.

17. Mini muffins from any gluten-free mix

Most of the time the school will provide juice for all the children. 

Ask the teacher to purchase only 100% fruit juice and recommend several

Gluten Free brands.  It is also possible to send in a safe bottle of

juice for your child's drink.

The other major gluten minefields in preschool are birthday cupcakes and

holiday treats.  The best technique I've worked out is to bake chocolate

and vanilla cupcakes at the beginning of the year and to freeze them in

individual zip lock baggies then I can quickly defrost the appropriate

flavor and either mix up homemade frosting or use some Duncan Hines

Homestyle frosting* in the same flavor as the birthday child.  Don't

forget to put a few sprinkles on top just in case the birthday cupcakes

have them too.  As your child matures this exact matching game will

become less important.  There will come a day when they realize a

cupcake is a cupcake whatever the color/flavor.

Have your child's teacher supply you with a list of birthdays at the

beginning of the year so that if a parent has not given you warning

before they plan to bring in a treat you can give them a quick call

to see if they were planning anything special.

Finally, give the teacher a box of 'just in case' cookies at the

beginning of the school year.  This way your child won't be the only

one without a special treat 'just in case' Sarah's grandmother bakes

some valentine cookies for the class or 'just in case' Jack's brings

in treats to celebrate Groundhog day.

One play area in most classrooms is the sensory table into which sand,

water, beans etc. are placed for the children to play with.  Request

that the teachers do NOT use wheat, rye, oats or barley in the sensory

table.  It should be obvious that little fingers often find their way

into little mouths.  Recommend cornmeal, rice, beans, sand, or water

as safe alternatives.

Stickers and envelopes are often used in classroom play.  Ask that the

teachers use only peel-n-stick varieties wherever possible.  If

envelopes are being used  have a damp sponge available for sealing them.

The reason for this is  that some envelope companies do not confirm that

the Gum Arabic used to create the seal is gluten free.  (My source for

this information is Bette Hagman, The Gluten Free Gourmet).

A popular pre-school project these days is stringing cereal into

necklaces, usually a gluten containing brand.  Unfortunately I have not

come across a gluten free alternative to this type of cereal.  As not

all cereal always ends up on the string you should consult the teacher

about skipping this activity altogether.  A safer alternative to the

stringing project would be to supply the classroom with gluten free 

pasta product in the shape of tubes so that the class could paint the

noodles as well as string them. (This type of pasta is available

through Dietary Specialties (1-800-544-0099)

Playdoh is a standard item in every preschool.  Playdoh is made from

wheat flour base.  Request that the Playdoh in your child's room be

made from a cornstarch base instead. The following recipe is from 

Tim Meadows :

1/2 cup rice flour

1/2 cup corn starch

1/2 cup salt

1 cup water

1 tsp. cooking oil

  food coloring

Cook and stir on low heat for 3 minutes until it forms a ball.

(If your child is  older or can remember NEVER to put his hand in his

mouth than you can tell the teachers to let him use the regular Playdoh,

however, always ask that the teacher have your child wash his hands

right after playing with it.)  If the preschool does any cooking

projects Playdoh is a fun recipe to cook up.

On the subject of cooking, my experience is that every pre-school uses

baking as a basic part of it's curriculum.  In order to incorporate your

child into this activity go over the general baking projects at the

beginning of the school year and suggest or supply a gluten-free alternative.

For example:  If the class is going to make blueberry muffins  replace

the recipe with a package of gluten-free blueberry muffin mix. (Dietary

Specialties has a great one).  Go the next step and actually supply a

list of gluten-free baking ingredients  for the teacher i.e.: gluten-free butter or

margarine, gluten-free food colorings.

gluten-free vanilla extract, gluten-free chocolate chips, whatever ingredients are

required.  Now your child can roll up his sleeves and lick the batter

off of his fingers with the rest of the kids.

In addition to supplying  the class with a variety of gluten-free muffin mixes

(The Really Great Food Company [516-593-5587]  is a good source  of both

muffin mixes and a pizza crust mix which doubles as a bread stick recipe:

fun for the kids to make as they can roll their own bread sticks.)

There are a lot of other fun gluten-free cooking projects the class can do and

here are a few suggestions to share with your child's teachers:

1.  Fruit Kabobs or fruit boats

2.  raisin and nut  and sunflower seed gorp

3.  peanut butter on celery sticks or rice crackers (be sure to supply

    your own

4.  jar to be used only for gluten-free snacks)

5.  applesauce

6.  popcorn from a dried corn stalk

7.  home made fruit popsicles

8.  cheese cubes on sticks with fruit

9.  Bette Hagman's peanut butter cookies (ingredients include only peanut

    butter, sugar and eggs)Gluten Free Gourmet

10. Meringue cookies (Egg whites, sugar & cream of tarter)Gluten Free

    Gourmet

A note to parents of school aged children.  My daughter is now in

Kindergarten and old enough to go to the Cafeteria for lunch.  At first

glance it would appear that no foods could be considered safe at a

school cafeteria however, with a little research, your child may be able

to purchase at least part of her lunch just like everyone else.

I went directly to the cafeteria at the beginning of the school year and

actually read the labels of the juice, milk, & popsicles offered for

purchase after calling the companies I was able to let my daughter pick

out a drink and a piece of fruit or an Italian ice for desert.  Due to

the nature of kid friendly foods it would be very unlikely that any main

course would be safe for consumption on  a gluten-free diet.

These precautionary measures should go along way to insure an

emotionally successful school year for your child.  We must be diligent

in training our children to be on guard for that hidden enemy, gluten. 

The pre-school environment, however, should  be a safe haven in which to

grow and explore the world unencumbered by the social restrictions a

gluten free diet will always demand.

* Please call any brand name manufacturer to confirm current gluten free

status of any of the products I have suggested here.  I know it is

difficult and time consuming to continually research product safety but

I cannot guarantee the Gluten Free status of any of the aforementioned

commercial products beyond October 25th l995.

Open Original Shared Link

[ashlee's mom]

Thanks so much! We homeschool Ashlee, so I don't have to worry about the whole contamination at school issues. (It isn't why we decided to homeschool, but it is nice to eliminate that worry!) I think I am leaning towards the lactose intollerance thing. I am noticing that even though she doesn't have the bad diarrhea now that she isn't eating yogurt, her GI symptoms are still there a bit, so I am wondering if that could be from the other diary. I haven't ruled out gluten, though we are being very careful. I am still trying to get her tested, that is a story in itself though! OK, someone mentioned listing what she is eating, so I am just going to list what she has been eating lately and see if anyone has any clues I may be missing!

Lil Critters Vita Worms (vitamin)

Ethedent chewable tablets (flouride)

Biscuits (home made) with Blue Bonnet margarine (her own tub) and honey.

Milk

cheese

Enviro-kids cereal

hamburger (made out of ground beef, onions, Lea and Perrins Worschesire sauce, Emeril's Original essence and Durkee garlic powder)

lettuce and tomato

taco salad- kidney beans, ground beef seasoned with Cummin and Curry powder (Tone's) and chili powder (Kroger brand) lettuce, tomato, Daisy Sour cream, and broken Ortega taco shell

EnerG pretzels

Kroger's pork and beans w/ brown sugar and honey

pancakes (homemade) w/ marg, Kroger peanut butter and Kroger syrup

toast (homemade bread)

chicken enchillada- chicken, sr. cream (Daisy) cream of chicken soup (homemade from Kroger chicken broth, butter, potato starch flour, and milk) green onions, cheese and corn torillas

Orange

Orange juice

potato w/ marg and sour cream

banana

Stretch Island fruit snacks

Colgate toothpaste

Suave bath products

Irish spring soap

That is going back over a week here, I tried to not list the same things over and over! She tends to like to eat the same things a lot, and right now that helps me rule things out! I have called and re-called on everything here I can think of, and we either have her own condiments, (like her margarine and peanut butter), or we never double dip (sour cream, mayo...) She doesn't touch gluten products. I just don't trust how well she washes her hands yet, so no play dough or anything like that. If anyone notices anything, let me know!

[Boojca]

Did you confirm the gluten-free status of the flouride tablets? My son needs them too, but I have been unable to get in touch with the maker of the brand he's been prescribed so I'm holding off on them. But medications can contain gluten (ie, wheat as a binding agent) so maybe that?

Bridget

[ashlee's mom]

Thanks Bridget, I called and they told me they were gluten free. I am wondering though if we need to worry about cross contamination there. What if in the Pharmacy they fill a prescription of a medication that contains gluten, then filled her prescription? I don't know if that is too far fetched or not! I may be grasping at straws! I finally got everything worked out to get her blood test done (after 2 weeks!) Only to find out that since Promethius will be billing our insurance, I will need to have a referall first! So much for getting it done over the weekend!

[anerissara]

Don't know if this helps but I had an awful reaction to an acidophilus suppliment, in fact that's when I started to be sick enough to think my problem was more than just IBS. I had D constantly and bad cramps, it started the day after I took the 1st pill and kept up for quite awhile. I can eat yoghurt, though, but in small amounts. I agree about the lactose comments made by others, I can eat most cheese and yoghurt if I don't overdo it, but can't drink milk or eat icecream. Hope you get it tracked down! It's so hard when a little one is sick, my heart goes out to you!

[Boojca]

You said you are still working on getting her tested? Just so you know, if she's gluten-free the tests will come back negative.

If she hasn't been gluten-free too long it may not be too late, if you get the tests done soon. I just posted a link in another thread here to the NAPHGAN guidelines for diagnosing celiac in children, go armed with that to your doctor if he/she is giving you a hard time and make him/her read it while you sit and watch him/her.

Bridget