Plans

[Rowena]

Okay, so I know that very rarely do plans work out the way we want them to when we plan so far in advance, but we are contemplating having children now that I am healthy again. And I know it is a ways off, (at least 10 months at the earliest) but I want to consider how to ready my house for a family. One of the things on my list is the gluten free diet.

Since I have a gluten intolerance, I worry that it may be passed on to my kids, so I want to keep them safe. And also its a lot easier to buy and cook for people if we are all eating the same thing. That's not to say my husband is banned from eating gluteny substances, but we do keep it to the minimum.

So a large number of questions:

Is it still safe to nurse with children or should I try to find a gluten-free formula?

When they get older and go to things like nursery or friends houses, should I make sure that parents know no wheat/gluten products for them, or do I not have to worry as much? (Hopefully by that time we'll have found out though if it causes them problems, so yeah.)

What kind of baby foods do you feed kids as they start eating solids? Is Gerber brand ok?

How do I go about figuring out if my child has a problem with gluten? And when should I have them tested? etc.

Also any other advice you can add would be much appreciated.

[kareng]

Have fun making the babies? That's the extent of my knowledge on this subject. There are several on here with babies that will give you some real info. Might want to get a 4 sq foot kitchen first.

[Rowena]

Might want to get a 4 sq foot kitchen first.

hahahaha true story!!!!!!!!!!! Especially since I can't move at all in mine... Hahaha.

[kareng]

hahahaha true story!!!!!!!!!!! Especially since I can't move at all in mine... Hahaha.

Imagine the kitchen with a basketball covered by a small pillow attached to your belly!

[Rowena]

Imagine the kitchen with a basketball covered by a small pillow attached to your belly!

*shudder* oh and add a two year old attached to my leg... (If I am in this lousy apartment that long. I sure hope not. lol)

[beebs]

You can absolutely nurse, as long as you are not consuming any gluten then there will be none in your breastmilk.

I can't help you with the other stuff I'm afrais as I am myself trying to find out what is wrong with my kids. So I have no idea as to tips to keep them gluten free. Sorry!

Goodluck!

[Roda]

I see no reason why you cant breastfeed. Just follow the diet as best as you can. I breast fed my oldest for 14 months and supplemented with formula and exclusively breast fed my youngest for 16 months and modified my diet drastically (no dairy, tree nuts, oats, or rice) because of his food issues(I was not diagnosed at the time but upon reintroduction of said foods I started having symptoms. I inadvertantly was gluten light). As for introducing solids. I did fresh whole foods with my youngest. I just steamed the veggies/fruits then mashed them up and added a little water if they needed it. Instant homemade baby food. I also ground/mashed up meats when they got to that point. I did buy baby food for when we went out for convience, but again I wasn't gluten free at the time.

[tarnalberry]

Is it still safe to nurse with children or should I try to find a gluten-free formula?

When they get older and go to things like nursery or friends houses, should I make sure that parents know no wheat/gluten products for them, or do I not have to worry as much? (Hopefully by that time we'll have found out though if it causes them problems, so yeah.)

What kind of baby foods do you feed kids as they start eating solids? Is Gerber brand ok?

How do I go about figuring out if my child has a problem with gluten? And when should I have them tested? etc.

Yes, it is safe to breastfeed while gluten free! It's healthier!!! If you get gluten, it will pass through the breastmilk, but will only cause any effect if the baby is also gluten intolerant/celiac.

Fair warning: I'm a closet lactivist working her way out of the closet. Formula is the right choice for some families, but IMHO, there is not enough honest discussion about the disadvantages of formula and a lot of misinformation about breastfeeding/supply issues. I do not criticize those who choose formula as I cannot be in their lives to know everything that goes into the decision, but it's hard to make and informed decision when the information is not really out there.

There are a bazillion reasons why breastmilk is a better choice that formula in almost every situation. I won't list the laundry list right now/here (unless you want!). A new study, however, I will note a study from the June issue of Pediatrics (Open Original Shared Link) which notes "Partial breastfeeding, even for 6 months, did not result in significantly lower risks of [respiratory and intestinal infections]." Exclusive breastfeeding may even reduce the risk of a baby developing celiac disease as breastfed babies have entirely different intestinal flora than formula fed babies. (This is also true of vaginal birth versus c-section - the intestinal flora of babies born through each route are different.)

Breastmilk is a fascinating beast - even if you're not getting a very good diet, the body will rob YOU of nutrients so your baby can get them. Of course, incidences of starvation or severe deficiencies will affect it. But eat a healthy diet, take vitamins you know you need, and your breastmilk will be the best thing you can feed your baby.

We plan on letting our daughter (currently 8 months) eat whatever she wants when we're out, and then changing (and possibly bathing) her when she gets home. If she shows issues with gluten, we'll change that, of course. But I plan on having my husband introduce her to gluten at some point - probably after a year (I'm not doing much grain at all, and there are other ones I eat more often that I care more about introducing).

I would highly recommend baby-led weaning for introducing solids. (Open Original Shared Link) Basically, you offer them appropriate foods that you are eating, and they feed themselves. My daughter LOVES eating what we're eating, and enjoys a wide variety of things. No need to make purees, even, though she does LOVE hummus . It even makes me eat healthier, since I need to make sure she's getting food too! It's messy, but I like the developmental aspects of it and she loves it too.

I figure that we'll see if she's having any trouble with gluten, and decide what to do about testing from there. If I suspect anything, I will consider testing, but if there are severe symptoms that interfere with her growth, I'll take her gluten free first and worry about testing when she's older.

Clearly, this isn't the right approach for everyone, but my husband and I are happy with it so far!

[beebs]

They say that if your child becomes celiac that if you exclusively breastfeed often it comes on later than in a child who is formula fed. My first was breastfed for 3 months but due to my medical issues I had to give up and my twins were breastfed (by expressing) for 6 weeks and then due to my medical issues I had to give up (all related to this stupid connective tissue disorder - doh). My first son started getting gut issues at 3 years of age, my younger son basically straight away. I'm not sure if its anything to do with the amount of breastmilk or not but I sometimes wonder.

My youngest was also diagnosed lactose intolerant at a very young age - not sure yet if that is because he is celiac or not, but that basically means you cannot breastfeed - because even if you are lactose free your milk contains lactose anyway. Alot of celiac babies are lactose intolerant obviously.

I am very pro breastfeeding - but since not being able to do it myself I absolutely thank god every day for formula and I would never judge women for FFing - I know how hard it can be when you can't do it. If we lived in different times, before formula was invented - well, I shudder to think.

[mommida]

You can safely breastfeed while being gluten free. Make sure you get a healthy diet yourself. If my production was low, chocolate perked things right back up! Every body and baby are different so that might be right for you.

We didn't know about the kids having gluten issues so we went with the basic Gerber baby foods. If I was a perfect mom with nothing but time on my hands, I would have made it myself from organic food. I noticed my daughter had issues right from the start of adding rice cereal at 7 months. I am not saying it was the rice cereal on its own, because there was gluten in the breastmilk it was mixed with.

When your little one develops the pinser grasp, it is a good sign for starting the small solids you are comfortable with. Invest in one of those little food slicing gadgets, the boiled egg size is very convenient to have in the diaper bag.

If there is a gluten issue, you pack the snack bag for your kids to take with them. Your kids will be more comfortable having control over the situation.

The only way they can be tested for Celiac and get diagnosed with Celiac is to consume gluten. A genetic test can only tell you if they have the gene(s) to predispose them to Celiac. Genetic testing is not fail proof.

Have fun with the babymaking!

[tarnalberry]

I am very pro breastfeeding - but since not being able to do it myself I absolutely thank god every day for formula and I would never judge women for FFing - I know how hard it can be when you can't do it. If we lived in different times, before formula was invented - well, I shudder to think.

I really wish that our country would "get with the times", as it were, for those sorts of situationas and promote the donation and use of donated breast milk.

[beebs]

I really wish that our country would "get with the times", as it were, for those sorts of situationas and promote the donation and use of donated breast milk.

Yes - I asked about donor milk at the hospy and they said no way - only for premmie babies. There are so many women willing to do it. It seems crazy to me

[salexander421]

Breastmilk is totally what's best for your baby!! As long as you are getting the nutrients you need, whether gluten free or not, breastfeeding is both safe and beneficial for both of you! I'm currently breastfeeding my almost 17 month old and have been gluten, dairy, soy, and egg free pretty much the whole time. I've just recently started adding a little bit of some of that back into my diet. I have a very healthy, smart, and chunky toddler because of it If you have the right support system breastfeeding can be successful for most women.

[salexander421]

My youngest was also diagnosed lactose intolerant at a very young age - not sure yet if that is because he is celiac or not, but that basically means you cannot breastfeed - because even if you are lactose free your milk contains lactose anyway. Alot of celiac babies are lactose intolerant obviously.

I don't want to come across as attacking you here but, I'm just curious as to where you got this information? Many mothers of lactose intolerant babies have successfully nursed by eliminating dairy from their diets. Breastmilk contains galactose (human lactose) which is totally different than the lactose found in cow's milk. Allergy to galactose is called galactosemia and is very rare. Both my babies were cow's milk protein intolerant which is actually worse than lactose intolerant because it's found in more things and I have successfully nursed both of them by eliminating certain foods from my diet.

[Roda]

I don't want to come across as attacking you here but, I'm just curious as to where you got this information? Many mothers of lactose intolerant babies have successfully nursed by eliminating dairy from their diets. Breastmilk contains galactose (human lactose) which is totally different than the lactose found in cow's milk. Allergy to galactose is called galactosemia and is very rare. Both my babies were cow's milk protein intolerant which is actually worse than lactose intolerant because it's found in more things and I have successfully nursed both of them by eliminating certain foods from my diet.

I was able to sucessfully nurse both of my boys and they both had problems with lactose. I elimated dairy completly from my diet and they did wonderful. They both tolerate dairy now. I do know of a girl I worked with that couldn't breastfeed her oldest son because he was allergic to all forms of milk even breastmilk.

[beebs]

I don't want to come across as attacking you here but, I'm just curious as to where you got this information? Many mothers of lactose intolerant babies have successfully nursed by eliminating dairy from their diets. Breastmilk contains galactose (human lactose) which is totally different than the lactose found in cow's milk. Allergy to galactose is called galactosemia and is very rare. Both my babies were cow's milk protein intolerant which is actually worse than lactose intolerant because it's found in more things and I have successfully nursed both of them by eliminating certain foods from my diet.

No worries! There are some links included down the bottom !

If you google breastmilk and lactose. Every website that comes up says the same thing. Lactose is in breastmilk because we are mammals - all mammals have lactose in their milk regardless of if they eat it themselves or not.

It really depends on how bad your intolerance is - some babies are very well able to breastfeed. But if they are really bad and showing signs of malabsorption then they would absolutely recommend switching to lactose free formula.

In your case you can eliminate dairy and breastfeed because they are intolerant to something only found in cows milk. So an elimination diet in that case is absolutely valid.

Lactose is actually made up of galactose and glucose. So it is effectively the same thing anyway.

Don't forget about "Primary lactose intolerance" its very rare - but basically if your baby had it in the old days they would die. They cannot tolerate any amount of lactose at all and they have to be formula fed from birth to survive.

Here are a few very reputable sites where you can get some more info

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link disease=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=au&client=safari

Open Original Shared Link

[SGWhiskers]

I'll add a couple of things. Children who are born vaginally vs. C-section are less likely to develop Celiac per a research study I read and lost. I'm planning on using lots of strategies for reducing my risks for a c-section with my current pregnancy. A midwife is a good option if you are not high risk. Also, the recommended age per another research study I read and didn't bookmark said 4-6 months of age was the ideal age to introduce gluten although currently, most physicians will say solids shouldn't be introduced until after 6 months of age.

Take your prenatals and folic acid. Keep up on your Vitamin D. There is nothing special about pregnancy or breast feeding if we are gluten free. Keep your risk of cross contamination low while pregnant. I'm avoiding restaraunts until baby is born. Current concensus is that if you get an accidental glutening, it won't cause a miscarrage. Just be careful.

I'm doing the same as Tarnalberry and planning to have my hubby introduce gluten this summer to baby and then give her a bath. I get sick from kissing my gluteny nieces and I would hate to think of my own baby as having gluten cooties. Our house will probably stay gluten free.

To test her for gluten, I might do the genetic testing to see if it is a possibility. I will also watch her behavior when I geve gluten and eventually do a serious gluten challenge. If I do a serious gluten challenge, I will probably wait until she is old enough to communicate clearly if and where she is feeling poorly. I doubt I do blood tests unless she needs blood taken for something else.

Good luck with the bambino.

[tarnalberry]

Also, the recommended age per another research study I read and didn't bookmark said 4-6 months of age was the ideal age to introduce gluten although currently, most physicians will say solids shouldn't be introduced until after 6 months of age.

This little bit of conflicting advice annoys the crap out of me. So - like the recommendations for things that come and go - I'm going with my "gut", and we'll get around to introducing wheat when we get around to it. I did a challenge with gluten-free oats last weekend, and gave some to her too, and we both seemed perfectly fine with them. I won't go eating a boatload every day, but having that as another breakfast option will be nice. (We also ignored the "wait on meat until a year" advice that some people get, and the "veggies first as fruit is too sweet and they won't want anything else". Whoever offered that gem of advice about fruit has clearly never tasted breastmilk. It's similar in taste to sweetened almond milk, and that stuff is sweet!)

[Roda]

This little bit of conflicting advice annoys the crap out of me. So - like the recommendations for things that come and go - I'm going with my "gut", and we'll get around to introducing wheat when we get around to it. I did a challenge with gluten-free oats last weekend, and gave some to her too, and we both seemed perfectly fine with them. I won't go eating a boatload every day, but having that as another breakfast option will be nice. (We also ignored the "wait on meat until a year" advice that some people get, and the "veggies first as fruit is too sweet and they won't want anything else". Whoever offered that gem of advice about fruit has clearly never tasted breastmilk. It's similar in taste to sweetened almond milk, and that stuff is sweet!)

I agree. The first thing my youngest son tried was a very ripe mashed bananna. It is similar in taste too. I didn't introduce my youngest son to solids until he was 6 months old, but that was my personal preference because he had reactions to foods through the breastmilk (yes I did eliminate them) and he was doing so well with just breastmilk. However I introduced my oldest son earlier to solids. I just took clues from him.