Hoping My 11 Yr Old Son Might Finally Grow ...

[carecare]

My son just tested positive on the celiac blood test. Since my husband (possible celiac) is gluten free we decided not to wait and are having our son go gluten free from now on. We can't see putting him through what could be months before a biopsy can be scheduled. I am not going to continue to feed him gluten if that is the cause of his muscle pains, visual disturbance and mouth sores. Day 3 of gluten free and his mouth sores are almost completely gone!!!

I have realized my son has been in size 10 slim jeans going on 3 yrs now. That can't be normal can it? It just dawned on me today that maybe it's because of not getting enough nutrition...because of his celiacs. He never suffered from diarrhea but if he is indeed celiac then his body wasn't absorbing the nutrients like it should. Or...is it common at this age to remain the same size for a few years? I just looked at size 12 jeans today and am shocked...because they look so big...there is no way he'll be in them anytime soon...and he'll have to continue to wear the size 10s.

I am really hoping now that he is gluten free his body will start to grow more rapidly now. Gosh, to think if we went on without knowing...I guess I can see why short stature is actually common in celiacs. Has anyone noticed once gluten free their kids finally start to grow?

[domesticactivist]

My son had just turned 10 when we figured it out and is now about to turn 11. Since changing our diet he has had a major growth spurt. It's hard to say if it was just the diet that made the difference or if he was just due for a growth spurt, but it has happened!

My daughter is another story, though. She tested negative (and does not have the genetics) but we changed her diet anyway. She eats way better than ever before but is tiny and hasn't grown. She's 12 and much, much smaller than any other 12 year olds we've ever met. The pediatric endocrinologist says she has a 9 year old's bone age (which means she may just be a late bloomer) She is also small for a 9 year old, but at least not off the charts if you look at it that way. I really expected that going from her vegetarian, grain and sugar heavy, barely picked at diet to grain-free, nutrient dense foods that she has a much better apetite for would make a difference but we haven't seen it yet.

[Fiddle-Faddle]

My son just tested positive on the celiac blood test. Since my husband (possible celiac) is gluten free we decided not to wait and are having our son go gluten free from now on. We can't see putting him through what could be months before a biopsy can be scheduled. I am not going to continue to feed him gluten if that is the cause of his muscle pains, visual disturbance and mouth sores. Day 3 of gluten free and his mouth sores are almost completely gone!!!

I have realized my son has been in size 10 slim jeans going on 3 yrs now. That can't be normal can it? It just dawned on me today that maybe it's because of not getting enough nutrition...because of his celiacs. He never suffered from diarrhea but if he is indeed celiac then his body wasn't absorbing the nutrients like it should. Or...is it common at this age to remain the same size for a few years? I just looked at size 12 jeans today and am shocked...because they look so big...there is no way he'll be in them anytime soon...and he'll have to continue to wear the size 10s.

I am really hoping now that he is gluten free his body will start to grow more rapidly now. Gosh, to think if we went on without knowing...I guess I can see why short stature is actually common in celiacs. Has anyone noticed once gluten free their kids finally start to grow?

First of all, I applaud you for starting your son on the gluten-free diet already. Many parents would wait for official approval from the doctor (usually requiring a biopsy) before doing so, which is something I strongly disagree with. You already know from the blood work that gluten is causing problems. The fact that your son's mouth sores have already disappeared is likely corroboration of dietary response.

Continuing to feed him gluten so that a biopsy will show what you already know--that he shouldn't eat gluten--is rather like abuse, because it will cause unnecessary damage.

Besides, if there are any continuing issues that do not resolve on a gluten-free diet--particularly intestinal issues--you can always have a biopsy done at that point, to see what might be going on.

No, being in the same size jeans for 3 years is not normal for a tween or early teenager, unless you were rolling them up big-time for the last few years! It seems to me that your pediatrician should have caught a slowing down of growth on his growth charts--not necessarily for weight, if his current weight is within normal, but certainly for height.

If your son has fallen off his growth curve, why hasn't the pediatrician noticed this? Or did he notice it, and was that why your son's blood was tested for celiac? 3 years is an awfully long time for a child to not grow.

Also, some medications can interfere with growth, particularly ADD/ADHD meds and various psych meds. Is your son on any of those? If so, they should not be stopped suddenly,but weaned from, gradually. Most psychiatrists are unaware that celiac disease/gluten intolerance can disrupt brain function, resulting in diagnoses of ADD, ADHD, oppositional defiance disorder, bipolar disorder, depression, etc, and that removing gluten from the diet can end the symptoms entirely.

Many celiacs need to eliminate all dairy products as well, until their intestines have healed. Some do have a lifelong sensitivity or allergy to dairy as well as celiac, but many are able to add it back in to their diets after the gluten damage has healed. That is something you may already know, but if not, you may want to consider removing dairy if his symptoms don't all resolve within a few weeks.

Best of luck to you, your son, and your husband, and may continued health and growth bless your son!

[maximoo]

My DD is 13 & was 4'7 earlier this year. Since going gluten-free she has grown 2 inches & gained 4/5 lbs! She is now 4'9 & busting out of her size 7/8 clothes (which she also wore for over 2 yrs) & is wearing a 10 now soon to be 12. As broke as I am, I am more than happy to get her new bigger clothes Her bone age scan in Dec was age 10. She was overdue for a physical & her Dr immediately noticed the stunted growth. She had always been in the 10th-25th %tile all her life but had fallen off the charts. The culprit is mal-nutrition due to the celiac. Have your boy go gluten-free & take gluten-free multivitamins daily. DD also has a vit D deficiency . She gets extra Vit D in drops. Have you had his vit D levels chked? Your son too will grow like a weed right before your eyes. For added calories I also give DD a daily milkshake as much as she can handle so you might want to try that too.

I refused the endoscopy for my DD. Contrary to what they say I feel an endoscopy is not "THE GOLD STANDARD" they claim it to me. You have to feed your child gluten for the possibility it will show up positive & even then there are no guarentees. The samples are only taken from a 6 in area & damage may or may not be present in that small of a section. I chose to skip the endoscopy & just go gluten-free It was best for us. You will do what's best for your DS Just research it. Good luck!

[Roda]

My 10 1/2 year old is going for his biopsy on Wed. We opted this route for him because he has repeatedly tested negative on blood work and my husband wanted to exhaust all the testing before we put him gluten free. He just finally outgrew his shoes. He wore a size 2-2 1/2 shoe for over 1 1/2 years. He hasn't fallen off the growth chart but is slowly going down. He is 4' 3" and weighs 59#. Almost all of the boys in his class are starting to grow and he is next to the smallest boy in 5th grade. He also is still in size 8 slim pants and shorts. I did buy him some 10 slims but they look about the same as the 8's. His younger brother is 6 1/2 and he is starting to wear some size 7 slim pants (mind you they are a little big) and it is really getting hard by quick glance to tell their clothes apart. My hope is, by putting my oldest son gluten free, (doing regardless of biopsy results) he will start to grow. My youngest son was tiny as well especially in weight. He went gluten free after positive blood work last Nov. without a biopsy. We took him for his 6 year check up in Feb. and the nurse practitioner was amazed that he gained weight. He went from the 10th percentile to the 40th. I'm going to be curious how much he has grown when he goes for his 7 year check up. By then he will have been gluten free for a little over a year.

[carecare]

Thanks Everyone. The thing is he has grown some....just not consistantly on the growth chart. I was looking he went from 51% for his height to 43% and for his weight went from 35% to 16% (according to the dr sheets I found from appointment in the past..the 16% was from January)...and he hasn't gained any weight since January....which I feel isn't good. I am really surprised that wasn't a red flag there. I swear...the manufactures though have made their sizes bigger in the last few days.

Anyway, so happy his canker sores are gone and every day he says his muscles feel better...day 5 gluten free.

Oh and the ped agreed to run a celiac panel on my girls. Took them in today. Will find out in a day or two.