Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Was My Kid "glutened" Or Is It A Stomach Bug?

Benshell

Recommended Posts

Benshell Explorer
Benshell
Posted

I'm hoping some experienced parents can help me figure this out.

My 8 year old daughter was sent home sick from school yesterday. The school nurse said that several kids were sent home sick with a "quick stomach bug" that is going around. This was at 3pm (she got sick at about 2:30). She was throwing up about every 1/2 hour, fell asleep for an hour and a half, threw up a few more times and was done with it by 6pm. No fever, no diahrea....just severe stomach pain and vomiting over the course of about 3 hours.

Here's my concern: My daughter bought lunch at school that day at about 12:15. The cafeteria has 1 person prepare a special gluten free meal for her that is stored seperate from the other kids. They do not use the same equipment because of contamination issues. SHe has bought lunch about 6 times in the past few months and never had a bad response - everything has been perfect. She said that she had a new type of chicken strip (usually Bell & Evans).

Her previous reaction to being "glutened" about a year ago at a party eating chips from the same bowl as everyone else (the chips were gluten-free, but everyone was having bread) was vomiting for a few hours after ingestion and then being fine. This most recent experience seems to mimic it exactly, but the fact that a bug is going around makes me question it.

What are your thoughts? I'm going to notify head of food services just in case so they can check the ingredients of this new chicken, but I don't want to be accusitory as it could just be a bug.

I wish there was a quick test...like diabetics have for their finger that could tell parents whether its gluten or not.

Thanks for your help.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


cdog7 Contributor
cdog7
Posted

That's a tough one. When I get glutened I have a different kind of reaction, one that I've learned over time to recognize. To me it sounds like your daughter reacted the way she does to gluten, but it also sounds like her typical reaction also closely mimics a stomach virus

Ollie's Mom Apprentice
Ollie's Mom
Posted

I'd say it's probably a 50/50 chance.

I'd call the school and confirm the ingredients in the new chicken but start off with your thought that it was possibly the virus that was going around, but you just wanted to double check since it coincided with the new food at lunch.

Good luck and I hope it was just a stomach bug.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,516
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Lizie
    Newest Member
    Lizie
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      What should I expect from a UK restaurant advertising / offering "Gluten Free" food

      By trents · Posted

      @cristiana, I'm thinking the intensity of our response to the same amount of gluten can vary from time to time. Our bodies are a dynamic entity. 
    • Scott Adams
      Jersey Mike’s option: Gluten-free bread

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      I'm going to try Jersey Mike's soon--we have one nearby. Thanks for sharing!
    • cristiana
      What should I expect from a UK restaurant advertising / offering "Gluten Free" food

      By cristiana · Posted

      Hi @trents Two things can happen:  1/ For a very small gluten hit, I will get a slightly sore stomach for a few days, maybe a day or two following the glutening, and (TMI warning) maybe slightly loose BMs with mucus  for a couple of days.  2/ For a substantial glutening, and thankfully it's only happened once in recent years,  I get bad chills, followed by vomiting, and my heartbeat is all over the place and I can hardly stand.  It's pretty extreme.  That happens within about 2 hours of eating the gluten.  I might feel slightly dizzy for a couple of days after the glutening episode. Interestingly I've just been out to a cafe which hitherto has made a big thing about how their french fries are cooked in a separate fryer.  I shared some with a friend and they were served with chilli sauce, jalapenos, cheddar cheese and fried onions.  Definitely not health food!  Anyway,  I'd eaten half when I realised I'd not checked the menu to ensure that this dish is still gluten-free - and it turns out it isn't!!!  They've changed the ingredients and the fried onions are now cooked with wheat.   I came home expecting to feel dreadful as I had no idea how much gluten I have consumed but so far if anything I feel just little queasy.  I think I'd have thrown up by now had there been a lot of gluten in the onions.  
    • trents
      Persistent isolated high DGP-IGG in child despite gluten-free diet

      By trents · Posted

      It might be wise to start him on small amounts and work up to 10g. Monitor how he reacts. Some people simply cannot complete the gluten challenge because it makes them too ill. By the way, you can buy powdered gluten in health food stores, at least here in the states you can. With a food scale, it would be easy to measure the amount being consumed in a day. I'm not sure what the intensity of reaction to gluten tells you about what's actually going on with regard to celiac disease. I mean there are some celiacs like me who don't seem to react to minor exposure amounts but who get violently ill with larger exposures. Then there are celiacs who get some kind of reaction to even the tiniest amount of exposure but don't necessarily get violently ill. And how the reaction manifests itself is very different for different people. Some, like me, experience emesis and diarrhea. Others just get brain fog. Others get joint pain. It's all over the map.
    • melthebell
      Persistent isolated high DGP-IGG in child despite gluten-free diet

      By melthebell · Posted

      That's interesting - that's a lot of gluten! I'll be very curious to see how my son responds to the gluten. In some ways, I guess having a strong reaction would tell us something? It's tough navigating this as a parent and having it be not so clear cut ;\
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.