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My Kids' 6-Month Blood Recheck

chi1968

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chi1968 Rookie
chi1968
Posted

So, after getting a call on Friday from my kids' GI doctor saying their preliminary test results looked normal, TODAY (3 work days later), I get a call saying that their celiac panels show elevated levels. The NP said something like "well, it wasn't the celiac panel they called about last time, it was everything else (I'm assuming iron, thyroid, or whatever else they tested?).

Then, she goes on to say that they (the kids) must be cheating on the diet. This is greatly upsetting to me because 1) I was diagnosed with Celiac around the same time (we all got tested when we found out one of my kids had it), and 2) I buy the food AND feed the kids, and I KNOW that NO ONE ate gluten. We changed out all of our kitchen utensils, pots and pans, EVERYTHING. We are ALL eating gluten free, and my kids, especially the oldest, is very anal about checking to make sure whatever he eats is gluten free. To hear they think our kids are sneaking food or whatever just makes me upset.

So -- it's really about 5 month's later for one of my kids (by the time we got the initial diagnosis, etc). 6 months for the other.

Is it that it hasn't been enough time, yet? I thought going strictly gluten free would have made a difference by now. I mean, barely no eating out, and only ordering off of the gluten-free menu. Maybe eating out 2 times a month! ONLY buying food that is gluten free, vitamins, toothpaste, etc. I should know -- our grocery bills have gone up significantly making sure we are only buying gluten-free cereals, pasta, pretzels, oatmeal. We eat a lot of salads and chicken, vegetables, fruit, some dairy. Even our condiments -- gluten free!

I argued (well, strongly suggested) to the NP that, no, my kids are NOT cheating on the diet, and that we were all eating gluten free. She said she'd talk to the doctor and get back to us. We actually have a follow up appt. in a couple of weeks.

What do you think?

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dcns65 Apprentice
dcns65
Posted

After 6 months both my children still have elevated numbers but they have come down. The GI doctor was not concerned as the numbers are coming down. My son's numbers were extremely elevated (above 300) and after 6 months were in the low 100's. I was told it could take a year to a year and a half for his numbers to normalize. My daughter's numbers were in mid 70's and are now down in the 40's. My son is very careful about eating Gluten free. My daughter tries her best but at some chicken nuggets and a graham cracker the week before her test.

So depending on how elevated their Celiac Panel numbers were it can take awhile to normalize. Keep up the good work!

MitziG Enthusiast
MitziG
Posted

10 mos after dx my sons levels were still slightly elevated. Just had a 15 mo re-check and hoping they are at 0 now. Mine and my dd were at zero within a few mos. None of us are cheating. Everybody is different, and as long as the numbers steadily go down, I wouldn't worry too much yet.

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    • lizzie42
      Son's legs shaking

      By lizzie42 · Posted

      Neither of them were anemic 6 months after the Celiac diagnosis. His other vitamin levels (d, B12) were never low. My daughters levels were normal after the first 6 months. Is the thiamine test just called thiamine? 
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      Yes, I do think they need a Thiamine supplement at least. Especially since they eat red meat only occasionally. Most fruits and vegetables are not good sources of Thiamine.  Legumes (beans) do contain thiamine.  Fruits and veggies do have some of the other B vitamins, but thiamine B 1 and  Cobalamine B12 are mostly found in meats.  Meat, especially organ meats like liver, are the best sources of Thiamine, B12, and the six other B vitamins and important minerals like iron.   Thiamine has antibacterial and antiviral properties.  Thiamine is important to our immune systems.  We need more thiamine when we're physically ill or injured, when we're under stress emotionally, and when we exercise, especially outside in hot weather.  We need thiamine and other B vitamins like Niacin B 3 to keep our gastrointestinal tract healthy.  We can't store thiamine for very long.  We can get low in thiamine within three days.  Symptoms can appear suddenly when a high carbohydrate diet is consumed.  (Rice and beans are high in carbohydrates.)  A twenty percent increase in dietary thiamine causes an eighty percent increase in brain function, so symptoms can wax and wane depending on what one eats.  The earliest symptoms like fatigue and anxiety are easily contributed to other things or life events and dismissed.   Correcting nutritional deficiencies needs to be done quickly, especially in children, so their growth isn't stunted.  Nutritional deficiencies can affect intelligence.  Vitamin D deficiency can cause short stature and poor bone formation.   Is your son taking anything for the anemia?  Is the anemia caused by B12 or iron deficiency?  
    • lizzie42
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      Thank you! That's helpful. My kids eat very little processed food. Tons of fruit, vegetables, cheese, eggs and occasional red meat. We do a lot of rice and bean bowls, stir fry, etc.  Do you think with all the fruits and vegetables they need a vitamin supplement? I feel like their diet is pretty healthy and balanced with very limited processed food. The only processed food they eat regularly is a bowl of Cheerios here and there.  Could shaking legs be a symptom of just a one-time gluten exposure? I guess there's no way to know for sure if they're getting absolutely zero exposure because they do go to school a couple times a week. We do homeschool but my son does a shared school 2x a week and my daughter does a morning Pre-K 3 x a week.  At home our entire house is strictly gluten free and it is extremely rare for us to eat out. If we eat at someone else's house I usually just bring their food. When we have play dates we bring all the snacks, etc. I try to be really careful since they're still growing. They also, of course, catch kids viruses all the time so I  want to make sure I know whether they're just sick or they've had gluten. It can be pretty confusing when they're pretty young to even be explaining their symptoms! 
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      @lizzie42, You're being a good mom, seeking answers for your son.  Cheers! Subclinical thiamine deficiency commonly occurs with anemia.  An outright Thiamine deficiency can be precipitated by the consumption of a high carbohydrate meal.   Symptoms of Thiamine deficiency include feeling shakey or wobbly in the legs, muscle weakness or cramps, as well as aggression and irritability, confusion, mood swings and behavior changes.  Thiamine is essential to the production of neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine which keep us calm and rational.   @Jsingh, histamine intolerance is also a symptom of Thiamine deficiency.  Thiamine is needed to prevent mast cells from releasing histamine at the slightest provocation as is seen in histamine intolerance.  Thiamine and the other B vitamins and Vitamin C are needed to clear histamine from the body.  Without sufficient thiamine and other B vitamins to clear it, the histamine builds up.  High histamine levels can change behavior, too.  High histamine levels are found in the brains of patients with schizophrenia.  Thiamine deficiency can also cause extreme hunger or conversely anorexia.   High carbohydrate meals can precipitate thiamine deficiency because additional thiamine is required to process carbohydrates for the body to use as fuel.  The more carbohydrates one eats daily, the more one needs additional thiamine above the RDA.  Thiamine is water soluble, safe and nontoxic even in high doses. Keep in mind that gluten-free processed foods like cookies and such are not required to be fortified and enriched with vitamins and minerals like their gluten containing counterparts are.  Limit processed gluten-free foods.  They are often full of empty calories and unhealthy saturated fats and additives, and are high in histamine or histamine release triggers.  It's time you bought your own vitamins to supplement what is not being absorbed due to malabsorption of Celiac disease.  Benfotiamine is a form of Thiamine that has been shown to improve intestinal health as well as brain function. Do talk to your doctors and dieticians about supplementing with the essential vitamins and minerals while your children are growing up gluten free.  Serve nutritionally dense foods.  Meats and liver are great sources of B vitamins and minerals. Hope this helps!  Keep us posted on your progress!
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