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How Do You Tell If It's A Virus Or Gluten?

dcns65

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dcns65 Apprentice
dcns65
Posted

My son has been gluten free for about a year. He was pretty sick when first diagnosed so we have been pretty vigilant with cross contamination and watching what he eats. Yesterday was his birthday. I ordered a gluten free cake from a local bakery that sells to farmer's markets, and the health food stores in the area. There Facebook page says they use Ployes Buckwheat flour in their baked goods. This is the first time we have really had anything with buckwheat.

My son ate more cake than I've seen him eat in a very long time. Not a full piece but about 1/4. He woke up at 2:00 am saying was hungry (which is odd) and ate a plum and cheese. He proceeded to burp for 1 1/2 hours before throwing up. He threw up one other time around 5:00 am then had diarrea that was very black -tarish-(he does take an iron supplement) around 7:00. He's not feeling well still but has been able to drink water and eat a few pieces of chex cereal. He's been burping some and looks wiped out which makes me think it's the flu.

My husband and daughter are also gluten free but they never react when they eat it so I can't use them as a judge as to whether it was the cake or not.

Thoughts? I'm still learning and doctors keep telling me I'm way ahead of the curve but I don't feel like it!

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justlisa Apprentice
justlisa
Posted

Can you find out, from the bakery, the ingredients of the cake? It may not have been gluten...he could be having trouble with another ingredient. (?)

Have you seen him glutened since going gluten-free? Symptoms?

Fever? Cold, aches and pains? It's early, yet, but it does sound digestive.

1desperateladysaved Proficient
1desperateladysaved
Posted

If it were me (very sensitive) I would think that it was cross contamination for sure. It would be too difficult in a floury bakery to keep the cake seperate enough for me. I hope he isn't that sensitive, but if he is you need to bake your own or find a bakery without gluten flour at all.

If it is a virus/sickness either someone else has had it or will get it, I think.

justlisa Apprentice
justlisa
Posted

Isn't the bakery gluten-free?

dcns65 Apprentice
dcns65
Posted
  • Author

The bakery is in a home and is gluten, dairy, nut free and I also believe it's vegan. I'm going to email them and ask what the ingredients are. There were two other times that we thought he might have been glutened were when he got a hershey candy bar at the store before we googled it (it was some air puffed hershey bar) The other was while on a school's overnight field trip. He threw up on the bus on the way home after white water rafting in the morning but I was thinking he might have been glutened then.

Before his diagnosis the burping was really bad after he ate. He seems to be feeling a little better and ate some gluten-free toast, is drinking water and ginger ale. We'll see if anyone else gets sick! We have dodged the stomach virus bullet for many years so I sure hope this isn't the start of a rough year!

1974girl Enthusiast
1974girl
Posted

My daughter who is not celiac will throw up everytime she over eats sweets. Also, sugar has a laxative effect. My friend in pharmacy school once told me to give my kids cotton candy instead of a laxative. It worked! So maybe he just had too much gluten free cake. Of course, he may have gotten glutened but is sounded a lot like my daughter who we ha e to limit sugar or it will come up or out. Lol

Mom-of-Two Contributor
Mom-of-Two
Posted

Let me just add that I think some people have issues digesting certain gluten free flours- I found this true with things like pizza crust, and a gluten free tortilla that I tried a few months back. Just a thought!

If others have been sick, there is a fever or overall icky feeling in addition to GI symptom, I would guess virus- and stomach bugs are really going around.

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Birdie19 Rookie
Birdie19
Posted

The pharmacy friend of the previous poster is correct. Sugar draws fluid into the bowels and breaks up constipation. Excess sugar can certainly cause diaherria and vomting. I wouldn't think it was a 'glutening' but more of a sugar issue. However to be safe I would contact the bakery to find out the ingredients. Best to cover all the bases.

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