Mother Of Toddler Questioning Gluten-free Casein-free

[Mperkins1224]

Hi, I have been gluten-free myself since 2006, gone off the wagon a few times but for the past two years I've been consistently gluten-free due to pregnancy, breast feeding and all that jazz. My daughter will be two in march and I've done my best to keep her gluten-free... My hub will sneak stuff every now and then, which frustrates me... However she does have loose stools at times following his snacks.... I'm beginning to think she has issues with casein.

I am very lucky in the sense that most of my symptoms are just a stomach ache and loose stools.... I have never been diagnosed with celiac but it was just assumed I have a gluten sensitivity... She with my LITTLE ONE, of course she's been mostly gluten-free since she was born. I am getting to the point where I feel like I know more than the doctors regarding all this because I knows body.

I'm afraid to take her off dairy because of the vit d and calcium milk cheese and yogurt provide her. Does any one have suggestions or similar scenarios? I feel 100% better when I don't have any casein... It sucks but wow what a difference!!! I've been siring silk products soy and coconut instead of dairy.

Please, any feedback is appreciated.. Starting to feel lost. Thank you, and happy new year to all!

[nvsmom]

If vitamin D deficiency is a concern, a sublingual vit D tablet is all you really need. Dairy does not naturally have vitamin D in it naturally (as far as I know) so when you consume it, you are essentially taking a supplement in your food. Calcium from dairy is not easily absorbed. Calcium form plant products is a much better source of usable calcium for people, that's how most people in Asia and Africa get their calcium... we North Americans are a minority for this.... Plus if you think about it, eating another species' "breast milk" is sort of a weird thing anyways. LOL

Coconut milks, and other nut milks (cashew or almond) are really good substitutes for dairy. There is even coconut "yogurt" which isn't bad at all. I am not a huge fan of soy because of the phytoestrogens and how genetically modified it is, but that just my choice.

I am dairy free and find it helps me. I have less stomach issues and my skin is clearing up. My son, who has mild Aspergers, is also casein and gluten-free, and he says he feels better eating this way, and I notice that he is much more focused and in control as a result. After a few weeks, we've found it easy to give up dairy... although I miss good cheese.

I would saw to drop the dairy if you suspect a problem. It's not a food that we actually need, and it is just one food with a tonne of substitutes available for it. If you do give it a try, stick with it for a few months; we took over a month to notice any changes.

And about that husband, if he's sneaking her food that can hurt her, I would threaten him with an entirely gluten free household so it's not possible to cheat. Give him the guilt trip of: "What kind of father would try to damage his child with food that is possibly hurting her?"

Good luck with it all.

[Ollie's Mom]

My 2 yo son has been gluten-free for over a year. We also just eliminated dairy a month ago and that seemed to help resolve his lingering loose stool issues.

I give him a gluten-free / casein free multivitamin, and sneak as many veggies inti him as I can via soups for the most part (although he loooves broccoli, so we give him that fairly often).

I'm not too concerned about a lack of vitamin d (because of the vitamins plus he spends about 2 hours per day outside). I'm also not concerned about the calcium either for the exact reasons pointed out by the pp (calcium in dairy is poorly absorbed).

You might get a lot of flack from friends and family about it (I always hear, "what about calcium?? What about his bones??"). I'd say if your concerned, have your doc run periodic blood tests on your child to see if all vitamin and mineral levels are within normal ranges.

Good luck!

[Mperkins1224]

I personally had low calcium until I went on a gluten-free diet, I was 16 they told me o take 2000 mg calcium a day. I had a bone density test to confirm, years later at 21 I was dx'd. Now 27 living gluten-free and recently dairy free. I think I'll do my research and brush up on nutrition and then scratch the dairy and gluten 100% and see how long I stay married for.... Lmao. Or at least to Gluten-free Casein-free for my toddler and myself. I love the coconut yogurt but my store doesn't alway carry it :-/

Thanks soooo much! Love this site

[tarnalberry]

Hi, I have been gluten-free myself since 2006, gone off the wagon a few times but for the past two years I've been consistently gluten-free due to pregnancy, breast feeding and all that jazz. My daughter will be two in march and I've done my best to keep her gluten-free... My hub will sneak stuff every now and then, which frustrates me... However she does have loose stools at times following his snacks.... I'm beginning to think she has issues with casein.

I am very lucky in the sense that most of my symptoms are just a stomach ache and loose stools.... I have never been diagnosed with celiac but it was just assumed I have a gluten sensitivity... She with my LITTLE ONE, of course she's been mostly gluten-free since she was born. I am getting to the point where I feel like I know more than the doctors regarding all this because I knows body.

I'm afraid to take her off dairy because of the vit d and calcium milk cheese and yogurt provide her. Does any one have suggestions or similar scenarios? I feel 100% better when I don't have any casein... It sucks but wow what a difference!!! I've been siring silk products soy and coconut instead of dairy.

Please, any feedback is appreciated.. Starting to feel lost. Thank you, and happy new year to all!

While she doesn't appear to *need* to be, my daughter doesn't really consume much cow dairy at all. She just doesn't really like it. She'll have almond or coconut milk (like I do, because I avoid casein) and yogurt on occasion, but otherwise, not much dairy at all. So, she gets other sources of calcium and vitamin D. (Honestly, the vitamin D in milk is added - so, you're taking a vitamin put into milk. Whoopie! Take the vitamin directly instead, or go outside during the year when there's enough sun to produce it.) I do give her a calcium/vitamin supplement, but mostly, I make sure she gets other sources of these things - beans, greens, sesame seeds, even fortified orange juice. Calcium needs are not super high - not if you have an appropriate balance of other vitamins/minerals and macronutrients.