Could These Be Symptoms of Celiacs Diasease in My 18 Mo/old and Husband?

If you start putting her on a gluten free diet it will screw up any types of testing that they would do. My best suggestion (my son has very complex and complicated special needs with one problem being Down syndrome and it is common for kids with DS to have celiac disease) but I would recommend that you go to a gastroentrologist to have an endoscopy done it is the most effective way to test for celiac disease (my son's lab work done at one lab would say its positive, another lab would say negative so the gastro dr took a little biopsy under sedation and that came back negative, but it did come back that he is lactose intolerant).

Good Luck.

I don't have celiac disease, but I do have an allergy to wheat, barley, oats, and rye. So I have to eat gluten free just as if I did have Celiac disease. I think the only way Celiac disease can be definitively be diagnosed is through an intestinal biopsy, so your son may be a bit young for that. He is not too young for allergy testing though, so I would start there. I know some allergists may give a hard time about testing children under at least age 2, but your son sounds like he is having some pretty severe syptoms which are affecting his life. I would not suggest you just put him on a gluten-free diet without talking to his ped and a nutritionist. There is a definite learning curve with this kind of diet and also if he goes gluten free and then gets the test, you may get a false negative. Of course, if you did do the diet and he had a complete turn-around then you wouldn't really need a test to give you a diagnosis. My point is to talk to his doc, go see some specialists like an allergist, nutritionist, and gastroenterologist and try and rule stuff out before you just make a change. Hubby on the other hand should go straight to the gastro for testing and if negative try an allergist---there is really no reason for him not to. I myself did the gastro and had a colonoscopy and I did not have Celiac, but I was still sick. Then I found out about my allergies and have had a complete change since going gluten free. It has been a hard adjustment though, and that is why I would not just make a big change like that without further investigation with your son. All the best!

I have celiacs disease, and it is HELL on your body if you dont go on a strict gluten free diet lifestyle. Take your daughter to her regular pediatrician and ask them for a celiac test. All it is is a blood test. They draw some blood, and if your daughter has celiacs, they will be able to detect the antibodies in her blood. OR, you can purchase a gluten free intolerance test online. You can order one at https://www.enterolab.com/. When I was 19, I didnt have health insurance and couldnt afford to see a doctor and get blood drawn, so through a recommendation from a friend, I ordered a test online from enterolab and found out that I indeed had a strong gluten intolerance. I went on a strict gluten free diet and my health turned around 100% for the better. It is a legitmate testing site and they test through stool samples, rather than the blood. However, if u want to get tested at your local pediatrician, then get the blood test. Its rather simple. Another thing you may want to look in to is irritable bowel syndrome. You can check www.helpforibs.com for more info on that. However, if you have any inklings towards celiac disease, GET TESTED for it. I was misdiagnosed with Irritable bowel syndrome for years before I was finally tested for celiacs disease/ gluten sensitivity. Oh and dont worry, if it is celiacs, your daughter/ husband will be just fine. Living gluten free isnt as hard as it seems. Things like wheat, rye and barley can easily be replaced with rice, corn and other grains. PS> Celiacs can be a genetic disease, but just because one parent hasnt doesnt mean their child is going to get it.

When I read about the distended belly and eating all the time but not gaining weight it took me right back to when my friend's daughter was 18 months old. She looked like the images from Ethiopia during the 90's. Mom spent almost a year fighting for a diagnosis. It wasn't until her child was hospitalized for several weeks at one place and then transferred to Loma Linda (where she spent over a month) that Celiac was discovered. Yeah, her diet is not the same as everyone else's, and my friend has to pack lunches even when lunch is provided, but it it's something they've adapted to quite well. Her daughter is now in middle school and doing great! My friend recently decided she'd try to adapt to her daughter's diet because it seems she may have some intolerances herself.

One thing that is definitely to your benefit is that food companies really have jumped on the "gluten free" bandwagon over the past several years. At first, my friend had to shop at Trader Joe's or health food stores; you should be able to find most of what you need at Stater's or Winco these days.

And I know that this next part isn't the most important, but I'm throwing it out there: Birthday cakes can be made from rice flour, and those meringue cookies make a nice treat. For some reason, those two things stuck out as cause for relief that Kendall wasn't going to be deprived of all the good things in life.

Best wishes in finding the right answer for your daughter and husband. If it is Celiac, once the dietary changes are made, life will be full and wonderful, I promise.

Hugs,

S. :+)

I don't know if it's genetic or not. My sister thought her hubby and 2 sons had it a few years ago because they had the very same symptoms. They were actually living in a house that had 'black mold'. They went on the diet they recommend for people with celiac. After much testing to find out what exactly they were allergic to they finally discovered the mold. Their doc (from Mayo so he's not a quack) kept the whole family on the diet because that's what was helping their bodies flush out whatever the junk was that was making them sick. I thought it was a bunch of bull because it seems stupid that if you totally eliminate gluten you're body will 'detoxify'. I researched it and found out that it's not bull!! Who knew. Many kids with bowel issues respond well to the gluten free diet even though they don't actually have celiacs. Your hubby needs to see a doc. Find a good internist who can help him work on his diet and other environmental factors. My mother has the exact same problems and has had every test you can imagine. They've stuck tubes in every place they could and done many full body scans. The docs say there is 'nothing' wrong with her. I don't trust my docs to find out what's wrong. I do my research and make sure my doc isn't missing anything. My mother's problem is a combination of poor diet (she doesn't eat anything bc she's always having a BM), stress, and autoimmune disease. Autoimmune is less likely for your husband because the percentage of women with the diseases is much higher than men. I wouldn't let that stop me from checking it out.

Could be many things including what I have - Crohn's Disease. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/crohns-disease/DS00104

I was diagnosed at 8 years old and am now 35. It runs in my family.

The only way to really tell is to take her to a top notch pediatric gastro dr in your area.