Underweight 6-Yr Old, Doctor Puzzled, I Suspect Celiac or Related Disease

Updated on September 30, 2007
K.S. asks from Aurora, IL
4 answers

My 6-year-old daughter, Alison, has been underweight nearly her whole life. She currently weighs 31 pounds, having gained only 3 pounds in the last year and a half. My pediatrician is mildly concerned. He says she continues to grow (her height is normal), she has no developmental delays, and eats a healthy diet. Also, a general panel blood test came back with no problems other than low vitamin D. Because she has also suffered from mild digestive issues since she was 7 months old (constipated while still exclusively breastfed!?!) I suspected celiac and put her on a gluten-free diet. She started the diet June 1st of this year, and I have seen no significant weight gain. Does anyone have experience with something like this, or know of a Doctor in the Naperville/Oswego/Aurora area with experience in this area?

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K.K.

answers from Chicago on

i don't have any info for you but i'm curiuos to what you find out. my son(4, is very small weight and height. as a baby he was always in the 50- 80% but then after he turned 2 he slowed down now to the 2-5%. the dr. has said next time if no significant change she will want a blood test. my husband and i are normal height and weight. but as a children we were always very small. my mom was concerend for me but the dr. always said i was the way i was supposed to be. so that helps a little but sometimes i do wonder if something else is up. good luck to you!!

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M.L.

answers from San Diego on

Just a suggestion if she still experiences stomach issues. A completely safe way to help with stomach issues for children and adults is to take probiotics each morning about 30 minutes prior to breakfast. Probiotics are the natural bacteria that our bodies need (you see a lot of yogurts advertised as having live bacteria). For anyone with stomach issues, they are a completely safe, natural, non drug way to help cure these ailments. They come in both pill and powder form for children. Buy them in the refrigerated section at Whole Foods, Fruitful Yield or Wild Oats. They also boost your immunity. Both my husband and I suffered from stomach issues, went through tests and prescriptions, and what ended up helping both of us were a simple probiotic every morning.

When using doctors, if you currently go to an M.D., try using a D.O. - Doctor of Osteopathy. Without completely going into the differences, I believe you will find they try to get to the root of the problem rather than treating the symptoms. They use a whole person approach to treating patients and will spend much more time with you. I have switched for my family doctor to a D.O. yrs ago and highly recommend D.O.'s (mine is in Woodridge, which is probably too far for you.)

Try going to this web site for a description of a D.O. and to find one near you:
http://www.osteopathic.org/index.cfm?PageID=ost_omed

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E.H.

answers from Chicago on

We had a test for celiacs done at Christ in oak lawn, was a hike but the doc was good, we had other issues it turns out, but a simple blood test was able to rule it out. We also dealt with constipation and we nursed for fifteen months, so you are not alone on that one! Then we dealt with diareah. We have eliminated most sugar from our diet and owels are now alot better!

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J.K.

answers from Chicago on

My mother has celiac disease and I've read a lot about it since I'm on high alert for myself and my children (apparently you can have the pre-disposition toward it without symptoms for many years.) I'd be surprised if what you described is celiac disease since your daughter continues to grow. Good luck!

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