Most of us know what it is like to live on a gluten free diet, but for children, it is quite a bit more difficult.   Being “different” from the other kids can be very difficult for most children to handle. 

Over at 2 The Advocate, I noticed a story about a woman who has 2 children with Celiac Disease.   She shares her story about how she has dealt with it, how she has helped the children fit in at school, and talks about her starting a support group in her area specifically for children with the disease.  

The story is only a few pages, so check it out if it sounds interesting.

Over the past few years, the medical community has finally come around to the fact that many people with Celiac Disease don’t have the common symptoms that doctors used to look for.

Recently The Savvy Celiac took a community survey of symptoms which lead to diagnosis of Celiac Disease, and today they shared the survey results.   The survey was actually broken down into two sections: children symptoms and adult symptoms.

Here are the results with the most common symptoms on top:

Children Symptoms with Celiac Disease

• Diarrhea
• Failure to Thrive
• Distended Belly
• Stomach Pain
• Vomiting
• Fatigue
• Constipation

Adult Symptoms with Celiac Disease

• Diarrhea
• Fatigue
• Stomach Pain
• Anemia
• Nausea
• Asymptomatic
• Weight Loss
• Constipation

They are definitely interesting results, though they were taken from a very small sample (68 people), so it should be used for informational purposes only.  Click here to read their post announcing the survey results.

Have a child in school who is dealing with Celiac Disease?    Christmas can be a very exciting time for most children, but for a child with Celiac Disease, that isn’t always the case.  It is inevitable that the school holds a Christmas Party and treats are provided, most of which the child cannot eat. 

So, how do you help your child successfully navigate the Christmas season while maintaining a gluten free diet?  My Gluten Free Child recently published some great ideas for helping your child through the holidays that you may want to check out.

Wondering if your child has Celiac Disease?   Recently US News & World Report published a quick health tip which included signs your child has Celiac Disease.

Not sure that there is much new here, but for what it is worth, here is the symptoms they recommend you look for:

• Among babies, symptoms may include pain in the abdomen or diarrhea that may be bloody.
• Babies may also stop growing and fail to gain weight.
• Among young children, symptoms may include nausea, loss of appetite, sores in the mouth, anemia and skin rash.
• Children who become malnourished from celiac disease may have thin thighs, a small bottom, and a large, swollen belly.
• Among teens, symptoms may include stunted growth, delayed puberty, and hair loss.
• Lactose intolerance.
• An itchy, blistering skin problem.

Sending a child with Celiac Disease to school can often be a very stressful thing because your control over what the child is exposed to ends when they enter their school.   If you are looking for tips, a large number of them were recently published over at Article Base, courtesy of My Gluten Free Child.

Here are the first few tips:

Strategy 1: Celiac disease is familiar to you now, but don’t assume that your child’s teacher knows anything about it.  Or what ‘gluten free’ really means.  Arrange a meeting with your child’s teacher before term starts to explain what celiac disease and a gluten free diet are all about.  Most teachers will welcome such a meeting and it is better to be done face to face rather than on the phone or by letter so that you can answer any questions and also so you can gage how much the teacher seems to understand.  Take something printed with you too for them to refer to.  On my blog I offer a free explanatory leaflet which explains celiac disease very simply and goes through the implications of a gluten free diet.  You may also want to speak to other people in the school such as the school nurse or secretary (or whoever offers first aid care should your child feel ill).   When my son (aged eight at the time) was diagnosed with celiac disease I met with his class teacher and headteacher to discuss any implications, such as cooking, gluten-containing playdough, birthday cakes that may be brought in and so on.  It was a really helpful meeting and they have been 100% supportive ever since.

Strategy 2: Send in a treat box of gluten free snacks and treats.  Now you have the teacher on side, they are likely to be very willing to keep a small supply of gluten free cakes and treats in their desk, just in case they are ever needed.  Vacuum packed cakes are useful for if someone brings in a birthday cake to share, and my son has had small sweets if someone brings in holiday candy.  Sometimes you can plan in advance but there are times when it is good to have a back up plan and my son has needed his treat box more than once in the past term!

Strategy 3: Educate the other kids  Obviously this is very age dependent, but we felt it was really important for our son’s friends to understand why he can’t eat the same food as them, why he has a treat box, and different lunches, and why he sometimes has time off school for hospital visits etc.  We also wanted them to understand that there are lots of things he can eat just the same too, so he still gets invited out to tea and to parties.

The teacher may have ideas of how to do this.  We made up a short talk one ‘Show and Tell’ day, about what celiac disease is, what he can and can’t eat in a gluten free diet and how he feels about all this.  He also took in some gluten free cupcakes for the class to try and it was a great success: they loved the cakes and are all very supportive now they understand more of what it is about.

Click here to read the rest of the strategies provided by the My Gluten Free Child!

Keeping a child gluten free at school can often be very difficult when you have to monitor more than just the food your child consumes.   Finding gluten free art supplies is one thing to keep in mind, but what about gluten free playdough?

Playdough can often enter a childs mouth, so having gluten free playdough is a good idea for any young child with Celiac Disease.  If you’d like to make gluten free playdough at home, here is a recipe you can use:

Gluten Free Playdough Recipe

Playdough Ingredients:

• 2 cups gluten free rice flour
• 1 cup corn starch
• 1 cup salt
• 1/4 cup cream of tartar
• 2 cups hot water
• 2 t cooking oil

Playdough Directions:

1. Plug in your crockpot and turn to low to warm up slowly.
2. Dump in your dry ingredients, stirring to evenly distribute.
3. Add the water and oil. Close the lid and switch the heat to high.
4. Set a timer and check your playdough every 30 minutes, stirring well each time.  Usually takes about 2 hours to make. (You will know it’s done or close to done when the playdough begins to form a ball when you stir it)
5. Once ready, remove the stoneware insert from your crockpot and stir some more.
6. Dump playdough out onto a smooth surface and begin to knead (playdough wil be hot). If your dough is overly sticky, add a bit of cornstarch; if overly dry, add a touch more hot water. Each time you make the dough, the water required will be a bit different, depending on the humidity in the air.
7. Separate the dough into manageable lumps and push a hole into the center for a few drops of food coloring–let the kids squish the dough around to distribute the desired color.

[Recipe Courtesy of A Year of Crockpotting...]