No gluten, no problem

Twelve years ago – at ages 5 and 3 – we were diagnosed with celiac disease. This means for the rest of our lives, we can’t eat any gluten whatsoever because it damages our intestines and we become really sick. Celiac disease is a lifelong intolerance to gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, rye and oats contaminated with gluten from other products. In people with celiac disease, gluten damages the lining of the intestines. This can prevent them from absorbing nutrients and cause a variety of other symptoms. CD is always treatable by changes in diet. Some people don’t eat gluten by choice, but for us, there is no cheating with our diet. It only takes a breadcrumb for us to get glutened, and then we vomit continuously for hours. Trust us, it’s not pretty. We were really too young to remember life before celiac, but our parents say we were tired, crying and constipated a lot. Abby and Emma before they were diagnosed with celiac disease. We remember being a little sad that we had to bring our own snack to birthday parties and couldn’t eat some favorite foods anymore like Frosted Mini Wheats. Now we feel like experts, but even we still get glutened once and awhile, and it’s still not pretty. Here are some tips to avoid gluten and stay safe: Get support. When we were younger, we were really involved in the Celiac Support Group at Boston Children’s Hospital. We loved meeting other kids with celiac disease at events, and feeling free to eat whatever we wanted. G...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories celiac disease Dr. Dascha Weir Source Type: news