Toddler with Wheat/Gluten/Oat allergy

Hi Robin,

It's tough enough to get a toddler to eat, but then when you have one with a food allergy it must be rough!

Sloane Miller is a resident expert here and has written many share posts on food allergies, particularly gluten. There is an interview here with Alice Sherwood, the author of the book Allergy-Free Cooking. There are alot of ideas in this book that you can probably adapt for your son.

Sloane also talks about using Quinoa as a substitute for oatmeal here.

You can read more about Sloane here and read her shareposts here.

Hope this helps! Stay in touch and let us know how you and your son are doing!

Vicki M

We have a six year old who was diagnosed with celiac disease when he was 2. once we switch him over to gluten free foods all symtoms reside with exception to a few slip ups along the journey. Which brings me to your question. It was hard at first to discover the new world of reading every ingredient on the back of everything i purchased. However, I found that in time this would become much easier than i thought. Many grociers offer a gluten free product listing if you ask them for it. You can sometimes get it on their websites as well. Some restaurants offer this also. While your baby is still really young this may come in handy in the future. Your best bet is to stick to rice based items. If you have a "Wild Oats" or A Whole Foods" near you this is an awesome source for getting started on this journey of selective foods. I have also foud them to be extremely knowledgeable of gluten free foods. Even the young employees. So don't write them off.

Practically speaking for your child I would stick to friuts and veggies for now because they are so easy. You can look for some soft and chewy breakfast bars for him to gnaw on.

These websites may help and sometimes these products can also be found in the local grocier..

http://www.enjoylifefoods.com/

http://www.celiac.com/

Dont' freak out! It may cost a little more than you might expect but once you learn how to implement naturally gluten free foods into the mix your bill will go back down.

One last thing. Realize that because your son will grow up knowing what he can and can't eat this will be far easier than those that have been diagnosed at an older age...

The first thing I would do is find a good naturopath, if you havent already.  I have 2 children with food intolerances ...  my first born has suffered great GI pain since birth.

Soy is a very common allergen as well, and frankly I would avoid it.  Naturopathic care is going to help you ....alopathic doctors are really not going to have much to offer and you will find yourself going in circles.  Have you tried an elimination diet to determine food issues? Also there are a number of gluten free flour substitutes on the market (mostly at health food stores) with which you can make your own baked goods. Bobs Red Mill has a line of such products.  As a caregiver of a child with food allergies; get ready for a lot of cooking things yourself and avoiding restaurants and school lunch rooms.

Another thing to remember is that a diet based on grain is not what the human race was designed to digest. There are plenty of food options besides grain. If rice is not a problem then it can take the place of any grain on the plate  Also Quinoa.  Check out the gluten free section at Whole Foods or your local health food store. 

You are not alone!  Good luck. 

My son (20 months old) is allergic to egg, milk, soy, peanut, wheat, oat, barley, rice, corn, and quinoa.  Talk about a feeding nightmare.  Watch out for the soy products. Lots of female hormones in it.  My son originally tested ok for soy so we had him on soy toddler formula...then he became very allergic to it.  Anyway, we are giving him Neocate (a hypoallergenic "formula").  It's extremely expensive, but it's saving our son.  I have resigned myself to the fact that there is practically nothing in the way of prepared food that I can buy for him....I have to cook it all from scratch.  I'm feeding him potatoes (mashed potatoes would be good to start with).  He also gets applesauce, other fruits & veggies that are cooked, chicken, and turkey.  I had to give up on ham....every brand I've checked is cured with soy or corn derivatives.  I've had to experiment with alternative grains: i.e. buckwheat (actually a fruit, not a grain), amaranth, & quinoa (pseudo-grains).  You can buy cream of buckwheat cereal.  I'm still experimenting.  Looking at exotic tubers now (malanga, cassava, taro, water chestnut).  If you haven't done so already, find a good allergist - my sons allergist has been a Godsend. 

Corn is in just about everything.  I've recently put together a list of all the "scientific" names for corn and all it's derivatives.  Did you know that ascorbic acid can be made from corn?  And Gerber products use corn derived ascorbic acid?  And Crayola washable crayons/markers/etc are made with corn?  Anyway, with all my sons allergies, my list of alternative food names to check on labels is about 20 pages long.  It's easier and quicker to cook from scratch than read a food label.

Here are some websites you can check out for products:

http://www.specialfoods.com/

http://www.allergygrocer.com/

Check out your local health food and natural food stores for products.  And beware of eating out in restaurants.  Many commercially prepared foods are going to have soy or corn or wheat or something else added to it.  For example, prepared potatoes - french fries, hash browns, etc. all have soy added to them - why?  I seriously don't know why you'd add soy to potatoes.

I hope this helps a bit.  I wish you the best of luck.