off to the dr again!

[NaughtyNigel]

have another appt tomorrow with GP about my DD
long story short
DD2 10
has been having constant nausea and tummy pain snce last october
Coeliac test negative
behaviour issues sort of better sometimes - she has started doing stuff after school and appears less depressed. although i still have trouble getting her to school she's o.k for others dropping off.
her diet is rubbbish. - she only eats bread, crackers, egg, cake, chips (eek)
so am going to ask to be referred to paediatric dietitian.
am considering trying going wheat free but am so very daunted by the whole thing.
i also don't want her to create issues out of eating (any more than she already has i mean.
what do you advise? shall we do it?

Hi NN
My ds2 went wheat free 3 years ago - tummy pain, bloated, wind, lethargic... - but is back on wheat now and waiting for an appointment for coeliac test. Since being back on wheat his behaviour has become appalling - mood swings, very angry and basically a pain! His diet is bad too.

Don't know what waiting lists are like in your area, but I've given up hope of even hearing from hospital. You could try wheat free to see if that improves her behaviour and tummy pain. I know it seems daunting, but if you go into big supermarket there is a section with lots of wheat free stuff. It had a huge affect on my ds2 3 years ago. Within a couple of weeks he was a different child. He is a fussy eater, but we made a big deal out of the fact it was special bread etc.. Bizarrely he is begging to go wheat free again - he obviously felt better being wheat free.

Sorry that wa slong winded! Give it a go.

there was an interesting post on this site about additives in flour a while back. There is also interesting stuff about dietary enzymes ont he special needs board. I would suggest you either keep a detailed food diary or try the digestive enzymes or go gluten free. It's hard at first but if you have a bread maker you'll get used to it quickly. Mrs Crimble do fantastic chocolate brownies, Sainsbury do gluten free jaffa cakes and pizza (frozen cabinet, the bases sold separately are terrible). You can buy oat cakes instead of crackers (not entirely gluten free but probably ok for this).

After 2 weeks you'll either notice enough difference to want to carry on - and get further improvement - or you can give up.

Fish oil supplements often improve behaviour issues.

DS is evil when he eats wheat, apart from the tummy issues his behaviour is appalling.

Gp raised his eyebrows at me - i so much wanted to slap him hard. I let slip i had been talking to a dietitian at work in passing. this dietitian said sometimes people eat/crave thefoods they are sensitive to. i can see how this can be - i crave slabs of cheese, diet coke and chocolate all at different times and i know they are not good for me.
So could DD actually be craving and only eating what she is sensitive to - in this carse wheat/gluten? i think this could be but what do you lot think? is it possible?
anyway we now have to wait for dietitian referal and in the meantime i'll be keeping a detailed food diary (suggested by me - GP said oh you could if you want to)
bloody chocolate teapot GP - i so hope we're never really ill and have to see him
sorry - rant over for today

I agree about craving foods you are allergic too I do potatoes then regret it when I eat them cos I itch

Now this is going to sound really odd but nausea and tummy pains can be related to migraines in children

www.achenet.org/education/patients/MigraineVariantsinChildren.asp
www.cafamily.org.uk/Direct/a13.html
tinyurl.com/2n56vk

.. and migraines can also be caused by gluten

link1

NN, when individual can't digest gluten, it leads to opioid effect on the brain that cause cravings, so YES to your question

link2

just a thought - many chips now have wheat coatings but it is possible to get those that don't. Even if you're not going wheat or gluten free you could maybe cut down.

And yes you can crave what makes you ill.

cheers - will look at links when i finish winding other MNers up