I’ve been stubborn. I have not wanted to “go there”. And for Pete’s sake…I have 300 pounds of wheat in my storage room.
But our six year old, Malachi, seems to be getting worse instead of better lately with his eczema. This is SO disheartening. If you remember reading about his story, you’ll remember that he doesn’t just have just a “little bit of a rash diagnosed as eczema”. No, our littlest guy has always had a chronic form of eczema. He was covered head to toe for about the first three years of his life. From age three to now age six, the flare ups have at least been more tolerable, due in great part to all of the natural ideas we’ve tried to help his little body fight and become stronger.
But the past month or so, the rash seems to be tormenting him. It’s spreading back up to his neck. He scratches, he bleeds, he cries. Something has to give.
I don’t want him to need to eat gluten free. I really, stinkin’, totally don’t. Which is why I’ve avoided this experiment for so long. But you know how God smacks us upside the head sometimes? I’ve felt Him doing that recently. First, Amy decided to go gluten free for a while to see if it would help her baby’s eczema. Then, my friend Danae was telling me about how she went Gluten Free and her rash cleared right up.
And Malachi has been so miserable at bedtime lately.
I feel like I need to do this for him. What if it actually helps? We’ve tried so many other things. What if this is the answer for him? What if he could be free of this misery?
And so…Matt and I decided to give it a try. It is our understanding that we need to try this experiment for a good six weeks in order to see if it truly is something that can help. We’re on day nine. So far, he’s not one bit better. But he’s not worse. So who knows?
Since I’m sharing my heart here, I’ll go ahead and tell you that I’m really, really torn when it comes to this experiment. I don’t want the Gluten Free Experiment to work. I don’t want him to have to avoid gluten for the rest of his life. I don’t want to have to cook differently for him. We already try to eat such a healthy diet…I don’t want to learn more and change more and work harder. I don’t.
But by saying that…I feel like I’m saying that I want Malachi to be stuck in this misery. Of course I don’t want that. Which means that I really do want this experiment to work. I want this to be the answer. Except that I don’t. My selfish side wants something else to be the answer. Like the fact that the sun really is going to start shining more and he’ll be out getting Vitamin D which always helps. Yes, that would be an easy answer.
It’s not fun to sort out these feelings. And now I just spewed them all over you.
My guess is that some of you can relate. Am I making this too hard? Yes, I’m pretty sure I am.
Thanks to all of you who mentioned these great Gluten Free Websites. It’s so helpful to know there are so many wonderful resources available! And you’d better believe I’m pouring over the eBook my friend helped me put together a few months ago, Gluten Free and Good for You. Not to mention all the other great recipes Kim has thrown my way as we’ve been putting together more eBooks that will hopefully be ready to launch soon(ish).
I even experiemented and made these Gluten Free Brownies
(made with black beans…don’t tell my kids!)
They really were quite tasty!
We can do this. I mean, if there are brownies involved…we will have the strength to do this, right!? :)
Thanks for letting me share. We just want Malachi to be better. God is faithful.
I’ll keep you posted on how our six weeks goes. I may even share a gluten free recipe or two (sprinkled in with some wheat recipes because good grief…I do still have 300 pounds of wheat in my storage room.
If you or one of your family members eats a gluten free diet, would you please share how that’s working for you? Share why you/they are on a gluten free diet. How did your transition go?
You can always send your wheat my way. :
I know this must be hard especially with all your delicious whole grain recipes, but I do hope you find an answer.
I can’t wait to see some of your gluten free recipes since I have several friends with Celiac disease.
Toni
Question…have you eliminated dairy?
We have a daughter with chronic eczema, as well. This winter, we managed to nearly eliminate it, using a combination of these three strategies (implemented imperfectly, of course):
* we installed a humidifier in her bedroom and faithfully kept it going
* we encouraged her to use soap extremely sparingly
* we eliminated all dyes/perfumes from our laundry products
* we gave her Benadryl at night for one week to eliminate the itching, so her body could begin to heal (no longer, because we seem to have a family trait of becoming depressed using Benadryl!)
* she put lotion on every day…not a lovely natural lotion, but an over-the-counter product called Skin Milk. It is the only lotion we have ever tried that seems to work.
* she has gone nearly dairy-free
The insides of her arms, which once were so infected they oozed, are completely healed. The skin has even returned to natural color (for years, it has been lighter, even when slightly healed, because of the chronic itching.)
We are in awe.
I’m praying for you. We have had an eleven-year battle with this condition. None of our other children seem to suffer.
Amara
I haven’t tried eliminating dairy, but will try that next if this doesn’t work. Thanks for the ideas!
Hi Laura,
I just resently found you and saw your post this morning. I too have a daughter w/ eczema. We have seen a dermotologist and were told that allergies and eczema are related. The first 3 months of my daughters life she cried none stop. We found out that she was allergic to dairy. Now that we have elimated dairy her eczema is much much much better. She has a few dry spots on her cheeks and legs but no dairy may be worth a shot. We also lotion her up really well at night. (Note: read lables on lotion as well as some do contain dairy protein). I hope you find something that works. Good luck!
I was going to suggest dairy too. It helped our son a ton. Good luck! We have one kid who can’t do wheat and a couple who can’t do dairy. Hang in there!
I was going to mention dairy as well. We have been (mostly-
my husband and I still drink milk-everything else is non-dairy)a dairy
free household for going on 3 years because of my son’s allergies. It
is scary at first, but then it becomes second nature–just like starting
to cut out junk/processed foods :) I have become a better cook/baker…
because I HAD to. Five years ago I would of said there was no way I
would be making all most all of our foods from scratch.
Now that he is four he can handle “cooked” dairy once in awhile (like
butter in bread). I tend not to use any at home and save the “once in
awhile” for eating other places :)
I remember the feeling you are talking about. You want an answer so
things can start getting better, but how will we eat now??? I will
keep your family in my prayers.
i would also suggest dairy as a culprit. our youngest was dairy sensitive her first year of life. that’s what propelled me on our whole-foods journey. through research, i learned that eczema and (at her age) cradle cap can be a symptom of dairy issues. cutting out dairy cleared up her skin until her tummy had healed and then we were slowly able to add it back in — in baked goods, first, like the previous poster mentioned.
hang in there! eliminating food from your diet is really tough! (my hubs hated the dairy-free diet ;) you can do it!! and, if you’re able to figure out what is causing the eczema, you’ll be so glad you did.
Oops…above…that was more like six strategies. Guess I got on a roll. Ha! (I homeschool, so my counting skills are…well, you know. :) )
Three, six…same thing. :)
We’ve been there, too, just a different story. My 16 year old was diagnosed with celiac at age 2. He was very sick and it took awhile to figure it out. Afterwards there was such a dramatic change! Anyway, for years I just cooked & baked ‘separately’ for him. But then noticed I was having some digestive and other issues. All to say our whole family is probably 90% gluten free. And, you know what, it isn’t really hard. If your are eating whole foods it’s pretty easy. We change out our flours, of course, and use brown rice, sorghum, teff, millet, amaranth, and quinoa…
I actually use A LOT of ‘normal’ recipes that I just convert. We are a lot healthier with these changes. My tummy is so much happier, too!
Praying for strength and creativity in your endeavors~
Just a thought. A friend of mine has eczema and she had a bad flare up a few months back. The Dr told her that sometimes it has to do with mold in the home. And sure enough there bathroom was covered in mold behind the walls. I just wanted to share, just incase it rings a bell!
Mold has been a fear of ours. We live in a very old house. This is something we should look into further.
Oh I feel ur pain. My son (now 8) started w ear aches and eczema. The dr just said here put this steroid cream on and it will be ok. His behavior was also affected. We did the elimination diet also and I felt like he couldn’t eat anything for 3 weeks but I finally figured out that wheat and dairy were his culprits!! Don’t try and climb the mountain yet. Wait until u get there and GoD truly does provide wonderful wisdom and great ideas. My son can eat barley and I can still do all my quick breads and even now have a “bread” that he can enjoy from barley. It is a whole new adventure and just opens lots more doors!! Also I have to include that I can’t help but feel that GOD has given him an area to exercise self control in where my other children r not strong. He knows now and I can even let him decide if it is “worth it” for him to “cheat”. Much good can come from it. ;). He is andifferent child once we figured out what he could handle!!!!
My mother and brother have celiac. Mom has been gluten-free for over 15 years; my brother has been gluten-free for…oh, maybe 5ish years? Maybe it hasn’t been that long.
I know that my mother makes most of her food from scratch (as she did before finding out she has celiac). It was just a lot of trial and error to determine which flours work best in what recipes, as well as what recipes offer the best flavor/texture. She’s pretty much got it figured out, although she still comes across new recipes to try and within the last year, has found a recipe for chocolate chip cookies that she just LOVES.
For years and years, because it can be difficult to make (and very expensive to buy), she just didn’t eat bread of any shape or form. She’s found a bread recipe that she really enjoys now, but, like I said, it takes quite a bit of trial and error. I know she’d be happy to offer insight and support- I will let her know about this post and see if she might email you to do that.
My son is gluten free….here is our favorite muffins….makes six….so quick to mix up that I make them several times a week.
Plain Muffins:
3 eggs
2T Coconut Oil (I have used others)
1/4 C liquid sweetener…honey,agave,maple syrup, conc. juice
1/4 t salt
1/4 C Coconut Flour
1/4 t Baking Powder
Mix all (blender is fast and easy!) bake at 350 for 15-17 min
Variations we have invented:
Chocolate-Peanutbutter…reduced oil to 1 T…added 1/4 C Peanut Butter and 1/4 C Cocoa….these came out a little dry and not quite sweet enough, but okay
Bacon Cheeseburger….subtracted sweetener….added 1/4 C Ketchup, 1/4 t dry mustard, 1 T Nutritional Yeast, 1/2 lb browned hamburger cooked with 2 T diced onion and 1 slice diced bacon….these were delicious, but could have used a touch more salt.
Apple-Cinnamon….added 1 medium grated apple, 1/2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t vanilla….these were very soft, but okay when cooled in pan….our favorite so far
Banana….reduced Oil 1 T, Sweetener 2 T….added 2 overripe bananas, 1/2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t vanilla….these are in the oven right now and smell delish, but haven’t tasted yet
Also want to add: I, too, hope that gluten isn’t causing his eczema! But, like you said, it’d be good to know what *is* causing it- I hope this six weeks proves to eliminate gluten as the culprit and that you’re able to quickly discover what’s going on (and I hope it’s an easy fix)!
I know this sounds a little crazy, but if you have access to gyp rock (gypsum)you might try placing a rock in his bath water. My niece had severe eczema as a baby (manageable now by the grace of God, no fabric softener, scent-free detergent, ONLY cotton clothing, and even leather furniture because the synthetics “burnt” her skin) while at my sister’s in-laws they noticed the baby’s skin was better after a bath. The difference – they had VERY hard water (gyp water is what we call it). So out to the field they went and broke off a piece of gypsum, cleaned it up and for years that baby took a bath with a small rock. That baby is 8 now and knows she can’t use regular soap or detergent, not to lay her face on anyone else’s clothes or bedding etc. I know it does sound a little crazy, but they thank God for showing them to use that rock because it made a HUGE difference.
And you’re up for a new cooking challenge!! It’s a whole new world and an expanded audience just waiting for you to blog!!
I want to encourage you to not give up! Gluten can stay in your body for up to 6 months after exposure. Healing takes time.
Another thing to consider is that a lot of gluten sensitive people do not truly heal until they remove all grains…includiing corn and rice. That’s not what is marketed at the grocery stores, though.
It is a challenging journey. I’ve been grain free for 6 months. Improvements are slow but SO WORTH IT!
Ann Marie over at Cheeseslave.com is hosting an online cooking class called Reversing Food Allergies. I’ve signed up. It looks like a great resource!
We are considering the GAPS diet for our family that Stephanie of Keeper of the Home is doing with her family. It’s theory is that if you heal the gut you can eliminate allergies and other syndromes from your life. We have done electrodermal screening and taken nutritional suppliments with our family which has helped our allergies tremendously and it isn’t hard to do.
I wish you the best on this journey, Laura! I know how you’ve struggled with trying to heal your sweet boy.
PS – my offer to proofread ebooks still stands! :>)
Hey Laura… maybe this is too simplistic, and I’m sure you thought of it. But have you tried a Vit D supplement? My reg dr told me 3 weeks ago, that 99% of the population is deficient in Vit D.
This is definitely something to get tested. I think the test can cost $60-$80, but it’s well worth the money!
Zinc is another supplement that some people recommend (or eating oysters).
I made black bean brownies the other day. I thought they were absolutely wonderful!! My husband wasn’t a big fan of them,but that’s because he knew there were beans in them. ;)
I don’t want to inundate you with even more advice, (and maybe you already know this) but I have some friends who have had great success with also sticking to Cetaphil as their only soap (i.e. for all handwashing and bathing) to help their eczema to go away. Dermatologists also recommend it. It might be very helpful and provide relief for your son! I have another friend who swears by probiotics as well. She went on a megadose for a number of months and it cleared hers up. But perhaps more realistically for you, just giving him some each day along with using Cetaphil and keeping him gluten free.
I know exactly how you feel. My son had blood in his stool from 7 weeks old for months. Every single doctor told me gluten in my diet (I breastfeed him) couldn’t POSSIBLY be the culprit. I believed them because I wanted it to be true. My chiropractor finally convinced me to do the gluten free diet for 6 weeks (it takes that long to completely get out of the bloodstream) and the blood in the stool went away. It was such a hard thing for me to do.
I tell you this because I can now eat gluten again (I still breastfeed him at 1 year old) and he is just fine. Yesterday and today I have tried giving him soaked grain crackers and a few bites of your soaked pizza pockets. We will see how it goes!
Anyway, keep it up with the 6 week challenge. If it doesnt work, Id definitely try cutting dairy!!!
P.S Also remember that gluten free diets make some people feel really good. For others (like me) it makes them feel awful. Not sure why. If you are feeling slower, constipated, icky, etc, I’d research more about how to help with that!
Some people who are addicted to grains will experience low carb flu (google for more info). I know I did for 6-8 weeks after going off grains.
The bloating/cramping in my stomach disappeared and I had a ton of energy, but I also felt worse in a lot of ways. I hung in there though and now I feel so much better now that I don’t eat very many grains.
If you feel bad when you stop eating grains (whole or white) then you might want to try to increase your carb intake (from veggies and maybe add a little more fruit).
I was off gluten for months. I think 4. And it was hard to eat enough fruits and veggies with a young, demanding baby. Plus GF grains are so low in fiber (the ones iin baked goods) and I didn’t have time to make anything specially. Thanks for the information though! I went back on grains probably 3 months ago and I feel 100% better. Especially eating soaked grains :). Happy I was able to help my baby, but so glad that part of my life is over. I was depressed a lot. Think it has to do with the B vitamins. Of course GF diets work great for some people, just offering up the other side!!
blood in the stools is a sign of gluten intolerance?
I guess so! At least in a breastfed baby. Not sure about other people…but his tummy just had a hard time with the gluten in my diet. When he got older and started eating table food I was able to eat it again. I am so thankful. It was a hard time for me!
I was SO skeptical but a hazelwood necklace worked for us.I got ours at:
http://www.hazelaid.com
I agree about the hazelwood necklace. It has been a wonder. It’s worth checking out for sure.
Two things, Laura….
1. I have a recipe for brownies made with garbanzo beans and they are way better than the black bean ones, in my opinion. You might want to try a brownie recipe with garbanzos!
2. I know it is hard to see this from your perspective probably, but I want to encourage you….when I was reading this post….I couldn’t help but think that God has really equipped you for this! With your ability to learn, your love of cooking, your commitment to healthy food…perhaps all of this was just getting you ready for this step. God will continue to equip you as you go too! That’s how cool He is! Take heart and be content in the fact that you are being obedient no matter what the results of this experiment are!
Yes, please do send along the recipe!!! Thanks! And thanks for your encouragement as well!
Have you considered eliminating the cow’s milk protein? It did the trick for both of my daughters! We now only use goat milk products. When my youngest daughter was not quite two her eczema went from an inconvenience to a rash that covered her entire body. We eliminated cow’s milk protein for one month and it went away. This includes cheese, whey, and all of the other odd products that have cow’s milk in them. We reintroduced cow’s milk and it came back. We have now been cow milk free for almost two years, and if our daughters gets cow’s milk even a little bit in a processed food then her eczema is back. We have changed the way we eat and will soon be milking our own goat! From the research that I have read the cow’s milk protein is the most common followed by soy and gluten.
Doing a diet change is never easy, but I thought if the gluten is not his problem then maybe you would want to consider this…
I know this is different but I wanted to share. I understand completely how torn you are! People encouraged me forever to try gluten/casein free for my daughter who has autism and I had all the same feelings you are struggling with. I finally relented and after 7 months of the best efforts ever. We found that it didn’t do jack squat to help her, nothing zilch a bomb. But I could scratch it off my “mom guilt” list at least. I hope you do find something that helps and soon. Its hard to see our babies suffer and feel helpless to fix it for them. Good luck!
I so, so, so, so know how you feel.
I have been reading your blog for quite a while and have loved your meal plans, BUT my son has Celiac. I was always so sad I couldn’t just cut-n-paste your plans and recipes into my day.
If your son does indeed need a wheat free or gluten free lifestyle, it’s not too hard. I think it’s one of the easiest food “issues” to deal with these days. Our hardest thing is eating out which we don’t do too often anyway. Plus, you will KNOW why he’s having such a hard time with his skin. BONUS!
We have just started using Gluten Free Mama’s “Mama’s Almond Blend” for our recipes. It’s been an easy all purpose go to flour for us. http://www.glutenfreemama.com/
As someone else said, it does take a while to get the gluten out of their systems. Be patient, and be aware of other possible improvements – behavior, attitude, etc. My son was having migraines and stomachaches that were quite evident. What we didn’t realize was that his attitude was not at its best because he felt miserable all the time.
Good luck. I have more ideas, although I am not a fabulous cook. I would be happy to share.
Plus, if you guys go gluten-free…my meal planning just got easier!
:-)
I understand exactly how you feel. My daughter, now 6, had chronic eczema. She was miserable. The ped/allergist/derm gave us prescriptions and said she didn’t have food allergies and that food allergies rarely resulted in eczema. The naturopathic doc and a wonderfully knowledgable guy at the health food store talked to us about milk. We did a dairy elimination. Have you tried that? I learned through research that pasteurized dairy is bad for us due to the pasteurization process removing all of what makes dairy such a superfood. It kills all the good bacteria. The naturopath suggested to get rid of milk altogether and use almond milk. The guy at the health food store talked about eliminating dairy and then if we found that was thhe culprit, we could add raw milk products back in and see what happened. We really felt like God was putting these people in our path for a reason. All that being said to let you know that your feelings are understandable. I didn’t want it to be milk, but I did want it to be milk because I just wanted a cause for it! She’s been eczema free for about a year now.
I would like to share a few thoughts w/ you. My 43 year old husband suffers from eczema. He is a Lobster-man and it seems as though as soon as he starts to touch his gear in the spring and then all summer long he is suffering.I think it has a LOT to do w/ stress. He’s prone to breakouts on both hands up both arms, neck, face, sometimes head, on the torsoe and on his legs and feet. Every year we go through the same horrible battles, it nearly kills him every year, we wonder is it the sea water, the oilskins he wears the rubber boots, is it this or that. He have managed to keep flareups at bay w/o having to use a course of Prednisone. One he did go Cow milk free, but continues to eat other dairy. He uses Triamcinolone Acetonide ointment and should 2 x per day. He loves Aquaphor healing ointment, to keep moisture in the skin. I do know it is odd that his Dermatologist recommend he choose light therapy a few times per week, and YES it does work,( but we found so does tanning a few minutes a few times per week,) but him being in the sun all day seems to make it worse?! We use only dye and perfume free laundry detergents. He uses Aveeno frag. free body wash. and baby shampoo but sparingly. I also have to tell you it was odd that my husband when diagnosed w/ this was in his 30’s and typically is is children who suffer, but they do have a good chance of growing out of it too :). I eat 90 or so % gluten free for yeast issues. It will not be that hard to change over. My husband always loves the food I make, so that helps. There are wonderful pastas of all kinds, great mixes and now pre made items that do cost more but are total convenience, it is quickly becoming a way of life for many, and for many different reasons. More and more Supermarkets and wholefood stores are carrying G/F and a lot of restaurants offer a G/g menu. Quite often you can do minor changes to normal recipes and that do just fine. Good luck and God Bless.
I pray you find an answer. There is nothing worse than a parent watching their child suffer needlessly.
I believe you will find an answer, you just have to keep looking. . .
Ironic. I was going to email you to say, what would you do if your family went gluten free? Could you help me come up with healthy and gluten free options since whole wheat isn’t something we can do?
I’m so inspired by your website but I am gluten free (2+ years now) My mom has been gluten free for about 10-12 years. My daughter is almost 8 and has been complaining of headaches and stomaches (she also has ezcema) and several months. 8 was just too young to be having with headaches on a daily basis so we’re on week 5 of a 6 week gluten free trial for her. She is definately “better” but not 100%. I think it takes time. I’ve enjoyed having another member of my family on the gluten-free journey with me because I’ve been more willing to bake and cook gluten free. Doing it for just one person feels like such a pain…I’m more willing to do it for my daughter than myself.
You can do it. If anyone can handle this challenge its you! I’m looking forward to what you discover along the way. I believe it can be a healthy and enjoyable lifestyle for anyone. Your son has the perfect mom for this adjustment. Yes, it takes while to re-learn but you already have such a strong foundation of understanding food that it won’t be as overwhelming for you as it could be. Since you make so much of your own foods you already know the “hidden” ingredients that need adjustments!
Your family is in our prayers. We are going to expose my daughter to gluten this week and sit back to watch if it brings on a bout of headaches and stomachaches again…doesn’t that sound like I’m poisioning my kid? ugh.
My son’s headaches and stomachaches were caused by drinking milk. Me being the “good mommma” made him finish his milk before school every morning. Day after day he would stay in the bathroom because he didn’t feel good.
I thought it was because he hated school because he did poorly. But NOPE, he did poorly because I was making him drink milk before school.
That might be something to try as well. He can do yogurt just fine though so that’s helpful!
P.S. It was storebought milk, not raw milk that could make a difference.
Our son is 4 & like yours has had HORRIFIC eczema since he was about a month or two old. We do not have a picture of him with his body is not covered in eczema. He’s had allergy testing (blood & prick) and he’s allergic to dairy, eggs, peanuts, oats & potatos. Peanuts are the only anaphylactic allergy so he eats the other allergens in moderation (because he insists) & hands down his eczema flares from DAIRY!!
I feel your pain of a child waking up screaming at night because he itches sooo bad to the point he can not sleep :( Good luck!
Here is a website of a friend of mine. She encourages an Elimination Diet to identify any and all food allergies including wheat and dairy. I know a lot of people this has helped. There is an ebook as well as tons of info. She is a holistic nutrition coach.
http://Www.getbetterwellness.com
My son didn’t have problems with eczema, but we knew something was hurting him. He was only 9 months old, couldn’t sleep well, and seemed to be in pain at night by arching his back and screaming. We went to a naturopath to find out his allergies. This was very inexpensive, involved no needles, and we found out he was allergic to wheat, dairy and eggs. So, I, as a breastfeeding mom, eliminated them and he only wakes 1 time a night to nurse and doesn’t have screaming or arching his back problem any longer. I hope your little boy gets better, and I would suggest a visit to a naturopath so you can find out sooner what is going on.
God Bless!
Ah, Laura. You know I know how it is. There are days I hate the gluten free lifestyle. I want to be able to go out with my friends and not have to grill the waitress (that would be verbally grill, not literally…cause she might not be gluten free and I am not into cannabalism…but I digress!). I want to be able to send my kids somewhere without having to wonder if they are going to get sick from gluten exposure. But, I also know that it is what they NEED. Gluten free eating is so much easier that even 7 years ago when we started. It can be done and it can be done well. I have to remind myself that I would still be a Hamburger Helper Mom if I had not been forced to go down this path. And think of all the new words you can use like “garfava” and “Quinoa”! It makes you sound really intelligent. So, I, too am torn. I really hope this is what helps Malachi, but I also hope it is something else. SOmething easier. If you choose to try dairy free, I have been down that road, too. I would love to help you. ME <
I wish you well and pray that the right solution comes to you, Laura. We took J off of gluten and casein a few years ago (never went 100% but almost totally) for his autism. It helped him some, and we’ve discussed going totally gluten free for him again. Dairy for him was harder because he never liked any of the soy cheeses. But since we reintroduced both back into his diet he has chosen himself not to eat most breads. When he does eat a lot of carbs his constipation comes back. We limit how much cheese he gets in his diet.
I read another blog called Modern Alternative Mama that has lots of great info on Gluten free living and on the GAPS diet. In case you aren’t already aware of her, here is a link to one of those type articles: http://www.modernalternativemama.com/blog/2011/1/29/practical-tips-on-doing-grain-freegaps-diets.html
Good luck!
I totally understand what you’re dealing with! Because of some issues when I was going through chemotherapy the first time, I had to go glueten-free. Incredibly daunting at first, but it does get better. One of my first suggestions would be to get the cookbook “Baby Cakes”. It’s full of gluten-free cookies, cake, scones, biscuits, pie crust… and I still use a lot of those recipes even though I’m not gluten free – they’re just THAT good! I also found that it gives you a good idea of the basic structure of gluten-free baking so that you can come up with your own recipes. Just a note: I didn’t like using xanthan gum, so I would use an egg instead to help with the binding process (the cookbook is also vegan).
After all of that being said… I’m wondering if dairy is really his problem. I too struggled with severe eczema ever since I can remember, until my mom stopped using dairy in our home. WOW. It made a huge difference in a matter of days. Now, I allow myself some cheese and yogurt because those don’t really seem to affect me, in moderation. I might choose to cheat with some ice cream in the summer, but I do so know that I will pay for it with itchy, red skin for the next couple of days. I haven’t drank milk since I was 12. Going on a dairy-free diet also worked for my cousin and his little boy, both of whom had severe eczema as well. Give it a try, I think you will be pleasantly suprised! Also, speaking from experience, dairy free is MUCH easier than gluten free; I don’t even really have to think about it anymore.
Good luck with this endeavor! Praying that you find a solution to Malachi’s eczema soon.
Heard a father talking about bathing his son in a tub of water with chlorine bleach added. It does make your hands soft after using it for cleaning. He said it helps the skin tremendously.
When I took my one son off of milk his rash went away. (also his snot problem:).
I truly don’t know the immediate answer, I really do know how you fill (we have a ton of wheat in storage too)
\
Two quick thoughts:
1) My son’s eczema flares immediately after eating citrus. Keeping him away from it has made a huge difference.
2) Tea tree oil is the one thing i have found to give him overnight relief- I mix it in with the lotion i use because it is too potent to go directly on his skin- but it really helps those stubborn patches on his ankles and back of his knees. I also add a few drops to his (infrequent) baths. I learned about tea treel oil from a mom who discovered it to be the only thing to calm her son’s eczema.
When I first started grinding my own wheat Bread Beckers was were I went. Sue Becker has done many studies of the wheat and all its benefits. The “hard red wheat” helps many problems and I am sure eczema is one of them. You might want to check this out. I know for a fact it makes warts go away.
My baby at 1 month had awful baby acne mixed with eczema and some other rash possibly that was full body. I eliminated dairy and corn and in 5 days she was completely clear. I went to a chiro who specialized in nutrition that told me with one look at her it was dairy and corn. She’s doing great with just a slight eczema rash here and there. I have to feel with my hands to find it. The Dr. told me it’s because it’s impossible to eliminate dairy because there will always be dairy residue in your packaged foods. I cook most of our food from scratch and watch my diet like a hawk, but I love Dark chocolate. By the way, he said butter was fine because it’s just the fat. The casein is the problem. Hope this helps.
I’m so sorry for your son, I too had issues with my skin, the Dr couldn’t say it was eczema or sun allergy or what. I went vegan for 21 days not for my skin, just to give it a try and as a surprise, it is totally gone! I eat vegan about 75 to 85% of the time now as so far my skins hasn’t had a problem since.
I know you eat very healthy and all your animal products are the best of the best, but I’d give it a try. No animal protein at all for 21 days.
Blessings to you all,
Hope
I don’t know if this will help cause my son doesn’t have chronic eczema. But he had a flare up on his hands right as we started changing the way we eat. A friend suggested it could be toxins trying to get out of his body, since our skin is an organ too. She suggested coconut oil. So twice a day we rubbed coconut oil on his eczema and within 2 weeks it was completely gone. Anyway, it’s a suggestion. Hope it helps.
I’m feeling your pain, though we are dealing with lower GI issues instead of eczema. I’m meeting with an alternative doctor today to discuss diet, because the ‘specialist’s’ only advice is Miralax for life, basically.
I hope you figure this out. My problem was not the same as your sons, I have suffered with severe reflux and lots of other health issues, but going gluten free has changed my life. And has helped my daughters health problems so much. I have no desire to go back to eating gluten. If this works for your son, it will truly be worth. And many people say it does take the full six weeks to start seeing the benefit, so I do encourage you to do the full 6 six weeks. And I know how torn this decision can be, you want it to work, but you don’t. Many of us that are gluten free know just what you mean.
Just had to second the question about removing dairy. One of our children suffered terribly with eczema – though not as badly as yours – and we do believe that dairy was the culprit.. We did remove dairy and have had no further recurrences. Worth a try.
What a good mom you are to try so hard to bring your child relief! I wish you the best.
And I should have added, try to focus on what you can still eat, not what you can’t. There are so many normal, healthy foods that are naturally gluten free. And I make a version of black bean brownies and I agree they are so good, you would never know they were gf and had beans in them.
We just went gluten free two months ago. My son’s rashes began to clear up quickly at first, then slowed. It takes a very long time for gluten to get out of your system and for the gut to heal. It’s all about the gut healing. We also went dairy free. At our first appointment at our new doctor (integrative medicine) we found out that soy and wheat are closely linked allergens and she had me take him off soy as well. After 4 weeks off soy I reintroduced it and his symptoms did come back, so we are off soy for the duration. One year is the minimum for the body to heal from gluten.
I came across the black bean brownie recipe last week and my curiosity got the best of me. I had to make them. I was not optimistic that my family would care for them because my husband can taste the most subtle differences in things. However, we all loved them. My 9 y.o. daughter is thrilled that they are healthier since that means I will make them more often. I made a double batch this weekend to share with our small group at church. Everyone loved them.
Hang in there. You are doing a wonderful job. A website that might help is http://www.supercook.com/ you can add in what you already have on hand as well as any exclusions and it will give you mounds of recipes to try or adapt to what your family likes to eat.
Bless your heart. I will certainly pray for you and your family
I understand so much how you feel. I myself have celiac disease and so does my daughter, We actually went through 4 years of her life with her crying in pain every day. We would take away different things try every diet ect. At her worst she was comatose on the couch during the day and waking up screaming every night. She had every test imaginable done to her and still no diagnosis. Out of desperation We put her on the specific carbohydrate diet for 3 months to help her body begin to heal ,( no sugar, carbs, grain or dairy) and saw amazing resaults:) We also found out the poor baby has a rice allergy. Today I use mostly a combo of Oat flour and coconut flour (azure sells both)It is much healthier than traditional GF bakking and can usually be exchanged equally for wheat recipies. I would just encourage you from one parent to another never stop searching for the answer. Sometimes God gives us healing but We must submit to what HIS answer is. And sometimes that isn’t the easiest answer. Remember Food is just food and perhaps the focus should be on being grateful to have it even if it is gluten free:)..( I found this attitude was essential to helping my daughter cope with being different.) How you approach this problem will determine how your son does. If he does indeed need to live with a life long diet you dont want him to do it with an attitude of self pity and bitterness. Also I would just add that severe eczema is not just a rash. Your sons body is screaming at you that something is wrong. What is wreaking havoc on his skin can also be damaging his insides. I pray you find healing for your son and strength and courage in Christ , God Bless, Nichelle
Hi Laura-
I feel your pain and am praying for you. In reading your story with Malachai’s ezcema- I can tell that you have been attempting every possible avenue to help him. You are a dedicated, loving, and amazing mother and I know that God will reward your diligence with healing for your son. Your son will one day rise up and call you blessed for your perseverance.
My husband is a naturopathic doctor, and he (and all the other the practitioners in his clinic) have dealt with many cases of eczema, ranging from mild to extremely severe. He has told me that almost exclusively, eczema is due to the body being allergic to something. Usually the allergy is a food, occasionally it is environmental. Since you use all natural cleaning products, soaps, etc… my guess would be that the allergy doesn’t lie there. If you have moved houses since he has been born, then the allergy wouldn’t be in your house. (If you have lived in the same house, however, then it would be wise to get your house tested). So if the culprit is food…. it is actually good news- food testing for allergies is pretty reliable and relatively easy to do. My husband does it all the time- the blood test is 97% accurate (according to the latest research) and costs less than $200. If you are interested, let me know and we can try to find a practitioner who does this test in your area.
I pray for continued motivation in your quest for healing for your son!
Much love,
Jennifer
I’m so sorry! My son’s friend has severe eczema, too.It overed his body. One time when I was with him, he scratched so much there was blood seeping onto his khaki pants all over his legs :( His mom became a fanatic about what went into his mouth- including what the animals ate( like chicken and beef). She found out what he was food sensitive to( I think a test) and it was so much! Soy was a huge one and it is in most animal feed.Hence the need to find out what the animals that she served him were eating. It took a long time, but he is mostly healed! It seems like when he has something bad for him that he flares up pretty quickly.His skin has healed beautifully! There is hope- even for severe cases!
Have you considered corn as an allergy–it often shows up as skin disorders–I went gluten free for 6 months only to get way worse which then led me to my corn allergy–what a blessing–i feel soo much better. It was no wonder I wasn’t getting better as I was eating corn pasta and corn tortillas and such in place of wheat–I was actually making it worse. Please check out WHOLE LIFE NUTRITION kitchens website as they have a TON of info on food allergies–they really are experts and they have so many allergy free recipes!! (that are really good for you)
God bless your efforts. Our son (now 4) has the same story and he’s been flaring up too lately. Just when I think he’s outgrown his horrible head-to-toe eczema it flares up again. Like you, we’ve tried a lot and unfortunately, what’s worked for other people hasn’t worked for us so we always feel defeated and helpless and in search of a “cure”. Two years ago, we did an elimination diet – no gluten for 10 weeks. Gluten takes a long time to leave the system (we have celiac in the family and know its healing course and how anal you have to be in getting gluten out of the house). We also went off dairy for 8 weeks during the same time. He was slightly better. But as you probably know, if he’s not 100% cured, you’re left wondering if the air quality, or some other random event, has simply changed for the little guy and next month it will be another story. Its so hard to know what triggers the outbreaks. My son has always had a chronic runny nose to go with his eczema. Lately, I’ve been thinking of eliminating dairy again for a longer period of time (not looking forward to going w/o cheese!). I will also start to look into probiotics again. (We did a bunch during the elimination diet.) But as another post-er said, it can take time for the body to heal and I’m thinking that we didn’t give his body long enough on the last elimination diet. God bless your efforts and hang in there!
I’m sure you’ve tried all sorts of things, but I just wanted to let you know what worked for our 4 year old. We were told that eczema is an immune issue, so we had him on a chewable probiotic by Nature’s Way Primadophilus. I also would put a Tbls. of pure Elderberry juice Concentrate from Wyldewood Cellars in his water cup. I used ahava dermud body cream topically. Those things combined healed him right up. When he was starting to get a cold or sick, I would see a flare up. Then I would just give him more Elderberry juice in his water. It tastes great but does stain, so be careful. I live in the DFW area and was able to find all my stuff locally. I didn’t have to change his diet. However, we stay away from High Fructose Corn Syrup, for the most part. I hope you find your answer.
I was diagnosed with celiac 2 1/2 years ago, having seen numerous doctors for years. It took a miscarriage and then a bad bone density scan for a doctor to finally figure out that I had celiac, and resulting nutritional deficiencies. It took a good 9 months to really see results with a gluten-free diet, but I can’t believe how much better I feel now. The symptoms are completely gone. I can eat without pain for the first time in my life.
IF eating gluten free is the answer for you, it may take some time to really see healing take place. Don’t be discouraged after 9 days. It really might take longer to see results. But feeling great is worth it!
We’re in the same boat :( Except that my dd is 10, going on 11 this May. For her I do suspect that her flare up has gotten worse due to the start of puberty hormones!
WE did the IgG test and she’s apparently allergic to the usual suspects (wheat, corn, dairy, eggs and soy) and more (oats, cod, tuna, garlic, chicken, MSG!)
Any how I am now very dubious if these are really the root cause of her eczema (head to toe!) coz we’ve been on this restricted diet (I am very strict) for the past 5 months and it has done ZILCH for her except make her miserable.
She’s been a trooper but I so feel for her (and me too since I have to cook everything for her from scratch!)
This week I am taking her off rice to see if that could be an unknown cause. The test said rice was an in between item.
It’s hard! And we totally feel for you and what you said about NOT wanting your boy to be allergic to gluten!
Be careful of “enriched” rice. My daughters and I have celiac disease and we don’t eat “enriched” rice. It is “enriched” with a barley additive. (Barley is another gluten item!) I’m not sure if that helps, but I hope so.
I so feel you. My husband has had to accept that he has a gluten intolerence that was really affecting his health. I’m really struggling with figuring out how to feed him and the rest of the family homecooked food without making several different dinners every day. I am so sorry Malachi is so miserable, and I hope you find something that helps him. And, thank you for the gluten free links.
A year and a half ago we found out my husband has Celiac’s. It has been a major adjustment for us. I admit to sitting down in the middle of the grocery store and having a crying fit because I couldn’t believe I had been poisoning my husband for so long and couldn’t seem to find anything he could eat. It’s gotten easier, but it’s still hard.
Well, here is my 2cents worth. I have yet to order the book, but I’m starting my daughter on the GAPS diet. It is suppose to “re-set” your digestive system. It also takes you off gluten for awhile (maybe the entire time- have only read reviews) but it claims to cure allergies, type 1 diabets and more. My daughter has VERY sensitive skin and breaks out in hives for no apparent reason at all. She also has struggled with chronic constipation since infancy. I’m so in hopes this works for her.
Have you looked into this diet? It is quite long-term as well, but maybe it would cure him and let him have his grain back when all is said and done. The book is “Gut and Psychology Syndrome” by Natasha McBride.
I can completely relate with your struggle to find an answer to your child’s problems. I’m searching too, and I pray I’m on the right path.
I second the GAPS diet. It is challenging, but it can truly reverse damage, and if you completely heal the gut, you don’t have to follow the diet forever.
Dear Laura, I feel your pain, understand your anguish, and completely relate to your wish that going gluten-free would NOT be the thing that helps your son. I had many digestive issues (for many years) and went to a naturopathic doctor finally, even though our insurance doesn’t pay for it. Had a blood test for food sensitivities, and here’s the list: ALL dairy, ALL gluten-containing grains, peanuts, almonds, eggs, chicken, lima beans, garlic, tomatoes, green beans, lentils, pecans. What is left for me to eat?! My family is supportive, to a point, but they do not like the GF breads I’ve cooked – except the tortillas, which disappeared in record time, even though I was hoping to freeze some for me to eat later. Which is leading me straight into the GAPS diet. I want to be healed of this condition, not find a way to “manage” it. I have the classic leaky gut syndrome, and the ND told me it could be healed over time. So, even though I work part time at a newspaper and we have a small farm with 18+ goats, chickens, and turkeys, and it’s coming into our ridiculously busy summer season, I’m going to try GAPS and pray that in a few years, this will be behind me. I encourage you to look into it, too. You are in my prayers!
I am not gluten free, but I admit I feel the same way about having to cut out dairy for my nursing baby right now. I DON’T WANNA GIVE UP CHEESE! I fought it for a long time …but in the end, not hearing him scream and writhe in pain is worth it.
But I want some cheese.
Recipe that some have tried and love (don’t use splenda though!) I haven’t tried it yet.
http://www.food.com/recipe/cleochatras-oopsie-rolls-292261
Praying for strength and courage! And to file away for future – if gluten free seems to work and Malachi is all better and you are wanting to experiment again – I have read that a lot of people who can’t tolerate regular wheat CAN tolerate sprouted wheat. And you can make sprouted wheat using your own wheat, dehydrator and mill.
Kori
Laura, I hope for the best for you and your family. Remember that you can do all things through Him that strengthens you.
email me -if you want – and i’ll give you a recipe for a healing salve that helps my babies. my daughter had eczema as a baby and this soothed and healed her skin every time. it is super easy – a beeswax base. let me know if you want the recipe. i’d be so happy to share it.
I have tried The Emotion Code (muscle testing), by Dr. Bradley Nelson. It can be used to release trapped emotions associated with the allergy or sensitivity, or any other physical or mental issues. (i.e. fear of speaking, job searching, starting up a new business, anger issues, etc.) I have someone that does the sessions over the phone, but have learned some myself too. The doctor’s website is healerslibrary.com. to find out more. This link might also be of interest to you-it explains the emotional connection to allergies: http://www.pure-and-simple-healing.com/allergies-and-sensitivities.html
My 6 year old boy has autism, and my mother-in-law actually pointed the gluten-free, casein (dairy)-free diet out to us a few years ago. We finally decided to try it and see whether it helped him or not about 8 months ago, and while we can see that he’s grown so much, it’s hard to tell if it because of the diet or time or circumstances. It’s hard. Wheat and dairy? Really hard. But, as a family, we eat a lot of rice and potatoes, and rice and potatoes are REALLY good! I’ll make him gluten-free pasta sometimes, but other than that, it’s just rice and potatoes for us right now.
He does really well, even when the kids around him are having crackers and cheese at school. He did ask me last week if maybe he can have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich again, and it just made my heart melt. I have a fabulous recipe for muffins and another for brownies, and a decent one for pizza crust…but nothing good for bread. And store-bought gluten free bread is simply disgusting. He understands that he doesn’t eat “dairy or wheat or gluten or milk” but *I* have a hard time when a teacher (at school or at church) brings cookies or cupcakes to share with the children. He just says “No, thank you,” but I think “Why didn’t you just call me? I have treats for him in the freezer??!!”
It’s hard. We’re actually trying just some dairy this week, to see how he does with it. In a few weeks, we’ll be adding gluten back in. It’s been so hard to test and try this, without really knowing if it’s working or not. When so many different factors can lead to emotional and physical and intellectual growth.
And then there’s the diarrhea issue. Which we think is food-related. So, basically, in quite different circumstances, I completely understand.
For Store bought bread mixes give Hodgen Mills Gluten Free bread mix a try. I think its really good. If you have a bread machine its really easy too. I know its not has healthy as Laura’s bread options but my DD is 7 and getting her to eat GF was only going to happen if I could find her a bread alternative because she was eating PB and honey sandwhichs for school lunch on a daily basis.
I also gave her teacher a box of EnviroKids prepackaged snack bars for those times when classmates have birthdays or unexpected celebrations. She gets one of her fav chocolate rice crisp treats from EnviroKids and doesn’t feel like she’s missing out quite as much. Good luck!
Have you tried hazelwood necklace or ointment? Quite a few mom’s know have tried it with their kids who have eczema and it has worked. Hazelaid.com has them for a good price.
Oh, Laura . . . I really feel for you. I, too, finally came to the conclusion that I had to go gluten free. I have an auto-immune disorder that makes me cronically itching. I finally figured out by accident that gluten is a major trigger. When I eat a whole foods dient without grains, my itching is completely gone! I found out by accident because I decided to go gluten free after reading about study after study that showed evidence that gluten is just not good for us. Any of us. The grains these days have much higher levels of gluten than our ancesters grains. Also, the bible usually refers to finely milled flour as a gift or offering meaning it was not a daily luxury. After it was elminated, I noticed my itching stopped within a very short time. Alas, the incurable was cured.
You really can make just about anyting gluten free. Check out: http://betterbatter.org/
I’m so sorry… I was where you are now a few months ago. Same emotions, and going through a “grieving” process. I needed to go gluten free on a candida diet and my 2 year-old little girl- I finally had to admit to myself- needed to try GF.
She stopped gaining weight around 13 months and would even lose weight. Her diapers were AWFUL and smelled like ammonia and she had eczema on her face that would NOT go away (well, it would get better with coconut oil, but never really go away).
I’ve been mostly GF for 5 months now and she has been for three. I am nearly completely healed and EVERYTHING cleared up for her, although I didn’t see much improvement for the first month and a half. Now, I’ve just tinkered with giving her a tiny bit of gluten once a week, and wouldn’t you know-she doesn’t react! So, we will plow ahead with the GF diet and the STRONG probiotics that she is taking to heal her gut. (I realized that she probably has gut dysbiosis from antibiotics that she took at 13 months for an ear infection).
I’ve been doing lots of reading about healing food allergies and the GAPS diet seems to be one that would help heal food allergies.
I have learned from personal experience though that it’s not good to continue to eat gluten if it affects you adversely. Later on down the road it will lead to autoimmune diseases(of which I already have one)and possibly cancer.
I’ve been using Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise G. Roberts and it is a life-saver! I do substitute for the refined sugar and I often cut the sugar down, but her bread, hamburger/hotdog buns, brownies, cookies and pizza crusts are YUMMY!! (And made with whole grains like sorghum flour and millet flour) It’s very doable…
Praying for you during your transition! Blessings,
Andrea :)
Laura,
I have a little one with special eating needs-no lactose, almond family, and nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, chilis,etc.) I understand your frustration. You DO want your little one better, but totally changing the way your family eats is difficult. Give it time. God gives grace.
Two more things you might want to look at:
http://onemomagainsteczema.blogspot.com/
and
http://www.gapsdiet.com/
They might give you some more ideas as to what to try for the little guy.
Why is this such a huge issue now? Was it always a huge issue and nobody knew why or what it was, or is it another one of those up and coming, affecting more and more people type of ailment? Has anyone done research to know why it’s becoming more prevalent? I’m betting Monsanto is behind it somewhere…
And not just gluten, but all sorts of food allergies. It just doesn’t seem normal.
I’ve been reading a lot about that in the time we’ve been GF… There
are all kinds of theories. Some people say that it’s because wheat is
a “new” addition to our diets relative to what people have been eating
since the beginning of time. I’m not so sure about that because wheat
is mentioned in the Bible.
How we prepare and bake with the wheat has changed dramatically over
the past 100 years and modernization has taken wheat and stripped it
to make refined flours. Refined flours and sugar wreak havoc in our
guts, as well as prescription medicines, stress, candida overgrowth and
poor diets in general.
Leaky gut then allows food proteins into our bodies and blood which
circulate and cause food intolerances and later diseases like
auto-immune diseases, cancer, skin conditions, emotional problems
like anxiety and depression, etc.
I’ve also been reading that people who are intolerant to gluten can
often eat sourdough bread because of the fermentation process breaking
down the proteins. I’m hoping to learn the sourdough process soon and
give it a try.
There is a lot of other info out there too. Have to sift through it
all. Hope that helps a little. Blessings!
I have been completely gluten free for a little while now.. almost 3 months I think. From what I’ve read it takes at least 6 months to clear it out of your system. I’m going to go a year. Depending on the severity, you can eventually reintroduce it into your diet minimally.
There are varying gluten sensitivities. If I understand it, and I’m still learning… that when our system lacks in probiotics, it no longer can break down the gluten which then inflames our digestive track and eventually lead to leaky gut. I don’t know the point of no return. I am gluten intolerant on some level, but it is also closely linked and affected by sugar intake, including natural sugars like honey and maple syrup.
I refuse to buy into some of the information out there that say things like dairy, wheat, meat, are bad for you and not meant to be consumed by humans. I KNOW this to be false because of things found in the Bible: God brought Israel to a land flowing w/ milk and honey. He didn’t mean women’s breast milk, I’m positive. Bread is a sustaining source of nutrition, consistantly. I could go on. Now, whether the deterioration of the quality of these things and the chemicals we take in over many years contributes to our intolerance is a valid discussion, and why some of us may very well be “allergic.” Your balance perspective demonstrates that you probably won’t fall into the trap of some of the crazy information out there but just in case it may cause confusion, His Word is an ever treasure of knowledge.
It takes a while for inflamation and body reaction to settle down. It doesn’t help that oats, barley, soy sauce, ect. have gluten in them as well. To help w/ the combat of gluten, we need to be taking in plenty of probiotics.
Things I’ve learned: Wheat free doens’t = gluten free. Common foods w/ gluten:
Barley (and Barley Malt)
Barley grass
Binders
Blue Cheese
Bouillion
Bran
Brewers yeast
Bulgur
Cereal binding
Chilton
Couscous
Durhum
Edible starch
Emulsifiers
Farina
“Fillers”
Hydrolyzed plant protein
Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
Kamut
Kasha
Malt
Malt flavoring
Malt vinegar
Matzo
Modified food starch
Monosodium glutimate (MSG)
“Natural” flavor
Rye
Seitan
Semolina
Some spice mixtures
Soy sauce
Spelt
Stabilizer
Suet
Teriyaki sauce
Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
Wheat
Wheat grass
Wheat protein
Ingredients with Hidden Gluten:
Baking Powder
Bologna
Candy (many candies are gluten-free, so read labels)
Canned baked beans
Cold cuts
Packaged cereals, even corn cereals
Custard
Fruit fillings
Gum
Hot dogs
Non-dairy creamer
Potato chips
Pudding
Root beer
Syrups
Salad dressing
Soy sauce
Vegetables with commercially prepared sauces
I don’t know that you buy any of these things, but I didn’t automatically catch all these at first.
The challenges I have found are that “bread” at best is like corn bread texture, crumbly. Many alternatives have little to no nutritional value like white rice flour, gluten free all purpose flour. So there is the temptation when I really miss breads/cakes/cookies to settle for a very unhealthy option because at least it’s gluten free. But I am convicted! That I cannot compromise! Finding though, whole food options is TOUGH. And when I do indulge, I have fallen into what I’ve read dubbed as a carbohydrate coma.
OK. On the UPside. Not having bread is not the end of the world.. really. I learn that I enjoy my fruit, veggies and meat more because there is no negative after effect. Really there is PLENTY of food to still choose from. There are even deserts!
Since gluten is the thing that gives breads that soft elasticity there have been many tries to copy that. I have tried coconut, chickpea/garbanzo bean, brown rice, white rice, almond, corn and gluten free all purpose flours so far. I have used arrow root powder and xangthum gum for that binding effect.
Almond flour is my favorite flavor of flour/meal. But I have yet to find it less than $10/lb. My 2nd favorite is garbanzo bean flour. The only thing is that it has a raw bean flavor of sorts so your spices need to be x3 and you’re good! It works great for quick breads.
Making your own baking powder is simple and there a number of recipes online.
I have to be careful, ex: there are Rice Chex labeled “gluten free” now, however if it doesn’t say that, it isn’t. Previously Rice Chex had Barley malt in it.
The great thing is that you already read labels and fill your diet w/ much produce. I lost a bit of weight at first b/c my carb intake was greatly reduced. I ended up starting to take in more sugar though so I need to re-evaluate again.
I suspect that my gluten intolerance can be traced back to doing a marvelous cleanse a few years back. The problem being that I didn’t totally understand that it REALLY cleanses and did not replace my probiotics. A few years of a deficient digestive flora and here I am.
I’m looking forward to recipes you post and pray that your journey brings your family to complete health, in Jesus Name.
Great post! I agree 100% with the probiotcs… My daughter and I are
proof. Blessings on your journey!
Take heart. Just to make you feel a little better, in our household of 7 people, I have 3 different diets to cook for…every single meal.
#1-no gluten, nuts, citrus (my 4 year old boy has excema)
#2-no eggs or nuts (my 8 year old reacts anaphylactically to eggs and has excema)
#3-I, myself, have to eat the Interstitial Cystitis diet (no fun at all and very limiting)
Don’t be too discouraged…it could be worse. I’m living proof of that.
Both of my kids have suffered from eczema early in life. We tried all kinds of things for our oldest to try to clear her up including seeing a dermatologist. Nothing helped until she had a reaction to peanuts and off to the allergist we went. We found out she had an egg allergy and once we eliminated it from her diet she immediately cleared up. When our second child developed eczema at 2 months we knew it had to be a reaction to food as i was nursing. We tried all the common allergens and when nothing seemed to make a difference we did blood work on him to test for allergens. His tests came back with 9 allergens that we have eliminated from his diet and his skim has cleared up.
I would suggest having him allergy tested to determine if there is more than one culprit. Eliminating can be difficult but once you get used to it it becomes part of your routine. I use alot of your recipes and just male adjustments to fit my families needs. Bobs mill all purpose GF baking flour is a great substitute for wheat I have found.
I just wanted to say thank you for sharing. For being open and honest. I will be praying for you and your family, knowing fully that God will be glorified, even through this!
Eggs were the culprit for my daughters eczema. We do eat gluten free and everything is so yummy.
Two of my three children have food allergies and, in both of them, wheat is what causes eczema – other allergens cause other reactions. My middle daughter is allergic to wheat, apple, orange, tomato, strawberries, pineapple, raisins and rhubarb. She was only diagnosed at the age of 4 (she is 6 now) – by which time she was covered in bleeding scratch marks all over her body and hadn’t slept through the night since we started weaning her at six months. Within five days (literally!) of cutting out the offending food items, her skin was clear (!) and she was sleeping through the night! My youngest (17 months) has a long list of food allergies (wheat, dairy, soya, egg, nuts, white fish, shellfish, lentils, chickpeas, plus specialist anti-allergy formula, so I am still feeding her and having to eat the same restricted diet!), but wheat is the one that causes eczema. Both of them are fine with oats, corn, rice, etc. I think 4-6 weeks of eliminating all forms of gluten is probably a good idea (I know what it’s like because on top of the above restrictions, my husband chooses to eat no meat or fish – and with all vegetarian pasta/tomato-based dishes being out of the question, I need to do a lot of juggling!), you may find that you will then be able to reintroduce some forms of gluten. However, whether you all go gluten-free or whether you cook separate meals, I promise you it is worth it when your child no longer has to suffer (vegetarian husbands are a totally different matter…lol). Good luck!
how did you find out that your daughter had all those allergies since they’re unusual? mine is 2 and increasingly severe eczema and a known egg allergy but all the fruits? just by an elimination? do you need to eliminate for the 4-6 weeks prior to trying those also or is that more for grains?
i’m overwhelmed by the idea of trying to find out what’s causing our daughter so much pain(and the bleeding scratch marks you mention!)
Thanks
Sorry, Vicki, I’ve only just seen this, so may be too late. With my middle daughter we resorted to homeopathic testing and kinesiology because the blood tests were all so inconclusive. My youngest is so severely allergic that she reacted very quickly and severely through my breast milk (she is even allergic to specialist anti-allergy formula!), so it was very obvious. I think the problem with not eliminating before testing is that if your daughter’s skin isn’t clear to start with, you won’t know what she is reacting to or not. Now that we know which allergies we’re dealing with, it is very obvious when my middle daughter has eaten something she reacts to (I still control everything our youngest eats). As I said before, we were lucky in that it only took 5 days of eliminating the allergens from our middle girl’s diet before all the symptoms disappeared. If you can bear to cut out all the common allergens for a few weeks (all the acidic fruits, wheat, dairy, etc.) and there is an improvement, you can then reintroduce one thing every three days and watch for reactions). I hope you work out what is causing your little one’s eczema. (Apologies if there are lots of typos – for some reason I can only see half of the comment box, so am typing “blind” on one side of the screen).
Why did you have to go there??? LOL You should read this post I just wrote about you and your blog (and the fact that my son has eczema and I am hoping that by switching to more healthy eating it will help him). Yikes. I don’t want gluten free to work either. That’s why I took him to an allergist…praying they wouldn’t find gluten as an allergy. They didn’t, but now, I am going to have to see what happens with your guy. My goodness…I don’t have 300 pounds of wheat…but I want to. ;-)
If you are interested here is the post I wrote. I need to become an affilliate because I reference your site all the time.
http://www.heart-toward-home.com/2011/03/money-saving-monday-tropical-traditions.html
It is so hard to see your little one uncomfortable and to not know what is causing it! Even if you could find something that soothed the symptoms, you’d still want to deal with the underlying cause.
My 5yo was tested as intolerant to 2 main foods at 3yo. She also tested intolerant when two particular (other) foods were combined. We avoided those and she improved somewhat. Less eczema, less intestinal discomfort but still big symptoms if exposed to a small amount of the offending foods. However, it wasn’t until we gave muscle testing a try that we have seen significant improvements. You can tell just by looking at her that she is so much more healthy, I just look at her and FEEL a smile throughout my whole body knowing that we are doing something that works for her. If she gets exposure to an offending food, her reactions are minimal and she recovers quickly. We are still working on this, but we are joyous to see progress. The underlying blessing in all this is the awareness we have of food & health & choices.
I am anxious to hear how your experiment goes and what things you find that best help your son.
I know this is off the subject, but I’m wondering if anyone has any experience with a gluten sensitivity causing acne? Acne has plagued me since puberty(I’m 27). I know hormones have a role since I have clear skin when pregnant and it gets horrible when nursing. But could a food sensitivity be the root cause? I would hate to be on a restricted diet, but if it cleared my face, I would do anything! The weird thing right now is that my skin is dry and flaky along with the acne. Before kids, I always had oily skin. Anyone out there been in my shoes?
Another acne sufferer here as well. It wasn’t bad until I went off birth control to get pregnant with my first child. As long as I’m on BC pills it’s fine, but I do NOT want to be on them.
Gluten and dairy are huge triggers for a lot of acne sufferers.
Vitamin D deficiencies as well as zinc are problems for some.
I do NOT believe in the evolution side of primal eating, but it’s an eating plan that makes sense to me. Here’s some info about acne:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/primal-advice-for-acne-sufferers/
more info in the forum over there as well.
Alyssa, this is what was causing my acne! I’m 31 and told my Dr. that I was just too old to still be having so much acne. I couldn’t decide if I looked like a teenager or a meth addict.
It is actually a testimony. I wish I had prayed sooner. I felt vain about praying that God would heal my skin, but I finally did. Shortly thereafter I had a 4 day stretch of being bloated, gassy, and then swollen all the way down to my feet. I had no apparent ankles. I went to a holistic dr. not wanting to be pumped full of meds to see “how I’d react” and go from there. My dr. suspected it was a digestion infection. She told me to cut out dairy, sugar, peanuts, and gluten, and take probiotic pill. At the end of my appt. I mentioned the acne and she recommended a few different things, a GOOD daily vitamin, colorful pheonix, and Egyptian magic- which is an all natural skin moisturizer. After process of elimination, it was gluten, and sugar worsened it, even natural sweetners. The colorful pheonix helped before I had gotten rid of the gluten all the way. But once I got rid of it, my skin balanced out and I don’t need anything.
My skin is clearer than it has been for 18 years! She asked me if I took any antibotics around puberty age and I couldn’t remember but she said that contributes to internal problems.
I already didn’t wear make-up or hardly any hair product b/c it seemed everything aggrivated my skin. I asked her about medicinces like ProActive (which didn’t work for me) and she said these things, even the ones that stress vitamin A are BAD for us. The vitamin A ones overdose us, which clears our skin and then causes major issues later in life. I’m so glad I didn’t use yet ANOTHER skin care product!
Since then I have also had my hair grow a bit thicker/healthier. I’m amazed, just amazed. So it’s worth checking out. And really, fruit, veggies, dairy and meat, nuts, ect. is not a suffering diet really. If you get it all out of your system, and really discipline yourself to take in probiotics, you can eventually reintroduce it slowly. I’m hoping reintroduction will work for me. They are already proving in the contemporary medical field that even the most severe allergies can be overcome by cleanse and reintroduce in miniscule amounts.
Good luck to you!
I also have to say that I could not afford to have a bunch of allergy tests. I also even asked about hormonal imbalances being the problem. My dr. said that elimanation would be the best way to go AND that hormonal tests are not accurate enough. Different people at different stages of life have different levels and it can’t measure what you need to have and if you are within that range or not. It can only tell the very most extreme cases.
Was just introduced to this:
http://realfoodmedia.com/foodallergies/?AFFID=40389
They actually talk about reversing food allergies, not just avoiding the allergens. I’m thinking about taking this class and thought it might be of interest to you.
Have you ever considered yeast a problem? Since doing a yeast cleanse my eczema has really cleared up.
From all the comments, I’m sure you can see that eczema can be caused by many different food allergies. My family is unfortunately experts in food allergies. I just wanted to make a suggestion that might help you reduce the amount of time you struggle with this. Try putting him on a TOTAL elimination diet- that means removing all the major common allergens, not just one. Keep that up until he gets better, and then start adding foods back in one at a time. It’s hard to do, but it can save you a lot of time and trouble in the long run. Why spend weeks or months eliminating each possible food one at a time? And if it turned out to be two different things that were causing the eczema you might never realize it unless they were both eliminated at once. For instance he could have a problem with wheat, AND dairy. Even with the wheat eliminated he might not get better. So you’d think, oh, wheat’s not the problem. Then you put him back on wheat, and take away the dairy, and still he doesn’t get better because now the diary’s not bothering him but the wheat is. I guess you get the idea. The only way to know for sure, and really the fastest way to get results and answers, is to do TOTAL elimination. I wish you all the best!!
Wow! Do I understand how you are feeling! One part of you wants to figure out what is wrong, but the other part just wants it not to really be anything. Our youngest has had skin rashes & excema. We are in the process of trying to figure out what else is going on in her little body. She has many food allergies, including wheat, eggs, milk, and all nuts. (try making tasty food with out any of that!) I have had to use a gluten free diet for her for a year now. One thing I have learned is if you replace the wheat flour with coconut flour in a recipe, you need to increase the liquid in the recipe also. Hopefully that will save you some recipe “headaches”. I will pray for you and your family as you take this journey. One thing that has helped me is to realize that I am not alone.
Elissa
Laura,
Have you considered dairy as a possible cause? My 4yo had really bad eczema until we took him off milk. He tolerates occasional cheese and yogurt, but if he has too much dairy the eczema (and runny nose/ear infections) flares right back up. Just a thought – and easier than gluten free:)
I had the same reaction when we found out our middle son has a dairy (I think casein) allergy. It was so hard to always have something special for him to eat! Now, we are used to it, and by using almond milk, I can almost always just make the same meal for everyone. Yes, we are all going almost dairy free, but we are also eating healthier. I am going to speak to his doctor about an allergy test because he has started getting itchy and developing hives without any dairy contact.
I’m currently nursing and minimizing dairy. My six week old seems to have an excessive amount of gas. Fortunately, he is usually able to pass it. I am looking into working with someone to help me with ideas for food that are easier on little tummies.
On a side note, my oldest had terrible eczema when he was a baby from a dairy sensitivity. Turns out most comercial bath stuff for little ones has dairy additives in it. who knew? I highly doubt there is any in the bath stuff you use since you are so careful. There may be something odd though that you wouldn’t think of bothering him. Maybe an allergy test could benefit you guys by finding something?
It’s so depressing, but we are there also. :( But, after doing extensive research, I truly believe the Gaps protocol answers the ‘whys’ behind the current allergy epidemic, and it goes beyond just casein and gluten free. And, the best part is, I truly believe that it can heal a persons gut so that the gluten free eating does not have to be forever. I’m sure some people will still have to go off gluten forever, but most probably don’t.
http://www.gapsdiet.com/GAPS_Outline.html
The book is worth the money, to understand why gluten, casein, etc, affects a person. And there are people all over the world following the protocol and healing.
It not only takes away problem food, but it adds back the right foods for true healing. Probiotics and probiotic foods, bone broth, celtic sea salt, egg yolks.
http://www.gapsdiet.com/GAPS_Outline.html
Laura, your journey from junk and boxed food to real food sounds so similar to ours. Several years ago, I was diagnosed with a thyroid disorder. The doctor also ordered a food allergy test that showed I was allergic to wheat (and all gluten grains), eggs, and dairy. When I found out, I cried and cried. Thank the Lord (and I mean that sincerely), my best friend had been gluten free for over a year. She helped me understand that it isn’t the end of the world and there is still plenty of food out there to enjoy. I made more changes to our family’s diet, and I think we are in a very good place today. I no longer have any of the food allergies. I do tend to eat a low-carb diet most of the time, and eat wheat in the form of homemade bread and pizza. We rarely eat pasta. The biggest trick is filling up growing boys without wheat or the expensive gluten free substitutes. I’m praying for you and Malachi. You may discover some new wonderful recipes out of this! We sure did…
My 5 year old son, Austin, has esoniphilic esophagitis (Look up EE allergy) and he currently eats meat, chicken, fruits, and a few vegetables… BUT we are on week 2 of a process that will take a few more months (1 allergy each week), I have hope that in 3 months, Austin will be able to eat normal and have no more problems! He is the size of a 3 year old and he just turned 5.
Please look up NAET -allergy eliminating technique. I wholeheartedly believe that if we follow through with it (don’t stop a month in), we will get completely rid of his allergies, which include wheat, oats, corn, rice, tree nuts/peanuts, peas, soy, and more.
I think God has led us to finally get the help Austin needs, as we walked as far as the medical field took us, and they just gave medications.
My youngest has been gluten free for a a little over 2 years now. He was sick all the time and hasn’t been sick since we went gluten free. It is a challenge but totally doable. Amazon is a great resource for gluten free products. The best bread I have found (my other kids scarf it down) is from Pamela’s Mixes. A lot less expensive if you buy it on Amazon. It is definitely trial and error with specific brands. Hang in there. One day at a time and all that jazz :) As a side note and a definite benefit, his ADHD is sooo much better on the diet. We don’t medicate and it definitely makes it tons more manageable! Praying for you!
Wow, there are a lot of comments here. My son has eczema as well and did the scratching and bleeding thing as a baby. Dry skin and fragrances in anything cause his flare ups. This included perfume -wearing nursery workers! At eight it is better if I keep him moisturized and fragrance -free. Maybe you will find relief for him through some one else’s trial and error.
I haven’t read all the above posts, I sure do hope they encourage you. I had to do my own gluten free experiment due to allergies. It was like you said, God hits you upside the head and says, “you don’t have a choice, you have to do this”. Anyway, I am sure you have a ton of resources given by other readers, I just wanted to let you know that I went to a herbalist, which was extremely helpful and encouraging, he made the comment that it takes 28 days for gluten to be completely removed out of the body. So it may be awhile before you see any change in your son – if this is gluten related. Also just touching or being exposed to gluten can set you back. Be encouraged, there are a TON of great products out there that are gluten free, you just have to experiment with which tastes best to you. You CAN do this!!
Hugs, Laura! My son doesn’t have eczema, but he does have a rare allergic disease called EE (eosinophilic esophagitis). He has been on an elimination diet for over 3 months, and will be indefinately. He cannot have wheat, milk, soy, eggs, peanuts/treenuts, or fish/shellfish. The first two weeks were horrible–I cried and pouted and DID NOT WANT TO DO IT! I had quite the attitude problem, and of course it made it worse. After the first couple of weeks I started to get the hang of it, and you know what? It’s really not a big deal anymore! We haven’t found any suitable “bread” replacements that meet all of his restrictions, so we just don’t eat it anymore. We found plenty of other things to eat. I can’t speak to the eczema, but I can speak to the feelings. . . you will do great with the gluten free diet and you will get through this hurdle! Hang in there!
I won’t be of any help in the GF department, but I wanted to encourage you and say you are an awesome mom!!!! It’s a testimony to how much you love & serve your family that you are exploring every avenue for helping your little guy get better.
GO LAURA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One thing that helped my son who has a peanut allergy is removing EVERYTHING from the house that has ever touched a peanut. So no more peanut butter for any of us (even though he is the only one allergic) – That was really tough as I love peanut butter — but his skin has never been better. :-) Good luck!
I don’t know if you read all of your comments, but I came across this about allergic to wheat (possibly!) If this one little tip helps…I’ll pass it along. My girls are allergic to gluten. For months I’ve been researching and I want you to know that your sons eczema is just a symptom to what is really going on inside his body. Our skin consumes tap water (chemicals). It also consumes an overload of wheat in almost every product you buy at the store. I think all of celiac patients are allergic to it because we are putting wheat into everything now. I, too like you, had gallon buckets of wheat into storeage…but I choose to give it away to a family who probably could use it more than I would just standing in my garage. I treated my girls skin (condition) forever until I realized it was just a symptom. I needed to ‘feed’ their body full of immune builders…like echinacea, elderberry juice, raw goat/cow milk, raw fruits/veggies, made my own raw yogurt, and other fermented stuff. If you don’t build their immune system, they can’t fight off little things like eczema or a common cold. I fought this battle for years with my girls…then dedicated myself to a strict gluten free diet for them for about 6-9 months…regrouped, then journaled what improvements they made. Glory to God they are healed. No more scratching, bleeding, weird stools, eczema, less colds/chest stuff…etc. I hope this blesses you.
Wow – tons of replies!!! I just wanted to say I’m kind of in the same boat – except I don’t have the 300 lbs of wheat… I just invested in a grain mill and have made a huge switch in our diets to real food, and so much of it is based on whole wheat. but I really think a grain-free diet would help DH, DS, and me. I just don’t want it too! I am loving my fresh bread and homemade goodies…
I’m so sorry that your baby is suffering. I was diagnosed with a severe corn allergy two years ago and thought my “eating” life was over. But once I began to replace corn with better things for me, I noticed a huge difference in my skin. For as long as I can remember I’ve been plagued with eczema, rashes, hives, bumps and all other kinds of weird things that came and went. Now that I know what it means to live on the “other side” without corn, I wouldn’t go back. It’s become natural and not at all hard to walk away from the yummy things that aren’t good for me. My moods and energy levels have changed for the better too! Watch out, he’ll be shooting his guns and raising the roof even more now. LOL
I’ve been hesitant to give up wheat even though I was diagnosed with a lesser allergy to wheat. I’ll be reading with interest to know how it’s going for him and possibly looking for inspiration and motivation to give up wheat too!
I know to some extent how your are feeling. I just recently came to the realization that I need to go GF. It is almost a grieving process going through it, but I know my body will be so much better for it. And there is so much more information, etc. out there today than in the past. You can do it and your whole family will be healthier. Blessings!
You can do this! It becomes easier and easier. We’ve been at it for our youngest for several months now, and I was just commenting a few days ago how it seems to have become second nature in a lot of ways already. I haven’t mastered it all by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s not only not hard anymore, it’s become pretty easy for the most part. My daughter (8 last week, 7 1/2 at the start) has even learned the foods she can and can’t have and how to prepare snack bags to carry with her to town and meals to prepare independently. She doesn’t even mind it most of the time anymore because she feels so much better. And she recognizes symptoms in herself when she eats anything outside her diet. It’s been a positive experience for us, and I hope for you it will be the same.
HealthyIndulgences.blogspot.com is a good site. You have so got to try the chocolate black bean cake. I recommend using only 1/2 – 3/4 tsp stevia (if you use the honey/stevia option) as the full tsp in the recipe leaves a bitter aftertaste. But, wow! Very impressive gf recipe.
P.S. When we started, I felt just like you do now.
Laura,
I am sorry that your son has eczema. Gluten is tricky but you will find that you can do almost all the same stuff with non gluten flours as wheat. I have been GF and DF for 10 years. I can not believe that, WOW! I was toxic when I found out but the medical community could not help me. I went to a chiropractor that does natural medicine. The Drs. I went with used Metagentics. I feel MUCH better than I did before. My energy levels are much better. Two things I wish to “give” you. To find a Dr. that deals with Metagentics or a functional medicine look at this site. https://www.drdenboer.com look under resources and than functional medicine.
Also, here is a recipe for all purpose flour that is not wheat…6 cups of rice flour, 3 cups tapioca flour, 1 1/2 cups potato starch, 1 T salt, 2 T xanthum gum. I do not usually use the salt in mine. I hope this helps and is also encouraging. Oh, one more thing, with your son being young if you are able to get his gut healed he might be able to tolerate whatever he may be allergic too.
I do cook meals for me and than meals for my fam. I have yummy bread that is just done for them right now. Praying for you as you adjust and that you have wisdom to know what is causing the eczema.
Michele, I see Dr. denBoer as well! His knowledge is amazing and has saved my eye vision and my health. We have learned so much from him and our health is so much better because of him.
Hello Heather,
I believe we know each other. LOL
MLS
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Hilarious!!!! Took me a sec!
Yeah, he’s the best huh?? ;)
I have been gluten free for six years now.
I am the only one in our family that is gluten free. I was dealing with multiple canker sores in my mouth…sometimes as many as 5 at a time and some in my throat as big as my little finger nail. I ate and talked with great pain. I finally was pointed to Celiac.com and discovered I had many other symptoms that matched. I really did not want the gluten free diet either. But I did a two week trial. For me results showed within three days and I never looked back.
It’s not really that difficult to cook gluten free. As a general rule I do not make a separate meal for myself and something different for the family. Yes, they can have their breads and cereals, but the main meals of the day are all gluten free.
You can do this too in your family. There are so many dishes that do not have to have gluten in them that your whole family can eat and your son will not have to eat something different. It would be better for him if you all ate the same stuff so he doesn’t have to feel he is missing out.
Here’s an example of what we had tonight. I had left over pot roast from Sunday, so I cut that up and put it in a pot, added potato chunks and baby carrots, put water in and spices to taste, brought it close to a boil and added some potato starch mixed with a little water and let it come to a boil so it thickened. That was our stew.
I use Pamela’s baking mix that I buy from Vitacost.com because they sell the 4lb bag and it’s cheaper to buy it that way then to buy the little bags up town You can do all kinds of stuff with this baking mix. It’s the gluten free Bisquik. I made drop biscuits to go with our stew and I threw some shredded cheese in the batter just for something different tonight.
Eating gluten free at home doesn’t have to difficult. I got creative one night and made what I call a pot pie. It uses the biscuit mix as the “crust” on top. My family loves it.
I make gluten free lasagna that tastes every bit as good as the other kind. I just took a regular lasagna recipe and tweaked it by substituting rice noodles for wheat.
It is daunting when you first start, but before long, I promise, you’ll be comfortable with it.
Going out to eat is a bit of a hassle though. I dislike going out because you don’t know if the food has been cross contaminated or not, so it takes a bit of persistence to make sure the meal is safe. I dislike feeling like I have to be picky, but it’s the only way to protect myself.
Have you considered going to a Naturopath? The bible says, “And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and THEIR LEAVES FOR HEALING.” (Ezekiel 47:). Since seeking counsel from a Naturopath and taking a few supplements I have never felt better! I know it seems expensive, but God always provides. There are Christian Naturopaths, too, in fact ours prays with us and seeks God’s wisdom. Just a thought.
Laura:
I found you site while at Simple Mom. I came across this post. I have not been following your story nor do I know the back story so I might be totally off base. Gluten was not the answer for us an eczema. It was the dairy. Almost immediate effects were seen in my girls and both my usband and I for eczema and sinus prob.I am sure you have tried everything so I am probably too late to sugest this. We do many gluten free though for my son for other reasons..Areoroot flour is our staple. Rice flour as well. Good Luck. I will pray for your new journey..it is a long road, but God is with you.
Laura-I also just found your site, so you may already be doing this,
but I agree with Sandra and that it may be a dairy allergy. Avoiding
dairy has cleared up all or most of our sinus issues, dry skin,
bloating, acne, and overall fatigue! I know I feel like a new person
when I eat dairy free.
God bless and I pray you find the right answer for your son!
I agree… if you havent already try dairy first if its truly eczema. There is a separate rash associated with gluten. Its called dermatitis herpetiformis and its more like super itchy bumps especially on the elbows, knees, and usually its OUTside of the joints not INside like eczema. Anyway you can google it and see what I’m talking about. It often can come over the whole body as well especially on limbs too. Its so hard to diagnose because so few doctors are educated about it. I thought that my sons rash was eczema (though I knew it was different what I had seen on others) for the longest time and had no clue what it was until I described it to a celiac friend of mine who said she had the same rash. So we are trying gluten free too and it seemed to help thought it pops up again out of the blue even if I think he hasnt had any gluten. Well there is the contamination issue and we are going to see the doctor to see if he can test the rash because if it is DH then they can determine it that way. So we are STILL not sure if its the gluten and I feel the same way you do, I didnt want that for him but I have the gut feeling thats what it is. But time will tell. Thankyou for sharing and for pointing us to some g-free sites and recipes! I am very thankful to you! I hope you figure it out soon!
sorry i need to correct myself. the rash can be in and outside of the joints. in my sons case it its outside. However the rash is much different looking from true eczema regardless of the place.
Hi Laura~
My 4 1/2 yr old son was also born with severe eczema. Everything we did to treat it was topical and never got to the source. I’m a “from scratch” cook like you so I knew it wasn’t the quality of food causing the problem. After speaking with an Acupuncturist AND a homeopathic specialist both suggested it was probably dairy causing the most damage to his system with gluten being a secondary contributor.
I switched to DF and GF (oh how I missed my baked goods!) for my entire family since I was having issues as well. It took a few weeks for our systems to adjust but WOW what a difference. I just recently reintroduced gluten and dairy back into our diets and I’m afraid the dairy is wreaking havoc on our systems (I brought them back one at a time so I would know if one affected us more than the other).
Many prayers to you and your little guy. I know how hard it is to change things up on our cute little garbage disposals but it can be done. My only bit of advice is to forgo the gluten free or dairy free alternatives (fake cheeses and GF crackers for example). Most of them have yucky things in them that you don’t want to feed your family. Brown rice can be ground into flour just as easily as your wheat and coconut milk is a fabulous substitute.
Bless your heart, Laura… I can so relate! I went gluten free last November… pretty much “cold turkey”, over night. Our newborn wasn’t growing, wasn’t thriving… gluten was suspect.
He turned 8 months old yesterday. He’s chubby. He’s thriving. Was it worth it? You bet!
Our other son, who is almost 3, is also gluten-free right now. After nearly 3 months, his tummy troubles are starting to show some improvement.
Blessings on you and your family for doing this! It’s tough, but it does get easier. You just have to find a new “normal”. (I’m still working on that part!)
Praying for good health for your little man.
My mom eats a mostly gluten free diet, and as her cook, I’ve had to learn a lot to get around that, since it’s generally impractical and expensive for me to go all GF too, and I hate missing out on all that great fiber. One of the most valuable things I’ve learned is that she has less of a gluten problem and more of a *wheat* problem. She can tolerate barley, oats, even the occasional dose of spelt. So once/if Malachi’s rash clears up after those six weeks, see if any of those grains upset him – believe me, it’s a lot easy to cook just wheat free than gluten free.
A quick tip: the hands-down best GF pasta I’ve found is called Jovial – their brown rice pasta tastes just like wheat! Which is really saying something. If you don’t tell them, they won’t even know it’s gluten free unless you overcook it. You can find it on Amazon.
Girl! I know where you’re coming from! When our oldest was a baby, she just stopped growing as soon as I weaned her. (She was 15 months old, and I was preg with #2.) I went through 4 doctors, (one of which suggested I needed mental health intervention because I was making my baby sick and another that threatened to call Social Services because my baby had hit failure-to-thrive levels) before we found a doctor who pushed through to find an answer to our baby’s problem. At 2 1/2 she was diagnosed with Celiac. I was relieved to have a diagnosis, but had never even heard of a Gluten Free diet. That was more than 9 years ago. We changed her diet immediately and our world changed. Her gut began healing and she began sleeping and developing normally again. YEA!
I LOVE a good challenge, and learning to cook FANTASTIC food GF was a challenge I could sink my teeth into. I will be happy to share some recipes with you if you are interested. I have developed a chocolate cake recipe that our non-GF friends request all the time. It is AMAZING! Our breads ROCK! We are mostly all GF now. My husband still likes to have some wheat bread every now and then. I just have one counter space in the kitchen where I allow wheat stuff. Our second child has Celiac as well. I didn’t wean him until he was three to try to stave off the disease, but it hit him as soon as he was weaned. Both of our kids are healthy, growing, well-adjusted. Our church family is a great support. We have a covered dish meal every Sunday afternoon and other ladies plan their meals to be GF most of the time. Also, my kids go first through the line each week to ensure that there is no cross-contamination with spoons or spills into a GF dish. The same has happened with our homeschool co-op. We are blessed to have friends who love our kids enough to plan with them in mind. (OH! Make sure he doesn’t use playdough. It has wheat in it and will mess up his skin!)
Honestly, I would much rather cook GF. It is do-able. We are 90% organic, and have found a great farm for meats and dairy, as well as a CSA for fruits and veggies. (We are Local-Foodies)
I would be happy to answer any questions you have along the way. Ingredients to AVOID: wheat, rye, barley, malt (incl. malt flavoring), modified food starch (toxic modification of wheat).
~CS
My sister-in-law has been diagnosed with Celiac’s, and inviting her family over for dinner has always proved to be a challenge, so while I hope, for your sake, that Malachai does not need to go GF, I look forward to the solutions you find so I can provide healthier options for my SiL!
I’m so sorry to hear about your litle man. I just discovered that 90% of all wheat is GM (genetically modified). Ever since the introduction of GM wheat, the % of people becoming intolerant to it has shot through the roof. Funny how we change God’s food and our bodies can’t deal with it well.
And now the government just approved GM alfalfa – what 90% of all cows will be eating, so now our dairy and meat will have GM food in it. It does seem hopeless and without God it would be.
I’ll be praying for you guys.
My kids and I are gluten free and have been for a year and a half (although, it is not for eczema). It was a life changer for us but in a very good way! Going gluten free changed my thinking. It was definitely not easy at the start. Now I enjoy baking and writing recipes. I use all whole grain flours. The taste isn’t wheat, but we started to love it after a short time. Thanks for sharing your family’s personal experience!
Laura-
We’re kind of in the same boat right now. My son who is 8 just isn’t thriving like he should be. He has lost 9 pounds in 6 months (and he didn’t have anything to lose). I eat gluten free myself and try to make most of our meals gf if possible, but it’s hard. I just want for us all to be able to eat “normally”. I want to go to a potluck and EAT. I want to try so many of your awesome recipes. I want to eat wheat because it’s yummy and WAY cheaper. I guess I don’t really have any answers, but I just want you to know I totally know where you’re coming from. I guess one thing I struggle with is if we have one child (plus me) that are gluten free, do you make everyone go gluten free? My little guy feels so left out if he can’t eat things that his brothers can (we have four boys too!). I have always loved to cook and bake, but honestly, I don’t enjoy it as much in the gf world. It’s more complicated! I really look forward to following your gf journey – you’re so cool! Thanks for helping me be a better wife and mama!
My son’s eczema was due to tree nut allergies. Wheat’s not a problem, well, at least for him – my husband was diagnosed as borderline celiac, but he appears to have crossed the line. :( We’re not all going gluten-free, though. I just spend more time cooking than I already had – he’s also allergic to poultry, legumes(including peanuts & soy), carrots and celery. I’m not willing to take away all of those things from my kids – or me!
Oh I SO understand your situation. My little girl was practically born with chronic eczema. And so was I. The truth is, in most cases, food can be related, or at least exacerbate the problem. She was allergy food tested at 18 months and although I knew she was allergic to milk, we found out that wheat was also a problem. We just didn’t know it because the eczema was so bad, you couldn’t tell that wheat was making it worse. I felt like I had been poisoning her without knowing it!
If its okay, I’m going to email you an attachment of gf recipes that we actually like (cause lots of them out there are ick…I sometimes wonder if the people writing those recipes haven’t tasted good baked goods for so long that they don’t remember what they taste like.) And I’ll share something else that seems to be helping her in the grain department, that you probably already know how to do.
Both my boys are gluten free and for the most part hubby and I are also. Although only one boys needs to be gluten free, I am raising both of them GF. We as a family have decided that we do not use alot of GF flour etc. This can be a confusion to children when they are offered food by other adults. – Well my mom let me eat brownies so this must be ok – We have had that happen :( He understand on special occasions we have GF bread or cupcakes but this is not our norm. Going GF help but not having the GF alternative flours has really made a big difference.
You may also want to check out pecanbread.com for info The Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD). You may have to heal his gut before you notice a difference.
Cooking has always been a joy of mine but I have learned to change my view on this to what I believe is a more Godly perspective. Cooking for healing and health.
Thank you for the “Godly perspective” comment. I needed to read that today.
I am mainly grain free due to an intolerance issue. The more I read the more I believe that we shouldn’t be eating any grains. It’s hard though when my family used to rave about what a great baker I was. I almost feel like my identity was lost. I don’t have any “goodies” to offer people when they come over now.
It was almost as if I was trying to impress people with my baking skills because I still stay at home even though my kids are in school.
Cut up fruits and vegetables do NOT have the same impact on my family and friends as my home baked goodies did. We have cut back on dairy and sugar as well so it’s been a bit of a shock to my 14 and 12 year old kiddos.
Thank you for getting my perspective back….”cook for healing and health”.
It has been fascinating to read all of your stories, comments, suggestions, etc.
11 years ago I was diagnosed with optic neuritis (inflamation of the optic nerve). Because of pregnancy hormones I started eating gluten again without any problems until 18 months after my 2nd child, I was diagnosed with Graves’ Disease, hyperthyroid. Under the care of a chiropracter/homeopathic doctor, I took gluten out of my diet and within 7 weeks my thryoid levels stopped rising, but platued. I did not take medicine for my hyperthyroid, especially b/c at the time I was still nursing.
This doctor has saved my health and the health of my family.
So, we now have found ways to eat gf/df/sf so much more inexpensive than the norm. We have access to a International store and we have bought sweet rice for $20//20lb. Amazing! We use a Blendtech to make rice flour. We have also bought Jowar Flour (sorghum flour) there for very inexpensive. Also millet flour can be bought there.
We buy all of our rice pasta at an asian market. We don’t pay more than $1.50 for a bag of pasta. And how much would I pay at the regular grocery store or health food store…$4.99!! If you have access to an asian market, check it out! We also buy potato starch, tapioca flour, rice flours at the asian market. 8oz for .49 cents…not bad!
It has taken us awhile to find these stores but there is so much available for us. It doesn’t have to be expensive.
The combination of gf flours makes gf cooking a lot better. I have just finished eating a loaf of gf bread made in my bread maker. So Good!!
Eating gf/df/sf/cf can be done! We have so much support…proof is all of the blogs and books that were recommended.
Good success for your GF and/or DF and whatever else baking!
I’m so sorry to hear about your little guy. I can sooooo relate! I have five boys and three of them have chronic problems. My five year old has the eczema. He was miserable the first few years of his life just like your Malachi. He had it on the tops of his feet and the top of his “bottom” area and behind his knees and elbows. His feet would get infected and it was horrible! My own mother threatened to call DHR on me for not taking him to the Dr. But I knew all the creams would not fix him long term. My husband and I finally decided to try diet. We took him off all grains, dairy, and sugar (including fruit). His eczema was practically gone in two weeks! If you haven’t noticed an improvement go ahead and go all the way. At least for a little while! My other boys have corn, soy, rice and nut allergies. I’m convinced his is more of a yeast issue than anything else. He also had terrible, oozing cradle cap as an infant and this I’ve read is classic for yeast problems! May God direct your path and you find what the culprit is! I LOVE your blog so much and use so many of your recipes! I just made sloppy joe muffins last night with ranch potato wedges! Yummm!
Oh…My…God! Being Gluten Intolerant is NOT a death sentence NOR is it the end of the world. It just means not eating wheat! I know because I’m gluten intolerant….and I live a full and rich life. ;-)
So, get over your fear…get over your anger…get your your guilt…and do what’s best for your kid! Heck, going Gluten-Free might help your whole family – if one of you has issues with gluten, then there’s a higher chance that others in your family do.
my pastor’s wife is a nutritionalist and has told me(and its on her website) that adding EPA’s to a diet will get results with Eczema and my daughter is proof. she started showing signs of eczema at 4 months old and so we started adding fish oil to her bottles…within 2 weeks…pretty much unnoticeable. we’d see it once in a while after that if we skimped or forgot. eventually, we went to giving her cherry flavored cod liver oil(TwinLab) on a spoon. it worked great and she loved it…until 18 months! she got stubborn and quit taking it. the last 6 months have been increasingly horrible with all the scratching and bleeding and swelling. we’ve given up on fish oils for now since fairly detectable by smell and are working on flax seed oil and GF and corn free(since corn is in formula and she was a formula baby) soy is next on the list. we tried dairy last summer.
anyway, my pastor’s wife has a cookbook that pretty much the whole town (small as it is) has been using for all sorts of issues but she rarely, if at all, uses wheat. heavy on bean flour and legumes in general for their cleansing properties.
tried and true recipes: http://karenhurd.com/recipe_main.html
hope this helps someone out there!
I know a lot of people have spoken already – my story is much the same. I have celiac disease; I was DX’d 5 years ago. I haven’t looked back since then – I feel like a new person! It runs in my family.
A few thoughts, though:
–If you do end up going GF (and even now), I think it’s important to focus on what Malachi CAN have, not what he CAN’T. I think that’s especially important with kids.
–If this helps Malachi, don’t feel like the entire family has to be GF. I am GF but my husband is not. However, (as I like to say), I am NOT a short-order cook! I only cook one meal. If he wants bread, he adds that to his meal.
I don’t have any experience with kids and celiac/GF, but I think that Malachi will do best if you involve him in the process. Explain things to him, let him help pick out food and make it, etc. And most importantly, make sure the entire family is positive about the GF “experiment”.
Hoping you get some answers – and soon!
I completely understand how you feel. COMPLETELY!! My oldest daughter had chronic diarrhea and a rash all over her torso, underarms, and behind her knees. She was miserable. After 4 months of stomach problems (years of “eczema”) we had her tested for celiac. After a very positive test, we put her on a gluten free diet.
That was a year ago. I can’t say that it has always been easy. I too have a food storage and cooked with SO much whole wheat. However, the Lord has strengthened me and helped me know how to adjust our meals. She has been so healthy, so happy that it is worth it. All the extra time, money, successes, and failures have been worth it to have her healthy. My 2nd daughter recently tested positive and we will be putting her on a gluten free diet as well. I am so sad for both of them, but I realize that if ANYTHING is going to be wrong with their health, I will gladly take this than something else. This I can control with food. This I can treat. How grateful I am for that!
Goodluck on everything. Reach out to the gluten free community, it really is a community.
My sister was diagnosed with Celiac’s a year ago, and my mom, dad, and sister have all gone gf. It has been hard, like you have said, but it is all she can do now. It has changed her life, and being off gluten, has helped her so much! I hope you find answers for Malachi.
She loves this easy peanut butter cookie recipe…
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
Mix and bake!
That is seriously the BEST cookie recipe! I make them all the time and people (GF or not) rave about them!
Try adding chocolate chips, too – yum!
Eczema is our bane!! We have 7 children, 4 have had eczema and 2 are still quite severe. Scratching controls our lives. We are starting a SCD/GAPS diet to see if this will help. It is hard, but I am willing to try anything at this point. Praying for success with your diet changes!
Right there with you. Doing this exact thing with my 11 month old except she did test positive for a wheat allergy, so I have more reason to try it. Plus my mom is gluten intolerant. Sigh… But I totally agree, I do and don’t want it to work. I want it to be something simple and non-life-altering. I don’t really want it to be the wheat. But if it’s the wheat, well, boy I hope it works!!!
Honestly I just want a clear answer… :( *hugs*
Ok, I can see that you have been bombarded with comments, but I just wanted to throw the idea of a dairy allergy out there. I know eczema is triggered by different things depending on the person, but my son is affected by dairy. I couldn’t have any myself the entire time I was nursing him. He’s 5 now and still can’t have dairy, but by avoiding it we never have any eczema flair ups.
Oh, and I know that you prefer only natural type things, but Aquaphor was the ONLY thing that relieved the eczema when he was a baby.
Good luck!!
I see that you have had lots of comments about this. I am in my thirties with eczema and my 3 year old has genetics to thank for his.
We went to an allergist because I was afraid of a gluten problem. However, eczema is related to dairy and eggs and not grains.
The gluten intolerance or celiac rash is described as a serpant pattern and it truly is.
I would try removing dairy and eggs from Malachi’s diet, especially since you have not seen an improvement after 9 days.
Hope this helps.
my daughter is allergic to eggs so she gets none yet when we took her off all dairy for two months last summer, there was no change so i dont’ think those can be the only two things that cause eczema.
I’m so glad you said this because I was getting the impression that eggs and dairy were the source of eczema.
Man, I really feel for you. After reading all these posts it starts to feel like there’s nothing that should be eaten (wheat, corn, dairy, eggs, soy…)Is eczema always diet induced? Is it possible that for some people there is another cause? Maybe environmental or hormones (even if Malachi is only 6)or an overactive immune system? I realize that this may just muddy the waters, but with everyone so diet focused it may be possible that other potential causes are being over looked. Anyway, I imagine you must be an expert on the topic after dealing with it for so long! I pray that you find the right answer and Malachi is healed.
I understand your pain at not wanting your son to be gluten-free. I faced a lot of the same feelings two years ago when, over the course of just a couple months, I learned that, between them, my two kids were allergic to corn, citrus, and dairy. I was nursing the baby at the time, and if I had any citrus or dairy, he would get a horrible rash, diarrhea, upset tummy. If #1 had even the smallest amount of a corn by-product, he’d react, too. I even had to start making my own baking powder! Talk about cooking from scratch! There were so many days I’d make a mistake, feed one of them something, or eat something myself that I shouldn’t have for the baby’s sake, and then start crying uncontrollably, because I felt like such a horrible mother for making my children suffer like that.
Now, two years later, I’ve gone through the food allergy gamut again with Baby #3, and learned that I myself have food allergies, and it’s gotten to the point that I’m actually glad it happened. By being forced to avoid so many foods, I learned SO MUCH about the food industry, and true nutrition (which you do a great job on!). It’s second nature now, and I’m actually finding myself staying on our special diet even when I’m out without the kids (although I do have my own stash of oranges!)
All this to say, no matter how bad it seems, it does get easier. Hang in there!
I personally think the american diet is way too high in wheat, corn, and soy. Even before we had to go completely off wheat, we were reducing our dependence on wheat and corn. There are so many other grains to eat. No, they are not as cheap as wheat and corn, but I am a firm believer now in investing in high quality food rather than going for the cheap.
I don’t know if someone already mentioned this, but here’s a little of our own experiance. My son is almost 8 and has had eczema along with many other problems since he was small. Recently we found out he had a lot of allergies and so he has been gluten, dairy along with some other foods free since Nov last year. His eczema didn’t clear up. Then we found out he couldn’t have eggs and so I tried him no eggs and put chandler farm body butter on him and he totally cleared up. He still has eggs sometimes in food and what I have found is he has a flare up even from the smallest amount of eggs cooked in pancakes for example. So that maybe something you can try. As far as the gluten free thing goes it takes about 3 months to really get a good measurement to see if it works. My other son can only have a little bit of gluten, if he eats heavy bread stuff like pizza he gets really sick. When he was totally gluten free for about 2 months he said his tummy felt so much better and he could go to the bathroom without any problems. My husband is trying gluten free to see if it helps with his joint pain. I do some gluten free baking but for the most part they have found other things to eat. I really don’t like buying the gluten free bread and stuff. I don’t like the price and I don’t think the ingrediants are that healthy. Hope that helps
Hang in there. I can really relate to your post – let us know how it goes.
My friend’s son had the same problem, took him off many different things, nothing helped. Finally got him tested and he is allergic to beef, chicken and garlic? go figure, those were things they would have never thought to take him off of. He is doing great now, no more issues now that he is off those…
Laura,
I know nothing about eating gluten free and am curious as to what you find out. But I wanted to share that I bought the lotion bar that you recommended from MadeOn Hard and thought that you had mentioned trying it on Malachi. I thought it worked well but when I tried it on my child with eczema, it seemed to irritate it and make it worse. I only gave it two days and then we went back to our regular routine and it was better again. I’m sure you have already thought of that and have things covered there but I was curious if that had affected him at all. My daughter also seems to react to aloe vera.
GAPS diet. GAPSDIET.COM Recommended by Nourishing Traditions. We’re doing it with our 5 children. CURES everything. Truly amazing. God is so good.
This has nothing to do with what you are going through, but wanted to let people know that when I went grain free my hypoglycemia issues disappeared almost overnight.
Laura,
We live in Arizona, where the water is quite hard and my youngest son has eczema as well. Water Softeners are quite common in Arizona (again really hard water and really yucky drinking water). We just put in a Kinetico water softener and Reverse Osmosis system. It removes all the hardness and the clorine from the water. Wow what a difference in my little one’s skin. Just an idea but you might want to have your water tested.
Oh, I want to give you a hug! I know this has to be so difficult as you have already cut out all of the other bad stuff, now you have to look at cutting out the “good”, just not good for your family. :( I know you can do it. You are an amazing and resourceful woman, and I believe that you will bless even more people with this new path. One of the directions that I really want to pursue, although I am such a coward, is the gaps/scd route. It is so reassuring that you can actually heal and totally reverse that kind of intolerance. It gives me so much hope. I pray that you find relief for Malachi! You are such a good mama!
A) My heart goes out to you. I pray Malachi WILL get better – whether GF or not.
B) I totally understand how YOU feel about this. I have tried to go GF before and it is REALLT hard.
C) My youngest has asthma and is lactose intolerant. Tried raw milk but, no, it still makes him sick. Even with milk removed he still wheezes and has dark circles under his eyes. Wheat would be the next thing to try.
D) I also have dietary issues including dry scalp. I do not know if it is eczema or psoriasis but I have a sneaking suspicion that no wheat might help. I just DON’T want to change. After all, I saved up to buy a Vita-Mix just so I could grind my own wheat (AND make yummy smoothies and oh, so much more).
E) Thank you for you kind and funny heart as you share your and your families lives with us. :)
Melinda,
I am GF/DF. I have a grain grinder. I use it for rice/millet and other GF things. I wanted to
encourage you as you continue on your way to GF/DF to use your Vita-Mix to grind rice/millet/tapioca the GF grains. I wish I had one of those on top of my other one
Hopefully you are encouraged by all the comments on here to continue on this way.
GF for about 6 months now…lots of improvements in gastro health and headaches. It shows itself in so many different ways. There are SOOO many excellent resources out there now.
Yes, it is more expensive to eat GF, but it’s also more expensive to deal with the pain and consequences of sickness.
There are lots of great flours out there, but the best I’ve found, bar none, is Jules ( just google Jules Flour ). She also shares a recipe on her website to blend your own. I use it cup for cup in all my baking recipes and friends cannot even tell. They’ll ask if I’m still eating GF !
Stick with it…it may take several weeks to work it’s way out of his little body…be vigilant about hidden sources. It’s in so much stuff and under so many different names that you ( or he ) can get it and not even know it. Dairy is another culprit, as many gluten intolerat people are also allergic to dairy.
One other thing. Read some of the other comments and wanted to add that I agree with the egg thing. Have at least 3 friends whose kids had skin issues from eggs…even the tiniest bit in foods ( again, hidden sources can get you ). Also, it may be hard for some, but after reading the damage that gluten does to the intestinal tract and that 80% of your immune system originates in the gut, I had no problem giving it up. It can be and often is a precursor to stomach/bowel cancer, diabetes, thyroid dysfunction…just to name a few. Not a big deal maybe when you’re 3, but the inflammation that’s being created in the body of someone with gluten intolerance is nothing to fool around with.
You can always get a stool test done and know for sure…they’re $99. I had mine done thru a company in Ca., because my doc said blood tests gave a lot of false positives and vise versa.
Here’s their site.
https://www.enterolab.com/
I have also heard a lot about enterolab and how accurate they are. Well worth the money. :)
We tried a gf diet for my dh for a few months, it ended up not helping — but while we were at it we found that rice and tapioca flours are SO MUCH CHEAPER at Asian Food Markets. Yes, I know you’re in Nebraska, but we have a couple of stores in Wichita, KS and they totally saved our food budget during that time. Just thought I’d let you know so you could check to see if you had any in Omaha, or at least shop at those online! :)
If it does end up being gluten, please also check all your personal care supplies for wheat. A lot of shampoos and body washes contain wheat in them. I have a good friend that is Celiac (very easily set off), and if she even uses a shampoo with wheat protein, she starts to get sick again in very little time.
And Playdoh also contains wheat so if he plays with it, make some from other flours.
My husband and I have discussed that if one of our children ever needed a GF diet, that while it is ridiculously expensive (I have heard you can itemize your taxes and count the difference between the GF food and “regular” food. I don’t know if that is correct or not, but if a GF diet is prescribed, then it falls under medical deductions. Talk to an accountant, I am not one nor do I pretend to be one. Nor do I balance our check book) we would all go GF. Mainly so that child doesn’t feel singled out or less special than the siblings. As it is, I’m allergic to sulfites (deathly) and we don’t let anything with them into the house (unless my MIL brings something out, which she does frequently, grrr). While I am an adult and am ok with what I need to avoid, a child wouldn’t necessarily understand the implications of it all.
Praying you find the culprit for the eczema and soon.
I just stumbled upon your blog and this post. And wanted to mention that the two times I have cut out dairy (my favorite), I noticed the biggest improvements in my skin. So if the gf diet doesn’t help, you might try two weeks sans dairy. It’s not easy and I am clealy back to eating it regularly. But my body was truly at its best when I was BOTH gluten and dairy free.
Best wishes!
I didn’t read through the comments…but have you thought of GAPS? I know it can heal the gut lining and reverse food allergies/sensitivities. I’ve read it can be as short as 6 months…. eczema is one of the symptoms they mention.
Hmmm… I have many friends with children that suffer from eczema and they have found that candida is to blame. They have had their children on therapeutic doses of probiotics and 1 tablet 3x/day of grapefruit seed extract. It is helping. They were also told that milk is to blame. Our two children also have candida and we are now trying the probiotics and grapefruit seed extract tablets along with digestive enzymes that are specially made for gluten and diary sensitivity. They both have milk allergies. We are seeing a difference in focus and attention, along with skin changes for the better.
Just google “candida yeast overgrowth” and you will see that eczema is a symptom. Has Malachi been on antibotics as a child? Has he had ear infections? May be something to look at if the answers are yes. I have more information if you are interested.
Good luck! Keeping praying – God will guide you down the right path… He has with us. :)
My MD, turned homeopathic, put me on a gluten free diet to CURE my Type 2 Diabetes and it is working!!!!! (Wheat and sugar are the main causes.) I have only been doing it for about two months but my readings are almost as good as they are when I am on medication… I go back for more blood work in another 10 days or so… if they continue to improve then I know I am on the right track. The switch has been very easy for me, who makes and enjoys making everything from scratch. I am learning to replace my favorite wheat recipes with non-wheat ones.
I do hope that you find some releif for your son. I have been GF for about two years now, I know that it sometimes takes longer then a month to have symptoms clear up it can take 6 months to a year sometimes. If I get Glutened without knowing it my body will feel it for 6-8 weeks after having just a small amount. For your sake I hope he doesn’t have to eat GF, I hope that if he does need to be GF that you havent given up too soon. Hopefully what you are trying will work now. Good Luck1
Just glancing over this site…You may want to check into your son’s energy system. I believe all problems with health, etc. begin with an imbalance in our body’s energy system. You are doing a great job with the diet but I bet your son’s liver, stomach and kidney meridians are out of balance. Also, we have a meridian that is called ‘Triple Warmer'(the fight, flight or freeze meridian). One of it’s jobs is to kick in the adrenals when it suspects ‘danger’. When that happens, adrenaline and cortizol are shot out throughout the body…everytime it comes in contact with the ‘danger’…which can be wheat, or a weed, or anything else such as stress. We then develop adrenal fatigue, & then into all kinds of issues. In our society today, our TW is on ‘guard’ way too much. I could go on for hours but I would be more than happy to tt you. I do not have a business, I don’t sell anything…I just use energy medicine to help my hubby and myself. We are both in our 60’s and have never been on any medication. Let me know. I love this stuff.
How did this work out for you? I just went GF for my 8 month old as I’m breastfeeding him and we’ve tried everything else and his eczema is still not any better. Day 6 and it’s a little bit better, definitely not worse…I dragged my feet so long with this cause I tolerate gluten just fine thank you very much, so I didn’t want to give it up…but he’s miserable and I can’t stand by knowing I could at least see if it helped…would love to know if it made a difference for your son.
Just know it will take a while. I went GF while BF my son because he had blood in his stool. It took a while but it did work. While gluten may not be the case for your son it is worth a try. Maybe look in to more good fats for him? Talk with a doctor or health practitioner first though.
And remember, this is just a season in your life and his. Going GF was sooooo hard for me. I felt crappy most of the time. GF is NOT for me. But it was quickly over. Keep on truckin!
Thanks Sara B – I appreciate the encouragement. I am working on getting some good fats into him as well and know that this is just temporary! Honestly, if this takes away his misery, I’m totally ok wit hit! But I agree..GF is not for me either…I’m working hard not to feel like I’m starving! :)
Going gluten free did not work for Malachi, but here’s a follow up post I wrote describing more of what did work for him: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/getting-to-the-root-cause-of-eczema-what-worked-for-malachi
Sara B and Kristina,
I posted above but wanted to respond to your notes. If you can see a chiropracter/homeopathic doctor. I did this and he helped so much. I was absolutely miserable so when I did go GF/DF. I felt so much better that it was not a hardship for me. People ask me if I miss things…honestly no.
There are flours of all kinds that can be used in place of wheat and same with dairy. Good luck in figuring the best for your families.
Hi there! I can relate to this post about your experiment, a lot. Right now, I am attempting to eliminate gluten from my son’s diet, due to extreme behavior problems. It was recommended to me by a chiropractor, who has seen great improvement with a lot of the kids she works with, after starting a gluten free diet. I feel like I HAVE to try this. If I don’t and I find out later that he did have an intolerance, I will not forgive myself. Like you I secretly don’t want this to work, but then I do, and then I don’t. I do want an answer to this, but I don’t want such a life changing fix, if you know what I mean. Anyhow, thank you for the info you provided, it is helping me get started;)
I realize this comment is a bit late (or a lot late!), but I was wondering how your experiment worked. My son also has severe excema and I’ve contemplated going GF for awhile, for other health reasons as well…..how did this work with your family and what did you decide? Was 6 weeks long enough to rid your bodies of the gluten? Thanks!
Here’s a follow-up post I wrote: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/our-gluten-free-experiment-results-and-a-new-hope
Then, here’s a post I wrote later about how that worked: https://www.heavenlyhomemakers.com/getting-to-the-root-cause-of-eczema-what-worked-for-malachi
For 2 years, my niece had horrible bleeding bumps that the doctor said was eczema. Her mom tried eliminating grains, dairy, etc. with no result. She went on a VERY high quality pro-biotic and within the month the bumps were going away.