Pediatric Celiac

As a preventative measure we took Matthew to a pediatric Gastroenterologist this morning. We wanted to determine whether he was a carrier for Celiac. We learned much about the development of the human immune system and history of Celiac. Most importantly we gained a game plan to make future decisions for what is best for Matthew's health.

I went in to the appointment with a set of preconceived idea of what was necessary to diagnose. There is a line of what I am willing to subject our 4 month old son in order to answer that question. The blood test I was hoping for only measures the antibodies if gluten is present in the system. So, unfortunately we still will have to introduce gluten at some point to know. The biopsy is the litmus test for the disease. I am not comfortable subjecting my infant/ toddler to anesthesia or that invasive of a procedure. Should he have positive blood work or present symptoms, that's enough for me to eliminate gluten from his diet. Symptoms in toddlers are varied but typically present as failure to thrive (inability to grow or gain weight), diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain, irritability and/ or vomiting. Blood work can be done at the well baby checks up for 12, 18 and 24 months of age. He does have a higher risk factor than the usual 1:223 to 1:1000 incidents due to family history. If you're curious, this article had much of the information we discussed at our appointment.

Our current game plan: We will wait until 6 months of age to introduce solids. I will continue to express milk to some degree as long as my supply lasts or 12 months, which ever comes last. As far as when we will introduce gluten in general, I anticipate that occurring after 12 months of age. We will monitor for symptoms and have a Celiac blood panel at the suggested intervals. We'll pray for God to lead us to what is the best decision for Matthew's health and development.

Here Matthew is while we practiced rolling over: