Catch up growth? HELP!

[Guest guest]

Hi, I have a little daughter (almost 2 1/2) who has super sensitive gluten

intolerance (rather, celiac). We took her off gluten almost 9 months ago, but in

reality she has been accidentally glutened many times during these 9 months. It

seemed as if we would only get her " up " only for her to go down again in another

week or two! It has been a very hairy experience with doctors and worrying to

death. Anyway, I have noticed that most children start gaining weight fairly

quickly, although some have taken around a year to get their catch-up growth.

I realize that most of these children are eating meat and dairy, which can pack

on the fat, etc. Do any of you have stories of your children and catch-up growth

or weight gain? I realize that a healthy vegan diet will not pack on weight like

other diets, and I rarely hear stories of gluten free people who are vegan as

well. The more experiences I read, the better it is for my soul (to stop

worrying! lol!). I have no doubt about the celiac with my daughter (we have had

100% turn around other than the weight issue), but I am wondering whether to

look for something else as well. ANY stories would be appreciated.

[Guest guest]

I can't answer your question but I can recommend a group that will be able to

help with infractions. GFCFKids. Many of the discussions are about autism but

they are great about knowing what is GF/CF. A word od caution though it is a

very active group but lots of good info.

 

Patty

[Guest guest]

You don't want your daughter to pack on the pounds quickly, rather you

want her on a nice, steady growth curve.

 

Vegans tend not to put on weight quickly and this is much healthier

for you (according to the doc I see www.drfuhrman.com). He has

written a great book about healthy, vegan children, " disease proof

your child " .

 

it's vital though that you keep her strictly gluten free. Each time

she ingests gluten you set her up for a minimum of 2 weeks worth of

systemic inflammation and who knows what damage that is doing to her

little body.

 

Sherene

On Apr 4, 2009, at 10:02 PM, kmmiclaus wrote:

 

> Hi, I have a little daughter (almost 2 1/2) who has super sensitive

> gluten intolerance (rather, celiac). We took her off gluten almost 9

> months ago, but in reality she has been accidentally glutened many

> times during these 9 months. It seemed as if we would only get her

> " up " only for her to go down again in another week or two! It has

> been a very hairy experience with doctors and worrying to death.

> Anyway, I have noticed that most children start gaining weight

> fairly quickly, although some have taken around a year to get their

> catch-up growth.

> I realize that most of these children are eating meat and dairy,

> which can pack on the fat, etc. Do any of you have stories of your

> children and catch-up growth or weight gain? I realize that a

> healthy vegan diet will not pack on weight like other diets, and I

> rarely hear stories of gluten free people who are vegan as well. The

> more experiences I read, the better it is for my soul (to stop

> worrying! lol!). I have no doubt about the celiac with my daughter

> (we have had 100% turn around other than the weight issue), but I am

> wondering whether to look for something else as well. ANY stories

> would be appreciated.

>

>

>

> ---

>

> Our vegan and gluten free recipes are available in the

> archives for this group or at the following URL (***Recipes Posted

> to VGF***):

>

>

>

> Check out these affiliated vegan lists ~

>

> http://www.Christian-Vegan-Cooking

>

[Guest guest]

My daughter, now 15, was diagnosed as having Celiac Disease after

nearly dying at age 2. Children tend to put on weight in spurts to

coincide with their seasonal growth. Given the opportunity, her

system will begin to recove on it's own as long as you offer her

plenty of health, gluten-free options for snacking and eating several

times throughout the day. Little ones should be have 6 small meals

rather than 3 big ones.

 

If you are interested, my group, gfcfrecipes, is not quite as busy as

gfcfkids and we have a recipe archive which includes lots of vegetable

based or non-gluten grain based dishes, although with the archives

here I am sure recipes are not your main priority. There are 5300

members on the gfcfrecipes list and many of them are experienced moms

and dads with recovered failure to thrive children who are now doing

extremely well. Certainly they would be happy to help with ideas as

well.

 

BL

 

On Mon, Apr 6, 2009 at 3:23 AM, Sherene Silverberg <sherene wrote:

> You don't want your daughter to pack on the pounds quickly, rather you

> want her on a nice, steady growth curve.

[Guest guest]

I just thought I'd let you know that my vegan and gluten free children are now

ages 12 and 9. They are healthy and strong. Not too heavy or skinny. And I

did nothing to plump them up. I fed them mainly fruits and vegetables and

legumes, with a few gluten free grains. If you could meet them you would know

they are not suffering from their restricted diet, but rather thriving. They

aren't tall, but there is nothing wrong with being less then average in height.

They have always been below average on the growth charts, but think about it.

Not every one is going to be average. If there are people above average, there

are going to be people below average, or you wouldn't have an average. If your

child is healthy and completely off gluten, (gluten can really slow growth),

they will be doing great. And by the way, my kids growth had been slowing down

before I got them completely off gluten, and after it was out of their systems,

they growth did do a leap, and they then had a more steady consistent growth

from year to year. Most kids are taller then them still, but they are healthy.

 

Courage to you.

 

Barbara

______

 

On Behalf Of Sherene Silverberg

[sherene]

Monday, April 06, 2009 3:23 AM

 

Re: Catch up growth? HELP!

 

You don't want your daughter to pack on the pounds quickly, rather you

want her on a nice, steady growth curve.

 

Vegans tend not to put on weight quickly and this is much healthier

for you (according to the doc I see www.drfuhrman.com). He has

written a great book about healthy, vegan children, " disease proof

your child " .

 

it's vital though that you keep her strictly gluten free. Each time

she ingests gluten you set her up for a minimum of 2 weeks worth of

systemic inflammation and who knows what damage that is doing to her

little body.

 

Sherene

On Apr 4, 2009, at 10:02 PM, kmmiclaus wrote:

 

> Hi, I have a little daughter (almost 2 1/2) who has super sensitive

> gluten intolerance (rather, celiac). We took her off gluten almost 9

> months ago, but in reality she has been accidentally glutened many

> times during these 9 months. It seemed as if we would only get her

> " up " only for her to go down again in another week or two! It has

> been a very hairy experience with doctors and worrying to death.

> Anyway, I have noticed that most children start gaining weight

> fairly quickly, although some have taken around a year to get their

> catch-up growth.

> I realize that most of these children are eating meat and dairy,

> which can pack on the fat, etc. Do any of you have stories of your

> children and catch-up growth or weight gain? I realize that a

> healthy vegan diet will not pack on weight like other diets, and I

> rarely hear stories of gluten free people who are vegan as well. The

> more experiences I read, the better it is for my soul (to stop

> worrying! lol!). I have no doubt about the celiac with my daughter

> (we have had 100% turn around other than the weight issue), but I am

> wondering whether to look for something else as well. ANY stories

> would be appreciated.

>

>

>

> ---

>

> Our vegan and gluten free recipes are available in the

> archives for this group or at the following URL (***Recipes Posted

> to VGF***):

>

>

>

> Check out these affiliated vegan lists ~

>

> http://www.Christian-Vegan-Cooking

>

[Guest guest]

Have they checked all her levels to make sure she's absorbing nutrients?

Liver and pancreas function?

I was always too small growing up. I weighed 24 lbs when I was 4 and wore

clothes my sister wore at 6 months! Nobody ever figured out what was wrong

until my 20's. I did grow a little bit in my teens. They put me on

antidepressants for a while which made me gain a ton of weight which was not

healthy and I did not need them. My senior year in High school I grew a few

inches and everything kind of evened out. I was still a little under weight

according to the charts but I looked normal! I still had a lot of digestive

problems though and at 22 I was diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis and the

doctor believed I had pancreatic insufficiency my entire life. The year I

grew and balanced out was my salad year. All I ate was salads for an entire

year and a half because I worked in a grocery store that had a salad bar. I

felt better and healthier during that time, so I wouldn't worry about your

daughter being behind because of her diet. She may be a little slow

developing and anemia may be an issue but supplements help most people. If

she's not gaining any weight at all despite a healthy diet, talk to the

doctor about digestive enzymes to see if they may be good for her. Check her

stools as if they are really foul smelling, loose, fatty, greasy looking, or

pale then she could have something wrong with the pancreas or gallbladder

and not absorbing properly. This can be serious and even fatal if not

treated, depending on how serious malabsorbsion is. Not to worry you more

than you already are! I would start with discussing these possibilities with

the doctor as many with celiac/gluten sensitivity do have pancreatic

insufficiency to some degree. Digestive enzymes help but be aware that

prescription enzymes contain animal byproducts, usually from pigs. They do

make vegetable based digestive enzymes that can be found in health food

stores. You have to discuss this with her doctor or nutritionist to see if

and how much would be appropriate for her. Probiotics may help too. Again

you have to check ingredient as many are milk based. Good luck and I hope

they are able to pin point the problem so she can be healthy. As long as

she's healthy and all her levels are normal, don't worry if she doesn't fit

perfectly into the charts. Everybody is different! My sister was right on

target her first year then she spouted up faster than anybody could believe.

My mom use to buy her clothes 2 sizes too big because by the time a month

went by they where almost the right size and that way she was able to wear

them for a couple months. She's only 17 months older than me but everybody

thought there was at least 4 years between us! And I never needed new

clothes because I eventually grew into my sisters, which where practically

new! The difference between me and my sister was she always ate lots of meat

and drank tons of milk where as I got sick on everything so ate a diet of

fruits and vegetables. My sister had broken so many bones throughout her

life! I think she had 8 broken bones. I had one hairline fracture in my

thumb from catching a ball the wrong way in gym class! So meat and milk may

help kids grow faster and they may even appear healthier, but they really

aren't! Milk makes a body brake! lol

Also, fresh, raw fruits and veggies are easier to digest as they are full of

natural enzymes and vitamins, so a vegan diet probably is the best diet for

anybody with digestive or developmental issues!

 

Good luck!

 

On Sat, Apr 4, 2009 at 10:02 PM, kmmiclaus <kmmiclaus wrote:

 

> Hi, I have a little daughter (almost 2 1/2) who has super sensitive

> gluten intolerance (rather, celiac). We took her off gluten almost 9 months

> ago, but in reality she has been accidentally glutened many times during

> these 9 months. It seemed as if we would only get her " up " only for her to

> go down again in another week or two! It has been a very hairy experience

> with doctors and worrying to death. Anyway, I have noticed that most

> children start gaining weight fairly quickly, although some have taken

> around a year to get their catch-up growth.

> I realize that most of these children are eating meat and dairy, which can

> pack on the fat, etc. Do any of you have stories of your children and

> catch-up growth or weight gain? I realize that a healthy vegan diet will not

> pack on weight like other diets, and I rarely hear stories of gluten free

> people who are vegan as well. The more experiences I read, the better it is

> for my soul (to stop worrying! lol!). I have no doubt about the celiac with

> my daughter (we have had 100% turn around other than the weight issue), but

> I am wondering whether to look for something else as well. ANY stories would

> be appreciated.

>

>

>

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I'm a gluten-free/soy-free vegan and am also nursing my now 10 month old

daughter. She is only in the 10th percentile for weight but is 110th percentile

for height. My pediatrician says she is in excellent health and even healthier

than most kids her age. She has only two teeth so she is limited in what she can

eat of solid food but I only give her what I eat. She loves eating " mommy food "

and never complains. I also have 3 other children ages 5, 3 1/2 and 2. They are

not completely vegan but they aren't allowed anything non-organic or with

artificial colors or dyes. And absolutely no high fructose corn syrup. They

don't eat a lot of gluten but do eat some. Their Daddy eats differently then we

do! All are lower in their age range for weight but higher in height. I see no

problem with any of their growth from having a limited diet. They also are all

cavity free with healthy teeth!

 

I hope this helps,

Peggy

 

BTW, I love this blog!

 

 

 

, Jae Jones <recyclednew wrote:

>

> Have they checked all her levels to make sure she's absorbing nutrients?

[Guest guest]

Wow, Peggy, I'm impressed you're gluten-free, vegan, and soy-free with your

daughter. Would you describe for me what, say, two days of meals might look

like for you? Do you rotate foods? Do you utilize greens, etc., to get bits

of protein here and there, or do you eat a lot of nuts and beans?

 

Thanks.

 

Sally

 

On Wed, Apr 8, 2009 at 3:42 PM, Peggy Hindt <velvetviscositywrote:

 

>

>

> Hi,

> I'm a gluten-free/soy-free vegan and am also nursing my now 10 month old

> daughter. She is only in the 10th percentile for weight but is 110th

> percentile for height. My pediatrician says she is in excellent health and

> even healthier than most kids her age. She has only two teeth so she is

> limited in what she can eat of solid food but I only give her what I eat.

> She loves eating " mommy food " and never complains. I also have 3 other

> children ages 5, 3 1/2 and 2. They are not completely vegan but they aren't

> allowed anything non-organic or with artificial colors or dyes. And

> absolutely no high fructose corn syrup. They don't eat a lot of gluten but

> do eat some. Their Daddy eats differently then we do! All are lower in their

> age range for weight but higher in height. I see no problem with any of

> their growth from having a limited diet. They also are all cavity free with

> healthy teeth!

>

> I hope this helps,

> Peggy

>

> BTW, I love this blog!

>

> --- In

<%40>,

> Jae Jones <recyclednew wrote:

> >

> > Have they checked all her levels to make sure she's absorbing nutrients?

>

>

 

 

 

--

" How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young,

compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of

the weak -- because someday you will have been all of these. "

--George Washington Carver

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

On Apr 9, 2009, at 11:34 AM, Sally Parrott Ashbrook wrote:

 

> Wow, Peggy, I'm impressed you're gluten-free, vegan, and soy-free

> with your

> daughter. Would you describe for me what, say, two days of meals

> might look

> like for you? Do you rotate foods? Do you utilize greens, etc., to

> get bits

> of protein here and there, or do you eat a lot of nuts and beans?

========

 

Not Peggy, but my daughter and I are gf, vegan and soy free.

 

typically for breakfast I give her a smoothie with half a pound of

spinach, a cup each of mixed berries and cherries, a sachet of raw

acai, flax seeds and water. Mine is usually the spinach, cherries and

blueberries, flax seeds and watercress.

 

Lunch for her is typically a large plate of raw fruits and veggies

(today was kiwi, tomato, cauliflower, nectarine and mango). yesterday

she also had a bowl of cowboy caviar.

 

snack was a mix of raw pumpkin and sunflower seeds plus pistachio nuts

with raisins.

 

Dinner was carrot and red lentil soup with a bowl of broccoli.

 

Today lunch was a large plate of broccoli with ginger sauce and garlic

noodles.

 

Dinner was a cashew banana smoothie sweetened with dates and a touch

of mesquite powder, a large bowl of peas, a tomato and a mango.

 

it's very easy to eat a well balanced gfsf, vegan diet, as long as you

cook it yourself

 

Sherene