When Your Food Allergy Becomes a Trend
Last spring, at my son's final taekwondo class of the season, the instructors decided to surprise the students by ending the evening with juice and cookies. Before the instructor had even set the plate down on the table, my kid had snatched up two cookies and quickly shoved them into his mouth.
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"Mom!" My daughter shouted. "He's eating the cookies!" And all of the other parents in the room turned to stare at us.
"No more," I told him, as he reached for his third. My face flushed red as he popped another cookie into his mouth.
It wasn't his blatant disobedience that I found embarrassing. I'm a real-world parent with three kids. I'm pretty used to being ignored.
No, it was with the fact that, in that moment, I was pretty certain I was being judged. I just knew what they were thinking: There's the crazy mom who doesn't let her kid eat treats before bedtime.
I'm sure my daughter loudly explaining, "Those cookies have gluten," didn't make it any better. Because surely they now saw me as the health-nut parent who puts their kids on fad diets. The type of person that JP Sears mocks in this hilarious video.
What people choose to eat and why is surprisingly controversial. Which means when you say you're "gluten-free", people either respond with, "Great, me too!" or they look at you like, "Oh. You're one of those."
Unless, of course, you drop the "C" word.
And by "C" word, I mean Celiac.
What is Celiac disease?
As stated on Celiac.org, the Celiac Disease Foundation's website: "Celiac disease is a serious autoimmune disorder that can occur in genetically predisposed people where the ingestion of gluten leads to damage in the small intestine."
"When people with celiac disease eat gluten (a protein found in wheat, rye and barley), their body mounts an immune response that attacks the small intestine. These attacks lead to damage on the villi, small finger-like projections that line the small intestine, that promote nutrient absorption. When the villi get damaged, nutrients cannot be absorbed properly into the body."
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My grandpa had Celiac disease, as do a few of my husband's first cousins. But even with a family history, it took us a ridiculously long time to put two and two together when our son first started having digestive problems. In fact, even though his symptoms likely started when we first started feeding him solid food (not just rice cereal), it wasn't until he was old enough to string a few words together that we realized he had a real problem.
As a toddler, he used to complain of "headaches", but if you asked him where his head hurt, he grabbed his belly. But it wasn't until we started potty training that we realized he didn't just have the occasional gassy buildup or runny diaper -- the kid had unpredictable and explosive diarrhea.
So we took him in to see our family doctor, who advised us to try removing different things from his diet until we found the culprit, starting with the most common allergen -- dairy. When cutting dairy made no noticeable difference, we moved on to the next suspect -- gluten -- and the results were instantaneous and extreme. For the first time in his young life, our kid started having regular, solid poops. No more "headaches" and no more accidents.
At our next follow up appointment, I excitedly told the doctor about the difference. Then I asked, "What's next? Should we get him tested?"
"Why?" my doctor replied. Because isn't that what you do? I was clearly confused, so he continued.
"We can do a test," he said. "But you'll have to put him back on gluten beforehand." Meaning we would have to make him sick again. On top of that, the doctor explained that because of his young age, the test could also come back inconclusive.
"Look, you've already seen that a gluten-free diet has made a significant difference. You aren't going to change what you're doing based on the results of the test. So why make him sick again just so you can put a label on it."
At the time, everything he said made perfect sense. And it still does. Except … what do we tell other people?
The plus side of trending food allergies
Part of me feels guilty using the "C" word to explain his allergies without the test results to back it up. I know it's silly to feel that way, but I don't want to fall into the category of people who self diagnose using WebMD, or claim medical conditions for attention. I don't even want to risk having other people perceive me or my family that way. I'm sure my grandpa never had to justify his allergies as being legit, but those were the days before people started using food preferences as a way to make themselves interesting.
But I shouldn't complain about the gluten-free trend too much. First, there very well may be a large number of people who are gluten sensitive. Second, even if people are going gluten-free by choice, why should anyone else care?
Really, I should be thanking them. These trendsetters created a market for gluten-free goods, and now my kid can find a gluten-free option for pretty much anything -- pasta, perogies, cookies and baked goods, sausage, cereal, and much, much more.
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Plus, the increased demand has increased competition, prompting food manufacturers to improve their products. Today, I can get gluten-free bread that is (almost) as good as regular bread, and a far cry from the bricks we used to buy when our kid first started eating gluten-free.
The gluten-free trend might mean that we have to deal with some judgements and assumptions, but it also means that the public has a far better understanding of what "gluten-free" is. And my kid now has access to a wider variety of better quality food products. And, maybe most important of all, it means that he will never feel like he is in this alone.
Thanks for posting this personal story about Celiac's disease and how it relates to the gluten free craze.
Hhaha I love this post. I remember hearing about the whole Gluten free diet, and i looked into it. Hoping it would be a great way to lose weight. But then I quickly realized that people were being silly and many people don't have to avoid it. I'm glad it's helping you out, But people need to do their research before following a new diet.
Absolutely! Gluten-free doesn't equal "healthy." A cookie is still a cookie, with or without the gluten. 🙂
I have a brother who is celiacs... It is embarrassing how much of a big deal we have to make of it anywhere we go. It used to be really easy, back in the days of homemade bread and Udis. With every corner restaurant offering "gluten free" options, we have to be very careful as to what their practices are - sloppy kitchens are contaminated.
Now the gluten free trend is mostly good, apart from all these empty calories that people cram down their throats; thanks JB. The food we eat today has orders of magnitude more gluten than it used to. There is research that puts the role of gluten in digestive issues into legitimacy. We need to study this further, there are people who are only sensitive to gluten.
Remove the stigma, great post!
Kyle, you might find it amusing that here we can get Udi's bagels ... if we go to the Kroger bakery and ask for some out of their secret stash ! They don't stock it on the normal shelves. Mystery. They have other gluten free breads out in the open. I don't know. I can't explain it.
Oh Udis. Haha who knows. It is a conspiracy.
Of course! So obvious. Should have realized it right from the start ;-)
Is it time for another @redhens video outing yet?? [Hint, hint!] :-)
I've been thinking about it, but it might have to wait till after the weekend. We're helping my parents with their cattle branding. Stay tuned for a post on that. 🙂
Your doing cattle branding and I'm trying to save the cats of Palestine! ... more on that later ... what varied Steemers we are! Be safe with those cows now ;)
Good article. My "kids" (16 and 19) both have nut allergies which can be life threatening, so I am well aware of all that you write about!
Don't worry about other people. Most people think they know it all, but have not a clue in reality. Most important is your child. Let your inner Mama-Lion out and they will turn silent ;-)
I hear you! As a nutritionist so many people ask me questions about gluten because they think it is pure evil... well it is if you have celiac, just like your son, or are sensitivity to gluten... Otherwise, it is just fine to eat gluten in moderation. While the trend might be a blessing for your son, It's sad that they made this into a trend, tough. This has given rise to more processed foods entering the market while the focus should be on eating fresh, wholesome foods instead to protect health. Great read! I'm happy that you guys found a solution when he was young! Some people struggle with digestive complaints for years before finding a solution!
Just browsing around :) late to the party ... but ... OMG I so relate. Well not in such a dramatic way as Celiac's disease. I relate to the whole "thank goodness for non-gluten being a trendy thing." I'm in my late 50's and lately I've had to admit that I really and truly am allergic to wheat. Ironically, I'm much more allergic to the germ than the gluten. Which means I can cheat with gluten heavy baking flour faster than whole grain organic. So I get 1 cookie every week.
ANYway ... I'm so thankful that it's easy to find good bread and good recipes that don't include wheat. It has definitely shown me that in this country, at least, we are far too dependent on wheat and actually cheating ourselves out of great food options.
LOL as an aside, writing this has helped me remember something. Right this moment I'm going through "the itches" and the slightly burning mouth because I cheated just a bit with some organic high quality noodles. LOL Silly thing is I'm still trying to remember, "OH there's a reason I want to strip and scratch all my skin off." Writing this helped me remember ... oy! It makes me wonder precisely how many years I put this all off to dry skin etc ... which I'm starting to be suspicious dry skin was actually a symptom.
SO there's a moral to this story for you and yours! At least your son knows early on that at the very very very least he is very allergic to wheat. He doesn't have to go through his whole life with it being a mystery.
And if you don't want to toss the C word around, use the A word and explain that it will make him very sick. Most of us that are allergic are never "formally diagnosed." We just wise up and stop eating the bad thing ... like Walnuts ... lol yes I'm allergic to walnuts too and we eat Kosher ... and my husband is diabetic ... yeah. Going out to eat is difficult.
I will also tell you that I'm much more suspicious that most people who are reacting to gluten are also reacting to the GMO's in the grain and the development of grains that are almost entirely gluten but that's a whole nother can of worms.
I should also console you (ha) with this bit of info. I've been allergic to one thing or another since I was 10 or so. And believe me, there's always been someone in my family & or friends who believed it was all in my head. Not always the same person mind you. Kind of depended on who was baking the dish, housing the cat, etc. ... So. yeah. I would like to think there's less of this in the world ... but evidently not.