As a parent of a child who is sick or has even even had a boo-boo, you wonder what you could have done to prevent it. A recent article in Eating Well magazine reviewed the potential implications of a study published in the Journal of Pediatrics in 2012. The article stated that babies born in the summer have a higher rate of Celiac disease.
That is big. That is more than just a little line about the statistics of being diagnoses..that is hope for understanding the root causes of Celiac and gluten sensitivity.
My son was born in the summer on a day so hot it broke records. I was oblivious to the heat while stuck indoors trying my best not to scream at doctors as my son took his sweet time coming out. During my pregnancy I was horribly nauseated during the second trimester. Horribly nauseated. My doctor prescribed liquid Zofran to help me keep anything down. I stopped gaining weight and was becoming rapidly dehydrated. I felt awful. He literally wrote me a note to eat only Ramen noodles, ice cream, sports drinks and kid's multivitamins. Not even kidding. That was about all I could keep down. After a month of this, I progressed to managing to keep pizza down. I chowed down on Pizza Hut's finest every day for a month. I literally threw every other thing up. It was misery. Pizza everyday is only a dream if you are either a teenage mutant ninja turtle or a teenage boy. Basically I loaded up on everything gluten soy and dairy during my pregnancy and skipped the healthy bits for about 3 months. It wasn't that way the whole time though. I ate exceptionally well the first and third trimesters when I was able to keep my food.
Basically, I ate tons of gluten during my pregnancy. Why is this a problem? Well, it may have lead directly to my son's chances of activating his Celiac genes. If this study shows one thing it is that there is a pattern to why some kids have Celiac and others do not. It may also show a path to stopping the activation of that gene for future children.
The gene is everywhere in so many ethnicities. Celiac disease isn't just for white folks anymore. Non-Hispanic whites take the lead but others are gaining ground. (1) The DQ2 and DQ8 gene are everywhere and yet only 1-2% of people that have the gene will develop Celiac disease. If there are so many people out there with the gene un-activated, why? If the rates of gluten sensitivity and Celiac disease are skyrocketing in the last two decades....why? Good questions. My thought, which is mirrored in some dietary communities, is that genetically modified crops are making our bodies think of our modern diet as poison and is acting accordingly. That coupled with increased awareness and testing makes for a boom in gluten sensitivity and Celiac disease. Another mother, Robyn O'Brien, on a quest to research what made her child sick was a speaker in the TEDx Austin series. I highly recommend her video. It resonated with me because my son is gluten/dairy/soy intolerant.
I often hear from people that they were on antibiotics prior to the problem appearing or that they had a child with colic and that things like that are normal. Well folks, let me tell you, it is not normal. Children cry. They don't do it to manipulative, they do it to communicate. If they cry because for hours it is probably because something is wrong. Take the time to find out what is bothering them. Too often we ignore children because we don't speak their language. They are trying desperately to tell us something and we need to listen to them. Babies don't come out craving Whoppers or chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs They crave their mother's milk and then real food. They want to be held, to be loved, to cuddle, to coo, to be a part of our world. They will eat what we eat. One of the best ways to ensure we raise healthy eaters is to eat well during pregnancy, while nursing and during their whole lives. When children are raised in a healthy food environment they will eat that way. If I never pull my car into a fast food location my son will never know what it really is. Sure his friends will be eating that junk at some point but he will not. The La Leche League has great resources to help build healthy eaters.
Check out your local farmer's market, grow a garden or simply walk the outside of the grocery store. The less time spent in the middle packaged isles the better. Do it for your self, for your family and for the child you are raising. When a child reacts to a food it usually creates a distressing situation that they cannot properly express. Prior to the immune system fully developing their response is behavioral and gastrointestinal For our son he looked like he had an eczema rash that came and went with food. We had him allergy tested multiple times and he was always negative. Other families may be fine until one day, like for Robyn O'Brien, sudden onset of allergies appear. Take the time to educate yourself on what you need to know. In our world of rapidly increasing food allergies and intolerances, knowing how to save a life with an EpiPen is just as important as knowing the Heimlich Maneuver.
I often hear from people that they were on antibiotics prior to the problem appearing or that they had a child with colic and that things like that are normal. Well folks, let me tell you, it is not normal. Children cry. They don't do it to manipulative, they do it to communicate. If they cry because for hours it is probably because something is wrong. Take the time to find out what is bothering them. Too often we ignore children because we don't speak their language. They are trying desperately to tell us something and we need to listen to them. Babies don't come out craving Whoppers or chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs They crave their mother's milk and then real food. They want to be held, to be loved, to cuddle, to coo, to be a part of our world. They will eat what we eat. One of the best ways to ensure we raise healthy eaters is to eat well during pregnancy, while nursing and during their whole lives. When children are raised in a healthy food environment they will eat that way. If I never pull my car into a fast food location my son will never know what it really is. Sure his friends will be eating that junk at some point but he will not. The La Leche League has great resources to help build healthy eaters.
Check out your local farmer's market, grow a garden or simply walk the outside of the grocery store. The less time spent in the middle packaged isles the better. Do it for your self, for your family and for the child you are raising. When a child reacts to a food it usually creates a distressing situation that they cannot properly express. Prior to the immune system fully developing their response is behavioral and gastrointestinal For our son he looked like he had an eczema rash that came and went with food. We had him allergy tested multiple times and he was always negative. Other families may be fine until one day, like for Robyn O'Brien, sudden onset of allergies appear. Take the time to educate yourself on what you need to know. In our world of rapidly increasing food allergies and intolerances, knowing how to save a life with an EpiPen is just as important as knowing the Heimlich Maneuver.
1.The American Journal of Gastroenterology
doi: 10.1038/ajg.2012.219 “The Prevalence of Celiac Disease in the United States” Authors: Alberto Rubio-Tapia, Jonas F. Ludvigsson, Tricia L. Brantner, Joseph A. Murray, and James E. Everhart
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