Symptoms of Celiac?

[tymaxtess]

Anyone here whose child also has Celiac Disease?

What symptoms did you see?

[BrendaK]

There are over 200 symptoms of celiac and everyone is different. My sister was diagnosed with celiac at 18 months old. Severe diarreah, malnutrition, losing lots of weight, foul colored and smelling stools... Oh yes, and vomiting ALL the time.

My mom was diagnosed at age 40 with celiac. She had symptoms for almost 10 years prior. Severe anemia, very very bloated, gassy, chronic diarreah, fatigue.

Check out these websites:

www.celiac.org
www.celiac.com

I am actually going to my GI again on Tuesday for symptoms of celiac. I had negative bloodwork and a negative biopsy several years ago -- but now symptoms are worse. I was shocked when the first biopsy was negative, I don't know how I can not have it with my family history and symptoms.

[Boo]

I agree with Brenda...the "symptoms" can really run the gamut, and seem to present differently in different people. A friend who is a gastroenterologist advised us to have Andy (T1) tested since he is often constipated. Not the classic symptom (of loose stools), but a symptom nonetheless. Fortunately he was negative. :D I read a lot about celiacs while waiting for those test results, and it sounds like many people show no symptoms at all (and therefore go undiagnosed).

[tymaxtess]

Just asking because of Tessa's constant tummy aches and because I read today that hard little balls for stool is never normal and that is all I ever remember her having. Her bowel movements never look "normal", but they have always been that way and so I assumed they were just normal for her.

[wendyc]

Celiac can present many different symptoms, they can also be symptoms of different conditions.

Symptoms from Celiac.org:
Classic symptoms may include:

abdominal cramping, intestinal gas, distention and bloating
chronic diarrhea or constipation (or both)
steatorrhea -- fatty stools
anemia - unexplained, due to folic acid, B12, or iron deficiency (or all)
weight loss with large appetite, or weight gain Other symptoms:

dental enamel defects
osteopenia, osteoporosis
bone or joint pain
fatigue, weakness and lack of energy
infertility - male/female
depression
Aphthous ulcers Dermatitis Herpetiformis (DH) is skin manifestation of celiac disease characterized by blistering, intensely itchy skin. The rash has a symmetrical distribution and is most frequently found on the face, elbows, knees and buttocks. DH patients can have gastrointestinal damage without perceptible symptoms.

My daughters stools too are balls, and she is a bit constopated, but does not have Celiac. This is just what is normal for her. I was told this by the gastro, after her endoscopy for Celiac (negative). My other daughter was the same, severly constopated and she just needed a stool softener as natural fiber wasn't enough for her.
I would like to caution you on visiting the boards for Celiac. While they are helpful, they can be very alarming. Whatever you do DO NOT ELIMINATE GLUTEN FROM YOUR CHILDS DIET!!!! If your doc feels that you need bloodwork, it will invalidate the tests.

[Laura]

I've posted about this many times. I never thought Jonah had symptoms. After he was diagnosed I realized he wasn't cranky anymore. I guess he didn't feel well but didn't really know it. He didn't have the typical symptoms I thought he would have.