For children who are Gluten-Free, What Supplements Have You Added?

[Anonymous]

I am interesting in putting DS on a gluten free diet, but see that a lot of the gluten free substitutes for what he eats have less nutritional value than what he eats now (e.g., gluten free waffles have fewer nutrients than his current Kashi brand of waffles). DS is already skinny so I'm concerned about nutritional value.

What supplements have you added either because your child has gone gluten free or because you were looking to ameliorate either ASD or SPD issues? Recommendations as to specific brands and any adverse reactions are also appreciated. Did you do any research as to different brands of supplements and, if so, how? Thanks so much.

[Anonymous]

I'm not an expert, but I would definitely visit a dietician before starting a gluten-free diet esp for a child. I think there is a website of DAN nutritionists that you can consult. It would be worth the visit just for my own piece of mind.

[Anonymous]

OP - read this please: http://www.slate.com/id/2223745/

[Anonymous]

If you are going to put him on a GF diet, you should get a Celiac screening first. Once you are on a GF diet, the test becomes inaccurate. Autism and Celiac do often run together, so I would be sure to get the test done if you think its a possibility. We are going to add in a regular Flintstones multi-vitamin for our child who was just diagnosd with CD.

I thought that articles was rather mean-spirited. It seems pretty clear that many people are helped by a GF diet, and I would hope people would take it seriously, as even a crumb of gluten might make my child quite ill. While some diets are more along the lines of lifestyle choices, the GF diet is often a very difficult health requirement, and I am hoping that better food labeling will be introduced over the next few years to help people with the strict regimen.

[Anonymous]

The Slate article was a piece of fluff (but who can resist a dig at Elizabeth Hasselback, after all) -- yet the article's link to a research study listed on PubMed is worth taking into consideration. So the research on going gluten free for autism concerns does not yet bear anything out, but what to make of all the anecdotal evidence from parents that there are indeed benefits?