Oreos and Enzymes

Well, things are never dull on our gluten free adventure. My son Nathan is Celiac. He has learned quite a deal about what he can eat and can't eat. And yet...he is 5. We were visiting a friend and he went out to play. I feel so comfortable at my friend's house (her daughter has other food issues) that I don't stress too much about watching over my guy so much. However, this time he played with her daughter at a neighbor's playset (their properties are not closed off by a fence in a certain spot). They played for awhile and the neighbor kid's mom decided they needed a treat...

When we finally called them in because it was time to go, they were squealing all the way home on each other. I heard something about eating some yellow cheese (no, I'm not worried yet) and then I unmistakably heard something about "an Oreo". I looked over at my son and there it was - chocolate all around his mouth. Not only had he eaten the Oreo, but he was wearing it as well. I didn't panic - at least not visibly. I did remember that I had some Glutenease in my bag. It's an enzyme that I bought some time ago - when I just thought he had a problem with gluten and didn't know what Celiac was. I quickly poured a cup of apple juice from my friend's fridge and poured a capsule in and told him to drink it up quick. Even though I knew we were in for a rough week, I was still hoping that it would keep him from too much discomfort. I felt a little negligent in not knowing exactly where Nathan was at and watching over him as much as I usually do. I let my guard down and my son down as well. Guilt, guilt.

Well, Nathan has never had this much gluten since being GF. The most he's had was a bite of a cracker. That was enough for the emotional melt-downs and hyperactivity and also (can't forget) the "accident" while in Costco. A whole Oreo seemed quite a scary ordeal although the amount of flour relative to the amount of sugar and chocolate was probably not more than the wheat flour in the bite of cracker. Anyway, Nathan has suffered a few minor stomach aches, a nightmare the first night, waking up early three days in a row and some anger flare-ups as I like to call them. You know, I certainly don't want him getting gluten because of the whole immune irritation and not to mention the greater chance for developing another autoimmune disease or lymphoma. But really, it is the behavior that is the hardest for me to deal with. Sure I don't want him to deal with an accident at school or to feel pain, but when he seems like someone else it is hard!!! I can't imagine what it would have been like without the enzyme. I think he would at least have had a couple of accidents.

I'm certainly not saying buy some enzymes so you can eat gluten. In fact, the next time he decides he will succumb to temptation I will not so easily give him an enzyme. I really need for him to learn how bad it is for him! I will recommend an enzyme like Glutenease for anyone eating out or at a friend's house. It certainly doesn't get rid of all the gluten protein but it does help to break down a good amount of it, lessening the symptoms one might experience.

I have had some good discussions with Nathan since all of this. We've talked about how good the Oreo tasted - and then I bought some KinniToos. Wow - these are really good! I do think they could have picked a better name though:) We talked about being tempted and the need to say "no" or to find someone to help at a time like this. Gosh, it sounds like I'm trying to keep him off drugs, huh? We've also talked about what might happen in the future for Celiacs as far as enzyme therapy - on a five-year old level, that is. I'm gladly linking a post by Gluten Free Mom about one pharmaceutical company's work on an enzyme that will break down gluten. This is interesting to say the least!

And my point? I don't really have one. Just wanted to share with you my week and some thoughts of mine about raising a Celiac kid. Oh yes, the best discussions we've had have been on being thankful. We've talked about being thankful for eyesight, the ability to run and so on and how it keeps us from only thinking about what we can't have. Thankfulness is not easy at times but it can transform our situation via our perspective on life. So, I will try to practice what I preach and be thankful for so many blessings that we have.
May God richly bless your week!
Debbie