Is anyone here (besides me) on a gluten free diet?

~Sandy

No I am not....but curious....do you have celiac disease or an allergy to wheat in protein foods?

I've never been tested but no, I don't have reason to believe that I have celiac disease. That would be "gluten intolerance."

I do wonder about "gluten sensitivity," however. I have a dd with autism. I had a dd who had either ADHD or Asperger Syndrome. (It was being investigated soon before she died in an accident last year). Two of my children are very short in stature (the shortest in their classrooms). I myself have both epilepsy and ADHD and/or Bipolar Disorder.

Also in my (extended) family is: anxiety disorder, both PDD-NOS and autism (one on my maternal side; one on my paternal side), lupus, fibromyalgia, and multiple sclerosis.

These are all touched on the the link below but well before coming across this link (only a few weeks ago), I started on a gluten free diet after reading about gluten's effects on many neurological disorders. I'm familiar with casein too because of my autistic daughter. I've not read much about casein and ADHD, however.

NOTE: This is on a Celiac site, but it merely touches on other diseases that are associated with Celiac Disease or Gluten Intolerance.

http://www.celiac.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=84&p_catid=&sid=91hH9H0me58T010-11103290248.7a

Here is some more information> I must admit, though, that I'm not totally sold on this. Still, I am giving it another try. (I tried it once and it seemed to help, but I didn't have much support). It's hard to tell when it's so subjective. This time around, my therapist said he would observe.

http://www.drkaslow.com/html/add-adhd.html
Dietary Recommendations - for all children limiting simple processed carbohydrates (sugar, candies, sweets, fruit juices, etc.), margarine, hydrogenated fats, fried foods, and aspartame is required without exception. Specific foods based on tests or observations at home or school play a critical role in nearly every case successfully managed. Gluten and milk proteins are common problems. Make sure every meal contains adequate protein and nutrients. For most of the children that have A.D.D. or A.D.H.D. following a strict diet is mandatory. In fact, the success rate is so low in patients that do not comply with dietary recommendations, we feel that you are simply wasting your time and our time if you don't follow the specific recommendations.

Link about ADHD and Celiac Disease: http://www.celiac.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=112&p_catid=&sid=91hH9H0liMSt8hk-35103616490.3d

My mother-in-law has celiac disease, so I am very familiar with the gluten-free diet. I have heard of people using a gluten-free diet for other reasons. I imagine it could help ADDers just because it eliminates most processed foods. It is a very difficult diet to stick to though. Think of all the things that contain gluten that most of us eat every day! I often hear of my mother-in-law’s frustrations in trying to make the perfect loaf of gluten-free bread – it usually comes out dense and tasteless. She is bound to this diet because she will get very sick if she does not stick to it.

Two of my children are very short in stature (the shortest in their classrooms).

Is short stature a sign of something? I was always the shortest in my class. I am only 5' 0"- shorter than even my mom and grandmothers.