Who would even think TOOTHPASTE had GLUTEN in it?

For some reason it didn’t occur to be me that this was a possibility and hadn’t read anything about it when my daughter was first diagnosed (I know never assume anything with Celiac).

However, my antennae went up when I heard…

“Mom, I get a stomach ache EVERY TIME I BRUSH MY TEETH!”

Ok so…

1- A ploy to get out of brushing your teeth?

or

2- A legitimate complaint?

Who is to know? Well, ironically after all of this repeated complaining I came across an article in a magazine at the health club.

Low and behold this healthy living magazine spoke of additives to and contamination of toothpaste. It was recommended to avoid certain brands as they may contain gluten.

I almost started laughing out loud- as by now, I have a good sense of humor with celiac disease and this lifestyle. Here I could have been feeding her bread every day for the amount she was getting in her toothpaste all of these months. Thank you very much you mainstream toothpaste companies, appealing to kids with Dora and Barbie on your wrappers. I’m poisoning my kid on your products.

We took a field trip after school to the health food store, where we quickly unloaded $6.00 on a tube of toothpaste (same price as a box of crackers, right?) that says “GLUTEN FREE” on the box.

Would you even believe it- No more stomach aches with tooth brushing ever again!!

The best $6.00 I ever spent.

Because that left a bad taste in my mouth (sorry I couldn’t help saying that) I tell everyone to buy from the companies that have gluten free on their labeling. Forget the big box companies and like our food choices go for the smaller ingredient list. Our favorite is Tom’s of Maine. Both their silly-strawberry and orange-mango flavors for kids are gluten free! I won’t make a list here as companies are forever changing items so it is best to look into each and every product you use.

Also remember to ask your dentist if your cleaners are gluten free. They always bring out a “special” cleaner that says gluten free on it and show it to me- they are so nice at our kids dental exams!