My grandson looks and acts well but his pediatrician doesn't think he is absorbing fat well, since he has only gained 1 lb. in the last several months. He is way above average in height, but his weight is in the low percentile. He wants to test him for Celiac Disease. Does anyone know anything about this disease from experience in their own children? The Dr. wants to do a blood test.

Don't know about celiac, but has the doctor mentioned "failure to thrive", does he have issues with his bowels, loose stools? Another thing to consider is the size of his parents. Were they tiny at his age?

Thanks for the reply. He has no problems with his bowels. Both parents were of normal size when they were his age. I know my daughter was. I will ask my son in law's parents about his size. My grandson is a very active little 1 1/2 yr. old. He rarely sits down. He is always active. I personally don't think he eats enough. But my daughter feeds him so many meals during the course of the day. Little meals.

Celiac means allergic to gluten (which can be found in flour, wheat etc etc).
Most kids will either suffer from diarrea of constipation (depending on how the bowel reacts) and a simple blood test will let you know whether he has celiac disease.
If this is it (and it isn't that uncommon) the child will simply be put on a very strict gluten free diet, which isn't fun, but doable.
Also, if they draw blood anyways and weight is an issue, ask them to check on any thyroid issues at the same time.

My kid was more than 100% for length and about 5% for weight: some kids are just really tall and very skinny. And if they never sit still, they probably burn calories like crazy!

Hope this helps,
L.

My grandson looks and acts well but his pediatrician doesn't think he is absorbing fat well, since he has only gained 1 lb. in the last several months. He is way above average in height, but his weight is in the low percentile. He wants to test him for Celiac Disease. Does anyone know anything about this disease from experience in their own children? The Dr. wants to do a blood test.

Both of my daughter's have Celiac Disease, It is tough but manageable through a Gluten free diet. Can't have wheat,Rye,Barley Oats. Oats because there is a high risk of them being contaminated by wheat.
It is a simple blood draw like any other.
It is a Celiac panel they run,The main test is a ttg. Then some but not all doctors with do a biopsy to confirm the diagnosis. But the child cannot be gluten free when the blood test is done or the biopsy or the test may be negative even if they have Celiac.

Even if the test does come out negative,It may be worth trying a gluten free diet for a while because that can make big changes in a childs life.
Could have a gluten sensativety.

My youngest daughter was tested and positive when she was 2 1/2 years old, sometimes the test may not be accurate at an early age. But if it comes out negative and later on still having problems test again.

I hope you find out what is going on with your grandson,Let me know if you have anymore questions. My kids have be gluten free for 2 years now. I have learned alot in that time.
take care

If the doctor thinks he's not absorbing fat, he could be looking at a malapsorption issue such as cystic fibrosis; however, a lot of times these issues would show up in the stools -- either very loose or constipated. guess being that they're going to the doctor, wouldn't hurt to get tested for celiacs, CF, any of those things to rule it out and get him back on the right track in terms of growth...