Celiac And Food Allergies: How I Manage Mine & My Daughter's

As a veteran celiac with 16 years of eating gluten-free under her belt, I was prepared for a lot when our daughter Harper was diagnosed with food allergies at 7 months old.

But there were some things that I wasn't prepared for.

Since then, I've learned a lot about both of our restrictions, along with tips & tricks that have helped us both stay safe from our triggers.

In this post, I'm diving into my experience with celiac as a mom, in case you have celiac and have a child or someone close to you with food allergies, and are wondering how to navigate BOTH of these things at the same time.

This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure page for more information. Thank you!

Celiac And Food Allergies For Me & My Daughter

Since I've spent years detailing my celiac diagnosis story here on the blog, along with my challenges with IBS, I'm going to focus more on how my celiac journey helped prepare me as a mom for a child with food allergies.

If you want to read my celiac story, I've linked it here. If you'd like to learn more about my background with IBS-D, I've linked that here too.

And for clarity here, celiac disease is not a food allergy. It is an autoimmune condition. However, given that the protocols, mindset, and practices for living with these two medical diagnoses are similar, I am sharing this post.

Harper's Food Allergy Journey

When my daughter Harper was born in February of 2024, my world changed instantly.

Every parent says it. I always thought it was a cliché, but it's completely true.

Because until you experience it yourself, you have no idea what that immediate shift feels like.

The overwhelming love.

I felt it the moment they placed her on my chest and heard her little cry.

And I knew from that moment I'd do anything and everything to keep her safe.

---

Harper has been exclusively breastfed her whole life (she is now, as of the writing of this post, 18 months old and has been weaned almost completely). We supplemented with formula a few times when needed, but she either nursed or took bottles of my pumped milk for the first 6 months.

Breastfeeding was a challenge the first few weeks, and it took a while for her to get back up to birth weight. But with the help of an incredible lactation consultant here in the Boston area (Thank you, Joanne!), we finally got the hang of it around 4 weeks in. At that point, we were off to the races. Harper was thriving, and I loved breastfeeding.

Around 6 months is when we started to introduce solid foods, while continuing to give her breastmilk via nursing or bottles.

At first, I was excited by the prospect of having her try foods.

We started with homemade easy & quick things - mashed avocado with breastmilk, oatmeal with raspberries, banana, sweet potatoes, things like that.

I tracked every food on the Solid Starts App (highly recommend!), following their suggestions for portions, how to cut/prepare each food, and logged if she had any reactions.

Research shows that babies who have earlier exposure to the major allergens are less likely to develop them, so I knew it was important for us to give them to her.

To my shock and delight, Harper had no issues with wheat. She was also growing normally, without any bowel issues or challenges. She was a very healthy baby who LOVED nursing. (She just didn't sleep a whole lot!)

And everything was going great on our solids journey.

Until it wasn't.

Allergies Appear

The first time we introduced egg, I made a small amount of scrambled eggs and gave her a piece. Granted, the piece was probably too big (we were still learning), but it was enough to trigger a reaction. Then, like all the advice says, we waited 15 minutes.

Then I noticed her face.

It was starting to look red. And it spread, getting darker, reaching everywhere the egg touched. Her hands, forehead, and mouth were covered in red raised bumps.

I panicked.

Getting Tested For Food Allergies

Thankfully, she didn't react beyond the hives and redness. A fellow mom going through a similar solids journey with her son around the same age said to give her Zyrtec, so we did. She was fine.

But I was not.

My anxiety went through the roof. And with her starting daycare the following month, I began to get very concerned.

As any mom would, I did my research on food allergies. I used sources I've previously learned from when getting food allergy/safety certifications. FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) proved to be very helpful, along with the Solid Starts app.

When Harper had her 6-month appointment at the pediatrician, I mentioned what happened with the egg. Given the strong reaction to the egg, she recommended having Harper allergy tested and handed me a referral.

I think at that point, I was still hopeful that maybe she was just sensitive or that it was only egg.

I was wrong.

Epi-Pens!?

After 2-3 weeks in daycare, Harper had her first allergy testing appointment at the allergist. I went in with an open mind, thinking maybe this was just a sensitivity, and it wouldn't be an allergy.

Nope.

Not only did she test positive for allergies to egg, but Harper also tested positive for allergies to dairy.

I felt a sense of dread but also a sense of "Okay, I've got this" at the exact same time.

And I think it's because celiac prepared me for this - knowing how to strictly avoid a food for your own health and safety.

But seeing the EPI-Pens, practicing how to use them (which I have previous experience with after working as a teacher in public schools), made it scary.

And it made it more real.

Because celiac disease is autoimmune, we don't carry EpiPens. We don't go into anaphylaxis.

There was a weight to her diagnosis that I didn't necessarily feel with mine.

The Aftermath: Living With Celiac And Food Allergies

At home, I was able to reflect a bit more about the implications of Harper's allergies.

Cooking would be easy to adapt. But baking felt a bit more challenging.

I had experience creating gluten and dairy-free food for the blog, but egg-free wasn't my forté.

Also, while I previously preferred seeing products that were just gluten-free (instead of being free of EVERYTHING)...

I started to realize the benefits of having products be Top 9 Free.

It was going to make things a whole lot easier for both me and Harper.

Eating With Celiac and Food Allergies

At home, it took some practice getting used to Harper's allergies.

Thankfully, she has NEVER needed her Epi-Pens.

The only thing we have ever needed to do is administer Zyrtec if she accidentally ingests something or breaks out in hives. These cases have been rare and resolved quickly.

However, the fear is always there that something more serious could occur.

At daycare, Harper's teachers and the school staff are extremely diligent with her food.

I received a copy of a food list, which included the typical foods/meals served at daycare, with the brands of the items as well.

If Harper had safely eaten them at home, she was permitted to have them at daycare, too. They would NOT allow her to eat anything she hadn't already been introduced to (which makes total sense!)

This gave me a sense of organization for how to continue introducing her to solid foods after her initial allergy diagnosis - by making them easy choices that she could also eat at school. These items included cereals, fruits, crackers, veggies, and the like. We also kept expanding her palette with as many safe foods as possible.

By the time Harper switched to sippy cups just before her first birthday, we also began giving her Ripple, which is a pea-protein, plant-based alternative to cow's milk that has good protein, vitamins, and minerals.

We slowly introduced Ripple mixed with breastmilk, increasing the amount over time so she eventually would have whole Sippy cups of Ripple. This also coincided with me dropping pump sessions, and eventually, stopping pumping at work completely, and leaving nursing to 2-3x a day.

As she grew and became more active in playing outside, playing with toys, and showed more interest in doing things, we were able to drop other nursing sessions or replace them with snacks/activities.

I followed her lead on this, and she did wonderfully. Now, as we are pregnant again with our second (a baby boy due December 2025), I'm thankful she is fully weaned so I can focus on nursing just baby boy, and snuggling/cuddling them both together.

Best Practices & Tips for Celiac + Allergies

These are the top principles we come back to, time and time again - to help with managing celiac and food allergies in our house.

Most of these things we never really had to worry about, since we largely kept a gluten-free house except for a few occasional items. However, it's become more complicated due to the fact that both Dylan and I still consume dairy and eggs.

Wash your hands. When in doubt, wash them again.

Seriously. The one thing Dylan and I are constantly doing over and over again is hand-washing. It's tricky managing gluten, dairy, and egg - especially at the same time if we are having separate meals- all in our small kitchen. So when in doubt, wash wash wash.

This also goes for washing our mouths/brushing our teeth. Harper has gotten hives on her cheek after we had coffee with milk in it and gave her a quick kiss.

Label EVERYTHING as soon as you open it.

As a parent who is now forever busy, I'm often guilty of letting food go bad or not using it in the fridge more than I EVER was before.

But it's so true - things happen, schedules are crazy, kids get sick, and a meal you thought you'd have time to make, or a treat you thought you'd get around to eating, doesn't happen. Thankfully, we compost in our town, so I feel a little less guilty.

But another thing that has helped immensely with that is LABELING everything with the date, and labeling if it contains any allergens.

This goes for leftovers, jarred items, sticks of butter - anything that might be dipped into or could be consumed in some way - it's better to be safe than sorry.

Communicate clearly.

When in doubt, ask! Navigating both celiac disease AND food allergies is a lot to manage and think about.

It's always better as a parent to communicate clearly and effectively with your spouse, with your child's caregivers, and teachers.

When I had a concern at school, I brought it up immediately. When I worried Harper was reacting to something, I told Dylan right away.

While this often made me feel like I was being a bit paranoid, I would rather be proactive than complacent.

Bring snacks for backup.

Unfortunately, the rule for celiac disease definitely applies to toddlers who eat every 2 hours and who can't eat eggs or dairy.

Bring. Your. Snacks.

Thankfully, I am already in the habit of bringing snacks with me, with celiac (and being pregnant while writing this, they are a necessity). It's extra mental weight to think about, but I know for a fact I always thank myself later when I don't have a hungry, cranky toddler on my hands (and I'm safely fed too!)

Trust your gut.

If you're not sure, TRUST that feeling. Honor your intuition and your inner parent alarm.

I was doubting myself a lot in Harper's first year.

With breastfeeding, with solids, with sleep, and then with allergies. I had a hard time trusting my intuition and kept worrying I was doing something wrong.

Then one day I just realized.

She is my daughter. I grew her. I birthed her.

I am raising her, along with my incredible husband.

WE know what is best for her. Not anyone else.

I don't owe anyone an explanation for why I am parenting the way that I am.

I'm doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing - keeping my daughter, safe, healthy, and loved.

Once I realized that, I stopped caring so much. And then I allowed myself to trust my intuition in a new way.

And it's been so freeing.

Gluten, Dairy & Egg Free Products

These are the products that are usually in my grocery cart at the supermarket to help us eat safely and deliciously with celiac and food allergies.

Ripple Milk: Our go-to plant-based milk for Harper. She loves it, and we buy the unsweetened kids' version. I've also used it as a milk substitute in baking muffins, and Dylan has used it in making pancakes. Works great.

Cup4Cup Multipurpose Flour: This was always my go-to gluten-free flour blend for over a decade. Last fall, they changed their recipe to be top-9 allergen-free (It previously contained milk powder). We have continued to use the new version with success.

Violife Cheeses: Oh, Violife, you geniuses! I don't know how they do it, but their plant-based vegan cheeses, like their Mozzarella and Cheddar shreds, melt SO well and taste really similar to real cheese! The only thing I don't care for is the smell when you melt something in the microwave. But they do a great job on pizza, tacos, and more.

Aleia's Vegan Breadcrumbs: I love Aleia's products for their gluten-free croutons, breadcrumbs, and stuffing mix. But usually their breadcrumbs contain egg. When I found this vegan version, I was thrilled! And made a solid GF EF DF chicken parmesan with it.

Simple Mills Crackers: All of their crackers have been a win for Harper and me, except their chocolate peanut butter sandwich ones. They just have an odd taste. Harper loves their graham crackers and plain crackers the best!

Ugly's Pizza Crusts: The GOAT. The best gluten-free and vegan sourdough pizza crust based out of Massachusetts! Been eating their crusts for homemade pizzas for years, and now we get them to make Harper her own pizza. We just sub the Violife cheese.

Partake Foods Cookies: Top 9 Allergen-Free cookies that taste so good! They offer a soft and crispy variety. Their chocolate chip ones are my favorite.

Home Free Cookies: Another Top 9 Allergen-Free cookie brand. Harper loves the Ginger snaps.

Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer: This has been super helpful in the kitchen. Dylan uses this egg replacer when making Harper's banana pancakes. I've used it when making quickbreads and muffins that are gluten, dairy, and egg-free.

Mission Mighty Me Puffs: Whole-grain-based puffs that help keep nuts and peanuts incorporated into Harper's diet! They are an easy snack that even I agree tastes great.

Natierra Freeze Dried Fruit: Another easy snack we love around here - especially with cereal at breakfast time.

Divina Vegan Pesto: A really tasty, vegan, gluten-free, and nut-free pesto. Harper loves it, and Dylan and I agree it's quite good. We just add parmesan to it if we want more pesto flavor.

I've shared most of these items inside my Amazon storefront here. The only items available for pickup at Whole Foods are the Ugly's crusts. They are not, as of writing this post, shipping at this time (August 2025).

Gluten, Dairy, & Egg Free Meals We Love

Dylan's Banana Pancakes:

Dylan has come up with his own gluten, dairy, and egg-free banana pancake recipe, and it's scrumptious. He uses Cup4Cup, Ripple Milk, mashed banana, and Bob's Egg replacer for main ingredients. I'm unsure of the exact measurements, and I could be missing something, so I'm going to get a copy of it to add to the blog as a recipe here. Stay tuned!

Tacos: Steak, Ground Turkey, Ground Beef, Chicken, or Buffalo Cauliflower

You can't go wrong with tacos!

And with so much variety, there are endless options. My go-to is usually ground turkey or beef with my homemade seasoning (takes 5 minutes to put together, and is SO good). But to change things up, I'll often do chicken tacos (slow-cooked in the crockpot with a jar of salsa and some of the same taco seasoning), Damn Delicious Street Tacos and sub GF soy sauce, and even Buffalo Cauliflower (just leave the sauce as optional so it's not too spicy.

With any of these taco recipes, it's super easy to assemble a bunch of toppings that are safe for Harper and I. We sub Violife cheese for her and she can use plain flour tortillas with Dylan. I'll do hard or soft corn tortillas and regular cheddar cheese. We can all do lettuce, a squeeze of lime, tomatoes, avocado, and even some tortilla chips. Win win win!

Pasta with Sauce & Veggies

I'm convinced Harper will eat anything that is smothered in Rao's sauce. But add ground beef or turkey to the sauce? She'll devour it.

Pasta has been a great meal that all of us can enjoy. While Dylan and Harper can have regular pasta, for pasta with sauce, we tend to get one kind we can all eat. My go-to is Jovial brown rice or cassava penne or fusilli. And then for the sauce, we always get Rao's Marinara and sometimes add meat. Or we'll do a pesto pasta with the Divina Vegan pesto I listed above for a Meatless Monday option.

Harper loves frozen veggies, and they are a very easy way to incorporate lots of vegetables into her diet. So we will serve the pasta with frozen peas, or a veggie medley of peas, corn, carrots, and green beans.

Mac & Cheese with Butternut Squash & Peas

Thankfully, there are so many gluten-free macaroni and cheese options out there, as well as vegan macaroni and cheese, too. I'm not against a boxed meal if it's easy to make. The only challenge is that the sodium content in the vegan mac and cheese tends to be very high. So I just check for that before buying.

Harper likes Annie's or Banza Vegan mac. My favorite gluten-free mac and cheese brands are listed in this post. This is an easy meal for us - one pot for Harper, one pot for me, and Dylan (And, if needed, Dylan can eat her leftovers). We will throw in butternut squash to mash into Harper's pasta, and often serve it with peas because she loves peas!

Make Your Own Pizza:

Another great meal that's easy to modify and make 2 safe versions! Sometimes Dylan and I will have the Freschetta gluten-free frozen pepperoni pizza (it's freaking amazing) or other times we will all have Ugly's gluten-free & vegan sourdough crust with toppings.

I make a dairy-free version for Harper with her own Violife Mozzarella shreds, and then a version with regular shredded mozzarella for Dylan and I. Dylan and I will usually do 2 pizzas (one for each of us) and Harper has one. We will also serve this with a frozen veggie, some sliced avocado, or another vegetable.

Final Thoughts: Celiac And Food Allergies

Will Harper ever grow out of her egg and dairy allergies?

I really hope so.

So far, we have tried doing a reintroduction challenge at the allergist once, and she failed. Even with introducing the smallest amount (1/16 of a teaspoon of a muffin that had no dairy, but contained eggs), she broke out in hives.

So, we wait and think about trying again in the future.

For now, I'm grateful we have answers, and she at least has access to many safe foods. Restaurants are already challenging with celiac, and now for Harper being egg and dairy-free, it's added a whole new level of difficulty of going out to eat with a toddler (Burtons Grill is one of the only places we feel comfortable going).

Hopefully, with time, this can change. We will see.

I'm grateful as well that we have a solid system in place at home to keep her safe, wonderful daycare teachers who are diligent about her allergies, and a solid healthcare team of her pediatrician and allergist if we need them.

And I'm grateful to my 15+ years of challenges, sickness, and growth with celiac disease that got me to the place I am today.

I could never show up as such a fierce advocate for Harper without them.

Do you have celiac disease?

Do you have a loved one, child, or family member with food allergies?

How do you manage them both?

Let me know in the comments below.