What's the big deal about gluten?

I recently decided to do a trial run with a gluten free diet for our family. Well, mostly for Cameron but I'm not about to make two different meals, every meal, every day. So we are all on this little trial run together. Well, almost all of us. Dan will be joining our little journey really soon! I posted a couple things about being gluten free on Facebook and had several people ask me why I have decided to make the switch. Rather than clogging up Facebook with lengthy explanations, I would rather blog about it.
It really isn't anything other than a test right now.
My 3 year old, Cameron, has displayed several little "issues" over the past 2 years as he is growing that have raised little flags here and there in my mind. Yes, I know every child is different, every child grows and develops at a different pace and they all have their own little unique personalities. But struggling (and I mean STRUGGLING!) to get my son to eat just about anything and everything, every day for over 2 years starts to raise a lot of concerns in a mom's heart. So I started to research a few things and made a lot of mental notes. I also talked to his doctor about my concerns. She just kind of gently walked around the issues with comments such as "he is just a picky eater" and "he will grow out of it". Well, that is one of the problems. He literally isn't growing. When your toddler wears the same summer clothes 2 summers in a row there is a chance something isn't quite right. So I persisted. Finally she agreed to have a food allergies blood test done on him. And of course everything came back normal. So I was left thinking either I really am just crazy or something is still not right but I just don't have a clue still.
In talking with several of my family members that have a number of food allergies I learned that a blood test doesn't always reflect what your body is feeling. Long story short, I read up on symptoms of being gluten intolerant and Cameron displays several of them. Both physical and behavioral. I figure as his mom I owe it to him to try any and everything I can to find how I can best help my little boy get healthier.

The 2 week trial so far:
At first I just started slowly trading out things that he normally ate for a gluten free alternative.  Eventually I moved to a totally gluten free diet for several days in a row. He was showing signs of feeling better, more energy and just overall a happier kid. More willing to receive instruction and actually a joyful helper rather than an angry defiant stinker. His tummy wasn't  as bloated, his bathroom issues were improving a lot and the dark circles under his eyes were going away. Then I allowed him to have 1 item that had gluten in it to see what would happen. The result: a horrible day for all! He didn't feel good at all, he was majorly cranky and just a total yo-yo of emotions. So back to totally gluten free he went. It took a few days but he started to come back around and is doing much better again. I am going to keep him on the g-free diet for a couple more weeks to see what additional changes may result. But so far, the changes I have seen have made the change completely worth it. Yes, the food is pricey, you can't eat out many places (darn!), and it is a lot of work learning how to cook all over again. But after seeing what my boy is like when he feels healthy, you can't put a cost on that for me. If this really is what he needs (which at this point I am almost certain it is) then I will do everything in my power to make it work.
Making it work?
Right now I am going to a lot of stores to find where the best places are to get products, getting creative in the kitchen with what I have found so far, asking a ton of questions, and researching ways to make a lot of things my own. Thankfully, I have a lot of built in resources with family that is gluten intolerant. They have walked this road before me and have been a great source of information and encouragement. We still have a long way to go in figuring this all out but at least there is a start and there is progress! Really good progress! And for now, I am beyond thankful for that.