Phenols can cause red ears and red cheeks.

Yes, hypothyroidism is actually VERY common in gluten sensitive people.. Especially Hashi's.... Here is more reading on that subject for you.. http://chriskresser.com/the-gluten-thyroid-connection Gut dysbiosis and yeast overgrowth triggers these autoimmune conditions.. Just about every autoimmune condition out there can be traced back to immune system dysfunction from gut dysbiosis. We eliminated casein first.. Saw AMAZING improvements.. Then went on to eliminate gluten.. Yes! Dr. Oz just had Dr. Mark Hyman on his show a few weeks ago talking about this very issue.. he said many people can't lose weight because they have food sensitivities and he said that gluten and dairy are the two most common.. My husband lost nearly 20 pounds in one month (without even trying) when he went gluten free.. He previously couldn't lose that much no matter how hard he tried. My mother also lost about 10 pounds when she went gluten free (but she was not overweight).. Here is Dr. Hyman's article on food sensitivities and weight loss.. http://drhyman.com/blog/2012/02/22/how-hidden-food-sensitivities-make-you-fat/ Yet another common problem in gluten-sensitive people. Gluten destroys the villi and micro-villi where lactose is broken down. Without this villi, lactose is not tolerated.. I used to LOVE milk.. I drank it like mad every day.. With every meal.. I never realized I was lactose intolerant until I took gluten and dairy out of my diet.. Then when I would have the occasional dairy, I would get crampy and gassy.. I finally realized I was lactose intolerant. I never realized it before though.. I have no idea why. I guess I just wasn't paying attention. I do okay with small amounts of lactose now.. Some cheese or ice cream on occasion don't do anything to me. One thing you could add to your daily routine is some digestive enzymes.. We take TriEnza.. It helps with gluten, casein, and soy proteins and also phenols and lactose..http://www.houston-enzymes.com/store/product.php?c=1&p=4

Teff flour is high in calcium. Also, consider taking a vitamin K2 supplement if you think you aren't getting enough in the foods you eat.. K2 helps "direct" the calcium to the appropriate places.. More info... http://nourishedkitchen.com/reader-questions-on-vitamin-k2-and-an-interview-with-dr-kate-rheaume-bleue/ My calcium supplement has K2 in it.. http://www.newchapter.com/take-care/bone-strength-take-care

I'll post my extra yummy (and nutritious) pancake recipe.. :D I like this recipe because it has a lot of eggs and we've already declared eggs to be a great breakfast, right? The coconut flour is high in fiber and the coconut oil has ketones that are so powerful that it can even REVERSE Alzheimer's disease! Definitely use coconut oil as much as possible!! I make a big batch of these and freeze to pull out through the week. The following recipe makes about 30-40 small to medium-sized pancakes, depending on the consistency of your batter (I make our batter slightly runny). My husband actually came up with the following recipe, which I think he had modified from another source, but I'm not sure of the source. Coconut pancakes 8 eggs 2 cups coconut milk (I use one 15 oz. can usually and then add a bit of water) 4 tsp vanilla extract 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp honey 2 tbsp coconut oil (warm it in the microwave for a few seconds to get it to liquid form) 1 cup coconut flour 2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp Celtic sea salt Blend eggs in a blender/processor until frothy. blend in the coconut milk, vanilla, and honey. In a separate bowl, combine and thoroughly mix the coconut flour, baking soda, and sea salt. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry using a fork. At first you will think you have added too much liquid, but give it a minute and the batter will thicken up.. You might even need to add a little water eventually to thin it out again. Coconut flour is very absorbent! This is why so many eggs are required in recipes that use coconut flour. Sometimes I cut in a little teff flour as well.. In that case, I reduce the eggs. Anyway, when the batter is to the consistency of your liking (we like it slightly runny so I usually add a bit more water) then start making those pancakes! They are soooo good!! We do not use syrup.. We spread (very lightly) some raw cinnamon honey spread or eat them without any spread. You could also do fruit preserves. These pancakes do not have a coconut taste.. They taste absolutely delicious.. My kids beg for them. Between the eggs and the coconut oil, these pancakes are a fantastic breakfast for inattentive little ones!! You could also throw in some flax seed meal for some Omega 3's.

I've heard it can be fairly common to get sick in the first week or so. You might want to join the GAPS yahoo group for support and guidance.. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/GAPShelp/ Or if you're doing SCD, here is the SCD group.. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/pecanbread/

No, traditional food allergy testing (IgE) will not reveal food sensitivities and intolerances. If you want to test for those you will want to do IgG food allergy testing.. The only good place to do that is through either Great Plains Labs or Alletess. http://www.greatplainslaboratory.com http://www.foodallergy.com That's my short answer tonight.. I'm tired. :tongue_smilie:

This could be withdrawal from gluten too if you were not previously gluten free. What is the "stinky factor"?

Give her a soft ribbon about 1 foot long (cut from a spool) and show her how to wrap it around her finger, let it go, wrap it around her finger, let it go, wrap it again, let it go, etc.. We find ribbon to be a great (and quiet) fidget tool around here. Just make sure she doesn't wrap it too tight and leave it.. :001_huh:

Awesome results!! The doctor had my daughter (8-Aspie) scheduled to do 24 weeks, but she completed it in 16!! She flew through it and WOW can she read now! She graduated yesterday and her before and after evaluations were like two different kids.. AMAZING!! I'm so glad we did it!! Thanks again, OhElizabeth for pushing us to the VT door!! :)

I agree.. I also make crackers (I bake them first, then dehydrate for more crispiness) and croutons and veggie chips, etc.. I love my Excalibur.. I also have the nine-tray. I use these jars for making my yogurt in my Excalibur..

We are still easing into the GAPS diet (or the SCD diet is more of what we are following).. We are completely grain free and dairy free.. We've been gluten free and dairy free for over two years now, but we found it necessary to eliminate all grains to control yeast. Still working on eliminating the sugar.. We are down to honey and fruit and some granulated coconut sugar. I make yogurt in my Excalibur food dehydrator.. It's the BEST for making yogurt.. It must ferment for 24 hours. You can literally set it and forget it with the Excalibur.. No need to constantly check the temp. We are also low oxalate so we can't use almond flour.. So we've been using coconut flour and it's really good (and so good for you). you can find a ton of good recipes at Free Coconut Recipes.

Sound sensitivity can definitely be a sign of an auditory processing disorder.. My daughter has figure-ground auditory processing disorder and with that comes sound sensitivity.. however, she also has Asperger's, so.. All of it sort of meshes together in some Aspies.. My other two Aspies don't have sound sensitivity and their auditory processing is just fine too.. Anyway, you really need to take her to a speech and hearing clinic to have auditory processing tested.. A school can't diagnose that sort of thing. I only skimmed over the posts here, but it looks like you are getting her in to see a neuropsych? Definitely stick with that plan.. You'll get answers there.. And remind me.. Is she gluten free? It seems like you said she was in another post? Hashimotos and behavior issues, etc.. It can all be tied to a gluten sensitivity or otherwise compromised gut health.. I definitely feel for you dealing with those behavior issues.. I used to deal with all of that and it was not fun at all.. It makes me sick to my stomach to think back on it.. We no longer have these issues today, thank God! Hang in there and keep looking for answers..

Just wanted to mention quickly that you don't need to supplement with Omega 6 & 9.. We get plenty of these in diet and too much can throw off the balance and cause problems.. Google for more info.:)

We are doing the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, which is pretty much almost the same thing as GAPS. But we also require low oxalates so we can't use almond flours or milks.. So we use coconut flour and coconut milk for just about everything. We are 99% grain free and the only sugars we are getting right now are from fruit, honey, and occasional granulated coconut sugar (not legal on SCD, but we use it sometimes).. Anyway, we are starting this diet after previously being gluten, casein, and soy free for 2+ years. So we already had a head start on our healing. We all have Celiac disease here. Since starting the diet, my pain and my thyroid issues have both disappeared. I have NEVER gone this long without some sort of pain or headache or something that puts me in bed for half a day, which previously was at least twice a week. I now have so much energy and not a single ache!! The downside is you have to spend A LOT of time in the kitchen.. This is why I haven't been on these boards much lately.. My dh and I have been tag-teaming the kitchen.. He spends two hours in the morning doing breakfast and cleaning, then I spend about 3 hours in the kitchen for lunch.. I'm making everything from scratch, finishing up yogurt that I started the day before, making coconut milk or flour, doing dishes, making chicken broth, making crackers or croutons for dinner that night, or making mayonaise or salad dressing.. Then we both do dinner. So yes, very time-consuming and also very expensive to get started (between kitchen gadgets and trying recipes, etc.).. But if it's something your family needs, then definitely go for it!! You can slowly work up to it so it's not a burden. Kitchen appliances that I have found helpful: Ninja or Vitamix Excalibur Dehydrator (for dehydrating everything including crackers AND for making yogurt) Hamilton Beach Big Mouth Food Processor 2nd fridge in the garage We bought all of the above over the past 4 months. Maybe a good thing to do with tax refunds this time of year!

It's not uncommon to encounter a doctor who does not see the autism in your child.. I had a doctor tell me that my oldest daughter didn't have Asperger's several years ago.. She actually has classic Asperger's as far as how it manifests in girls.. Every single symptom possible.. she has it. We finally got a proper diagnosis from a psych who knows how autism looks in girls. I would take her to a different doctor.. You know your child and you know what she is dealing with.. Don't give up.

Yes, my girls all improved significantly as well, but they still are on the spectrum. Mostly their co-morbids (OCD, ADHD, Tourette's) have become almost non-existent. My 8yr old had severe, debilitating OCD before. She has none now as far as we can tell.. She no longer requires meds at all. She had a lot of severe issues before. Biomedical interventions is the best thing we ever did for our kids. I think they call this "Shadow Syndrome Kids" if you really want to give a name to it.:)

My son is still young so the verdict is definitely still out.. He is quirky for sure.. He's not especially social with other boys and he can get obsessive with video games at times.. But that's the only traits we see. No sensory issues or behavior problems or attention issues... No other Aspie traits like my girls have. We started biomedical interventions at a very young age with him. He definitely is not diagnosable on the spectrum today.. But 3 years ago, our psychologist diagnosed him on the spectrum. Today, he does not meet any of the criteria for any autism spectrum disorder. So we are really just waiting to see if those symptoms come out again later or if we really did "stop autism in its tracks" with those biomedical interventions (diet change, etc.).. He did stop lining things up and doing repetitive motor movements the very week we changed his diet. So it's interesting, for sure. It will be interesting to see how he turns out. But for now, he is a typical boy.. Just a tad quirky.

That's a lot of allergies! Have you looked into NAET or Bio-Set? There are ways to eliminate food allergies.. Even severe ones.. The GAPS diet would help too. Going gluten free would also probably help to heal the gut, calm the autoimmunity, and eventually help to eliminate allergies (when in conjunction with GAPS and other treatments like NAET).. I can't imagine dealing with that many allergies.. We are still trying to get to a point where we can have dairy and soy again at least (though we will never eat soy on a regular basis because it's plain unhealthy, IMO).. It's a long process, but it can be done. We are not IgE allergic though.. We have Celiac and IgG allergies.. You would definitely need to do NAET or something similar to eliminate IgE allergies, in conjunction with GAPS or SCD.

We are gluten, dairy, and soy free. My daughter will have a smoothie and banana for breakfast. Or gluten-free toast with banana or smoothie. Sometimes she has chocolate almond milk too. Try Silk dark chocolate almond milk.. It's really good. The rest of us have scrambled eggs and smoothies.. The above daughter does not like eggs. For lunch, we usually have leftovers from the previous night's dinner.. Or a peanut butter sandwich on GF bread. We use Udi's bread.. It's also soy free. We will also have raw carrots or an apple or a homemade juice popsicle or a banana. We do not eat a lot of starchy or sugary foods.. If we did, we would also eat some Lay's potato chips or corn chips or something of that nature. There are so many gluten free options out there. We just don't eat a lot of them because they are junky or starchy. For snacks, the possibilities are endless.. Go to any health food store and you'll find so much.. Not to mention fruit, veggies, boiled eggs, fruit leathers, etc.. For dinner, I make chicken or tacos or chili or whatever.. We eat a different green veggie almost every night.. Lots of veggies all the time along with meats.. Think like our grandmothers used to cook.. Meat and veggies, soups, roasts, etc. All of it is naturally gluten free. If you are suspecting food sensitivities, I would do IgG food allergy testing through Great Plains Labs http://www.greatplainslaboratory.com .. Your pediatrician will most likely not have the correct tests for food sensitivities. He will test for food allergies, which is totally different.

I have 3 Aspie girls.. All diagnosed.. And I would qualify for that diagnosis myself too if I bothered to go in and go through with all that.. :tongue_smilie: Now that I'm older, it doesn't weigh on me as much as long as I don't do too much socializing or try to hold a job or any of that other stuff normal people do.. :lol:

Actually, it's quite common for Aspies to have difficulty with math.. They tend to excel in verbal and are weak with nonverbal (which would include math).. The working memory issues further complicate math performance. That said, there are Aspies who excel at math too.. They are all different. You are right that Aspies tend to not have cognitive delay or delayed speech, except in the area of pragmatics/social language. There is what you call a "coincidental delay" though in which the child has a speech delay for other reasons not related to ASD.. Chronic ear infections, etc. So that would be something to keep in mind. My middle daughter has a language-based learning issue along with figure-ground auditory processing disorder and she carries an Asperger's diagnosis. She was my latest talker, though it was still just barely in the normal time frame. She has a gifted IQ so this muddles the waters a little.. Compensates her weaknesses, I think, and makes her appear to be average.. she works right at grade level in every subject (and she struggles there).. Every ASD kid is a unique puzzle.. Even in the same family.. All 3 of my Aspie daughters are completely different from one another.. It does sound like your son is on the spectrum in some way.. I can't say exactly in what way though.. He might end up with a PDD-NOS diagnosis. Just keep in mind that not every child is going to fit exactly into a certain diagnosis.. They are all so different.. My 8yr old makes good eye contact most of the time (unless she's pacing and rambling).. But she is Aspie supreme pie in every other area. My 14yr old is able to make friends (and keep them!).. But she is also extremely Aspie in every other way.. She doesn't really spend time with her friends outside of co-op, field trips, etc.. but she does have friends.. So there will always be some way that a child will not fit into a diagnosis 100%.. Anyway, hope you get it figured out soon.. Good luck to you!

He sounds a lot like my 14yr old daughter who has Asperger's. She has issues with abstract concepts and she has visual spatial issues.. This translates to poor math performance, poor penmanship, poor fine motor, difficulty with some puzzles (especially 3-dimensional ones), and poor grasping of abstract thought processes, which is especially evident when she is asked to report on some literature or write an essay (and math at times, too). She tries to keep all the information concrete and perfectly translated... Like a tape recorder. She began reading very early and could spell anything she has seen. Her visual memory is near perfect and she tests off the charts on her verbal scores (with very low nonverbal IQ). She has always had a book in front of her face from the time she was very small. Does this sound like your son? My daughter's IQ tests in the gifted range, but just barely. She has a huge split between verbal and nonverbal.

You might look for the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle by Elaine Gottschall at your library. This is what the Specific Carbohydrate Diet sprang from.. and the GAPS diet sprang from the Specific Carb Diet. So it would be a good read for you. Just make sure it is the updated edition with the autism chapter (it will say on the front cover). We are easing into a GAPS/SCD diet slowly.. We've been GFCF for 2 years with astounding results, but we still have some lingering gut issues that can only be fixed by fine-tuning our diet.

My 14yr old daughter is the same. I put her through a typing program when she was younger and she is very thankful that I did that.. She can get a lot done (including better quality work) with her laptop.. but ask her to handwrite something and it turns out dreadful.

Is it okay to answer for the child? I have to do this often.. My 11 y/o APD daughter has slow processing speed on top of the APD so she just does not say anything when people speak to her. I always have to answer for her. I pause first to see if she can answer.. I see the wheels turning, she is trying to process, trying to come up with something to say, but it just takes too long.. I think she has some social anxiety on top of it all too (she's Aspie). Strangers and family members just aren't used to waiting that long for an answer from a child.. I don't know what else to do.. :confused: