TOTAL long shot - gluten/dairy affecting auditory processing and possibly ADHD?

[razorbackmama]

3 of my kids have some sort of SOMETHING - possibly 4. Y'all have probably read about my saga with my oldest, who I suspect has CAPD, but it's been like pulling teeth to get any help for him. My 8yo...sigh. I suspect lots of stuff with him - dyslexia, CAPD, ADHD, dysgraphia, sensory integration issues....

 

However, in my research I saw someone somewhere mention a gluten intolerance and how it can manifest itself as a brain fog or auditory processing problem. That got my wheels to turning. I'm very familiar with gluten/casein free diets due to my 2nd being diagnosed with PDD-NOS when he was 4 (he's fine now:glare: ). Would it be possible that at the root of my kids' issues are "simple" food intolerances?

 

FWIW, my 10yo (who is dyslexic) recently developed a milk allergy, literally overnight. Freakiest thing (and it's VERY frustrating to her). My 8yo is a carb and cheese addict. He flat out told me once he wants to marry cheese.:lol: He's a pretty picky eater and won't eat a variety of things. But cheese - you can't go wrong with cheese LOL.

 

None of my kids have been on a bunch of antibiotics. I've listened to Dianne Craft's Biology of Behavior CD and tried to implement some of the supplements, but I haven't see any sort of change. I'm wondering if I need to ELIMINATE something more than anything.

 

Anyway...anyone else know anything more about this? I have 7 kids and a husband who are used to eating milk/gluten products.:lol: It's been difficult enough with my 10yo's milk issues.:001_huh: So before I just go and go gluten/dairy-free, I want to find out as much as I can.

[Renee in NC]

Yes. All I know, though, is that my 9yo's behaviors/problems/brain fog are greatly affected by both dairy and gluten. Once we are settled (and close to a Trader Joes), he is going gluten/dairy free. My mother has the same issues, especially with the brain fog.

[Guest Dulcimeramy]

If you have never given a real trial to the GFCF diet, it is so, so, so, so, so very worth a try.

 

30 days should tell you.

 

Celiac disease can hide from you. All four of my children have it, but two of them never had digestive issues at all. Their symptoms were in other body systems. I did not figure it out until the youngest had the classic digestive problems, and then we had the others tested.

 

My second oldest son had been diagnosed with ADHD, and we were wondering about Asperger's and various learning disabilities. Homeschooling him was so hard! But I knew he'd drown in public school, so I kept trying.

 

When we put him on the GF diet we never saw one more raging episode from him again (unless he accidentally got glutened). 5 years later, an accidental glutening does not cause that scary raging, but it does cause brain fog and the inability to study.

 

He is able to learn now. He is above average in every subject, and his talent and genius at art have become so evident. He is fine.

 

My boys were GFCF for awhile, but after some time their guts healed and they were again able to have dairy. The gluten was the real problem for them.

 

Try it.

 

Do your research beforehand about what to eat, stock up the house and make meal plans, and make it as simple on yourself as possible. Keep some GFCF treats (avoid dyes and other junk they usually don't have) to help your kids deal with the changes.

 

In 30 days you'll know.

 

Find a local GFCF mom to help you. If you lived near me I would help. It is that worth it to do the hard work, for any kid who might have his life changed. And if nothing changes, at least you can cross this off your list.

[Guest Dulcimeramy]

I forgot to tell you about myself and the GFCF diet.

 

My own celiac disease wasn't really triggered until I had a year of surgeries, illnesses, prednisone, and broad-spectrum antibiotics. And then I got pregnant. LOL

 

This is how bad my brain fog was: When I called someone on the telephone, before I would dial the number I would jot down my own name on a piece of paper so I'd be able to remember what to say.

 

*My own name.* I couldn't remember my own name, but I was dragging myself through the day, cleaning and teaching, etc.

 

I was getting it done. My house was clean, and two of my children learned to read during that time. But my brain was mush. I was in a daze.

 

The fog lifted after 2 weeks on the diet for me. Five years later, an accidental glutening leaves me so foggy that I don't dare drive a car until I recover.

[happygrrl]

Yes. We are doing the GAPS diet, and it makes a miraculous difference for us all, but especially for ds 14 (Aspie). We traveled over the holidays and were not able to keep up with our diet; we saw his abilities plummet back to where they were before we changed our eating. A week back on, and we are seeing the improvement again.

 

One thing to watch out for; sometimes folks who go gluten free don't see significant improvements because they merely substitute one processed food for another processed food (even though a product is labeled gluten free, it still does not make that product good for you!). Do your research!

 

(the GAPS diet is basically the SCD diet with extra supplementation specific to psychology syndromes. You can read about it at gaps.me)

[razorbackmama]

Thanks, guys!

 

Fortunately we don't have rages or anything like that. Our main issues are with learning, although my pastor asked if my 8yo has ADHD after being his group leader for VBS.:lol:

 

Thanks for the link about GAPS. I read through the symptom list on their main page - we really don't have ANY of that.:glare: Do you think it'd still be beneficial?

 

What is the SCD diet?

 

I plan to dig out my "Is This Your Child?" book.

 

Sigh. I don't have time for this LOL!

[happygrrl]

Thanks, guys!

 

Fortunately we don't have rages or anything like that. Our main issues are with learning, although my pastor asked if my 8yo has ADHD after being his group leader for VBS.:lol:

 

Thanks for the link about GAPS. I read through the symptom list on their main page - we really don't have ANY of that.:glare: Do you think it'd still be beneficial?

 

What is the SCD diet?

 

I plan to dig out my "Is This Your Child?" book.

 

Sigh. I don't have time for this LOL!

 

Our only symptoms were the aspie diagnosis for ds 1 and eczema and dyslexia for ds 2. Turns out we all have benefitted. My dh lost 17 pounds in the first few weeks without changing his activity level! We plan to stay on it for about a year, then go to a more 'Nourishing Traditions' type diet.

 

The SCD diet (specific Carbohydrate Diet) is used often for kids with LD's. A great site to learn about it is pecanbread.com. I have to run; I'll check in again if you have any more ??. Best of luck! These sort of discoveries never happen at a good time! :D

[rafiki]

.

[Gooblink]

Yes. We are doing the GAPS diet, and it makes a miraculous difference for us all, but especially for ds 14 (Aspie). We traveled over the holidays and were not able to keep up with our diet; we saw his abilities plummet back to where they were before we changed our eating. A week back on, and we are seeing the improvement again.

 

One thing to watch out for; sometimes folks who go gluten free don't see significant improvements because they merely substitute one processed food for another processed food (even though a product is labeled gluten free, it still does not make that product good for you!). Do your research!

 

(the GAPS diet is basically the SCD diet with extra supplementation specific to psychology syndromes. You can read about it at gaps.me)

 

I'm reading GAPS right now - amazing. I have a dear friend who has been doing GAPS for a year who is going to help us as we embark on the journey.

 

We don't have diagnoses of anything like ADD, ADHD, dyslexia, etc., but I have a son with type 1 diabetes and celiac and am concerned about possible psychological changes, as he matures, that tend to go hand-in-hand with auto-immune diseases. We've already seen intense mood swings and other tendencies that I'd written off to chaotic blood sugars but am now thinking it's gut healing he (and we) need.

 

Anyway, I recommend the book to add to your research on the issue. :)

[razorbackmama]

Until my 10yo popped up with this milk thing (that happened in November), we had ZERO food allergies (that we know of LOL). We don't even have environmental allergies except for my oldest with cottonwood pollen. That has only been since we moved to Colorado, and it's only when the cottonwood trees are pollinating. I see the white cotton flying everywhere and know he'll be sneezing and sniffling to beat the band within 2 days.

 

Oh, 13yo is allergic to cats too. We discovered that in November when we went to some friends' house. We don't have any pets, so we had NO clue. But after about an hour of being cuddly with a cat, my ds was MISERABLE LOL.

 

Other than that, we have NOTHING. We're quite boring when it comes to health LOL. Most of our doctor visits are well-child check-ups, and we've only done two true ER visits (and remember, I have 7 kids!) - once was for a split-open forehead after a slip out of the tub, and once was for a ruptured appendix. I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, and my 10yo has the antibodies but is currently euthryoid. I do get brain fog from that, but it's when my meds are off. (When I was unmedicated I had a VERY limited vocabulary LOL.)

 

Anyhoo...we are just NOT used to anything health-wise LOL!

Edited February 2, 2011 by razorbackmama

[Misty]

YES YES YES!

 

All of my kids (and me) are gluten intolerant and can't really handle casein either..

 

Here is what they are diagnosed with..

 

dd13 Asperger's, ADHD, OCD, SPD, dysgraphia, tic disorder

 

dd10 Asperger's, ADHD, OCD tendencies, tic disorder, auditory figure-ground processing disorder, slow processing speed, BIG pragmatic language issues, general anxiety disorder, mild depression, SPD

 

dd7 Asperger's, ADHD, severe OCD, anxiety disorder, SPD, visual processing/brain integration issues

 

ds4 diagnosed with nothing and shows no signs of anything due to diet interventions at a young age.

[kiwi mum]

My 8yo is a carb and cheese addict. He flat out told me once he wants to marry cheese.:lol: He's a pretty picky eater and won't eat a variety of things. But cheese - you can't go wrong with cheese LOL..

 

This here is one of the common signs of gluten/casein issues. The child limits himself to the foods that are totally wrong. I have seen many people talk about this on the SPD Yahoo group I belonged to. Once the allergens were removed from the diet the child stopped being a picky eater (as well as solving the other issues). Definitely something to look into.

[razorbackmama]

This here is one of the common signs of gluten/casein issues. The child limits himself to the foods that are totally wrong. I have seen many people talk about this on the SPD Yahoo group I belonged to. Once the allergens were removed from the diet the child stopped being a picky eater (as well as solving the other issues). Definitely something to look into.

 

 

Yep, that's what I hear over and over. Sigh. We also tend to have low blood sugar issues ending up with vomiting, so I have to be very careful when it comes to them refusing food.

 

I dug out my Doris Rapp book to peruse it. I may do an elimination diet on ME (I've been having belly issues that I thought were due to eggs, but now I'm not sure) to see how difficult it is before I attempt it on anyone else.