Oh all right! Talk to me about GF, CF, artifical colors....

[simka2]

...preservatives, food dyes, HFC and how this could be contributing to ds's ADHD. We are a very active and generally healthy family. That said I have had a difficult time getting on this particular bandwagon.

 

I don't understand the connection. Also, I really need some peer reviewed scientific backing. I'm just not interested in implementing someone's latest theory if there isn't evidence behind it.

[simka2]

Pretty please! :001_smile:

[amy g.]

Well, my 4 year old used to have unprovoked 4 hour long tantrums. She would repeatedly scream, "I just want you to hurt me!" and "I want to get hit by a car!" It was very scary to feel like she had such major problems at such a young age.

 

My oldest first noticed that she always had a tantrum after eating pepperoni, so we completely removed dye from her diet, and the behavior change was just like turning off a light switch. She is happy, agreeable, helpful and well-adjusted. She also immediately stopped having daytime accidents.

 

My family begged me to try a gluten-free diet for my oldest when she received a classic autism label. I could never get organized to try, but last fall, she has a friend with celiacs over. Her friend urged her to just try it for 2 weeks. Miss Good said that the change in her brain fog, and ability to focus was dramatic.

 

She is still accidentally ingesting gluten here because I don't always check the label on salad dressing, taco seasoning, vitamins...

 

She spent a week at her friend's house (who is a better label reader) and said, "I functioned so much better there on less sleep."

 

It feels overwhelming, and you may be imperfect, like me, but I think it is worth trying.

[Disney Dreaming]

Well, my 4 year old used to have unprovoked 4 hour long tantrums. She would repeatedly scream, "I just want you to hurt me!" and "I want to get hit by a car!" It was very scary to feel like she had such major problems at such a young age.

 

My oldest first noticed that she always had a tantrum after eating pepperoni, so we completely removed dye from her diet, and the behavior change was just like turning off a light switch. She is happy, agreeable, helpful and well-adjusted. She also immediately stopped having daytime accidents.

 

My family begged me to try a gluten-free diet for my oldest when she received a classic autism label. I could never get organized to try, but last fall, she has a friend with celiacs over. Her friend urged her to just try it for 2 weeks. Miss Good said that the change in her brain fog, and ability to focus was dramatic.

 

She is still accidentally ingesting gluten here because I don't always check the label on salad dressing, taco seasoning, vitamins...

 

She spent a week at her friend's house (who is a better label reader) and said, "I functioned so much better there on less sleep."

 

It feels overwhelming, and you may be imperfect, like me, but I think it is worth trying.

 

 

What do you look for to avoid on food labels? I have a recently diagnosed ADHD dd and would like to try this but I know NOTHING about what to avoid. Is there a book you would recommend? Or any advice?

[ocelotmom]

Pretty please! :001_smile:

 

Gah, give us time! If you expect us to go digging up scientific studies for you, a reply is unlikely to be instantaneous!

[Random]

Here are a few links:

 

http://www.kidsdr.com/your-toddler/fda-advisory-hearings-food-dyes-adhd

 

http://www.drgreene.com/blog/2007/02/09/how-our-food-processed

 

My favorite:

http://www.drgreene.com/blog/2008/06/03/let%E2%80%99s-put-artificial-dyes-time-out?tid=4

[sarah1615]

Here is a news article from CNN:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/03/30/fda.food.dye.health/index.html

 

Here are a couple studies about ADHD and food dye research:

http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/127/6/e1575.abstract

 

http://cpj.sagepub.com/content/50/4/279.abstract

[amy g.]

I'm no good at reading labels, so what works best for us is to try to eat things that don't have labels-fresh meat, eggs, fruit, vegetables, fresh herbs, salt and pepper, home made salad dressing....you get the idea.

[Denise in Florida]

I can't point to specific studies (I know there are some) but the impact of gluten on neurological issues is becoming more and more recognized.

 

When we first took my dd off gluten people assumed it was for digestive sytems issues but the trigger that caused the pediatrician to look into gluten was her talking about having a 'foggy brain'. Being gluten free has helped her with insomnia, fatigue and depression, she NEVER had physical type symptoms (stomach ache, vomiting, bowel issues).

[simka2]

Gah, give us time! If you expect us to go digging up scientific studies for you, a reply is unlikely to be instantaneous!

 

 

Hee hee! I just didn't want this to disappear into forum oblivion. ;) I am really curious and leaning strongly towards some dietary changes. The nurse side of me comes out with the need for scientific studies. They can be somewhat technical. One was posted on the Special Needs board and I went and dug up the orginal finding because I wanted to know what process they went to verify their findings. That was the first pretty decent study I had seen. The obly problem is I do not quite understand which elimantion diet they used.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21296237

[amy g.]

If he were mine, I'd start with this diet.

 

http://feingold.org/research.php

[Random]

What do you look for to avoid on food labels? I have a recently diagnosed ADHD dd and would like to try this but I know NOTHING about what to avoid. Is there a book you would recommend? Or any advice?

 

Usually the words "Natural Flavorings" or "Artificial Flavorings" mean any kind of additive. "Natural Flavorings" is code for anything approved by the FDA for human consumption, including cockroaches, so we try to avoid products with those ingredients.

 

If you want to avoid something, you might want to connect with parents of food-allergic children. They usually have a lot of knowledge about label reading.

[Random]

Hee hee! I just didn't want this to disappear into forum oblivion. ;) I am really curious and leaning strongly towards some dietary changes. The nurse side of me comes out with the need for scientific studies. They can be somewhat technical. One was posted on the Special Needs board and I went and dug up the orginal finding because I wanted to know what process they went to verify their findings. That was the first pretty decent study I had seen. The obly problem is I do not quite understand which elimantion diet they used.

 

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21296237

 

This article appears to be testing the children based on their specific food allergies.

 

Randomisation in both phases was individually

done by random sampling. In the open-label phase (first phase), children aged 4-8

years who were diagnosed with ADHD were randomly assigned to 5 weeks of a

restricted elimination diet (diet group) or to instructions for a healthy diet

(control group). Thereafter, the clinical responders (those with an improvement

of at least 40% on the ADHD rating scale [ARS]) from the diet group proceeded

with a 4-week double-blind crossover food challenge phase (second phase), in

which high-IgG or low-IgG foods (classified on the basis of every child's

individual IgG blood test results) were added to the diet.

[simka2]

This article appears to be testing the children based on their specific food allergies.

 

That is kinda what I was putting together. None of us have allergies that I know of, so I am least familiar with this approach. :glare:

[Heather in OK]

Honestly, scientific studies aside, just consider the ingredients!! All of the added preservatives, chemicals, etc are NOT good for our bodies. And especially our children who are still growing and developing!

 

I am of the opinion that if people would educate themselves and think about what they are putting into their kid's bodies, there would be A LOT less children being medicated. Just look sometimes at what people are putting in their shopping cart. It's appalling.

 

What do you look for to avoid on food labels?

Any food colorings, BHT, TBHQ, BHA, "natural" or "artificial" flavorings, MSG (this is almost always hidden, look online for a list), anything hydrogenated, HFCS, and anything I can not pronounce.

 

You HAVE to learn to read labels. You HAVE to read labels on things that you think may not have anything in it. The other day I picked up a container of cottage cheese. It's white, right? It had food coloring in it!!!!

 

Is there a book you would recommend? Or any advice?

The Feingold diet. You can find some info online and implement it without buying the program.

 

The NDD Book by Dr. Sears

[ocelotmom]

...preservatives, food dyes, HFC and how this could be contributing to ds's ADHD. We are a very active and generally healthy family. That said I have had a difficult time getting on this particular bandwagon.

 

I don't understand the connection. Also, I really need some peer reviewed scientific backing. I'm just not interested in implementing someone's latest theory if there isn't evidence behind it.

 

Ok, looks like others have dug up studies, so I won't bother :)

 

Personally...

 

I'm a touch wary of this whole leaky gut hypothesis. It's way too tied in with the whole Wakefield study/anti-vax business. That said, there's awful lot of anecdotal evidence of people improving their health by eating a less processed diet, especially autoimmune, psychiatric, and weight-related conditions. This includes my own personal experience and observations.

 

I would try dietary modification before medication in my own children if the item being eliminated was not nutritionally crucial and delaying medication would not cause irreparable harm, even in absence of official scientific studies in support of the diet. I've found nothing to convince me that gluten-containing foods, and grains in general (and certainly not artificial colors/flavors), contain anything that doesn't have some other better nutritional source. Medication causes side effects. Eliminating unnecessary elements of the diet is, at worst, a bit of a pain while adjusting and at best, treating the root of the problem rather than just the symptoms.

 

(Consider also that there is little market funding for studies that might support a gluten-free diet, while there is a lot for pharmaceutical solutions.)

 

 

My personal anecdata related to diet changes:

 

I've experienced depression to a greater or lesser extent since i was a teen. Since switching to a no-grain, (mostly) no-sugar, very limited processed foods diet, this has not been a problem, despite a lot of stress and hormonal circumstances (new baby) that have triggered depression in the past. My husband and I fight MUCH less because neither of us have the same hair-trigger irritability. When I do have issues, it's always clearly tied to poor dietary choices, and because my diet as a whole is so much cleaner, I'm able to identify this.

 

When my DD eats certain foods, she goes nuts - throwing huge tantrums and being generally out of control. It looks like this is probably related to casein (and she was definitely dairy-sensitive as an infant). She now asks to avoid dairy-heavy foods because she doesn't like how they make her feel mentally.

 

We have a teenage girl on the autistic spectrum (PDD-NOS, most likely won't ever live independently) as a housemate. It is very clear when she ingests something she isn't supposed to. She is not "cured" by a cleaner diet. Maybe if she'd started it when symptoms first appeared, but now she has a decade and a half of behavioral patterns in place that aren't going to go away very quickly with a diet change, as is sometimes seen with younger kids. However, when she's eating right, she's relatively cooperative and considerate of others. She'll hold the door for me if I've got my arms full of something, or put laundry away without being asked. She'll initiate conversations, and respond more in-depth to other people's questions.

 

When she gets food she shouldn't, she'll have screaming fits, and refuse to do anything she's asked. She gets violent - not really intentionally hurting people, but her total out of control behavior is a danger to others. She seems less aware of people around her - rather than holding the door, she'll push right past me. She's less communicative, with more stereotyped behaviors, echolalia, and so forth. And her behavior towards food gets weird and addictive - she'll start picking food out of the trash and things like that, which she doesn't do when eating healthily.

 

When she is acting like this, we can ALWAYS trace it back to food (I recognize this could be confirmation bias, and that there may be times she's sneaking stuff that we don't notice). Most recently, we were baffled a bad spell because she was out of school (her primary source of sneakage, since we don't keep much in the way of problem foods around the house). Then I decided to have sugar in my coffee one morning and noticed that the level in the jar was much lower than I remembered. We put the sugar in a less readily accessible place, and it's been pretty calm since.

 

For her, it seems to be foods heavy in carbohydrates (too many apples cause issues, as do non-gluten grains). It's hard to tease out from that whether gluten specifically is an issue, but there is clear behavioral benefit to avoiding those foods regardless. However, when we eliminated gluten but not other grains (several years ago), the dark circles under her eyes went away, her skin got a healthy color (she was very pale - almost greyish when we started eliminating gluten and dairy), she gained to a healthy weight, and she stopped pulling out her eyebrows, so there's definitely something about gluten and/or dairy specifically that is a problem, too.

 

Edit: Ok, here's one gluten-oriented study, since I haven't seen it posted yet:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704893604576200393522456636.html#articleTabs%3Darticle

Edited June 25, 2011 by ocelotmom

[OLG]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-mark-hyman/5-reasons-high-fructose-c_b_861913.html

[Mom in High Heels]

My evidence is anecdotal, so take it for what it's worth. I try to avoid all HFCS and the like and my friend fed her kids just whatever they wanted. The older 2 were completely crazy. And I mean off the wall, uncontrollable crazy. The baby was still on baby foods at the time, so she was still relatively calm, but the older 2 girls had been as babies too. One day she was at her wits end and told me she didn't know why they were like this and asked if I had any suggestions. I told her she should try to change their diet. She thought *I* was crazy but was willing to give it a try. We both did some research online and she decided to drop the same types of food I had. We took a trip to Whole Foods (obviously I was living in the US at the time) and completely overhauled her pantry. The kids (and her dh) were very resistant to the change at first because their taste buds were used to certain things. It was a struggle for a few days, but they eventually got used to the new foods (many just versions of the original, but without all the added junk) and within about 2 weeks her kids were totally different. They were so much calmer and listened when she told them to do something and could actually sit still for more than 30 seconds. This was about 5 years ago and they still keep mostly to this type of eating and all the kids are great.

Here in Germany (and much of Europe), HFCS and many additives approved in the US are illegal, so I can buy products knowing that they don't have all the junk in them. Even American exports have to meet German standards, so they can't put the normal ingredients in them if they want to sell them over here. Surprisingly (or not, I guess), the European versions of American junk foods taste way better than the regular American versions.

[Soror]

As pp said look at the studies from Feingold, it is not just some fad or such. As also mentioned we have plenty in our food that is not even allowed in other countries because the links to behavior and development are well known. Personally we did Feingold for awhile but it was also implemented at the same time as GF/CF/SF so I cannot for attribute behavior changes to any one thing. I will say that my son is a different person than he was before. It is emotional for me and I would rather not give the details but I was beyond desperate, thus why we did everything at once, I had to have some changes. Today when describing my son I would say he is more mature than average, a calm kid, he almost always listens and helps out. It is rather amazing.

 

I had a friend who went Feingold first and the very first day her son pooped on the potty- he was 4 at the time and had never done that before, the awful, awful tantrums stopped. They went on to do GF and he actually started making eye contact and talking(other than the tv talk he did before). Now she is on GAPs and continuing to see improvment.

 

Another guy dh works with has recently went GF/CF and hasn't even been perfect with that and his son who was still in diapers at 5 started letting him know when he had to go. For the first time ever he doesn't have ear infections. The diarrhea he had multiple times daily has stopped. He still isn't talking but has learned 12 new signs in one month, which is more than he learned in the previous year.

 

 

My other friend went GF and her sons excema finally cleared after 4 years.

 

Yet another friend went GF for her son and finally realized that the terrible behavior she had just attributed to him being a 'bad' kid were actually from the gluten. She also realized that the prolonged bedwetting was associated with it as well. Now she knows when he gets gluten as he is entirely uncooperative and downright mean- he was a bully before- it was horrendous, really.

 

I am a bit of an evangelist for diet changes, thus why I have so many friends that have had these results. I am rather convincing :0

 

It was a night and day difference in my house. I was at the end of my sanity, literally. As has also been said no one could argue that these foods are good for you most are generally petroleum based. You have nothing to loose be eating a more natural diet and everything to gain, even if there are not behavior changes, it is healthier for all of you and sets them up for a lifetime of healthy eating habits.

 

As of now we are gluten and soy free. I am super strict Feingold anymore but pretty much cook everything homemade. I make things from whole ingredients, farm fresh eggs, meat, fresh or frozen veggies- good oils and plain spices. - The exception is that now if they are offered a candy out occasionally I will let them have it. It is not a big part of their diet, certainly not daily or anything close to that. We are currently trialing dairy after 3.5 yrs of strict avoidance and fingers crossed it seems to be ok- we are doing raw milk and homemade yogurt and such.

[Alenee]

I've posted here many times about my dd and dyes. She was diagnosed with SPD at 4yo (she's 9yo now). We were given a handout of things to try at home and taking her off of sugar and dyes was on the list. We gave it a try and saw immediate changes. Her general attitude changed from being angry, rude, sad, tantrum-like, to sweet and controlled.

 

We slowly realized that red dye is the big kicker with her so now we do allow limited sugar items. However, we were stumped for years because it appeared that sometimes she would be fine with sugar and other times, not. Just about a month ago, dh said he gave dd some root beer and noticed an immediate change in her behavior. He thinks it's caramel color. I was hesitant to agree until the other night when we had ice cream. Her behavior yesterday was horrible. I checked the box and sure enough, it had caramel color in it.

 

We are still seeing some major issues in dd and this thread is intriguing. I'm wondering if we need to be gluten-free. Dd has eczema and severe anxiety for which she takes medication. Her anxiety makes it very difficult for her to function well enough to do school work.

[Lovedtodeath]

...preservatives, food dyes, HFC and how this could be contributing to ds's ADHD. We are a very active and generally healthy family. That said I have had a difficult time getting on this particular bandwagon.

 

I don't understand the connection. Also, I really need some peer reviewed scientific backing. I'm just not interested in implementing someone's latest theory if there isn't evidence behind it.

It is simple. Some people are sensitive or allergic to some of these things and some aren't. You need to find out if your son is. You need to go to a Natural Doctor who has a diagnostic test for that. I recommend an electrodermal scan. After getting my son tested and cutting out his allergies his asthma/reflux/anaphylactic symptoms disappeared.

 

I had tried an elimination diet with my daughter and it turned out that the test was spot on (I hadn't told the doctor what I thought she was allergic to). She was allergic to wheat, dairy, oatmeal and tomatoes (This was at 1 year old. I haven't had her tested since, but she is going in next week). My son however was allergic to yeast, oatmeal, tomatoes, coffee, tea, onions and garlic. Every kid is different. If I had simply cut dairy and gluten out of each of their diets it wouldn't have worked. That is why you don't see the connection and why it is difficult to get peer reviewed backing.

Edited June 25, 2011 by Lovedtodeath

[Lovedtodeath]

Another consideration: We tried cutting corn syrup and red dye from DDs diet and it seemed to help. Now we are thinking it was a coincidence... because that cuts way down on sugar consumption and it may be that she has blood sugar issues.

 

Oh, and I have all of those neurological issues and no problem at all with gluten. I despise blindly trying an elimination diet... really... you can get this tested and know what to try.

Edited June 25, 2011 by Lovedtodeath

[simka2]

Another consideration: We tried cutting corn syrup and red dye from DDs diet and it seemed to help. Now we are thinking it was a coincidence... because that cuts way down on sugar consumption and it may be that she has blood sugar issues.

 

Oh, and I have all of those neurological issues and no problem at all with gluten. I despise blindly trying an elimination diet... really... you can get this tested and know what to try.

 

The bolded is what I am trying to wrap my brain around. In some of the studies I am beginning to see that even though a person can digest gluten itself without issue they may still experience neurological consequences.

 

I would love to have the kids all tested, but right now I have to pick my medical expenses. Between the ripped out teeth, getting the "flipper" (false tooth with a retainer) and Ed Psych my budget is running a bit low. :tongue_smilie:

[Paz]

You may want to look into this food sensitivity testing and read about it. I am not very sciency so I can't explain all the specifics. I do know that my ds (age 21) took this test and was severe for gluten, wheat and mushrooms. He cut them out of his diet and the migranes he experienced since he was 9 have gone away completely. He also lost about 40 lbs by just avoiding those foods. You can also read studies and testimonials here.

 

http://www.alcat.com/aboutus/foodsensitivity?gclid=CLPViL-X0qkCFcfD7QodRznWMA

Edited June 25, 2011 by Paz
added more information

[kathkath]

Can someone specifically link me to food elimination diets that are appropriate for a 5yo and a feingold diet that does not require payment? Pretty please??

[matchpenalty_2]

Dietary changes can make a huge difference! We recently went GF and it has been a positive change. We are also doing neuro-feedback which has been very positive. Good luck!

[Soror]

The thing is with absolutely every single test for intolerances there are no 100%, the only 100% is an elimination diet. So, if I had symptoms strongly associated with one thing or another I wouldn't rule out anything based on tests that are not infallible.

 

ON the Feingold you do not have to do payment, you wouldn't be following it exactly but just avoiding all preservatives and dyes would get you a long way.

[kathkath]

So what is the process for an elimination diet?? Dr. Google is just coming up with articles and research studies about EDs but I am not coming up with anything that says for a young child first do x then y etc.

[tenoraddict]

We do a modified Feingold diet because ADHD isn't our issue. Sensory Processing Disorder is our issue (it can look a lot like ADHD), and I've found that it's been helped by the following:

1. Modified Feingold diet (no artificial colors or flavors, no sodium nitrate or nitrite, no MSG, no high fructose corn syrup, no BHA, no BHT)

2. Dianne Crafts's Biology of Behavior: http://www.diannecraft.com was life changing for us, and I'm not exaggerating.

3. We eat organically - at the least, dairy and meat products as well as the fruits and veggies that are most frequently sprayed with pesticides and chemicals.

[Alenee]

So what is the process for an elimination diet?? Dr. Google is just coming up with articles and research studies about EDs but I am not coming up with anything that says for a young child first do x then y etc.

 

A slow and easy way to begin is to "run out" of the items you want to eliminate. Get used to that first and then possibly try some replacement items in small quantity so you aren't wasting money if it doesn't go over well. When we initially cut out sugar, we replaced pancake syrup with real maple syrup and the kids hated it. I kept plugging away at it though and now they prefer it. This method was probably one of the best tips I ever received and made the transition a lot easier to bear.

 

After I began reading through this thread today, I started searching recipes and meal ideas for GF diets and came up with a lot of great recipes that didn't include replacement flours/noodles/breads. My google search was "kids gluten-free meal ideas". hth

[SweetMissMagnolia]

we TRY to stay away from processed foods as much as possible but hey things get in so we don't panic-but we don't eat them on a daily basis.....we try to stay away from artificial colors but sometimes it slips...I've noticed that food colorings affect him-he's more moody and prone to tantrums...tried gf a few times but didn't see a change or we didn't do it long enough.....there is a book called the ADHD diet great things/info in there but I wasn't impressed with the recipes---my child wouldn't eat things like that LOL......

[simka2]

A slow and easy way to begin is to "run out" of the items you want to eliminate. Get used to that first and then possibly try some replacement items in small quantity so you aren't wasting money if it doesn't go over well. When we initially cut out sugar, we replaced pancake syrup with real maple syrup and the kids hated it. I kept plugging away at it though and now they prefer it. This method was probably one of the best tips I ever received and made the transition a lot easier to bear.

 

After I began reading through this thread today, I started searching recipes and meal ideas for GF diets and came up with a lot of great recipes that didn't include replacement flours/noodles/breads. My google search was "kids gluten-free meal ideas". hth

 

This going to be my approach. I needed to go grocery shopping last night and went to this huge asian market we have. I stocked up on quite a few things we needed as well as some new items to try.