momsuz123 Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 So, I have not done any major changes to my families diet, yet. I just am realizing more and more how I need to "make it healthier". I have one child in particular, who is getting me a little more concerned. I was hearing a mom this weekend mention how her kids don't eat food with artificial colors / or atleast try and avoid foods with artificial colors. Anyone else doing this? Why? What other diets have any of you started to implement with your family and why? I am not trying to be nosy. I just know I need to do a minor overhaul to our diet. I need to sneak in more healthy food - even for me too. Smoothies are a big hit at our house, that has helped a ton, as is roasted veges is a huge hit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexi Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 We have food allergies so our diet is very different. It is not easy but has been so worth it. I've also noticed behavioral improvements as well as overall health improvements. My kids are rarely sick anymore. When you're trying to avoid those things it means lots of planning ahead and cooking from scratch at home. But we've had fun experimenting with new recipes and our kids eat some unique things now. My hives blog has some of our info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProudGrandma Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 this is the Feingold Diet The Feingold Diet Program for ADHD and we are doing this. With great results, I must add. My son is not as hyper as he used to be. Plus other things....it is great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan C. Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Us, kids didn't handle dye well when they were younger, and I have problems w/additives. Take one thing at a time and start reading labels. Also "perimeter shopping" helps, just the outside of the store, the produce dept., meat, dairy. Most of what is in the middle of the store is processed. There are processed foods w/o the dye, but they are expensive. So instead of boxed mac and cheese, make a large pan of homemade. Make roasts, grill hamburgers, make whole chicken or pieces. Then have salad and/or vegetables with it. I also switched butter for margarine, olive oil for veg. oil, palm oil shortening for veg. shortening (I use butter more for baking). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momsuz123 Posted April 2, 2012 Author Share Posted April 2, 2012 Thanks ladies, this is the advice I am looking for. I have one child with low iron (she is on supplements). I can't get her to eat cereal, and she is kind of "picky" with other foods too. In general though, I know that I eat too much sugar. I love candy, there, I said it. Jelly beans, Milk Duds, yummmm. But I saw some report on sugar and cancer, and I thought, gulp, that is me. (Even the report is false, I still no sugar is not good). Then after hearing this mom mentioning no artifiical colors and all, got me thinking even more. I think I am looking for more wholesome foods in general. Keep bringing the ideas, thanks so much!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Artificial colors are a problem for some people with sensitivities - and they are completely unnecessary. I find it very easy to severely limit artificial colors in our family's diet, because they only occur in highly processed foods. Mostly in candy - which should be limited anyway. And stuff like fruit loops and other colored cereals which we do not eat because they have too much sugar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LadyMSews Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 We started avoiding artificial food dyes on a hunch they were causing the extreme behaviors of our youngest dd. I won't go into details, just trust me, it was frustrating for all of us. Anyway, we went cold-turkey, the whole family and what an amazing change. Within a few days, I had a whole new dd. Even my other children, but especially our oldest son, also had better behavior: calmer, more patient, sleeping better. There are food colors in more things than you think. Yogurt, cake mixes, even stuff from the bakery. Why does strawberry jam need red 40? Read labels carefully. We had eliminated most processed food already, but got rid of the last few things. It is easy to find non-artificial color stuff in the natural food section of our grocery or on Amazon. Candy is the hardest, my dc eat a lot of chocolate, rather than things like skittles, m&m's, suckers, gum, etc. But again, we do find things like this online. It has been totally worth it and I think it's really a simple thing to try to see if your dc are affected. You'll probably see a change within a few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
golfcartmama Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Artificial colors are a problem for everyone. They are made from petroleum and used to be made from coal tar. Yum, yum, right? We don't eat them at all. For the poster looking for candy, try http://www.naturalcandystore.com, most are available on Amazon as well. Also, Trader Joe's and Whole Foods have candy without synthetic colors, flavors, HFCS and more. They are great and my kids love them when they get them. Dye are in TONS of things, including some toothpaste, ice creams, pickles, canned vanilla frosting, chips, yogurt and more. ALWAYS check the labels when you're shopping! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissad2 Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 (edited) We have to avoid red #40 at all cost! It makes my ds5 absolutely impossible to deal with! I have to read every single label every single time I buy something. Manufacturers seem to change ingredients on me often. I wish all artificial food dyes would be banned...they are evil! I have not tackled other additives yet but I can see that coming. Edited April 3, 2012 by melissad2 Dumb smartphone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stayseeliz Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Check out this website http://www.kitchenstewardship.com/ We are switching to this way of eating and I love love love it! I have a DD with ADD and other issues and this is working well for her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Artificial colors are a problem for some people with sensitivities - and they are completely unnecessary.I find it very easy to severely limit artificial colors in our family's diet, because they only occur in highly processed foods. Mostly in candy - which should be limited anyway. And stuff like fruit loops and other colored cereals which we do not eat because they have too much sugar. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JessaMae Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 We also avoid dyes - primarily yellow and red. Our daughter has a strong emotional reaction to them. We do allow blue on occasion and that doesn't seem to bother her. I agree with pps - check all labels - there are dyes in so many foods you wouldn't expect! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAinVA Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 We avoid dyes because they cause ADHD symptoms in my dcs. We also avoid artificial flavors and preservatives (Feingold Diet). Making a LONG story short: my ds was a meds for 3 years and had issues with all the meds. I knew he was sensitive to red 40 and had taken him off already and then yellow dye followed. After following Feingold for 2 weeks I took him off meds. All the classic ADHD symptoms came back. I put him back on because it was SOL testing at school. Four weeks later I took him off and he hasn't been on since (4 years). He is perfectly fine as long as he avoids all the petroleum derived additives and corn syrup. If he eats something he shouldn't, all the symptoms come back for four days. It's worth a shot to dig deeper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizaG Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 If anyone is trying this, be forewarned that some sensitive folks can have trouble with concentrated natural food colorings as well. The most notable one is annatto, a yellow dye that's commonly found in cheeses, butter, ice cream, puddings, and many all-natural candies. Although it's derived from a seed, some studies have shown it to cause as many problems as Yellow #5, aka tartrazine. Products colored yellow with beta-carotene seem to be better tolerated in general. BTW, artificial dyes are very commonly found in medications, both prescription and OTC. :tongue_smilie: Just something else to keep in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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