A Gluten Free Diet

This afternoon I talked to my friend Jackie (the same friend that prompted me to put a hold on vaccinating Asher until he is 2 years old at least. She has an autistic child and also a child with Sensory Integration Disorder and ADHA). She has a lot of experience in dealing with this spectrum of syndromes. We talked a lot about the child's diet and how it effects their mood and more. It was like a light going off. I new Dallas diet is not well balanced because he is an EXTREMELY picky eater and VERY stubborn. So getting him to get some things is IMPOSSIBLE.

I already feel pretty well versed in the Biology of Behavior after having heard Diane Craft speak several times. http://www.diannecraft.com/ She is amazing and her cds are so wonderful. I've known for sometime that Dallas defiantly needed to do her supplemental program (probably all of us in the family and most people in general because most of are body guts are off balance which sends are serotonin levels so low.) I will never forget the first time I heard her talk at the homeschool conference when she mentioned that infants who had acid reflux, projectile vomit and thrush would probably end up with a gut problem, needing these supplements. Dallas had all three severely as an infant. Boston too had acid reflux but after I changed my diet (no dairy, caffeine, or acidy foods like tomato or oranges) he was able to go off of the medicine and seemed cured. Dallas on the other hand wasn't. He would scream for 5 and 6 hours at a time. He would crawl into corners in pain and nothing ever seemed to work. I remember even videoing it at one time because I new no one would believe me and taking him to the doctor insisting that something was wrong. We had an x-ray of his stomach because nothing else showed a problem. But still, it turned out fine. So we just pushed through and endured it. He finally out grew it somewhere around 7 months old. He's never liked milk very much or dairy for that matter.

A year later I saw someone talk on acid reflux on a tv show and she talked about how they are now saying to eliminate wheat from the diet. That was it! That was the missing link!!! He was probably needing me to eliminate wheat. So now when Jackie mentioned the importance for some children to go on a gluten(wheat)free and casin(dairy)free diet it made so much since!!!

But now, after having done some research on what has wheat in it I do feel very overwhelmed. Wow-this will NOT be an EASY task!!! Just the thought of mixing all these different grains to make bread seems like a daunting task - will he even EAT it? But I know this is what I need to do. If a child has a wheat allergy it can cause them a lack of appetite and be like a drug to them. It can effect their mood, attention span and so much more. And how much better this is for a child then medicating them (and the pediatrician was already talking about medication when he mentioned that Dallas may end up with ADHD in the future) So I am game to do anything to correct the balance of nutrition in his diet. I know it will be a long road ahead and a lot of work, but aren't our kids worth it?

I found this encouraging piece from a lady online:

My son was a picky eater also and now is not. We used to call him a Carbivore because he only focused on snack type food, or bread. About 3-4 months after being gluten-free (he was 3 1/2 at that time) he began trying a lot of different food. I don't think he just developmentally changed, but rather was feeling better and/or his brain was processing things differently.

One night I got the urge to ask, "How about a taco salad tonight?" He said "Sure!" Well, that response surprised me, but I was really surprised when he began eating this huge plate of salad with all the fixings on it. And the salad wasn't just iceberg lettuce, either! My regret is that I didn't take a picture. I literally stood there with my mouth open watching him. I was shocked. He was on a roll then (no pun intended) and began trying other "green" things like guacamole and broccoli. Good heavens!!

Well, I don't know if your child will follow in this vein, but I had to share because it certainly is true that gluten affects a lot more than just the stomach.