Recently we have become a mostly gluten free household.
Did I mention F was having kinder settling in troubles? Probably not - we didn't have the net then. Well of course we had just moved, which is quite unsettling in and of itself, but I just felt there was something more to some of the meltdowns and behaviour we were experiencing. On an intuitive level it seemed to me there was something chemical involved. An underlying intolerance of some sort.
We are not a total stranger to food intolerances in this household. Fortunately nothing life threatening, although DH does suffer terrible hayfever each season and F seems to have inherited this amongst other things. I know how miserable I am with a head cold or heavenforbid sinusitis - so to suffer for literally months on end...well let's just say I'd be pretty grumpy and emotional too. We have tackled this in the past by limiting cow's milk when colds and hayfever hit and substituting with goat's milk or soy.
Anyway I digress. With the behaviours we were experiencing lately, I decided to try cutting wheat out of F's diet. This is a kid who would fall at my feet in tears if we ran out of bread and always choose a sandwich as a snack. On one hand, he may just be someone who loves bread, but to me, the response was so extreme, and immediate, well suffice to say it didn't sit well with me.
Initially we weren't super strict with avoiding wheat, just sticking to the main and obvious culprits such as bread and weetbix, but slowly it seemed to me F was more emotionally balanced. A few obvious slips, and the effect seemed almost instantaneous, and certainly there was a lingering emotional upset for a few days.
Because things have settled down a fair bit at home we couldn't be certain it was the dietary aspect of things improving F's mood but nevertheless for the last fortnight I don't recall F having any wheat, except for one day (an ice cream cone) and one ensuing mini meltdown. He has been truly a changed boy. Nothing or no-one could get him down. He has been happy, co-operative, agreeable and taken my 'no's' and any setbacks in his stride. It has been an amazing (and welcome) change. I'm sure he feels better too.
This weekend we had a few slips because we were out both days and lunch involved bread. Yesterday and today were definitely more challenging behaviour wise.
I know there are sceptics out there because I see it on their faces when I mention it. This isn't an exact science, and over time we may find the issue resolves itself...but for now we are going to stay mostly gluten free. For F and his well being, how could we deny him the opportunity to be his best self? Definitely it would be easier in many ways to pretend there's no problem - eating out can be difficult. But seriously the results are impossible to ignore.
8 comments:
wow that very interesting about the gluten, especially that he craved wheat products previously. I remember them saying in our training on this at work (when I worked in community services) that ofetn the ones who were very keen on the gluten products were the ones who were most affected.
My F doesn't like wheat bics or bread much for that matter (I have been looking at food too except our issue are not hyperactivity but lack of energy and not listening)
glad to hear you have found something that is working for him!
I was reading somewhere that definitely if there are any issues at all then look to food as a culprit first.
With F he is not always 'defiant' or hyper etc...he actually loses the plot, or breaks down emotionally over really small things (in the way a much younger child would I guess).
I think we'd become so used to it to, that it's only the past 6 months where we've thought - surely this isn't normal yk? But at the same time who do we compare him to?
It's a tough one for sure.
(And absolutely with many intolerances it's the food you crave that is the problem. Weird how the body works hey?)
Hearing you Rach, I know exactly where you are with F - H is the same with Amines and glutamates. Heaven forbid you give him choccie - wait for the monster.
I say good on you - if it works, it's worth doing
I think it's great you're going gluten free as a family. Some friends of ours, the DH and DD are both diagnosed coeliacs, but the DW and DS both eat still eat foods containing gluten. It's hard for the younger DD because she wants to have what her brother is having at snacks and meals, yk? I would say I am a skeptic, but hey if it's working and as you say, who are you to stand in the way of F being his best self? Was wheat something you had to limit when he was a bub and still breastfeeding for colic or eczema or anything? Just curious!
Yeah it would be pretty tough I think to eat bread or a roll etc in front of someone who can't have it (and really really wants it). How awful :(. I do cook two separate pastas...but only because it's no big deal and the gluten free is so much more exxy. It's just easy enough to avoid it.
We went to neighbours for arvo tea the other day, turns out two other neighbours who were there are coeliacs so there was lots of gluten free yummys there. The fact that wheat is life threatening for some people, it doesn't actually surprise me that it can have other effects too...
I totally agree with you. I am sure that I shouldnt have bread either as it just makes me feel blah when I have it. I used to be lactose intolerant and probably still am but it doesnt bother me as much as it used too. My daughter is lactose intolerant too but she cant help herself with icecream or milk. I know when she has too much of it she ends up with a tummy ache for the rest of the night. I am sure your family will appreciate all the extra effort of trying to get the right foods in their diet too, and not eat the ones that affect them in such a way as mood swings.
we don't have an issue with gluten (afaik) but I did find something else which I believe was affecting my boys behaviour. Same thing with the craving it all the time too. That's really interesting. I had two moody, defiant and dare I say it, naughty, boys. Lots of "I hate yous!" over very minor things :( cut this thing out and the change was drastic and immediate! no confirmation beyond not eating it anymore, but I'm convinced enough to keep it out of their diet. So I'm not at all skeptical :)
So heartening to read this Rach we are about to embark on changes foodwise of our own as soon as I can get my head around it as there is rather obvious behaviour changes in E with particular foods and the moment we have white bread in the house which is extremely rare it is like he smells it and HAS to have it like some form of addiction or something. I meant to comment the other day but didn't have a spare hand but seeing the photo of N just now reminded me to comment lol
We have the whole hyper emotions here and break downs over the smallest of issues so it is really great to hear about you having some success with cutting out gluten.
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