From the Autism Diet to Jack’s Diet
In a previous post we discussed the idea of a special autism diet - that is, a diet that is gluten-free and casein-free. We implemented this type of diet with Jack, however we also took it a step further and completely cut out all artificial colours, most additives and preservatives, as well as most sugars and as many saturated fats as possible.
We made this decision after a consultation with a behavioural specialist. As we mentioned in the previous post, many conventional doctors do not recognise a link between behavioural conditions and diet, but this specialist had seen huge improvements in children’s conditions where these ’toxins’, so to speak, were removed from the diet. The process that we went through with the specialist was quite complex, more so than I am giving it credit for with my explanation here, but basically Jack underwent tests to ascertain what nutrients his body was lacking in, and what foods and toxins were causing sensitivity and behavioural problems.
The changes to Jack’s diet that we discuss next are by no means a ‘one size fits all’ approach. The changes were specific to his needs and in no way do we recommend or take responsibility for such changes without specialist advice and monitoring. In fact we suggest that specialist advice be sought before any diet change.
Along with the gluten, dairy, additives, preservatives, sugars and saturated fats, we also removed soy and nut products - foods which tests showed that Jack was having reactions to. Jack was also prescribed very specific nutritional supplements that were to replace what his body was lacking, and also improve brain function. We were also instructed to increase certain foods in his diet, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, fish and other omega 3 enriched products.
The first few weeks of the diet change were a nightmare in that we fought with Jack over everything he ate. At first he wouldn’t touch the ‘new’ food that we prepared, in fact he totally refused many things and we had plenty of violent outbursts. Yes, we could have taken it slowly but we really needed just to make the change and deal with it. It was one of those things - we could have aggressive behaviour as a result of him eating food that was having a negative effect on him, or we could have aggressive behaviour as a lashing out at change. We went for the change option - we figured that sooner or later the storm would calm a little. And it did.
Within a couple of weeks things settled down and we started to see a really different side of Jack. He became easier to deal with, he became less aggressive and the hyperactivity certainly settled somewhat. We all adjusted to the diet, and these days, Jack doesn’t even blink an eye over the food he eats.
The diet certainly was a good start to improving his behaviour.
With such severe restrictions on what he couldn’t eat, we have to admit it was extremely difficult finding pre-prepared foods or even recipes that catered to his dietary requirements. We spent a great deal of time experimenting and hunting down products and ingredients, and eventually managed to replace bread, biscuits, cakes and other foods with Jack friendly versions. Over time you will find some of these recipes here on our blog, and even if you don’t go down the road of having your child’s diet completely overhauled, we’re sure you will still find some of the recipe ideas enjoyable for your family. And by the way, these recipes are also perfect for children with ADHD!