Hi, I was wondering if anyone else here notices primarily behavioral symptoms with their kids and gluten versus physical? My 8 yr. old daughter has been having so many behavioral and emotional issues the past 6 months especially. She was starting to act like she had conduct disorder...that's what prompted the enterolab testing as well as eliminating food additives/dyes and MSG. Two months ago she tested positive on enterolab for gluten, casein, soy, and eggs. So we stopped gluten and casein, except she still gets some milk chocolate. I haven't had the energy to totally eliminate soy and eggs. Soy we don't eat except as butter and as ingredients in other foods anyway. Eggs we eat once in a while. Her behavior has markedly improved...she still gets too angry and impatient very quickly, but she usually resolves within 1/2 hour instead of having 4 hour meltdowns. Still, in the past week she has had more episodes, and I know she got some gluten last Saturday at her dads. Could it still be affecting her behaviorally a week later? Do other people also see behavioral reactiosn to eggs and soy, and casein? Mostly the casein she gets headaches if she has a lot of.

Anyway, just shaing these thoughts and wondering what others experience. By the way, she does also occasionally get leg aches and constipation. Used to get tummy aches. But without consistent physical symptoms, it's really hard to get a handle on what's causing what emotionally for her, and harder for her to make the connections too. By the way, i'm also gluten and casein sensitive so we are a gluten-free/CF house.

thanks!
Liz

My dd also exhibits behavior symptoms to gluten, casein, eggs and soy. One isn't really any better than another. And I'd wholeheartedly suggest that you remove all of them from diet (soy lecithin is about the only form of soy that dd doesn't react to....and even then, I limit it).

The milk chocolate should really go as well. Enjoy Life makes a dairy-free chocolate chip, as does Tropical Source. You can also buy gfcf chocolate from The Chocolate Emporium for holidays and special treats. They also make special soy-free batches around some Jewish holidays. You may want to call them and ask about it.

My dd's reaction to soy is nearly as bad as it is to gluten. And egg reactions are about as bad as casein reactions.

So I guess the answer is yes. Behavioral issues are often food-mediated. You may get varied reactions depending on the type of exposure (for example, my dd has a delayed reaction to products that have eggs baked in them as opposed to scrambled eggs which give an immediate reaction). Ultimately, we've just completely removed them from diet. Dd seems to do best this way.

We brought our daughter in for testing because of physical symptoms but we can't believe the behavioral changes since going gluten-free. She used to be so irritable, sensitive, very fussy and picky, weepy, and obsessive. We don't see those behaviors at all anymore. She only has Celiac Disease, no other intolerances or allergies.

I've already told her milk chocolate is on its way out. We're going to try one month of following the diet very strictly and then i'm going to reward her somehow. I'm so frustrated because she's doing really well with no gluten and casein, but then she'll get some somehow out of my control and then the behaviors start and I'm never sure what started it. I've never noticed any connection with eggs and her behavior. What do you use for butter if no soy? I will definitely give it 100% for this month and eliminate the eggs and soy too and then if we introduce them again I may be able to tell how it affects her.

So what do you eat? I'm a single mom and in grad school, I spend all my time buying food and trying to cook (not my forte) and making lunches every day, but she's pretty bored with her diet, and once I eliminate eggs she won't even be able to have the GFCF treats that help her get past all the other things she has to give up, especially at school and at friend's houses. She cries alot about this. I'm also so sick of corn tortillas and corn chips. I don't like alot of the gluten-free crackers cuz they put torula yeast, aka MSG in them. I don't let her have most candy either due to dyes which send her to crazy land.

normally my attitude is better...but i'm getting tired!
thanks,
Liz

We eat a lot of whole foods. Dd is okay with Earth Balance Buttery Spread, which has a bit of soy...but it doesn't bother her if it's one pat or less per day. I use olive oil, canola or coconut oil to saute, bake or cook with. If a gluten-free recipe calls for oil or butter, I usually halve the oil so it's half oil, half applesauce (or other fruit puree). I also use Spectrum Organics shortening in other baked goods (it's non-hydrogenated palm oil). Fleishmann's has a brand of margarine that is gluten, dairy and soy-free. In truth, the only thing I use the Earth Balance in is mashed potatoes and very rarely in some cake frosting.

Egg allergy makes things a bit tougher...especially for breakfast. But there are plenty of GFCF treats out there that she can still have. Egg substitutes include applesauce, Ener-G egg replacer and even ground flax seed can work.

Unfortunately, the multiple food issues has me cooking/baking quite a bit. It has taken a while to find the right products and to get recipes that really work as well as taste good. Living Without magazine has saved my behind more than once.

As for the corn tortillas/corn chips...we don't have those very often as too much corn seems to send us both over the edge. Every 4 days on corn...and we can't do popcorn or corn on the cob ever. Some people use pancakes or waffles to make "sandwiches". I use romaine lettuce to make wraps. I've also figured out a way to make dinner rolls and use those occasionally for sandwiches.

For lunches, I've been getting into the whole "bento" thing. The presentation is so attractive and it just naturally requires a wide variety of food in their creation. My dd and I love these. And surprisingly, it doesn't take that much time to do. You can look into buying laptop lunchboxes or just buying bento boxes off of e.b.a.y. I've been working at getting us thermoses in different sizes for warm foods at lunch. Things like chili, baked beans with organic hot dogs, spaghetti and meatballs, cabbage rolls, soups, even taco meat for tacos or taco salads. With the right equipment, the menu begins to open up. Bento accessories for condiments (like salad dressing and dips) also adds a bit of fun and variety.

And my dd is not allergic to nuts. So I do make a sliceable cashew cheese at home (takes about 10 minutes to do with a coffee grinder and a blender). Paired with some crackers and safe lunch meat...it goes over quite well.

One of my dd's new favorites is my baked chicken. I just crush up a few of her gluten-free cereals, pretzels (this one has soy but dd and I are somehow ok with it), cashews and add a bit of garlic salt. I then coat the chicken in olive oil, cover in my "breading" and bake. I use a lot of cashews these days...lol! I even use it as a base for my alfredo sauce.

As for all the cooking....it's definitely part of the territory with this. But if you make extra portions when you do cook and then leave two 30-minute sessions during the week for baked goods....you'd be surprised how much it helps in dealing with the daily meals/lunches. Once a week, we also have "leftover night". It gives me some much-needed space and cleans out the fridge as well.

You might find this interesting:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080224/hl_af...cinehyperactive

Thanks for the tips, I'll check out the Spectrum organics and fleishmann's...we currently use EArth balance, and that's probably the most soy we get. I also need to check out the Living Without magazine, haven't found it in a store yet, our local Whole Foods doen's t carry it. I do have a Laptop Lunch box for her. The issue is just TIME and ENERGY. Some weeks i'm gung ho and make all kinds of stuff. But other times i'm just exhausted and can't do it, so we just scrape by with hummus and carrot sticks and fruit, lol. Unfortunately my duaghter's school doens't allow any nuts at all which drastically cuts down on options.

I'll have to try the baked chicken...one good thing is my daughter is not too picky, she loves meat and many vegetables, even Kale, so when I have the energy to actually cook it's ok.

thanks again!
Liz

If your dd likes kale, then she may like kale chips as well (and what a GREAT snack!). I brush olive oil on it, chop it up, add a bit of sea salt and then bake it in the oven until crisp. My dd and dh LOVE this. And it's so easy to make.

On Living Without magazine, your best bet is to just order it online. You can order just one previous issue or sign up for the year. They are in the process of restructuring so it hasn't been on the shelves of any of our health food stores lately. The new issues come out in March.

Since nuts are an issue at the school, you may want to explore the option of sunflower butter. It's excellent paired with Granny Smith apples and a bit of jelly. Personally, we like it with elderberry jelly in the winter (as elderberry helps prevent colds/flus) and black raspberry jelly any other time. My dd also like to eat frozen blueberries. Talk about simple.

I don't know how your dd feels about salads, but there are all sorts of interesting options there. BLTs, chicken salad, taco salad, tuna salad. Then there are things like fruit salad, potato salad, pasta salad (gotta watch this one as either you make your own mayo or use a bit of Vegenaise....small amount of soy). Vegenaise is a touchy one with us. No more than 1/4 cup per recipe...and definitely not daily.

I hear you on the time/energy thing. It really has helped me to spend a couple of nights after dinner baking up treats. Everything is mini. Mini-cupcakes, mini rolls....that way, the portions are smaller and the batch goes further. I only allow 1/2 hour for baking on those two nights and I freeze up extra portions for later use. If I didn't do this...I would go insane with all the demands on my time. And don't discount other food intolerances in yourself as well. I used to love eggs. Turns out, I react to them (consistent day 2 reaction). I also can't handle much soy or corn (and I was a popcorn/corn on the cob FANATIC). Once I removed those from diet, my energy levels went way up. I feel tired and cranky when I get exposed to these now. So I guess I know where my dd got it from! lol!

I really appreciate the advice, I bought some sunflower butter today and will try it out. And I will definitely try your kale recipe, thanks! As far as the baking goes...i'm just not there yet, lol. Cooking regular dinners and making lunches is about the max I can handle. I do on occasion bake things like brownies, today we made gluten-free sugar cookies from a box that were a big hit (we're on vacation from school this week so have extra time!).

I know I have many food sensitivities besides gluten and casein...I react so much to MSG, and then I react to some things where I'm not sure if it's the "natural flavors" or what. My casein reaction is borderline allergy now as my throat gets real tight. One of these days i will do the elimination diet really strictly to figure it all out. I seem to be gaining weight since going GFCF too which is disturbing! Already dealing with adrenal fatigue and hypothyroidism and was hoping the diet would help.

anyway, thanks again, you've been a big help!
Liz

LOL! No...I wouldn't expect you to bake from scratch right away. It's the projects like the brownies, sugar cookies, cupcakes...the stuff that you only have to add an ingredient or two that I'm talking about. I've always enlisted my dd's help when doing this. It's our own special time together. I figure that she's getting used to spending time in the kitchen, learning how to follow recipes, while also familiarizing herself with the products and ingredients that are safe for her. Last night, the project was allergen-free chocolate pudding (which your dd may really like). I don't think I had the courage to try pies, breads and cakes from scratch until I was a lot further into the diet. lol!

We stuck to a lot of simple, whole-food based recipes in the beginning. In truth, they really don't take much more time than any of the pre-packaged stuff. Maybe 10-15 extra minutes of prep time. Nothing more. Last night, it was baked chicken breast with a dijon mustard/maple syrup sauce, some steamed veggies and oven roasted potatoes. Truly, it didn't take up much time. I only wish I had made a larger batch for the leftovers. I hesitated because it was a new recipe.

As for the elimination diet. It may not be completely necessary. A simple food journal may give you enough information to go on.

Good luck!