QUESTIONS

Here are some of the interesting and frequently asked questions from the past few years concerning the diet and the effects of food on health, behaviour and learning. There's a wealth of useful information to be found by scrolling and reading. Don't forget that you can search for symptoms, foods etc by using your browser search function (usually Control+F). The latest questions are in Frequently asked questions 3.

If you want a question answered, please email me on sdengate@ozemail.com.au. My mailing address is PO Box 718 WOOLGOOLGA NSW 2456 Australia.

(November 2005)

Q. Could nausea and vomiting be due to fluoride? Our 3 year old failsafe daughter has been suffering regular, unexplained bouts of nausea since we moved from Brisbane to Canberra 6 months ago. The vomiting has waxed and waned in accordance with other illnesses but became particularly bad after a bout of gastro a few months ago. She was vomiting about once a week for about five weeks after recovering from the gastro. We went to see a paediatrician who could find nothing wrong. Eventually, we remembered that she had reacted with nausea during breastfeeding every time I had taken fluoride tablets. A similar result occurred when we tried to give her fluoride drops in her water after weaning. I tested my theory numerous times during breastfeeding and afterwards with very obvious results and although taking fluoride was recommended by experts, I decided that it was not worth it as it obviously made my daughter ill. My husband noted that Canberra has fluoride in its water while Brisbane does not. Although we have always filtered our water, we have found that carbon filters do not filter fluoride. We put our daughter on to bottled water about 4 weeks ago and she has not had any vomiting since. We have also noted a marked improvement in her health, not just in the areas of nausea, and she is generally a more contented child.

A. It is estimated that most people currently ingest about four times as much fluoride as they did during the early days of water fluoridation, approximately equally divided between drinking water, food, other beverages, and dental products, so fluorosis (illness due to excessive intake of fluoride) is increasing. Abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting can be some of the first signs of fluoride toxicity. Small children are more vulnerable than adults. At follow up a year later, the child above was still happy and healthy on fluoride free bottled water and dentists have advised that fluoride is not necessary as long as her diet is good and she has good dental hygiene. Further reading: Das TK and others, Toxic effects of chronic fluoride ingestion on the upper gastrointestinal tract. J Clin Gastroenterol. 1994;18(3):194-9; http://www.diagnose-me.com/cond/C627523.html.

Q. Just wondering if others have experienced their girls getting sore vaginas? Most afternoons my little darling cries her eyes out, I have been putting it down to not wiping properly or very concentrated urine as she does not drink huge amounts, but could it be connected with salicylates? She only drinks water and nothing else but she adores fruit, especially canteloupe, watermelon, grapes and apples. The doctors are saying it is sensitivity to urine and is common amongst small girls.

A. You're right, sore vaginas in little girls are often related to salicylates and generally improve when families go failsafe.

Q. How healthy are the new 'healthy' choices (salads etc) that McDonalds now offers?

A. In Australia, the garden mixed salad without dressing contains 74 calories and 3.9 grams of fat and one nasty additive (sorbic acid 200) but I couldn't find nutrition details for the dressings which is where most of the fat comes from. Compare this to a cheeseburger at 285 calories, 16 grams of fat, and 5 nasty additives (calcium propionate 282, annatto colour 160b, sorbic acid 200, potassium sorbate 202 and sodium benzoate 211). The American website has more information and most people are surprised to find that a salad can contain more fat than a burger when you add dressing. For example, in the US, a bacon ranch salad with grilled chicken and Cobb dressing contains 380 calories, 18 grams of fat and 5 nasty additives (hydrolysed plant proteins HPP, artificial colour, disodium guanylate 627, disodium inosinate 631 and sodium nitrate 251) compared to a cheeseburger that contains 310 calories, 12 grams of fats and 4 nasty additives (potassium propionate 283, calcium propionate 282, sorbic acid 200, artificial colour ). When buying a salad in any restaurant consider the research on the nutritive value of bagged salads (Failsafe Newsletter 46). All of the meals mentioned contain high amounts of salicylates, amines or natural glutamates. You can buy McDonalds toys at the drive thru ($2). You can buy water. You can use the playground and toilets without having to buy a meal. More at www.mcdonalds.com.au

and note that the French fries now contain BHA 320.

Q. My 4 year old daughter is doing well on a low salicylate/amine diet with absolutely no preservatives but sometimes, even when her diet has been constant, she has mood changes, irritability etc. especially after days at kindy although she has none of the food from there. Can she be reacting to environmental chemicals?

A. Most common would be colours from coloured playdough but you also need to consider smells of perfumes, solvents etc. See the playgroup factsheet on the website for suggestions.

Q. Is Massel stock powder failsafe (ingredients: salt, rice, flour, sugar, dextrose, yeast extracts, vegetable flavours, vegetable protein extract (wheat derived), dehydrated onion, pure olive oil, chilli)?

A. The first five ingredients are failsafe; the next three contain natural glutamates (flavour enhancers); the last three contain salicylates.

Q. I recently started my two year old son on an elimination diet as advised by my paediatrician to see what effects foods are having on his behaviour. We were going quite well over the last four weeks until his doctor prescribed antibiotics for an ear infection and his behaviour started to deteriorate. My paediatrician also put my son on an iron supplement Ferro-Liquid (Ferrous Sulfate Oral Liquid Solution 30mb/ml) and Roche Pentavite Liquid which says it has no artificial colours or preservatives but has a citrus fruit flavour. Since his ear infection he has had a cough from a runny nose at night and in the early hours of the morning.

A. Many doctors, paediatrians and pharmacists do not seem to understand that children's flavoured vitamin, antibiotic and other medicinal syrups are never failsafe and will prevent the diet from succeeding. The Ferro liquid is particularly bad because it contains both sulphite and benzoate preservatives that could be causing your son's cough and nasal problems. Plain unflavoured adult tablets instead, using a half dose for children, are more suitable, e.g. Amcal One-a-day multivitamins and FGF tablets for iron. See the vitamins and supplements factsheet on the website for how to get tablets into kids.

Q. My 4.5 year old son has been eating failsafe for 5 months with amazing results. I have read all your books, belong to your discussion groups and have done the PPP program. Thanks to you and only you, when failsafe he is a loving and compliant angel with a dry nose and no physical problems. When he is not failsafe he is aggressive, defiant, never satisfied, loses his temper, discipline is ineffective and he has difficulty falling asleep, along with continual runny nose, recurrent ear infections, bright red ears, sore tummy etc. Our doctor said that so long as I kept my son failsafe, I would keep his behaviour at bay but suggested I would not be able to do this forever (tiring, time consuming, school canteen etc), and because of that, he would probably be diagnosed with ADHD in the long run, where other strategies would be looked at - I'm presuming medication. I would love to hear your opinion.

A. My kids are at university now, living in a hall of residence where they have to cater for themselves. They choose to be failsafe, still with amazing results, so it can be done. Only a few years ago most doctors said diet didn't work, so it is a big step forward to find a doctor admitting that diet is effective. The next step is for doctors and schools to help us with our loving and compliant angels by minimising the use of nasty food additives and supporting failsafe food for those who need it. The more we spread the word, the sooner it will happen.

Q. I was watching Today Tonight on TV last night and a story on Flavours came on. One of the pictures they aired was of a person with a red rash on the body. I have been getting a rash like that, as well as swelling on the eyes and mouth for the past three years and doctors, allergists and skin doctors can not find the problem. Could you please tell me what flavours are most likely to cause this reaction?

A. Flavour enhancers 627, 631 and 635. See the Ribo Rash factsheet on the website for more information.

Q. The list of ingredients in our sunscreen sounds pretty nasty but unfortunately it means nothing to me. What should I be looking for? Sunscreen plays a daily part in our life on the Gold Coast, and I have always been concerned about what I am been putting on our children's skin.

A. Laboratory tests suggest that some of the ingredients especially methoxycinnamate can provoke cancerous growth in test tubes (not necessarily in people), so I try to minimise sunscreen use by sun avoidance and covering up - widebrim hats, sunshirts, long pants. Failsafers also need to be wary of perfumes (salicylates) and benzoate preservatives. However, there are times you have to use sunscreen. It is important to avoid sunscreens based on PABA (Para AminoBenzoic Acid) as they contain large amounts of benzoates similar to what you get in preservative sodium benzoate (211). Hydroxybenzoate preservatives can also affect failsafers through skin absorption especially if you get large doses and continuous exposure but it is not possible to get sunscreen without. Sunscreens for toddlers or sensitive skins are generally best tolerated, e.g. from the Ego sunsense range. We use the Cancer Council Everyday Lite because the smell isn't too bad.

(July 2005)

Q. Is Peters Original Vanilla Ice Cream with “new improved recipe” marked on the top right hand corner still failsafe?

A. The flavour has changed and we have received many complaints from failsafers. Comments from adults and children include "yuk", "vile", "disgusting" and "fake". My kids say it doesn’t taste that bad but don’t want to eat it. The consumer hotline officer explained to one failsafer that “original” on the label does not refer to the recipe being original, as you may have thought, but is a trademark. You can try other brands in your supermarket. Sarah Lee French Vanilla is still a good safe brand as far as I know or you can buy that icecream maker you always wanted. Our Breville Scoop Factory icecream maker has been working overtime during the holidays. See our favourite new recipe in Cooks’ Corner below.

Q. Does thrush improve on the failsafe diet?

A. Yes. Several failsafers have reported that they find the failsafe diet much easier to stick to than the candida diet and their lifelong thrush problems have cleared up.

Q. My ADHD son is only five, in prep and he has trouble in the playground. Typically he won't eat his sandwich or whatever and goes off to the senior playground - preps have their own playground but are not policed to stay there – where he has been bullied several times so I have come up with a plan to assist my son with his diet and the playground dilemma. We live straight across the road from school and I work three minutes drive from home, so I am going to take an hour for lunch and bring him home for lunch everyday. I can then make sure he eats and I can actually cook him lunch, so that beats the boring sandwich problem. It will help him by not being around kids eating brightly coloured prepackaged food and coming home for lunch is a treat. It will also help me to take some time out from work which can be extremely stressful at times and I love coming home for lunch, especially having something cooked. We may even invite a classmate occasionally to help him form friendship bonds - he can relate to and play well with other children much better in a controlled environment). So it’s a great plan, hey?

A. Yes, it’s a wonderful plan! Your son is lucky that you are able to do that for him. Playgrounds are terrible places for kids with food intolerance. When my kids attended a supportive private school, the library was open at recess and lunchtime for kids who do better in small, quiet controlled environments, and for one marvellous year an exceptionally talented teacher opened her classroom for lunch, allowing students to use classroom resources including books, computer games and board games. Having a ‘withdrawing room’ option to the playground would be one of the most supportive steps schools could take for kids with food-related behaviour, health or learning problems.

Q. I recently ate Seafood Salad in mornay sauce at my father’s house for lunch. There was some left over so I took it home and ate it again for dinner. A few hours later I started feeling strange, my face went red and my eyes started swelling alarmingly. I was scared I was going to get worse so I rushed to hospital where they treated me with antihistamines. I’d like to know what caused it, because I don’t want to go through that again.

A. From your symptoms, I would expect the culprit to be flavour enhancer ribonucleotides 635 (or its components 627 and 631) so I visited our local fishermen’s co-op to check. They sell several brands, a ‘seafood extender’ sold recently thawed and unlabelled, and two frozen packets “Seafood Salad” and “Seafood Sticks” both from Thailand. The ingredients lists are similar (white fish, egg white, crab extract, crab flavour, tapioca starch, sat, wheat starch, sugar, natural food colour 120). It is rare but possible to have an allergic reaction to colour 120 (cochineal). However, the delay in your symptoms suggests ribonucleotides. While the crab extract and crab flavour have no numbers on the Seafood salad, the crab sticks list crab flavour (631, 627) as well as MSG 621. So I am guessing that’s your problem – unlisted ribonucleotides.

(March 2005)

Q. My doctor says that the salicylate level drops and the vitamin C level increases in the last three days before the fruit drops off the tree. Is this true?

A. I haven’t been able to find any research that mentions three days, but yes, it is true that beneficial antioxidant vitamin levels rise at the end of ripening, and that salicylate levels are lowest at the beginning and end and highest in the middle of the life of the fruit – which is often when it is picked for supermarkets and processing. Also, salicylate levels are lowest between sundown and sunup, so windfalls and ripe fruit picked before dawn for farmers markets and in Asia will be at the lowest possible levels, especially if from old fashioned varieties that haven’t been bred for pest resistance and to stay firm. This would explain why we found we could eat soft, sweet, ripe pineapples, oranges, mandarins, tomatoes and strawberries with no effects in Indonesia, Nepal and Egypt. It is also possible that artificially ripened supermarket fruit is chemically different from fruit ripened on trees. More information from A Comprehensive Explanation of Plant Hormones by Paul Pruitt (he regards salicylates as hormones) on Wikipedia.

Q. My husband’s boss has invited us to an Indian restaurant and we can’t refuse – any suggestions?

A. It won’t be failsafe but you can minimise the damage. Indian restaurants often use artificial colours so avoid any tandoori dishes (artificial reds). Yellow rice can be due to saffron (failsafe) or artificial yellow but most places will cook white rice for you. Sunset yellow (artificial, 110) is sometimes used in any dish containing yoghurt and some restaurants use other artificial colours as well. You could phone beforehand to ask about colours. Choose failsafe ingredients, eg lamb, chicken or lentils rather than prawns, eggplant or spinach, and ask for mild curries. Indian breads such as roti are probably made on the premises and are usually safe. Vegetable samosas (potatoes and peas) can be quite mild. Cucumber raita – a small amount of cucumber in a large amount of natural yoghurt – is fairly safe. Water or soda water are the best drinks. Wine is a problem but if you must have it to be polite, drink one glass slowly, refusing refills. Indian sweets such as gulab jamun or kulfi (mango icecream) are fairly safe unless they contain artificial colours or you have a problem with dairy foods. When I have to eat out, I have a tsp of soda bicarb in a glass of water as soon as I get home and several times the next day.

Q. Could you please tell me what others do for Easter celebrations? We live in country NSW and I don't have a clue. My son has asked me if the Easter Bunny still comes. He can eat carob without any adverse reactions.

A. Most people can buy commercial carob Easter eggs. If not, you can make your own by melting carob blocks and pouring into commercial Easter egg moulds or spoons – when set, warm the flat edges slightly to stick them together, then wrap them in foil. Another suggestion is to use some of those tiny chocolate Easter eggs - as a treat - in a big Easter egg hunt, so the hunt itself is more fun than the eating. You could also join one of the email discussion groups for suggestions. One mother bought the Tigger/Pooh Bear Mask Easter eggs from Big W to use the mask for making carob versions and also suggested making marshmallow and carob eggs using moulds.

Q. Can you help with the name of a worm tablet that is suitable? I can't find one which is colour, flavour, and preservative free.

A. There are no failsafe worm tablets. If your kids react, you might want to tell the Adverse Medications Event hotline (1300 134 237). It is our chance to change the system. If they get enough reports from us, they might introduce colour-free, preservative-free, flavour-free medications. Failsafers say the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful.

Q. Our pediatrician has basically said that my son has ADHD, but he is not into foods as a cause. I need some help.

A. I’ve sent you our dietitians’ list and suggestions about how to find a dietitian. If you can’t find one in your area, a number of failsafers have also recommended doctors through the list at ACNEM, the Australasian College of Nutrition and Environmental Medicine (www.acnem.org). While most of the ACNEM health professionals are not able to fully explain the failsafe diet – you need to study that for yourself – failsafers report they are aware of salicylates and amines, prepared to listen, respect your opinions, encourage you, test for coeliac disease if appropriate, and check your child’s nutrition.

Q. How does the Glycaemic Index (GI) apply to failsafe foods?

A. The GI measures the rate at which carbohydrate foods are digested and absorbed in the body. Low GI carbohydrate foods are considered to be healthiest because they provide a gradual energy release – keeping your blood sugar level - throughout the day. High GI foods provide a quick energy boost. Overall it is best to have a combination. See a list of the GI per serve for failsafe foods below. You can turn a high GI food into a low or moderate GI food by mixing it with a low GI food. However you need to apply some commonsense. Since fats and oils have low GI, in some commercial products, the low GI rating comes from high fat, which is not desirable. Potato crisps are a good example. Saturated fat is now considered to be far worse for people with diabetes than sugar. The moral of the GI story is that it is good to limit your intake of dietary fats, to include low GI carbohydrate foods such as nuts, lentils, beans, oats, pasta and cereal fibre such as bran (from wheat, oats, rice or psyllium) in your diet and to eat balanced meals and snacks rather than to consume sweets or sugary drinks alone. More details from The GI Factor by Dr Jennie Brand Miller and others, Hodder, many editions.

100 Glucose

90 Bread, gluten free (adding fillings will reduce the GI)

83 Rice bubbles (serving with milk or soymilk will reduce GI, but see porridge at 42)

70 Bread, white or wholemeal (average)

70 Mashed potato

69 Milk arrowroot biscuits

66 Magic cordial (and non failsafe soft drinks)

65 Sugar (sucrose)

65 Rye bread

61 Icecream (average)

55 Oatmeal biscuits

55 Banana (FS for non amine responders)

54 Pound cake

54 Potato crisps

59 Rice, Doongara compared to 87 for Calrose

48 Peas, green, fresh or frozen half cup (FS if moderate glutamates tolerated)

42 Porridge made with water, same as All-Bran

41 Spaghetti, white, cooked

38 Pear, fresh compared to about 50 canned in syrup

31 Soy milk (So Good)

28 Sausages, fried

28 Lentils, boiled

27 Milk, full fat

27 Kidney beans

25 Barley, pearled

19 Rice bran (psyllium is also low, failsafe and can be added to cereals)

14 Cashews (assuming same as peanuts)

Q. I am worried that the failsafe diet contains too much sugar.

A. Many failsafers find they need extra treats to help them get through withdrawals and the food chemical cravings stage. After your family is settled on the diet, you can reduce sugar and increase vegetables. (“I just gave up baking, and it’s much easier now” said one failsafer 12 months after starting failsafe). However, you can choose failsafe foods without sugar from the beginning if that’s what you want. See Ethan’s menu in Newsletter 43 for an example of a child’s glutenfree, dairyfree failsafe day with little sugar. One mother was pleased to hear that you can feed children dinner recipes such as pasta, mince and vegies for lunch and snacks - “I never thought of that,” she said. I myself like sugary desserts for treats and special occasions but what I ate yesterday is an example of my regular weekday diet – it’s fairly low in fat and sugar, and contains many low GI foods:

cooked porridge with chopped tinned pear half and home-made soy yoghurt

toast with bean or cashew paste and fresh pear (sometimes half a mango - my moderate salicylate allowance)

Mountain bread wrap with Howard’s bean paste (Failsafe 43, or sometimes a hard boiled egg) and Mighty Salad (see recipes below)

small handful of raw cashews (if bean paste used on toast above)

vegetable soup with red lentils and barley

panfried fresh white fish (can be lamb stew, chicken stirfry, egg stirfry, kidney beans) with rice, green beans, cabbage, brussel sprout and carrot (my moderate salicylate allowance)

bowl of quick cook oats, canned pear and soy yoghurt for dessert

drinks – water, decaf, hot carob with soymilk.

See also the Failsafe Weightloss factsheet.

(November 2004)

Q. What is a shallot and how is it different from different types of onion?

A:

Q. How does the recent link between macular degeneration (blindness) and certain fats affect the failsafe diet?

A. Trans fats are created when manufacturers make liquid oils into the more solid partially hydrogenated oils used in margarines, shortening and thousands of processed foods. Twenty years ago, scientist through that these trans fats were safe but in the 1990s scientists found that trans fats raise LDL (bad cholesterol) as much as saturated fat does. Now new evidence indicates that trans fats also lower HDL (good cholesterol) and studies in the US - where trans fat consumption is four times greater than in Australia - have associated trans fats with macular degeneration. The makers of Nuttelex have advised us that they are very close to production of a low (less than 1%) trans fat Nuttelex and hope to have it in stores by Xmas. Since macular degeneration is also linked with overweight and smoking, consumers are advised to maintain a healthy weight, choose healthy fats in moderation (fish and nuts are protective), stop smoking, and eat lots of vegetables and fruit. More details: http://www.csiro.au/ProprietaryDocuments/fat_and_macular_degeneration.pdf

Q. My son’s teacher and I had a verbal agreement that he would not give my son any food or drink. Well, last Friday he gave my son a piece of chocolate cake and said ‘don't tell your mum’ but my son told me, ‘I'm not going to bother lying to you mum, because I know you can tell when I've had something just by looking at my eyes’.

A. One failsafer achieved a high level of cooperation from her school by telling her story in the school newsletter, see our new factsheet “Please Don’t Feed My Child”. Perhaps you could tell your own story in your newsletter in a similar way, or ask your school to reprint our factsheet.

Q. Just wanted to know if you can eat Subway on the failsafe diet?’

A. As you can see from the Subway ingredients list, most items contain non-failsafe additives. The safest choice would be roast beef and lettuce on Italian bread, no pickles, no dressing, although we are not sure about azodicarbamide (927) bread improver, which has only recently been approved in Australia. Perhaps you could take your own failsafe ketchup or mayonnaise. If you don’t care about salicylates and amines you could also have fresh cucumbers, yellow mustard and tuna, see http://subway.com/subwayroot/MenuNutrition/Nutrition/frmUSIngredients.aspx

Q. Do sulfites mainly affect asthmatics or are they mood altering?

A. Like other food chemicals, sulfites (or sulphites) can be associated with any of the symptoms of food intolerance including irritable bowel, headaches, itchy skin rashes and mood. This is particularly concerning as sulfites are the most commonly used preservative, present in nearly all processed foods.

Q. When my ADHD son eats kiwi fruit, his behaviour doesn’t change. Since kiwi fruit is very high in salicylates, does this mean he isn’t affected by salicylates?

A. Very few parents ever notice a reaction to salicylates in foods because salicylates are eaten many times a day, every day. Most children don’t react to a few serves of fruit, but the effects build up slowly. You will only see the difference when you avoid salicylates then do a challenge -note that failing to eat six good serves of high salicylates per day during the challenge can cause confusing results. If in doubt, it’s a good idea to repeat the challenge.

Q. I bought a black winter coat labelled ‘made in China’, and didn’t realise until I got it home that its horrible tar or creosote-type smell gives me a nasty headache.

A. A failsafer with exactly the same problem reported that airing and drycleaning had no effect. Despite the ‘dryclean only’ label, he achieved a wearable garment by soaking his coat in Lux flakes for three days, running it through the washing machine at least six times, and storing it in a drying room for months. Surprisingly, the coat did not shrink.

Q. Chic Nuts roasted chickpeas are so delicious, are you sure they are failsafe?

A. According to the manufacturer, Chic Nuts are made from locally grown chickpeas soaked in pure spring water overnight before being roasted in Monola oil (a more monounsaturated and therefore healthier version of Canola). Then they are tossed in natural seasonings to give them various flavours – the ones we can eat are pure garlic powder and sea salt. There are no anti-oxidants in the Monola oil. The sodium is low compared with popular salty snacks (480mg per 100g) and the GI is 37. More information from www.partnerfoods.com.au Chic Nuts are available from Safeways and Woolworths, in the Naytura aisle. Information about Monola oil: http://www.csiro.au/index.asp?type=mediaRelease&id=Prmonola&stylesheet=mediaRelease

Q. My husband’s gout has improved since our family went failsafe. He’s not really on the diet but eats a lot of our failsafe food. Is the failsafe diet for gout?

A. People with gout are affected by food chemicals called purines. Many high-purine foods such as wine, beer, tea, anchovies, gravy, meat extracts and sardines are avoided on the failsafe diet because they are also high in salicylates or amines. However, some failsafe foods such as dried beans and lentils contain moderate amounts of purines. For more information, see http://dialadietitian.org/resources/handouts/goutdiet.html

Q. I bought normal white Panadol tablets and the children’s chewable Panadol for my 5 year old son because the lady in the chemist’s thought it was ok. I’m confused as it says on the packet 'no added colours or flavours' but also says pleasant tasting.

A. I was unable to find the inactive ingredients in chewable Panadol (unfortunately they don’t have to be listed on medications), but pleasant tasting chewable tablets obviously contain flavour. The dose recommended on the children’s packet for 3 - 6 year olds is 2 tablets, which are 120mg paracetamol each, so 240mg in total, in which case 1/2 plain white tablet is the same. You can crush it and mix with golden syrup etc, see the Supplements Factsheet. Please, anyone whose child has reacted to flavoured tablets, tell the AME hotline (Adverse Medications Event - 1300 134 237). It is only by complaining that we can get authorities to realize that unlisted ingredients in medications can affect our children.

(July 2004) 

Q. The new 'Explogo' dairy snack contains colour 160c, listed as not permitted in Australia. Is it a bad colour?

A. The Food Standards Code has changed recently to allow many more additives including colours in Australian foods. Colour 160c is Capsanthin, a natural extract from red peppers. Since food additives are not tested by authorities for their effects on children’s behaviour and learning (or indeed, on asthmatics, people with eczema, irritable bowel symptoms or headaches), we do not know yet whether this additive is good or bad. It might be safe (such as 160a, betacarotene) or not (like 160b annatto). When it is added to a product which is otherwise failsafe (Explogo is not), failsafers on their elimination diet will be able to do a challenge with it to see whether we can use it or not.

Q. I’d like to do the diet for my asthma but I’m not prepared to give up wine.

A. If you only have to avoid sulphites there are good preservative-free wine such as the 1999 Happs PF Red from Margaret River (