STORIES & OPINIONS 2
Readers are invited to
contribute to this section. Please send your stories and opinions to suedengate@ozemail.com.au. State
whether you would like your name or email address used, or to remain anonymous.
Some names have been changed to protect privacy. My mailing address is PO Box
718 Woolgoolga NSW 2456
[126] Joe was
"broken" from the time he was born (September 2001)
Julie Gilfoyle is a
police prosecutor and a mother of nearly 4 children. When she saw what food did
to her three year old son, she became an enthusiastic supporter of failsafe and
a co-founder of the new
Joseph Gilfoyle gets up
from his afternoon tea and goes and whispers to his father Steve. He wants to
know if it's okay to eat the marshmallows in his bowl. He's four and he
probably can't pronounce food intolerance but he knows how had it makes him
feel if he eats things he shouldn't. His mother Julie says if they hadn't found
out what was wrong with Joseph when they did he would probably be in jail for
murder now.
She says Joe was
"broken" from the time he was born and it wasn't until he was
diagnosed with food intolerance at three and a half that a solution seemed
possible for the little boy. As well as being a mother of three and pregnant
with number four, Julie is also a part-time Police Sergeant working as police
prosecutor in Court 1 in
She's so concerned about
the link between behaviour and food intolerance that she's undertaking
independent study on the food effects on juvenile criminality as part of her
Masters Degree in Justice/Law at QUT. Steve Gilfoyle isn't sure that food turns
kids into criminals but he does know what food can do to his son.
"He was like a bear
with a sore head - that's how he was. He was aggressive to other kids and
defiant to adults. Now he's responsive, his speech has improved, and his
concentration span has improved.
"He can sit down and
watch something on TV. He can sit down and do a puzzle or colour in."
Joseph's problem lies
primarily with food colours and flavouring and reactions range from aggression
to asthma. With careful shopping and label reading Joseph can enjoy and happy
and normal life without too much imposition on the rest of the family.
There have been slip-ups on
the way. The family dyed eggs for Easter not realising that Joseph's
sensitivity would extend to touch. Joseph blames his mum for that asthma
attack. The solution for Joseph came when a paediatrician suggested that Julie
might like to read a book called "Fed Up" by Sue Dengate. She
consulted a dietitian and put Joseph on an elimination diet. His life changed.
Julie is urging people who
suspect food might affecting their children's behaviour to attend a
presentation by Sue Dengate … - Julie's story (above) appeared on page 3 of
the September edition of "Kids in Brisbane", resulting in a capacity
crowd of nearly 200 for my presentation at Zillmere PCYC.
[125] "To say I
felt better would have been the understatement of a new millenium"
(September 2001)
Around February of 2000 I
was searching on the internet for some clues to my life long digestive
problems, when I came across the food allergy section on the About.com website.
The featured food allergy topic happened to be salicylates ... just out of
curiosity, and for the heck of it, I clicked on the link, and started to read
about it … I first off read the list of common symptoms. As I read it the list
was all to familiar to me … I answered Yes to every symptom. Needless to say, I
started to follow a salicylate free diet. To say I felt better would have been
the understatement of a new millenium...... ALL of my life I have suffered from
Very frequent urination, constipation, stomach bloating, short temper,
irritability, inability to concentrate, memory problems, severe acne, dry skin
(especially on my hands and feet), those restless legs, and more
...<sigh>… The worst of it for me though was the constant urination, and
constipation which led to a lot of gas ... Thank you so much for your work, and
your book. Both have changed my life forever. I am finally free of a problem
which has literally ruined my life. In case you're wondering, I'm 37 years old
... And yes, 36 years is WAY too long to suffer with this health problem.
Sometimes I don't know how I made it this long with my sanity intact. - from
the
[124] Plugs the holes in
dietician's advice (August 2001)
I've read your book
"Fed Up" and it certainly helped to plug the holes that my son's
dietician leaves every time we talk. - by email
[123] Chronic fatigue
(August 2001)
My husband has suffered
from chronic fatigue syndrome for 11 years. We have been following the food
lists suggested in your 'Fed Up' book for about a month and I have noticed a
huge difference already. He sleeps better and is generally having more good days
than bad. When he cheated (not on purpose) by having "junk" food, he
suffered for it the next few days, not sleeping properly, and with the usual
general aching and unwellness. The week after re-commencing failsafe foods, he
is again feeling good and positive that eating failsafe is just the beginning
of a great new life. - WA
[122] Restless Legs Syndrome
(August 2001)
Restless Legs Syndrome was
absolutely driving me crazy. If I forced my legs to be still, they would then
jerk with even greater intensity. While I was watching TV, my legs were
constantly swinging, because of this urge to move them. They were not itchy -
it was just like there was something under the skin driving me crazy.
Apparently most sufferers go on to become alcoholics (ref: The Bulletin 2000)
which I can understand. American websites about RLS basically fall back onto
all sorts of medication, which I do not want to take. Within two weeks of
trying the elimination diet, I was able to sit still at night, AND get into bed
without fear of tossing and turning all night because of this urge to move my
legs. I now know the foods I should not touch - salicylates and additives ...
when I eat any of these forbidden foods there is a definite reaction. - NSW
[121] Baby affected by
food chemicals in breastmilk (August 2001)
I have a 10mth old baby boy
who he screamed for the first 3 and half months of his life all day and half of
the night until my doc got me onto a dietitian and we tried the elimination
diet. Every time I do food tests he reacts by screaming in agony within 24
hours and often gets a nasty red rash on his face and not so severe rash on his
back and stomach. Before we tried the diet, we were hospitalised twice because
I just couldn't cope. He reacts to most additives but the bread preservative is
the worst and he also reacts very badly to amines. -
[120] PMT (August 2001)
The biggest thing in my
life is that my PMT has gone. I am amazed. I have had this problem for so many
years. It was ruling my life and threatening my marriage to the point where
earlier this year I started taking Lovan (another name for Prozac) to help me
with it. I know you said that PMT disappears on the diet but I must admit mine
was so bad I really didn't believe you. Anyway, my PMT has completely gone. I
am convinced about this diet now! - NT
[119] Aching joints
(August 2001)
My husband has lost weight
( he needed to ) and the aching joints he had-post Ross River Fever seem to be
improving!! - NT
[118] Epileptic seizures
(August 2001)
My cousin has been having
horrendous seizures for the past 2 years since she gave birth to her son. I
have been trying to convince her to go on the elimination diet, as she's
already noticed some foods trigger the attacks. She feels like she is going to
die when she has one. She finally read the section in your book about Kerry and
has found out that one of her biggest seizures which was triggered by popcorn
at the pictures, was probably due to tartrazine (102) - the cinema just changed
the company they buy the popcorn from. - WA
[117] 635: Irregular
pulse and atrial fibrillation (August 2001)
I react to MSG, flavour
enhancer 635, metabisulphite preservatives, and yellow colour in cordial. I
also have food intolerance to salicylates. From MSG, 635 flavour enhancer and
metabisulphite preservatives I get very irregular pulse and atrial
fibrillation. The atrial fibrillation settles down after 12-20 hrs depending on
how much offending additive I have eaten (in a restaurant it is difficult to
tell) - and my pulse settles down faster if I drink lots of water every hour to
flush the toxins out of my system. I've learned to read the labels and carry a
reminder in my purse of the numbers to which I react when shopping. I have
learned which brands or types of foods are a problem and steer clear of those. - Mary A Biddulph, retired nurse, Brisbane
[116] 282: Fast heart
beat (tachycardia) (August 2001)
I have suffered for years
from episodes of fast heart beat. It can be very strong and disturbing, and I
have ended up in hospital but it goes away after a few hours and they could
never find anything wrong. For a while I was getting it every afternoon.
Eventually I worked out it happened on the days I ate bread. A friend suggested
it might be the preservative in bread. When I eat Brumbys' bread I have no
problems, but when I ate some preserved bread without thinking at my mother's
place, I had another episode. - NT
[115] Depression etc
(August 2001)
For the past 15 years I
have been unable to eat wheat, preservatives or MSG - or suffer the consequences
if I do. A life spent suffering headaches, depression, lethargy and other
sundry aches and pains is no alternative to avoiding the wrong foods and being
able to live life to the full! - by email
[114] Paresthesia
(numbness) (August 2001)
I am sensitive to
salicylates as the result of overuse of Ibuprofen (chemically very similar to
aspirin). I developed asthma-like respiratory symptoms when eating certain
foods but couldn't figure out which foods were responsible. Then I developed
paresthesia in my left thigh when I took a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug
which was prescribed for back pain. Ironically, all of the muscle pains etc.
disappeared once I removed everything from my diet that I was sensitive to. -
USA [Commonly called 'pins and needles' paraesthesia is a sensation of
numbness, prickling and tingling that is normally felt in a limb or extremity.]
-
[113] Rash, asthma from
colour 122(August 2001)
I have a 4 year old granddaughter
who has a number of food intolerances and a 6 year old granddaughter who is
just starting to show the cumulative effects of 122 [artificial red colour]
with rash around mouth, also some asthma symptoms that she has never had
before. I would like to receive your newsletter not only to assist me when I
have them in my care, but also because I think we could all do without the
"garbage" that is added to much of our processed food. - by email
[112] Changed our lives
(August 2001)
"My 3 1/2 year old has
been on the elimination diet since March and it has completely changed his life
(and ours, thank God)". - NZ
[111] Cut back on fruit (August 2001)
"Since purchasing your
book "Fed Up" and reading through it last week I immediately cut back
my 5 yo daughter's intake of fruit to approx. one quarter of what she would
normally have. By the weekend we already saw huge changes in our girl. Her
behaviour was more evened out (not so many HUGE highs and lows) and just more
sensible, obliging, less aggressive and defiant - just a much more pleasant
girl altogether." - NZ
[110] Cut his Ritalin
dose in half (August 2001)
"My son is 11 years
old, diagnosed with ADHD, and has been on Ritalin for about 6-7 years … we have
had him on a Failsafe diet for almost two months now. By the end of the first
month he showed remarkable improvement, being able to finish homework more
quickly and having a more thoughtful disposition. We were also able to cut his
Ritalin dose by half, giving him the medication mainly for school, but not at
home." -
[109] I have my son back
(August 2001)
"I just want to say
thank you! I have my son back, a son who will listen, a son who will respond, a
son who will sit quietly for longer and longer periods of time and a son that
is happy enough in himself to want cuddles from us and to tell us he loves
us!" - by email
[108] Salicylates from
the beginning (August 2001)
"On advice from our
paediatrician (believe it or not) we took our 3.5 yo son off salicylates from
the beginning. I typed in this unknown word and got your website and cried and
contacted you and you recommended a dietitian … we have the most unbelievable
son now as long as we stick close to his 'food plan', we don't call it a diet.
…I just can't express our gratitude enough - life is completely different
within our household and for our son himself." - Qld
[107] Happy and smart
(August 2001)
"Our daughter is now
on the failsafe diet after the success we saw with her cousin after he started
on failsafe foods, we now have a very happy, mostly well behaved and smart
little girl." - by email
[106] Normally a
disaster (August 2001)
"I took my 2 boys into
Toyworld today which is normally a disaster but they were very well behaved,
walking up each aisle with me and looking at the toys rather than touching and
grabbing everything in sight!!" [on diet for 10 days] - NT
[105] 'Hey, that's our
boys!' (August 2001)
"We saw A Current
Affair 12 months ago, and thought, 'Hey that's our boys!' (The eldest in
particular.) We bought your book, the best money we ever spent. We have been on
the diet now for 12 months and things have improved dramatically." - by
email
[104] Over the top
(August 2001)
"I have a 3½ year old
son who was so over the top that I was told of your book. We have been doing
diet for the last 3-4 months and he is now a changed boy." - by email
[103] World war three
(August 2001)
"I contacted a
dietitian through the Base hospital and with their help we managed to get
through the Elimination Diet. ... We both reacted to amines and our symptoms
were the same and severe - aggressive behaviour with a lack of self-control,
depression etc. It was like world war three in our house by the end of the week
and both of us took at least a week to recover … I remember a quote in
"Fed Up" from a lady who said she spent more time in the kitchen but
less time disciplining the children and I have found that to be absolutely true
… we have come a long way in these last
[102] An adult success
story - irritable bowel and weight loss (August 2001)
Around the middle of last
year I realised that I was always tired, my workmates commented on my sneezing
fits every afternoon, I was very irritable, easily reduced to tears, had rashes
on my legs, an ear infection which would not clear up and generally felt
unwell. But worst of all was my bloated stomach, which most times looked like I
was 7 months pregnant, and the related bowel problems. Looking back I had been
gradually getting worse for a couple of years.
I had been to my doctor a
couple of times for other things and always mentioned the vague symptoms. I was
told not to worry. As the bowel problems persisted I started to worry as my
grandfather had died of colon cancer. A Rotary test was negative but I still
worried. I went to my doctor again and although she agreed that the bloated
stomach was unusual she could find nothing wrong. However, she realised that I
was really starting to worry about cancer, so she suggested I have some tests,
just to set my mind at rest. I had an abdominal scan and full blood tests.
Nothing wrong. But my worry was increasing, so she sent me for a colonoscopy,
warning me that it would be unpleasant.
That was my turning point.
The specialist could not understand my mixed reactions when he told me there
was nothing wrong. However, I had had the colonoscopy on a Monday so had
arranged to also have Tuesday off work as I imagined I would still feel pretty
awful a day later. I woke up on Tuesday feeling fantastic. I packed so much
into that one day it was amazing. I also did not eat, as I so much enjoyed
feeling "empty". I wondered whether my symptoms were being caused by
something I was eating.
Coincidentally, I had
recently read an article in Australian Good Taste, about food intolerance, and
your book was recommended. I bought your book and realised that all my symptoms
fitted the pattern. I even had belatedly-diagnosed giardia for several weeks a
couple of years before. I went back to the doctor, and suggested I go on an
elimination diet. She was very lukewarm about the idea but I was determined so
I followed your instructions and went on the strict diet for several weeks. I
tried the
challenges and narrowed my
causes down to dairy and salicylates (both of which I had normally in large
quantities). I then got caught up in a round of end of year work functions and
lunches, so I was not able to be so strict with myself. I went backwards
quickly.
Now I avoid all processed
foods, eat failsafe at home, and make informed choices when out. I love wine
but have cut down to a couple of glasses per week, have decaf coffee, soy milk
etc.
The result has been a new
zest for life - new role at work, back to studying part time and lots of
activities. I'm back to size 12 clothes (have bought lots of new ones). I turn
50 next week and feel like 40.
I'm a bit evangelical when
I tell people why I've lost so much weight, so I don't mind you sharing my
story if it is of interest to others. Thanks again for providing the tools for
me to get my life back. - NSW
[101] "What an
experience that was! - irritable bowel, sneaky poos, restless legs, eczema,
behaviour" (August 2001)
I contacted a dietitian
through our Base hospital and with their help we managed to get through the
Elimination Diet. What an experience that was! My youngest son, Tim, who is
three in April, had been given an uncertain diagnosis of "Irritable
Bowel???" by the pediatrician. We were told to take him off lactose, sugar
and soy and reduce the fruit intake. That has little effect on his symptoms.
So, Brandon (5 yo), Tim and I embarked on the Elimination Diet. My husband did
not want to be involved in the "witchcraft" as he called it!
I was on the phone to the
dietitian after 36 hours because Brandon, who had behaviour problems, had got
10 times worse where behaviour was concerned and had come out in an eczema-type
rash on his torso and upper arms. I felt he was reacting to the soy or the cashew
paste (but probably the soy) as these were the only new additions to our diet.
I was told to "persevere, that reactions usually got worse before they
improved". After 5 days I had a great improvement in my mucous volume and
felt better than I had in 5 years. After 4 weeks we had seen limited
improvement in
The results were quite
amazing. After 2 weeks off wheat I realized my restless legs were no longer
worrying me and
We did the wheat challenge
first.
The dairy challenge was
interesting - my mucous symptoms were worse but
...
Initially I was daunted by
the difficulties I faced accessing the foods we need but eventually as I learn
where in the supermarket, health food store etc to find things life has become
much easier ... I remember a quote in "Fed Up" from a lady who said
she spent more time in the kitchen but less time disciplining the children and
I have found that to be absolutely true. It is now just the way we live. I find
the most difficult thing now is other people's reactions to our diet. Some of
our friends though come to our place with 7UP and kettle chips to share.
Thankfully my husband is now more supportive and even grudgingly admits that he
is probably reacting to some foods himself. So, Sue we have come a long way in
these last 6 months. I hope it makes you proud to know that your writing of
"Fed Up" has contributed to such an improvement in our lives. - Qld
[100] Ginny's story 26
years on, the full story (August 2001)
Ginny was my second child.
Her older sister had been a model baby, always smiling, rarely cried but she
developed chronic asthma at age 8 months and required frequent hospitalisation.
She was 2 ½ when Ginny was born.
From day one Ginny was a
very unsettled baby, didn't sleep much and cried a lot. At 2 months of age I
had to physically keep her awake between
By 12 months of age she had
major ulceration on her bottom and an allergy specialist suggest we try soy
milk as it could be a cows milk problem. At that time I had to get the soy milk
through the chemist on prescription and it didn't really make a huge amount of
difference. We tried the soy milk for 6 months and then went back to cows milk.
She was getting more and more restless and would sleep for 1 hour and then wake
up screaming. When Ginny was 14 months old I had child number 3. Gareth was the
most placid, easy going little boy you could ever imagine. Sardi (the oldest)
was still having major asthma attacks and hospitalisation. Ginny was still
waking every hour on the hour - this went on day after day, night after night,
month after month. Gareth developed croup and would have really bad nights
where I would be up with him for hours with the steam running in the bathroom.
By the time Ginny was 2
years old, when she wasn't screaming through the night she was getting into
mischief through the day or throwing dreadful tantrums because she couldn't get
her own way. Climbing in dangerous places, falling up, through, on or off
anything there was in sight to climb on.
A sixth sense woke me early
one morning and I went into the kitchen to find her sitting on top of the oven.
It was one of those stoves which had the oven and hotplates side by side with
the controls for the electric hotplates at the back. She had climbed on to the
hotplates and then up on the oven and had reached over and turned on all the
hotplates. When I got there she was sitting looking at them glowing red and
just laughed at me and said "look at the pretty colours, mummy".
She still woke every hour
throughout the night and the only thing I could do to get her back to sleep was
to give her a bottle which was usually filled with cordial, as the doctors told
me not to give her too much milk and if I used too much fruit juice I had the
nappies to contend with!
During our frequent trips
to the doctor Ginny was always an angel. When I asked if it could be something
she was eating, they just laughed at me and the doctor told me that I was
overanxious. I came close to having a breakdown. When I wanted to get another
opinion I was sent to the hospital. They wanted to put me in hospital to calm
down. When I said "no", they asked me would I like them to put her in
hospital to give me a break.
They said that she was just
a naughty girl and to just let her scream as "she would stop sooner or
later" and that she only screamed because I went into see her. Not very
easy to do when she screams for 3 hours in the middle of the night and dad has
to go to work the next day and the other two are awake and crying.. The doctors
then decided to try Ginny on Vallergan to "quieten her down" because
they believed she was just boisterous and I just was not coping with
motherhood.
At age 2 ½ I was at the end
of my tether and one day I picked her up and held her against the wall and started
to shake her and bang her against the wall. I had tears running down my face
and thank god something inside me said to me to put her down or I was going to
do some dreadful damage.
About 2 months after this I
read an article in a magazine which was talking about Dr Ben Feingold's book
"Why your child is Hyperactive". It talked about the relationship of
food colours and preservatives and children's behaviour. The article gave a
list of about 14 symptoms and said that if you could answer 'yes' to any 6 of
them, there was a darn good chance that food colours were playing a major part
in the child's behaviour. We answered "yes" to 12 of the 14. The book
was unavailable in
I read the book and then
went to discuss it with my doctor and was told it was a lot of
"maybe" and that nothing was proven. I discussed it with my brother
(also a doctor) who told me that kids were being unnecessarily labelled
hyperactive and it was predominantly a discipline problem. I tried to discuss
it with others who just didn't want to know.
We still had Sardi going in
and out of hospital with asthma and Gareth up through the night with bouts of
croup. Their father was working late into the evenings (I think so that he
didn't have to come home to the chaos) and by this stage our marriage was
starting to collapse.
My husband and I discussed
the diet recommended in the book and decided that it couldn't do any harm as
things couldn't be much worse. The only problem was that the book was written
in the
After 1 week, Ginny had
started sleeping for 2-3 hour stretches.
After 2 weeks, she had
stopped throwing tantrums
After 3 weeks, she was
sleeping right through the night
After 4 weeks I had, for
the first time, a normal child in the house.
After 3 months, her eczema
had just about totally cleared.
"Coincidentally"
(or not) her older sister's asthma had, by this stage, lessened to the stage
where she no longer required frequent trips to hospital and was manageable to
home and her brothers bouts of croup had stopped.
What really annoyed me was
that about 4-5 years later the Royal Children's Hospital in
As Ginny was able to
communicate better and someone (usually a well meaning grandma!) would give her
something nice like a red icy pole (and then send her home to me!) she would
tell me that she had a "big head". As she got older, she later
explained that when she had something off limits, her head felt as though it
was going to explode.
Ginny is now 27 and has a 9
month old daughter. She still checks labels and she does all her own baking and
cooking and rarely uses pre-packaged goods (although I noticed that the ones
she tends to use are the same products I used when I changed our diet all those
years ago) I have every confidence that her little girl will not have to go
through the hell her mother went through. Even now, as her poor partner found
out the hard way, she still reacts badly to Cherry Ripes! He would bring them
home and she would occasionally eat them. Until one day when she had too many.
He's now banned them from the house.
My message to everyone out
there : I wish I'd had the benefit of Sue's book 25 years ago. Diet really does
work. Hang in there - it gets better and better.
- Rosemary Hanger (Silly Yaks Bakery Café, Melbourne) www.melba.vu.edu.au/~rhh
[099] Lots to tell after
8 failsafe weeks (November 2000)
Just thought I would drop
you a short note to let you know that everything is going extremely well. My
daughter is now at her best EVER, although we still have the occasional hiccup,
it is nothing compared to some weeks ago. We challenged Dairy last week for 2
days (only milk) and her nose just gave her too much grief at night so she
decided herself to give it the flick for 12 months. She said after not having
it for 8 weeks that it tasted YUK anyway. She stated last night that she feels
good eating failsafe foods and I must admit that the dark rings under her eyes
have completely gone, her eyes themselves are crystal clear and she has no
inclination to eat otherwise. We have our second visit with the pediatrician
next month. Gee haven't I got lots to tell him.
- reader,
[098] Her real self
(November 2000)
Thank you so much for the
wonderful, supportive and informative book "Fed Up". I had previously
tested one of my children under the guidance of an allergy specialist, but I
was having problems with another of my children and was lacking motivation.
Your book inspired me to begin the elimination diet with my daughter, before I was
at the stage of being unable to cope with her any longer. What a difference in
her life, my life and the life of the whole family. Thankyou, thankyou,
thankyou! We now have a daughter who is behaving as her real self
- reader, email.
[097] Eliminating amines
was the secret … (November 2000)
Oh Frabjous Day (the quote comes from Lewis Carroll's
poem the Jabberwocky)
Some of you have
experienced the joy of a child transformed,
an emergent angel,
an unsolicited "I love
you" rather than "I hate you",
and a house in peace and
harmony.
I too can (now) count
myself amongst these fortunates.
To those who have not yet
witnessed this miracle,
take heart, your turn will
come.
School is in session again,
and our kids
are doing things they
couldn't possibly have done last semester.
Mary is bringing home
perfect math and spelling tests,
with a commensurate
improvement in self-esteem.
As I watch her do homework,
I can almost see her IQ improve each week.
She no longer engages in
covert antisocial behavior,
such as stealing small
objects from classmates, which she did all last year.
"I don't feel like I
have to yack with my friends all day long." she volunteered.
Meantime, John is spending
most of his day in his mainstream classroom.
Last year he spent 40
minutes in class, story time, and then became too hyper,
and had to return to his
special ed room.
That, plus a few extras
such as gym and music,
was the extent of his
mainstreaming.
He could NEVER perform an
academic task in the midst of 23 other students,
or participate in a group
activity.
In fact he could rarely do
anything at all,
and we often had to bring
him home before lunch,
because he was too
unmanageable even for the special ed teachers.
But this year is different.
He always spends the
afternoon in his general ed class,
and sometimes the morning
as well.
He is socially appropriate,
and is on-track academically.
The improvements at home
are comparable;
I don't have time to go
into them all.
As the subject suggests, we
are elated.
And what's the secret?
Eliminating amines --
easier said than done, as
many of you know.
There are so many
discussions of frustrating setbacks, which is right and
appropriate for this group
--
but I thought you'd also
like to hear about some real progress.
Sometimes we (parents)
don't even see it, day to day,
until we step back and
remember where we were three months ago,
or even one month ago.
- Karl from the
discussion group, see Karl and Alison's hints for super amine responders on the
website.
[096] A cute kid
underneath (November 2000)
I'm a week and a bit
further down the track on the failsafe foods and I am noticing changes already.
He's really quite a cute kid underneath it all. Going out has been the biggest
hurdle as school is extremely supportive.
- reader, NT.
[095] 282: Itchy hives
(November 2000)
I'm letting you know how I
got on with the bread preservative. I did get a reaction but not as bad as the
amine test. Enough though to avoid eating it unless there is no other option.
By the way, my reaction is always itchy hives.
- reader, email
[094] An allergy to
sunscreen (November 2000)
My daughter Rebecca developed
the environmental illness Multiple Chemical Sensitivity when she was close to 2
years of age as a result of poisoning from the common sunscreen chemical butyl
methoxy dibenzoylmethane, to which she was allergic. The chemical was present
in a 50 ml roll-on I bought. The concentration of BMDM in the product was 3/4
of 1%, and I applied it to the lower half of her face and the back of her
hands. She passed out. Her teeth turned orange-brown, her skin turned
yellow-brown all over. Her urine was the colour of dark tea. Her skin and
breath stank like a sewer. She appeared to be brain damaged. Some of the brown
hair on the back of her head grew in pure white.
Rebecca's mental and
physical function are now profoundly affected by environmental chemicals, in
foods, in the air she breathes, and anything that comes in contact with her
skin. She cannot have sunscreen with BMDM used by anyone around her, and we
have had to have this chemical banned from her kindergarten this year, and her
school for next year. The regulatory authority was notified at the time of the
injury, as was the sunscreen company.
The product that did the
damage was Ego Sunsense Face Milk, labelled "hypo-allergenic". The
chemical responsible is sometimes called Parsol 1789. In the
I have also developed MCS
as a result of handling the product that hurt my child. I am not as sensitive
as my daughter but I continue to get worse. Environmental exposures to BMDM
(other people's sunscreen) seem to be responsible for this worsening.
We are trying to get BMDM
not only banned but classified as a prohibited substance. Please let other
people know that this sunscreen chemical is toxic and incompatible with human
ecology.
- Dianne Woodhouse, BSc (Pharmacology, Biochemistry)
[093] Life threatening
anaphylactoid reaction to salicylates (October 2000)
"My friend has
followed your diet and had only one small reaction (and she admits to
"cheating" some that day) in the last 11 months. Before that, she was
speeding to the hospital in an ambulance about every 10 -14 days. Now she has
not done that in nearly a whole year - THANKS to your book and food lists. She
has also reduced the antihistamines that she takes by more than half ... Her
own allergy doctor is very impressed with her current health and has sent for
"Fed Up" also. It seems weird that she has had to find her own help
and that doctors seem to have little knowledge of her allergy to natural
aspirin. Thanks again for your help. She is my close friend and lives alone but
now I don't fear for her safety because the life threatening reactions have disappeared.
Her overall health and energy levels have greatly increased. Without your
website, current correct information, and books, coping was so difficult".
- reader's friend,
[092] Itchy hives
(October 2000)
"I was recently told
about your book Fed Up by my dietician. I have food intolerances to salicylates
and amines and I am now going to test for the bread preservative. I am in my
60s and have suffered with itchy hives for over 10 years. At last after reading
your book I seem to be getting on top of it. My daughter has put two of her
children on the elimination diet with excellent results. Thank you......"
- reader, email
[091] New mum with
challenging child (October 2000)
"I am a new mum, my
baby is nearly one year old. I am reading your book Fed Up and it is making a
huge impact on my life. My daughter was a challenging child in the early part
of her life and this created a lot of stress for me and my husband. I felt
strongly that the food I was eating upset her through the breast milk. Could
this have been why she was so difficult to get to sleep???? We have finished
breast feeding and I plan to follow the FAILSAFE diet as much as I can … Thank
you and keep doing what you're doing."
- reader, email
[090] So many won't
listen (October 2000)
"I have gone down the
dietary path since 1990, knowing myself to have allergies, but have struck many
a blind alley with doctors and paediatricians. I am a science teacher, and a
scientist, and consider that I can tell what is obvious with my child - but so
many won't listen. I was so pleased to finally read your book only recently
…"
- reader, email
[089] I had to laugh -
"not affected by foods"! (October 2000)
"You may be pleased to
know that I presented your book "Fed Up" to my ADD support group and
gave them a complete run down about the diet. … I had to laugh to myself when
one mum stated categorically that her son (extremely hyperactive) "is not
affected by foods". Yes, I once thought that about my son, only to find
how very salicylate sensitive he is!!"
- reader, email
[088] Violent monster
stage (October 2000)
Please add me to your
newsletter list … we are up to week 2 of the elimination diet. We slipped up by
keeping the pink marshmallows in the house. My son aged 8 found them and ate every
one and now I am in day 2 of the violent monster stage !!! Thank you so much, I
look forward to getting my son back one day soon. Thanks for your help and for
being there when no-one else is - unless they have a drug of some sort that is
!
- reader,
[087] At the checkout,
the bill was less than normal (October 2000)
"I first started reading
your book Fed Up a few months ago and was a bit unsure that we could make the
changeover to only the foods that you suggest be eaten to start off with. So I
put the book away. Then the other day I thought - this is it, we must make the
change for our daughter.
I cleaned out my pantry and
was shocked to find that I only had 3 things in my cupboard that we were
allowed to eat. I went shopping that afternoon with the kids to buy the things
that we could eat on the diet, (who incidently thought it was great looking for
all of the good food that we were allowed to eat).
I was surprised to find out
when I got to the checkout that the bill at the end was actually less then what
I normally pay when going shopping, so I thought that that was just great.
At the present time it is
going OK although I am finding it difficult to find bread with no preservatives
in it and as the kids are big eaters it is tough at lunch times. I would love
to be able to talk to other mothers that are on the diet to see how they are coping."
[to talk to other mothers on the diet, join our email discussion group, send
your request to sdengate@ozemail.com.au]
- mother,
[086] "ear working
now" (October 2000)
I was at my wits end and
about to put my almost 6 year old developmentally delayed son on Ritalin.
Fortunately I could not get an appointment until the end of October, so whilst
looking up ADHD on the 'net, came across your book, bought it and read it the
same day! We started the diet 2 days ago, he said "yes" for the first
time in his life today (everything is usually "no"). I haven't seen
any tantrums, he has lost his obsession with running water from my kitchen taps
(he would spend all day at the sink before, if I let him) and he actually sits
down and watches TV and plays with his brothers and sister now. More speech is
coming out, his toilet training is going well as he is not urinating so
frequently and for the first time in years I can say he's a delightful little
boy … As for my other children, I'm half way through the first week of the
school holidays, and my household is actually very calm. I'm just so impressed,
I can't help telling everyone about the diet. My four year old son, who has had
frequent ear infections, grommets, and a severe language delay, actually came
up to me this morning and said that his "ear was working now". And we
were just on the verge of having to put him through more traumatic surgery plus
spend another $1300 to replace his grommets. My other sons were constantly at
each other's throats previously, but now act like best buddies! …
- reader, email
[085] Scared to break
the spell (October 2000)
"I haven't been game
to write and tell all about how we are going in case it breaks the spell, but I
have had my daughter on a FAILSAFE diet now for 6 weeks, and we have been on a
high ever since. We never thought we would ever enjoy our family again, but
here we are loving every day with her and everything she does. She has slept
through since the 2nd week of the diet. She has gradually lost all signs of her
rash, she is happy just pottering around without needing to be constantly
nursed or consoled, and she is also beginning to 'trust' food again and eat
what is offered to her.
I never thought that this
diet would ever get easier, or that I would ever just be able to reach into the
cupboard and pull out something to eat, but it is getting more and more second
nature … I have not yet walked down the challenge road, I am a little scared to
give up my darling baby who is for the first time in her life receiving the
love and the now obviously more comfortable life she deserves. My family and
friends have been extremely supportive, and help me watch her like a hawk at
any family or social gathering where there is food present. She is also
allergic to a few foods and so this is doubly important, especially for peanuts
where she may need an adrenaline injection if she consumes anything with peanut
in it, this could be as innocent as any chocolate bar or as obvious as a peanut
paste sandwich."
- discussion group,
[084] Helped us to help
our daughter (October 2000)
"After seeing your
book on the TV we bought it. Our 8 year old daughter had been diagnosed with
dyslexia and my wife believed that her diet had a lot to do with her behaviour.
Your book helped us help our daughter and I am glad I have an opportunity to
say thank you."
- reader, email
[083] Some children need
to avoid milk as well (October 2000)
"Three weeks ago I
totally spat it with my son as he would only drink milk out of a bottle. So I
got tough and threw them away. He won't drink milk now unless he has a bottle -
which he doesn't get. After a few miserable days (even though he still asks for
a bottle of milk) he has given up milk altogether. He has become a totally
different child - a lot more placid, tantrums are very few and far between
(from 4 a day to maybe one a week), easily to reason with, a lot more tolerant
of waiting for things, less oppositional and a lot more happy (Mum is too). I
am not the only one who has noticed as my husband, Mum, Mother-in-law, friends
etc have all commented too."
- reader, Victoria
[082] Tastebuds do
change (October 2000)
"I have got into a
routine at the moment that I thought I would never get into. Your tastebuds do change
and when you go back to something you had in the past you will most likely find
that it's not as tantalising as you used to think."
- discussion group
member, WA
[081] Parenting courses
and books didn't work for us (October 2000)
Parenting courses and books
all had wonderful ideas and strategies, but they didn't work for us. However
since my son has been on the diet over the past twelve months I have AT LAST
been able to enjoy him. The difference that the diet has made to him has been
extraordinary. Unfortunately it took much longer than we expected, as we had to
eliminate a lot more than the basic elimination diet and his diet is extremely
restricted, but it is worth the effort to have a delightful happy boy most of
the time. We still have the occasional really bad day, but after six and a half
years of trying to parent a terror and feeling that there must have been
something wrong with me and my parenting abilities, I finally feel like a more
or less normal mum! I can now take him shopping or to visit my friends and be
reasonably confident that he will be well behaved and well mannered. Last week
I took him to an adult social meeting with me as I needed to meet some new
people (we have just moved) and he hadn't started school here yet. He sat
fairly quietly, amusing himself with his Lego and allowed me to concentrate and
then socialise, without dying of embarrassment over his behaviour, or having to
leave early because things became intolerable. The only time he interrupted was
to ask where the bathroom was. The other people there would never have guessed
what he used to be like..
- discussion group
member
[080] Helped us to
realise what his problems might be caused by (October 2000)
I have a near 7 year old
with an intolerance to salicylates. Your book "Fed Up" helped us
realise what his problems might be caused by, and since he has been on a low
salicylate diet, his behaviour, school work etc have improved dramatically!
- reader, email
[079] "Changes in attitudes
and behaviour" (September 2000)
My family of 6 lives in a
particularly small wheatbelt town in
- reader, email
[078] stopped the loud
and endless chatter (September 2000)
After a lot of trying to
find someone down here in
[077] no help at all
from the so-called 'specialists'! (September 2000)
I was at the Royal
Children's Hospital in Melbourne today and was so pleased to see copies of Fed
Up just inside the door of the child health information centre in a prominent
spot and a book list of recommended reading listed Fed Up and Friendly Food. I
wish it had been there when I was back and forth with my son as a baby getting
no help at all from the so-called 'specialists'!
[076] If you don't
eliminate enough, the diet will be ineffective (September 2000)
We had also seen a
paediatrician at Royal Children's hospital … I told him that I had begun doing
the diet and that there was improvement - his comment was that I must be sure
to give him a balanced diet and not eliminate too much. [The whole point of the
elimination diet is to eliminate everything that is causing problems. If you
don't eliminate enough, the diet will be ineffective. No wonder some
specialists in
[075] "sort of
handleable until he started school" - 6 yr old boy (September 2000)
My son is 6 years old and
was sort of handleable until he started school then the problems really
started. He had no concentration, was violent, destructive, uncooperative and
withdrawn at times. The only thing that was getting him through was that his
teachers, both last year and this, are angels. How anyone could have that much
patience is beyond me. ADD was questioned but a psychologist I saw said that
was not the answer … In your book Fed Up you list a number of therapies you
tried for your daughter. It was like reading about my life for the last 18
months. Everyone kept saying I was so good to keep trying but what was I
supposed to do? Give up, let him be classed as another unteachable kid. I
couldn't do that. He is one of the most intelligent people I have met and had
too much potential. Anyway someone told me about the story on ACA and I bought
your book. I read it in one night as it was the first thing I had read that
made total sense and fitted my son to a T. We started the elimination diet four
weeks ago. I took my son off dairy. My son didn't go too well for the first
three weeks. His behavior deteriorated to the point were the school actually
rang me one day at lunch and asked me to pick him up as there was no point in
him being there … I must admit that I felt like there was no hope and thought
that maybe he needed Ritalin. That day I picked up your book again and reread
some pages. I decided to go one step further and take him off wheat. The change
has been amazing. This week he actually had three "normal" days at
school, finished worksheets etc. I believe he got worse because he was actually
eating more wheat as I was baking biscuits, cakes and muffins. Now I use wheat
and gluten free flour. We haven't done any challenges yet but will be starting
next week. I believe your book and diet have helped my son and I more than you
can know. Thank you.
3 months later: My son reacts to just about
everything! Salicylates make him "high", amines make him
"low", antioxidants build up in his system and make him
"high".
But he had his 7th birthday
last weekend. Some children from school attended and he was a
"normal" kid with lots of friends over to play. Every parent has come
to me and told me what a great time their child had. This would not have been
possible 6 months ago. We did eat chocolate at the party but everything else
was "FAILSAFE". He still has his moments but he can now concentrate
at school, when with the occupational therapist, and while playing basketball.
I was watching home video the other night and almost cried watching my
stunningly magnificent son at one and two years old and thinking of all he has
been through unnecessarily. If only we had known. Matt also suffered from 'glue
ear' which is also being blamed for a lot of his gross and fine motor problems.
He was three years behind when he started with the O.T. In three months he has
caught up 12 months. His Eustachian tubes are now clear yet the E.N.T doctors
just said he was "in the too hard basket". I believe that food
intolerance is responsible for most of my son's problems and that if I had
known he would not have wasted four years of his life. It makes me so angry the
way we mothers are treated by health professionals. There was an article in the
Sunday Herald Sun magazine just recently which was an interview with a mother
who said the diet helped her son's asthma. On the same page there was an
interview with the head dietitian at the Royal Children's Hospital in
[074] Frequent ear
infections (September 2000)
My son is still clearing his
throat but I have noticed that it is getting less and less the longer I have
him on the FAILSAFE diet. He does not have too much dairy as I cut that out at
a very early stage. From 3 months old he started having really bad ear
infections and would sometimes take antibiotics twice a month for it. The
doctors then suggested grommets and that's when I went to visit a naturopath
who told me to take him off all dairy. Since then we have not had one ear
infection.
- discussion group
[073] General
Developmental Delay (September 2000)
I have a five-year-old son
with a General Developmental Delay and we have been on your diet for three
weeks. This has greatly improved his behaviour. He also had skin rashes that we
attributed to insect bites all this time, but now we've seen it's a reaction to
food. His 8 year old sister who was struggling at school has also improved.
- Reader, email
[072] Doctor amazed
(September 2000)
I have a 2 year old son who
has had many problems with behaviour (including being kicked out of the local
creche at the age of one), until I read your book and did the elimination diet.
Even my doctor is amazed at the difference.
- reader, email
[071] Last night I
actually got to sleep six hours (September 2000)
I am currently reading your
book "Fed Up". I have a 3-year-old as well as an 8-month-old whom I'm
breast-feeding. Both my children have suffered with severe colic and reflux as
well as skin allergies. I have been convinced for a while now that it had
something to do with their diet. I did not know where to start in finding out
what may be the cause as every doctor that I have been to see just wanted to
give me more medication. I have started both my children as well as myself on
the elimination diet. It has been three days now and I am noticing a big change
in my 3-year-old's behaviour where she is not depressed when she wakes in the
morning. My 8-month-old has stopped vomiting. Last night I actually got to
sleep six hours straight without having to see to the baby two or three times …
I would like to seek help from a dietitian who agrees with the elimination diet
… Thank you so much for your book. It makes so much sense to me.
[070] Tantrum was like
nothing I've ever seen with swearing and screaming (September 2000)
I saw you on A Current
Affair recently and started reading your book and couldn't put it down until I
had finished it.
What a difference it has
made! We are in the process of eliminating all preservatives and additives from
our diet. It has been a hard struggle but we are getting there. We knew we had
a problem when my four-year-old was given chocolate and within five minutes he
would be jumping up and down on the spot while he was talking to you. Also, he
would be so wound up before bed time that he couldn't lie still - his arms,
legs and body would be jumping all over the place. The diet has certainly
helped.
I have been trying out all
of your recipes with great success … Once again thank you for writing "Fed
Up" . It has been truly inspirational and has certainly answered a lot of
questions for me. "Fed Up" is my bible and I never go anywhere
without it.
Even though I thought we
had pretty much eliminated most additives and preservatives from our diet I was
appalled to learn that we could do more. I've always made our meals from
scratch, baked my own cakes and bikkies, and for the last year have made my own
bread. Then to learn that the tomato-based meals such as spaghetti bolognaise,
lasagne, lamb ragout and even the soups I made could be the cause of our
11-year-old son's incredible temper made me feel completely inadequate. Until
recently, his ADHD has been fairly well controlled, but for the last year he has
been almost unbearable at school, although his behaviour at home has remained
fairly constant. In desperation, after searching the internet, I decided to try
him on Efalex, and his behaviour at school really improved. We noticed that he
reverted to this old behaviour when I ran out of the capsules and he hadn't had
them for a week, so quickly decided to keep up that regimen. Then your book was
recommended to me by a fellow parent who had been having great success with it
for her daughter. What a revelation. Both my husband and I have family
histories with asthma, skin rashes, allergies, rhinitis, sinusitus - you name
it. My son embraced the program and being the person he is read the book even
more thoroughly than I did and was a great help with the shopping and
preparation. Tell me, do they sometimes have some kind of withdrawal? [yes] We
started the diet on the holidays, so we had a good chance to get everything
under way with little distraction, and as always he was off his Ritalin. He
almost literally was bouncing off the walls, woke every day as grumpy as a bear
which was unusual for him, and was easily annoyed by everyone around him all
the time … I also found that my sinuses were really blocked and I had an almost
continual headache from day three to day 7. Just as my patience was stretched
to the limit, and I'd come to the conclusion that we may have to scrap this or
see what we were doing wrong with the diet, my son woke up the next morning his
usual cheerful self and was much calmer and less excitable than he had been the
previous week. My sinuses also cleared up. My daughter who is 13 has been
having a ball making all the lollies as she has a sweet tooth and they have
always been a restricted item in this house. Our biggest drawback came the day
of our youngest's birthday. I had all FAILSAFE foods except for the cake … even
though I allowed my son the smallest imaginable piece with very little icing on
it the effects were catastrophic. He raged and ranted and the tantrum was like
nothing I've ever seen with swearing and screaming - well you get the general
idea, and this was 5-6 hours after eating the cake!!! I never imagined anything
so bad. But the next day he was as sweet as he could be with no other ill
effects, other than a father who wanted little to do with him. Luckily all the
guests had well and truly gone! … Thanks again …
Reader, by email
[069] "more
personal attention and assistance than any physician" - from the
"told my wife
yesterday that you have given us more personal attention and assistance than
any physician here in our home state, and all without compensation. There is
either something wonderful about you, or something terrible about healthcare in
the States, or both."
- reader,
[068] "I am a 20
year old mother …" (September 2000)
I am a 20-year-old mother
with a very restless, hard to manage 18-month-old son. He has been hard to
manage from the start with colic, chronic wind, constipation, reflux and eczema.
He would have us up usually every 2 hours just screaming the house down for no
apparent reason and my doctor stressed NOT to put him on soy products as
"in his opinion, they were of no help", so my son remained on an AR
formula to help his reflux. As he gets older, he is very active, running every
where, bouncing off walls and furniture, falling over all the time ... more
trips to the doctor, nothing mentioned about diet.
It wasn't until my parents
saw the article on A Current Affair that I even thought about diet other then
lactose intolerance and they both encouraged us to try it. I was sceptical at
first and then one night he had me in tears and, being pregnant with our second
child, decided to give it a go anyway.
It has been 8 days now and
there has been a noted change in his attitude. He is slowing down enough to
smell the roses and his attention span has lengthened a little. although he is
still waking up at night, I am a lot more rested from not chasing him around
all day!
What brands of bread are
best for him? I have asked around at small bakeries and they either can't tell
me if there are any preservatives or admit that they do ... I am getting a
little frustrated at their ignorance. [Brumby's is FAILSAFE. Other than that,
can you buy Vogel's? Read the label carefully. In some places they do not add
282].
Thank you once again for
your help and for bothering to try to make a difference when no-one else really
cares!!!
Reader, email
[067]"There are
days when Ritalin is ineffective" (September 2000)
I attended your talk in
[066] "I was
wondering about coping with school next year" (September 2000)
Although my child had never
been diagnosed as ADD or ADHD, he was just a very active little boy who
did not sleep much or very well. He wasn't interest in reading, writing or
drawing and I was becoming very concerned about how he was going to cope with
going to school next year. After two weeks of eliminating all fruit (except
pears) and preservatives from his and our diets he is a changed person. He
writes his own name and started to write other letters and is very happy to sit
and draw for at least an hour! (he couldn't sit still for at least 5 mins
before the diet). His new favourite word is "preservatives".
[065] "A difficult
baby" - reflux, colic, crying, rash, sleeping problems (September 2000)
Right from the day she was
born, my third child was a difficult baby. The sisters at the hospital
commented on day one that she was acting like a day three baby - all unsettled
because of the milk coming in and hormonal changes. At 6 weeks she was
diagnosed as having reflux and was given suitable medicine, not enough, at 8
weeks she was prescribed a herbal medicine to have in between doses (peppermint
base), at 9 weeks she was diagnosed with colic as well and we treated her with
all three medications to no avail.
By 12 weeks somebody
suggested she will be fine once she starts on some solids (she is obviously
just one of those really hungry babies). She cried all the time, she would not
go to sleep, she would not stay asleep, and she was only happy if she was being
nursed, if you could call it happy. I feasted on my saviours, champagne,
burritos, curries (well, Indian babies survive!), and treated myself to a strip
of licorice just about every day. I knew she did not like me drinking
champagne, but I joked about being in denial about it, thinking I deserved it.
Our new baby had a fine
rash covering most of her body, we all thought that makes sense, her big sister
has eczema. Her irritability was I thought lactose intolerance maybe, I am
slightly lactose intolerant. She had 7 ear infections in 5 months and had
grommets put in at 8 months, but I had ear problems, sinus problems, and
grommets as a child as well. We went to a sleep clinic to try and get her to
learn how to go to sleep, we thought that maybe she did not read the book about
how third children are supposed to fit in to our routine and lives. FINALLY
after many trips to the doctor and an allergic reaction to an antibiotic, my
clever doctor suggested a salicylate- free diet for our baby (not me though
because the sensitivity was not really the problem just another thing to try).
Things improved, sleep was
achieved when she rolled over on to her stomach, and crying was reduced from 50
minutes of controlled crying to now 20 minutes of controlled crying, every
night, every sleep, 4 to 6 times a day. Hell hath no fury like a mother of a
child who does not sleep, if baby is woken up. She was still waking up at night
like a clock-watcher, and was usually unable to be settled without a breastfeed
and then not usually under an hour.
12 months old... still
having problems. We have now discovered she is allergic to milk, eggs, bananas,
peanuts, Keflex, BBQ spices, and is still on her salicylate free diet (well low
salicylate anyway, because it's not really a salicylate intolerance it just
makes us feel like we are doing something). She is still waking up at night,
but getting better to settle. Some nights she actually sleeps through.
After 12 months ( plus the
5mths I suffered with indigestion during pregnancy) of sleep deprivation, the
rot had finally set in and I have succumbed to many illnesses that I could not
fight off, so, I gave up breastfeeding.
Well you could knock me
down with a feather. The child sleeps. Goes to sleep. The rash disappears. Her
first plasticine poo ... 14 months old ... where do we go now? It seems that
her new food allergies are becoming more frequent and more aggressive since I
stopped breastfeeding.
This brings me to you. I
found your book!!! I sat down and started reading your book, not in order, and
found her symptoms all over the place. I also found my 8 year old, who scored
3s on eczema, growing pains, restlessness, difficulty falling asleep, night
wakings, anxious, vague, concentration, unmotivated, disorganised, easily distracted
(she scored a 5 here), moody, irritable, and 2's on fidgety, "jumpy"
behaviour. … What I have benefited most from so far is the relief that I am not
crazy, nor the only person in this situation. Thank you for taking the time to
write your book.
P.S. Can you tell me if
McVities Hobnobs biscuits are okay? The ingredients are: Rolled oats, wholemeal
flour, sugar, hydrogenated vegetable oil, vegetable oil, partially inverted
sugar syrup, raising agents(sodium bicarbonate, ammonium bicarbonate), salt.
[There are probably antioxidants (310-321) in the vegetable oil, so you would
have to limit the quantity].
- reader, email
[064] "My husband
and I nearly split up" (July 2000)
Thank you for your book
"Fed Up". My son is 9. He has been a handful basically all his life.
It got to the stage a few months ago where I thought I would lose it
altogether. We have two other children. The fighting between him and his
brother who is only 4 was incredible. It was non-stop. My husband and I nearly
split up over our son's behaviour, not knowing what to do for him. I read an
article in our local paper and bought your book. We are now in the third week
of the diet and already a big improvement. We knew from an early age that diet
was a big part of our son's problems but doctors said no way, he is borderline
ADD/ADHD. We just didn't get any answers. We have the booklets from the
- reader, NSW
[063] "what are we
going to do with the little #@$%^$# ?" (July 2000)
Our 8 year old son has been
on the elimination diet for almost 18 months as a result of my wife reading
your book and discussing "what the hell are we going to do with the little
#@$%^$#" with our doctor. The turnaround was to say the least amazing (I
expect more so from his teachers), although nothing surprising as far as you're
concerned, I'm sure. Keep up the good work.
- reader, email
[062] Drew's story -
sleeping, colic, ear infections, then behaviour problems at school (July 2000)
My son, Drew, was always a
challenge. He was a difficult baby. I remember a paediatrician smiling at me
one day and saying "oh he's advanced". I was quite pleased until I
realized this meant "hyperactive"!
He never slept, had colic
and frequent ear infections. He also had child hood allergies. At 6 months my
milk dried up (probably stress related) so I decided to put him on a bottle and
was advised to try
Anyway, trouble really
started half way through pre-school. He was constantly in trouble and his
teacher held concerns about his ability to cope with school. I decided at this
point to go for the head in the sand approach, you know, ignore it and it will
go away. Well, that didn't last long. I spent most of his kindergarten year
watching my beautiful happy loving boy turn into a resentful angry defensive
child. He ran away, hurt the other children, destroyed his work, threw things
at the teacher and so forth. Like your daughter (yes I've read your books) he
could also be one of the most beautiful charming little people, a real
contradiction. The school believed in sending the child home and lecture the
mother on her poor parenting whilst making no effort at all to try and help.
Every time I tried to enlist their help they hid behind POLICY!! I did many
parenting courses, had a hot line to the parent support line (once when I was
really upset as he had taken to urinating on his 8-month-old sister they said
"hmm sounds like a discipline problem" ) and also enlisted the help
of a paediatrician. It got to the stage that I wouldn't put the bin out for
fear that the school would call whilst I was out. In his first two years at
school I lost count of how many times I had to front up to collect him. A
friend of mine (I wouldn't have survived this time with out her ) kept telling
me how much Drew reminded her of her son whom at that time had been diagnosed
with ADHD. I kept saying "Yes, but he can concentrate when he wants
to" and "But he's not always like this".
Year 1 started with
promise. He seemed to settle down a bit and for the whole term I didn't get any
calls to collect him, that is, until about 2 weeks into term 2 it all started
again but this time with a vengeance!! It occurred to me that his worst terms
were in autumn and spring. I had thought "Allergy" before but been
discouraged by the paediatrician (I didn't understand about allergy and food
sensitivity in fact I had never heard of food sensitivity). This time I
insisted on allergy testing, Drew lit up like a Christmas tree - all grasses,
dust mites, cats, peanuts, in fact just about everything except cockroaches he
reacted to! My paediatrician was surprised at the result hence my introduction
to the big wide world of food sensitivities. With the aid of a dietician and my
paediatrician I embarked on the elimination diet. To sum it up, that term Drew
was invited to the principal's lunch - the highest honour - and yes I sent him
with his own food. The trials showed that most of his problems were to do with
salicylates (he used to eat a lot of salicylate rich foods) also some food
colourings and preservatives his tolerance was reduced during spring and autumn
due to the added problem of his environmental sensitivities.
Unfortunately for Drew diet
alone wasn't enough. I found whilst I could guarantee bad behaviour if he ate
the wrong things I couldn't guarantee good behaviour if he didn't. A week into
term 4 and still on a controlled diet he got into trouble. I shan't air all my
grievances about that school but after one I believe unfair suspension and yet
more calls to collect him I withdrew him from the school. When I told the
school that he would not be returning, the deputy head said, "Well, I
think we will all feel a lot safer". However hurtful her comments (made I
might add in front of my son) it did serve to make what was a difficult
decision so much easier. I kept Drew out of school until the following year
when he started at a new school.
I fell in love at first
interview with his new wonderful head mistress. I had made them aware of his
problems behavioural and academic (he was well behind). But I was not prepared
for the caring and support that this school offered. Within the first week the
counsellor - another gem - had run a WISC test discovering that whilst Drew has
no learning difficulties per se he had difficulty with oral instructions
(common I now realize among ADHD children).
She also lent me a book
soon to become my saviour: "Different Kids". It was through reading
this that finally the pieces started to fall into place. I read up on ADHD. It
was really quite spooky the number of times I thought, hey, that's just what
Drew does. I also attended yet another parenting course, this time however it
was "Parenting your ADHD child". It was wonderful to talk to other
mothers. The more I learnt the more I realised that Drew did have ADHD.
The new school was not a
solution to all Drew's problems by any means. He still had his trouble. The
first (and only) time he ran away, he came all the way home. I was speaking to
the principal when he turned up she said "well bring him back"... I
was stunned but not nearly as gobsmacked as I was when I brought him back and
she gave him a pep talk to let him know that she had faith in him and she was
going to help him. Within minutes the defiant look was gone and she had him
eating out of her hand. I went home with my mouth still hanging open, I was so
used to schools telling me to take him away it was bizarre to have one actually
tell me to bring him back!
It has taken a long time
and a lot of work including sending him to a behavioural center (yes he had
food sensitivities and ADHD but he also had years of being the bad kid always
in trouble. He used to cry to me that "I try to be a good boy but I don't
know how. I'm just not a good boy".) For the first time in years I am
starting to see my beautiful happy loving son again.
I recently joined the ADHD
support group and I was delighted when I found out that you were going to be
speaking. You are an amazing woman who has given so much to so many people. I
am sure I am not the first and I know I won't be the last to say THANK YOU!!
You helped me to see in language that I could understand (without a Ph.D. that
is) what was happening to my son and how to help him. I would like to speak to
others about food sensitivities if I can prevent even one child needlessly
suffering as my son did. Once again, thank you for all that you do.
- Deborah Gardiner,
[061] "reported to
child protection agency" (July 2000)
I am the mother of a
four-year-old boy who we always suspected of being a little too lively. Lately his
behaviour has worsened with very loud and frequent tantrum type behaviours, and
despite all the tactics employed such as ignoring these outbursts we were
having little success. Last week our local G.P who suggested that we should try
a diet ... our son's behaviour has noticeably improved even with the few
changes we have been able to implement so far and we are thus eager to continue
on this successful road. Our son has not been diagnosed with Attention Deficit
Disorder as most of the time he is just wonderful with no problems with
attention or concentration etc. Yet these outbursts are very acute and sudden
in onset and we are obviously concerned to go out too often as when this occurs
as other people disapprove of our management as parents. On one occasion when
our son threatened to run out onto a busy road in front of ongoing traffic I
yelled out to him to get away from the road as I was not close enough to
physically remove him. His tantrum continued and the next day we discovered
some person had reported us to the child protection agency as being unfit. As
you can imagine this has been the most upsetting part of trying to control his
behaviour ... as often people ignore our explanations of his outbursts and
refuse to believe a child can act this way. I believe we are excellent parents.
My partner is a teacher and I am a nurse yet neither of us are feeling very
successful in these roles at present in relation to our own child.
Educationally he is doing wonderfully ... it's just this aspect of his behaviour
we are concerned about.
- reader, email
[060] "I have not
enjoyed one bit of those months ..." (July 2000)
I bought your book,
"Fed Up", yesterday. I read half last night, and am very anxious to
start the elimination diet. My daughter is 9mths old. I have not enjoyed one
bit of those months. Every night is miserable, and days are small catnaps. I was
told she had reflux, but I believe that it is the result of something else.
Everything I have read in your book has made sense. I intend to start the
eating program asap ... I know there is a beautiful child inside ...
- reader, email
[059] "Everyone
doing better" (July 2000)
"Everyone in our
family is doing much better on the diet. We have been able to get our son off
Ritalin, and my little one potty trained at last. She is coming along in leaps
and bounds. My husband actually can stay awake and has a personality again. And
my blood pressure is the lowest it has been in nearly seven years. Thankyou,
thankyou, thankyou!!!
PS. I think we should send
a copy of Fed Up to Oprah! Imagine if she got behind FAILSAFE????
- reader,
[058] 282: "An
extreme difference in behaviour" (July 2000)
I am currently reading your
amazing book, Fed Up. I must commend you on a job extremely well done. I
honestly never realized that there could be such an emphasis on the food we eat
contributing to a range variety of illnesses and behavioural problems. As a
mother of two - a girl 6yo and a boy 3yo - I have noticed an extreme difference
in the behaviour of my son just by changing the bread which we eat to not
include preservative 282. I am sure by the end of your book and after
implementing the Elimination Diet there will be many changes - all for the
better.
Thanks again for making me
more aware and for your great recipes - they are a treat for the whole family.
- reader, email
[057] "I'm truly
disgusted by the lack of clean food" (July 2000)
I've been idling with the
diet for a few weeks, just replacing a few things here and there, avoiding the
obvious colours preservatives, bread etc .... until the big birthday party on
Saturday. My goodness what a hangover the kids have - really notice the
difference in my four year old's concentration span when she practices the
violin - it is as though she can't hear me! She does not have ADHD, in fact
she's been accepted into a program for the gifted. I'm truly disgusted - by the
lack of clean food. I reckon the GST is a good thing.
- reader, email
[056] "Never going
back" (July 2000)
I read your book - it's
fabulous!! Lots of the symptoms you mentioned in the book sounded all too close
to my 5 year old daughter. We have been worried about my daughter's behaviour
for some time and her "angel one minute devil the next" behaviour
leads us to get professional help for her late last year. Didn't really help
much. Can't say the same about your book! Great ! Since a change in her diet as
per the suggestions in your book she is absolutely a new child! Happy all the
time! Her change in behaviour was almost immediate and we are never going back!
Even at 5 years old she can remember how she used to get and how she couldn't
stop herself being like that and she hated it. Can't thank you enough and I
have been spreading the word around here so I hope you have been selling lots
of your books!
-reader,
[055] "If you think
it's difficult in
I am an American living in
How I wish I had been able
to have this information when my children were growing up, specially my son,
who was told by teachers constantly that he was lazy and what a shame that was
because he was so smart. He was finally tested and diagnosed to have an ADD
when he was 18 years old. This test was done only at our insistence and expense
because school officials insisted there was nothing wrong with him. He was
offered Ritalin, which he refused to take. Needless to say he failed when he
decided to go to College. He is now married and his oldest son (now three years
old) is already showing some of the behavior my son showed at that age. I could
give many examples about family members with allergy, either environmental or
food related. In other words, I am convinced that many of us would benefit from
this diet. If you think it's difficult to get someone to listen about it in
- reader, email