STORIES & OPINIONS 6
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
[419] One-liners (May 2006)
Antioxidant 320 [BHA in oils, margarines and most commercial products
containing oils] gives me a terribly flushed red face as well as extreme
fatigue and irritability - by email.
Your DVD is great, it convinced my husband that doing the diet properly
is the only way to go … before that he thought we could do just bits of it – by email.
After reading your book I realize that salicylates might be the reason
my teenage daughter has had terrible bowel problems for the last few years
because she had bad eczema as a kid, got a mighty dose of tinea when she
overdosed on grapes last year, and our diet for the past few years has been
VERY high in all the very high salicylate foods such as dried fruit (muesli),
dates, tomatoes, eggplant, rocket, onions, almonds, avocados, grapes, broccoli - by email.
About five years ago when I was working as a childrens' worker in
Victoria I contacted you - by phone in those days - on quite a few occasions
prior to and while I was working with young children with behavioural problems.
In every case the "Fed Up" regime worked and I was convinced of its
success, since then I have recommended to lots of parents that they look very
seriously at this program for their child –
by email
We have our son on a lot of the readers’ recipes and have noticed a huge
improvement in his demeanor – by email.
I love your jam packed website and count myself exceptionally lucky that
I stumbled upon it accidentally the other day - I am so impressed with how
everything is so well researched and is truly scientific - by email.
The boys were watching some of the DVD with me, with Ashley singing my
food’s on the telly, my food’s on the telly, it’s the best in the world, the
best in the world when you were showing the failsafe foods. It’s fantastic, you
should be very proud. Well done to you and everyone else involved. – Jenny, Melbourne VIC.
I'll be lending my DVD to lots of people, so I think its a great way of
spreading information! – Susie,
I have just watched the new DVD and I have to say - it was a tremendous
job that was well done. The personal comments from parents who have been there
are worth listening to. The DVD has enormous integrity as it involves both
scientific research and experience. Sue's explanations are very clear and
straight to the heart of the matter. I just loved her "nasty food"
scenes. This DVD is well worth going to all schools - Cheryl, teacher
The benefits we have derived from your hard work are worth far more than
the cost of a video!!!! – Mother,
[418] My son is a state ward
(May 2006)
My son 14 is a state ward and has been for 18 months. His behaviour at
home was violent, aggressive and surly to such an extent that my safety was
threatened. He had damaged property, harmed pets, broken my bones ... He was 12
when he went into care and this behaviour had gone on since the age of 7. He
tried to kill himself a number of times, initially playing chicken with cars,
starving himself, much self harm behaviour and nearly succeeded last year when
he cut an artery in his leg.
I tried to get help for years only to be told that I was a bad mother. I
was accused of abusing my son so many times it wasn't funny, even dragged
before courts for it. They didn't get it. I was the one with the bruises and
broken bones not the kid. He was never
diagnosed with any disorder. All behaviour was put down to an incident when he
was 6 and a teen tried to molest him. I had seen him lose touch with reality
and even respond to voices - at 8 years old. School suspensions started in
grade 2. His school had a sign that other children would file out of the
classroom on a pre-determined signal ... I could go on and on.
He became a state ward after a particularly bad incident where I ended
up with concussion but to get him off me I had to bite him ... therefore
proving what a violent mother I am…READ
MORE.
[417] Colour 102 tartrazine
and anaphylactic shock (May 2006)
My wife is acutely allergic to the orange colour tartrazine (102). The
first incident was with "fresh" orange juice. There were no labelling
requirements at this time, and the orange juice itself was thought to be the
cause.
The second incident was when she was prescribed antihistamines, coloured
orange, for a bout of hay fever. She went into anaphylactic shock. Later the
doctors at the hospital remarked how interesting it was that the tablet that
was keeping her alive was also trying to kill her. It was at this point that
102 was identified as the culprit.
Since then we have attempted to avoid 102 whenever possible but we have
been caught several times by undisclosed use of the product. We find local food
providers are generally co-operative when they understand the consequences.
However, corporations do not care …recently I noted that
As I understand it the pharmaceutical companies are not required to
label their products …a recipe for disaster. We have to open the coloured
capsules so that the foul tasting contents can be taken with water - reader, Qld
[416] Eczema is so much
better (May 2006)
My eldest son suffers terribly from eczema and while we have dabbled in
diets in the past they were too difficult and the people who gave them to us
seemed to be peddling their own vitamins and supplements! My son’s allergist
recently suggested a diet along with the RPA and your books. Boy oh boy even
after three days we could see the difference.
He has now been on the diet for four weeks and as his eczema is so much
better as well as his general skin condition. – reader, NSW
[415] The only good thing to
come out of this … we are now absolutely convinced it’s his diet (May 2006)
Since we are going on the diet next week, we let our son have some
things that we haven't allowed for a long time including bacon, tomatoes, ham
and a doughnut. This morning I had a raging child, who was refusing to go into
his classroom and throwing punches at me. Since we have cut a lot of nasties
out of his diet he has not been violent at all until this morning! The only good thing to come of this is now we
are absolutely convinced it's his diet that's causing the grief. – reader, NT
[414] Gastroscopy results and
the failsafe approach (May 2006)
Some years ago now, I remember reading
a message from a failsafer who’d had a gastroscopy before he went
failsafe, which showed scarring and evidence of reflux, and he was put on
strong antacids and told he might eventually need an operation (presumably to
repair the gastric sphincter).
Exactly the same happened to me. I get the neurological symptoms
(depression, paranoia, neurosis, ADD, and visual discomfort dyslexia - which
improves but hasn't been resolved), but I also had years of gastric symptoms
and had had two gastroscopies before I discovered failsafe eating. The first one
showed no ulcer but that the lining was inflamed. After the second I had
exactly the same diagnosis as in the story above. I remember the
gastroenterologist telling me that although the symptoms weren't typical, the
problem was definitely reflux, and suggesting the operation.
After I had been on the diet for some years, I had another gastroscopy
to investigate the possibility of coeliac sprue. This wasn't found (thank
heavens) but it did demonstrate that the scarring and inflamMation that had
previously been there was now gone. The diet had resolved about 10 years of
painful gastric symptoms for me.
I'm just wondering whether there might be other adults or children who
have had the same experience. As people are so keen on physical evidence, maybe
someone could pool the results and put out a paper? - reader, NSW We would love to
hear from any others with similar stories: please write to confoodnet@ozemail.com.au
[413] Relentless dry cough
- I was unaware of the food-asthma
connection (May 2006)
Ever since my son - now aged 10 - was a baby he would get a persistent
dry cough that would continue relentlessly throughout the day and all through
the night of only the winter months every year - at least 6 months every year
without fail. The doctors would all say that they couldn't hear wheezing, so
stopped short of diagnosing asthma no matter how sick he was. Finally a new
local doctor a few years ago suggested asthma and asked me to try a blue puffer
with ventolin. It fixed him immediately after 5 months of relentless coughing!
He is an extremely active, sporty child, who plays and trains hard every
season, but never got the asthma in the summer months.
Ventolin continued to control it, although he was worse after soccer
training and games - in recent years accompanied by acute chest pains during
games - and often had to come off. Last year, he participated in a school cross
country held in May and got into the next level (extremely hilly) in June.
After the race he could not stop coughing, had difficulty breathing and was
very ill, missing school for some time after, which was when we started to make
the exercise connection. We then started to observe and realised the trigger
was exercise. Once winter was over he was well again, right up until March this
year.
The beginning of March coincided with my reading your books - for other
problems, I had forgotten about the asthma as it was controlled with ventolin
and seasonal - and the gradual reduction in non failsafe foods in our house in
the lead up to going failsafe. During this time he participated in the soccer
training and school cross country practices and came first twice - no coughing,
no problems. About 90 per cent failsafe, he went to a two day school camp this
year – we don’t know what he ate. The next day (Saturday) at soccer he had
severe chest pains throughout the game…READ
MORE - reader, NSW
[412] Chocolate paranoia (May
2006)
Before going on the diet, I used to get panic attacks at night, where I
would be absolutely convinced that there was a gunman just outside my window.
When I finally did go on the diet, it was for the sake of my children, not
myself, so I thought it was okay at week three to eat an enormous amount of
chocolate - I believe it was one Hershey bar, and a massive Cadbury dairy milk
block. The next day, I was so paranoid that I convinced myself that my husband
was having an affair, and went to the extent of driving to his work to watch
him through the window, then following him home on his bike. When he arrived
home, I dashed outside and hid in the darkened garden, crying. After about four
hours the paranoia episode just finished like that, and I had to explain myself
to a perplexed husband - reader, NSW
[411] Within two weeks of
altering his diet he has become happy and affectionate (May 2006)
Thanks so much! I'm buying DVDs
for all my family members because Sue's book "Fed Up" has
turned my family completely around. We have in the past month made every effort
to remove additives and preservatives from our diet and the results have been
astounding. My 13 year old son has been angry and depressed for most of his
life, to the point that we have had him at a psychologist but within two weeks
of altering his diet he has become happy and affectionate, constantly telling
me he loves me and that he no longer has a foggy head! We are yet to do the
elimination diet (I'm waiting for my husband to finish the book) but have
already noted that salicylates do seem to be a problem for some of us. The
difference has been so enormous that at least three of my friends have gone out
and bought Fed Up having seen our improvements. I think I have also
singlehandedly cut the sales of Tim Tams in our area quite dramatically since
we found out via Sue that the beautiful chocolate colour is not from chocolate!
In addition, I've noticed a couple of unexpected benefits: firstly, our taste
buds seem to have improved (for example, I have never been able to stomach the
richness of lamb before but suddenly can) and secondly, by going back to basics
with the cooking we seem to be developing a much closer bond as a family... I'm
not sure I can explain it, but it's something to do with putting love and care
into everything we cook. A sort of return to old values, I suppose. – reader, Sydney.
[410] Thank you so much for
giving us our darling little man to us (May 2006)
I was lucky enough to come and see you talk recently. Our son is nearly
8 years old and I reckon for 7 of those years he has been very hard to handle,
episodes involving throwing things at me, chasing me, yelling, getting so upset
he would go blue and lose his breath. We have taken him off a lot of foods you
recommend not to give your children, and his behaviour improved, episodes
consisted of whingeing or crying for 10 minutes instead of hours. Since seeing
your talk, we have cut out a lot more foods, and I have stopped using my
beloved Red Door perfume, within a week we have seen an amazingly different
child, he now sits with us, not hyperactive, yes mum, no mum. I said to my
husband I am overwhelmed as for the past 7 years I have known a naughtier
child. We both want to thank you so much for giving us our darling little man
to us. We have the opportunity to give him a better way of feeling and acting,
it is all to you, although I miss my perfume, I have now given it to my mum and
my husband and I are enjoying some special days with our child. We now only
feed him fresh foods - no processed foods, home made cooking for school
lunches. Thank you so very much - parent,
[409] One-liners (March 2006)
I have a son who was full on and no amount of discipline would work. We
have been failsafe for two months and our lives have changed so much - this is
now a happy house.
Within two months of starting the failsafe diet
My son’s cousin has taken Ritalin since aged about 10, and sadly now
he's 18 and in jail. He also has a heart problem …
My 5 yo son’s asthma is triggered by MSG as well as artificial colours,
preservatives and flavours. If he is
given a handful of lollies containing artificial colours he is usually wheezing
by bedtime. Every evening I test his peak flow.
When he is well he consistently presents a reading of 110. Last week when I knew he had been given some
lollies (grrr) I tested his peak flow only to find it was around 60.
I have a failsafe daughter, and currently she can only buy one item from
the school canteen: plain chips.
I have just started my 22 month old son on a failsafe diet and in 3 days
he has transformed and I am converted!
I recently watched a pre-diet video of my boys taken 3 years ago and in
it my oldest son was covered in eczema and scratching. Now, he only gets eczema if he comes into
contact with an allergen - eg certain types of grass - or eats something he
shouldn't.
I saw my daughter when she was 14 months old transformed in a few days
of failsafe, gluten and dairy free diet from so clingy, always crying and
screaming - so tense she was felt stiff - to a smiling happy little girl who
played normally.
[408] Hyperactivity, bad mood
swings, violent behaviour (March 2006)
My 9 year old nephew 'suffered' from super hyperactivity and very bad
mood swings for most of his life which was very stressful for all his 3.5
school years. His violent behaviour, which only ever occurred at school,
included pushing over desks, tearing up paper, pulling phone connections out of
walls, pulling plants out of the garden and hurting a teacher when being
restrained. They would ring his Dad to come and take him home. He visited many
medical specialists, was finally diagnosed ADHD and prescribed adult doses of
drugs with no improvement.
Over the last six months he has been failsafe while being homeschooled
and there was an incredible difference within two weeks. In four months he
covered nearly 12 months school work and is improving rapidly. He has always
been quick to lose his temper at home with his brother and sister but since he
started on the diet we have not seen him angry.
He actually had his head slammed in a car door recently by his sister's
friend. It must have really hurt and his
eyes watered but his response was "It wasn't your fault, Poppy". We
were all amazed. He is now a healthy, happy little boy with a great sense of
humour. It is frustrating to say the least that so much of the trauma this
little boy and his family went through was to do with food additives. by email, Qld
[407] My children were on an
extremely healthy diet (March 2006)
After failsafeing my children we have seen a great improvement in their
behaviour. My eldest daughter (nearly 5yrs) was diagnosed with ODD. She is so
much happier and easier to live with since being on the diet. My youngest
daughter had dry eczema on her arms that has all but disappeared. Both of my
children were on what would have been considered an extremely healthy diet (fit
for life) with very little junk food and loads of fruit and vegetables. They
have both improved considerably over the four or five months on the diet.
Thanks for the work you have done in making us aware of what really is in our
food. We have tried many things to help our eldest daughter with little success
and were at our wits end. Food has turned out to be a big key. Now some of the
other methods we had previously tried (eg. reward charts) actually work. If we
have a slip on the diet it's like a wall goes up in her mind and she can't
listen anymore. – Belinda, by email
[406] Eczema from dustmite
allergy (March 2006)
My 5 year old son is on a very restricted diet due to multiple food
allergies and intolerances. Last year he was having eczema attacks lasting
several hours, and hives breaking out without us knowing the reason, and we
were almost too scared to leave the house. He was awake for 2-4 hrs every
night, screaming "please help me, Mummy", and his legs were sometimes
so scabbed up that he could not straighten them enough to walk. Eventually, we
found the problem. We knew he was sensitive to dustmites from an allergy test
by the doctor, but I had "relaxed" a little with the vigilance I had
previously had. And then I realised that
the whole time, he had a big tear in the dustmite cover on his mattress. I went
back to using the dust mite wash from the supermarket, and washing his sheets 4
times in clear water after that, and hanging them on the line all day, every 6
wks. And washing his sheets in hot water
every 3 days. And clearing his bedroom
of everything except a bed, and wet-dusting once a week.
The difference was amazing. The first night, he actually slept
through. And now, a year and a bit
later, his legs, which were just big scabs from bum to ankle, are beautiful
creamy soft smooth skin. And a much
happier boy. The emotional scars are still there, and taking time to heal. We got a book about eczema by a dermatologist
that discusses the emotional toll on the family, and it is so true. We also saw
a dermatologist who gave us some great tips on how to care for my son's skin,
which we still do now. – Melissa, Qld
[405] Two years ago, I
refused to give up ‘healthy’ foods (March 2006)
About two years ago, I attended one of your seminars in
Shaun has now been on the elimination diet for a week. On the first day
of the diet, Shaun did a homework sheet for me in 5 minutes that normally would
take him 15 to complete only half with lots of moaning and groaning. His
writing seemed to be better. His teacher has noticed that he has more self
control, and is doing his work. Shaun says he feels happier at school. Is it
possible to see behaviour improve this quickly? I am really hoping that this
will work because our lives have been very stressed. – by email, NZ [this family was
already additive-free, which generally leads to quicker results]
[404] 210: Cough and asthma
from benzoates in cough medication (March 2006)
Since the age of two I have seen a pattern develop in my daughter Jaslyn
whereby she gets a cough every time she gets a cold. If I treat her with cough
medicine the cough persists and becomes chronic, sometimes lasting weeks and
causing great distress. In the worst episode two years ago she developed a
serous asthma type wheeze with obvious distress and difficulty breathing after
drinking soft drink – which she rarely has – and taking cough medicine.
Since them we have discovered that her symptoms and cough are greatly
lessened if we do nothing when she has a cold and let it take its course. What
we have found for the past two winters is that now if she gets a cold she will
get a cough but it will last only for one or two nights if we do not give her
any cough medicine. We have a strong family history of allergies and asthma and
although I was aware of avoiding sulfites and preservatives in her food I was
not aware of the use of benzoates in medicines. I realise now that the benzoate
preservatives in cold medicines exacerbate my daughter’s symptoms and turn her
persistent cough into difficulty in breathing and asthma like symptoms. – Julie Eady
[403] 210: Benzoates are his
worst enemy (March 2006)
My 4.5yr old son has been our biggest challenge. All his problems are
proving to be food related – it’s amazing. His issues are aggression, ODD, poor
impulse control, argumentative, continual congestion and ear infections (2 lots
of grommets), continual rashes, blotches, sore tummies, burning anus, bloating,
bedwetting etc, all of which are being controlled now by diet. We had been
giving him decongestants, antihistamines, nasal sprays and antibiotics since
the day I stopped breastfeeding him at 6 months ... He was a wild little boy
but we've now found out that benzoates are his worst enemy. His nose his dry
now and needs no medication. – by email,
NSW
[402] Changing diet has done
more than giving away the cigarettes for breathing problem (March 2006)
I exchanged a few emails with you early last year in regards to a breathing
problem I've had since my early teens (I'm 41 now) and thanks to your
information on how to watch out for certain foods my life is MUCH improved. I
have been weight training since my late teens and have picked up quite a bit of
knowledge on nutrition along the way but looking deeper into foods containing
preservatives, sulphites etc has opened my eyes to a whole different side of
eating. As an ex-smoker I always put my problem down to that but limiting my
intake of mince meat, prawns, pizza, processed meats etc. to a very small
percentage of my diet has done more for me than giving away the cigarettes. – Richie, Vic
[401] 635: My two year hell
from 635 (March 2006)
I would like to share my personal story of hell from eating flavor
enhancer 635. I have been suffering from a maddening itch and rash for over two
years now, and I am quite sure that I would still be suffering from it had I
not found your website. I am a 33-year old American female, and I moved to
Everyone told me it was stress, but I knew that it wasn’t. I have read
other people’s stories on your site, and I am so envious of people who figured
out what it was right away from one chicken or dried soup. But for me, I had no
idea that a food additive was causing my misery. I am a vegetarian and eat
pretty healthy. From what I can gather, I got this ‘ribo rash’ from our Friday
night pizzas in Sydney, as well as the occasional Dorito and sakata cracker. I
also have eaten the veggie burger from Hungry Jacks occasionally, and I think
all of these things combined with the physical stress of the cycling cause me
to have the initial outbreak of ribo rash. The problem for me though was that I
could not see any pattern in what was causing it. Although deep down I really
felt like it was something I was ingesting. For a while, I actually started to
think that I was allergic to the water in
This rash made me completely weak and debilitated, to the point where I
turned down job offers and could barely even function. For a while I really did
think I was going to die. My relationship suffered so much too because I felt
so physically unattractive, and to be honest even during sex all I could think
about was the rash or the itch or both. Looking back, I don’t know how I made
it through. I decided to leave
When I came back to
I went to more doctors. I was tested for everything, including
Eventually I decided to adopt a gluten-free, wheat-free diet in a
desperate attempt to stop the rash and I took a job at one of the island resorts
on the
[400] Amine-related migraines
since the age of 3 (March 2006)
My 7 year old daughter Caitlin (not her real name) has had migraines
since she was about 3 years old. We had no idea what they were for several
years. She usually gets a fever with her migraines and because of the fever the
doctor would always put it down to a virus, prescribing painkillers. I would
often give her panadol for 4 days straight just to keep the headaches at bay.
She goes limp and listless, her eyes always droop, she lies there and sleeps
for hours until the panadol wears off and then then the pain and fever return.
Most times she will scream and cry, grabbing her forehead and pleading with me
to take the pain away, “Mummmy Mummy my heads hurts, please stop it.” She has
always complained of feeling sick (nausea) when she gets them too, and ‘sore
legs’. As well, she has had problems with nasal congestion and had been using
Rhinocourt nasal spray daily. She has always been a nail biter & a teeth
grinder at night.
One year after she started getting the migraines,we were referred to a
pediatrician who could find no medical reason for them either. He thought it
may have been an attention grabber or perhaps the start of a cold. The
migraines continued on and off with no regular pattern that I could work out,
once a week, then maybe another in 6 weeks times, then 2 months. It varied
greatly.
Two years later … the migraines became more frequent and she started
throwing up with them. She would go to sleep with a migraine and wake at
We have been eating failsafe since about March this year and have never
looked back. On day 2 of the amine challenge, Caitlin got a migraine, droopy
eyes, became listless, and a fever. School rang and asked me to collect her
again. She stayed unwell for several days with the headache.
During the challenge, she also got a blocked nose, sore tummy, sore
nose, nightmares and was badly constipated. Since the end of the amine
challenge (3 months ago) we haven’t had one migraine! No more snotty nose or blocked nose, nasal
sprays, nightmares, sore tummies,nail biting, teeth grinding, or sore legs -
her nails are growing for the 1st time in her life. So, no more amines for
Caitlin! – by email, NSW
[399] Reflux medication
causes ADHD symptoms and the Parkinsons shake (March 2006)
Having four children who have all been milk and soy intolerant from
birth, intolerant to artificial additives and sensitive to levels of
salicylates and amines I've seen possibly every symptom food intolerance can
produce raise its ugly head at some time or another. Unfortunately due to
either being uneducated or narrow-minded, many mainstream medical practitioners
including specialists just wouldn't go the food intolerance path so it took me
several years to really get to the bottom of what was happening with my
children.
The first symptoms that we came up against were reflux, eczema and a lot
of skin rashes. My third child, Jessica, was extremely miserable and seemed to
be in a lot of pain. She'd started refluxing from one week and was started on
prescription medications. Luckily the paediatrician was able to identify a rash
around her bottom as being associated with lactose intolerance so we went the
road of trying various formulas until we got to nutramigen which settled her
demeanour but did nothing to alleviate the reflux side of things, so we had
unwittingly started down the right path. She also had a constant post nasal
drip from very early on so we were shovelling her full of various antihistamine
type medicines trying to alleviate that and she had eczema. My fourth child Zac
knew that breast milk just wasn't for him so at two weeks he decided to starve
himself in preference, refusing the breast. He also was covered in eczema and
had silent reflux. Luckily for him he was put straight on to neocate, for
during the couple of years leading up to his birth, our family paediatrician
who by this point had all four of my children in his care had seen the flurry
of symptoms food intolerance can produce.
As my eldest child Levi was still on syrup medication for reflux until
just before he started school, his paediatrician felt it would be a good idea
to see how he went, off medication. I was able to get him through with the
occasional dose of over the counter antacid for a couple of months until he
started school when his reflux exacerbated, so the prescription medication was
reintroduced. I took him for his paediatric review a few days later and was
told to start him on a prescription syrup antacid as well as he'd been
complaining of heartburn symptoms. Within 3 days something was going wrong. His
teacher asked me what had happened to him, he was bouncing off the walls and
displaying ADHD symptoms, being loud and disruptive. I rang his paediatrician
and told her that I was taking him off the prescription antacid and told her
what was happening. But things were going down hill fast, his ADHD symptoms
were becoming worse, his coordination had plummeted and he'd lost all sense of
balance (which had never been a problem in the past), he'd fall over for no
apparent reason, there were times that he would behave like he was drunk or
high, giggling and slouching, and his eyes would zip from side to side really
quickly (I was told the medical term, I think it was nystagmus…)
To top it off, Jessica, had started doing the parkinsons shake (she was
still refluxing terribly and was also on both Zantac and Prepulsid syrup
medications). Levi's teacher asked me to have him assessed by an Occupational
Therapist who diagnosed him as having dyspraxia, a developmental condition that
makes them have to have constant repetition as they have to relearn everything
over and over because they can't retain it. I knew that it wasn't a
developmental problem as he had always been in advance of his age appropriate
milestones and I'd spent lots of time with him, he could climb trees, jump,
skip, ride a bike without training wheels from 3 years old, and had great hand
eye coordination prior to this happening. All of that coupled with the ADHD
stuff just wasn't right. So I made an appointment for the paediatrician (his regular
paediatrician wasn't available so I asked for the one that was now looking
after my other 2 children). He was dumbfounded. He'd remembered seeing Levi
from time to time when I'd had to go for appointments with the others and he
didn't have a clue what was going on. So he ordered several blood tests, a CAT
scan and an EEG. Everything came back clear. I remember saying to him at that
stage that it had all started when the syrup antacid was introduced but I
couldn't understand why it was still happening. I of course got a Tsk Tsk for
pointing my finger at the medication. So I battled onwards for a couple of
months, racking my brain, I rang the reflux support group and the lady I talked
to said that her son who was on these medications was also ADHD. I was at my
wits end, Levi's symptoms were getting worse, I resorted to ringing the drug
company who manufactured the antacid and talked to one of the medics who worked
in the lab. She told me that she had heard of this sort of thing happening
before and that it was probably due to the alcohol, or the preservatives and
flavourings used in the medicine as they are really concentrated in ALL syrup
medications. BINGO. Now I was facing a dilemma. How could I treat my children’s
reflux without the medications, I could see what it was doing to my kids - all
3 were on the same medications. I found a naturopath who made a tonic catering
for my children’s reflux symptoms. In a matter of weeks I was able to control
the older 2 with the herbal treatment alone. Within 7 weeks Levi's ADHD had
settled down, his balance and coordination had returned and when we saw the
neurologist at this point he agreed that Levi's problems were due to the
preservatives and flavourings in the medications and felt that he was a normal
5 year old. Funnily enough Jessica was cured of the parkinsons shake and Levi
stopped falling over.
I at that stage really started to read labels. With careful monitoring I
was able to avoid foods that contained artificial colourings, flavourings and
preservatives so the kids reflux and behaviour was settling down. At this time
you could buy rice milk and oat milk as an alternative to cow’s milk and soy so
the reflux for the 3 older ones was controlled purely by diet alone. I was able
to see symptoms occurring when they'd eat a particular food or have a drink of
juice. Jess was still in a flurry with the post nasal drip which would cause a
persistent cough where she could barely catch a breath in between. At our next
appointment with the paediatrician (I now had only Jess and Zac going), I told
him about what foods would cause what symptom and he suggested going into the
RPA clinic. So off we trotted, it was a big day that day, we found out Levi was
anaphylaxis to peanut (I'd known he was mildly allergic and avoided it
entirely) and I was educated about salicylates and amines. We did the
elimination diet and with the reintroduction of certain foods it caused chaos.
We lived a couple of years of pretty bland, I've found that they certainly
improve with age, but I still have to be pretty strict with what Jess and Zac
eat.
When Zac was two he was taken off
the neocate. Our paediatrician suggested a follow on formula that was cow’s
milk based but the protein was broken down into small chains. Within days the
poor child was on the tantrum rollercoaster, throwing tantrums which generally
lasted around half an hour at a time, where he'd hurt himself, belt into
things, bash anyone who was around, and he'd have 6 to 8 of these a day. I was
genuinely concerned that he was going to hurt himself or someone else. I rang
the paediatrician (by now I was well and truly on a first name basis) and told
him that I wasn't giving him any more formula and that he'd have to get by on
rice milk. Now you can get calcium
enriched and vitamin enriched rice milk so that's somewhere else to go if you
need to.
I've also seen dairy cause speech
problems (this happened to Zac when he was on the follow on formula), tantrums,
dyslexia (they can't get their tongue around words, mirror write letters and misspell
words), very pale skin complexion, behavioural problems, ADHD symptoms, along
with the gutty symptoms, reflux, eczema, and postnasal drip and that's just in
my children. I understand that dairy and wheat are now being looked at as being
causes for mild autism.
If you're at your wits end, if
your child displays any of these symptoms or has a learning difficulty
especially if there's something happening with each of your kids, even if their
symptoms are different, food intolerance is worth looking into. It runs in
families. Dietary modification may be the answer you’re looking for. My
children are now medication free. If your GP doesn't want to go there, find a
doctor that will. You need to be strong and assertive because you're going to
encounter a lot of doctors and specialists who think it's all a crock, but you
have to ask yourself why are there so many kids with ADHD, behavioural
problems, learning difficulties .... unfortunately a lot of the food you buy
from the supermarket has artificial additives, for the sals and amine
intolerant remember that a lot of the fruits and veg that years ago were
seasonal are now available all year round not to mention what they do to them
to ripen them and keep them fresh, and for the dairy intolerant look to your genes
for the answers, there are several races that are known can't tolerate dairy.
It may just change your life. - Sandra Madden, Heathcote NSW smadden@iprimus.com.au
(Sandra now coaches children with dyslexia and learning difficulties and is
happy to hear from others, please put food intolerance in the subject line)
[398] Irritable bowel and
weight problems at age 23 (March 2006)
In 1997 at age 19, I developed an itchy, burning rash under my
nose. For the next six years, I went to doctors,
naturopaths, homoeopaths, meditation and relaxation. Nothing worked and no-one
could tell me why it was there and what it was.
In 2001 I gave up smoking and went through a lot in my life while living
overseas and in 6 months went from 55kg to 72 kg. I started getting bowel problems (flatulence,
constipation, cramps and diarrhoea) and no matter what I tried I could not lose
the weight.
By the end of 2003 I had moved back to
I am now only just on the other side of finishing the diet and am trying
to come to terms with what I can and cannot eat. I have been trying no added
preservative wine, which is a lot better, but I still sometimes have a bit of a
reaction. I am very sad about Amines, I love chocolate and I can't eat much at
all, same with cheese. I just know that it is not worth having sulphites
because the reaction is too bad. My family have now begun to take out additives
in their diets too after hearing from me just how bad they are. It gets
confusing talking about natural food chemicals and chemicals to other people,
but eventually they understand. – by
email
[397] Stuttering related to
preservatives and salicylates (March 2006)
My 9 year old son started stuttering
when he was around 4 years old. He seemed to be sensitive to preservatives
especially 211 and I have steered clear of this preservative, but a few weeks
ago his stuttering came back in full force, around the same time I had apple
juice in the house. He is a big juice addict, and thinking back, has always had
juice, either straight or diluted. I have always watched out for the
preservatives in juice, and bread, but I now think he is intolerant to
salicylates as well. I have changed all of his foods to failsafe foods, and his
speech is now good. He has calmed down a bit as well.
[396]
Nitrates (249-252) used in preserved meats such as ham, bacon and hotdogs
affect stuttering (March 2006)
Our two and a half year old son had difficulty with stuttering for a few
months. After my sister-in-law, a nurse,
told us about the potential dangers of nitrates for children, especially
contributions to developmental delays, we removed all nitrates from our son's
diet and within about a week the stuttering was gone. Yesterday, our son went
on an outing to the zoo with my mother. Strangely, his stuttering returned
full-force today. I called my mother to ask what he had ingested for lunch and
dinner yesterday. The glaring answer: a
HOTDOG.
[395]
Mashed potato challenge and stutter (March 2006)
Sulphites (220-228) are used in a wide range of foods including dried
fruit, fruit drinks, sausages (not in meat in the
[394]
Benzoates in medication and stutter (March 2006)
My daughter is allergic to mosquitoes and while we were doing the
elimination diet she was badly bitten. Our doctor recommended daily double
doses of claratyne liquid. On the second day my daughter started to talk
incessantly and stutter a little (this had previously been a problem months
ago). Then on day 3 at daycare she became drunkish, socially withdrawn and
stopped talking (selective mutism, although not gone, had improved on
failsafe). The staff at daycare had been amazed to say the least about her
improvement on the diet, so this was obvious. When my husband came home, he
picked up the bottle of antihistamine and read the label, to my dismay it
contained sodium benzoate! Well, that went in the bin, we got claratyne
tablets, she had a half, and the next day at daycare she was back to normal.
[393]
All of the common suspects affect stutter (March 2006)
My son becomes hyper and stutters as a result of reactions to
salicylates, amines, wheat, dairy, preservatives, colours and flavours. His
older sister also stutters when reacting but she is more tolerant of foods and
other reactions are milder.
[392]
Stuttering and behaviour are different reactions to the same foods (March 2006)
My 7 year old son has been failsafe for a couple of years now with great
results. My 5 year old daughter has quite
a bad stutter and it has just dawned on me that diet may make it worse. I have
often noticed that her speech is worse when my son’s behaviour is at its worst.
Her speech therapist pointed out that it may be due to diet and that his
hyperactivity is the symptom but her symptom is stuttering. Given that they both generally eat the same
thing this makes sense. I tend to be
more lax with her diet though.
[391]
282: Speech delay due to the bread preservative (calcium propionate 282) (March
2006)
My son had been assessed by a speech therapist at the preschool. She diagnosed,
as best she could - we couldn't really keep Jack in the room much less anything
like on-task - a severe expressive language delay and a moderate receptive
language delay. Six weeks, later when off wheat products, he was reassessed by
the same speech pathologist, using the part of the test that Jack had not done
due to being non-cooperative. This time he seemed to have no significant
receptive language delay and was only mildly delayed in his expressive
language. She said she had never seen a child change so dramatically within
such a short period of time. … It took this family another year to discover
that their child’s problem was not the wheat in bread, but the preservative
calcium propionate.
[390]
Mixed depressive disorder with anxiety and obsessive ruminations including self
harm due to salicylate sensitivity (March 2006)
My 6 ½ year old son, Tim (not his real name) is currently undergoing
investigation of mixed depressive disorder with anxiety and obsessive
ruminations. We have used the failsafe diet in the past with one of our other
children, but had not ever thought of foods being linked to Tim’s mood
problems. When you mention the “gifted and depressed” child in your recent talk
my ears immediately pricked up and took note. Tim has been identified as highly
gifted and everyone has been saying that is the cause of his problems but I have
always felt there was something else underlying that was contributing. We will
be contacting our GP today and hopefully starting the failsafe diet ASAP…
Two months later …
Since starting the elimination diet Tim has not self harmed once! He is
much calmer and has noticed this in himself. He no longer seems to be as
restless and has been falling asleep easily at a reasonable time in the
evenings. We started with the salicylates challenge this week and there seemed
to be no reaction, until day 5/6 when we started to notice his behaviour was
getting worse. We will stop this challenge tonight and wait to try some other
groups. His GP and Clinical Psychologist are both thrilled with the change as
are well!
One week later ….
After I emailed you we finally had the BIG reaction we were looking for.
It happened on Day 7 of the salicylate challenge - we had already stopped the
challenge that morning. Tim went to bed as normal then began to write swear
words all over his bed, his sheets and his body. ("I was angry with you
because I couldn't fall asleep") This is the behaviour and obsessive
ruminations this poor boy was experiencing on a daily basis before the
elimination diet, which we have not seen until this challenge.–
by email.
[389]
Aspartame made me very sick (March 2006)
I have been unwell for a few years with many mysterious and varied complaints.
I experienced a bout of Optic Neuritis in March 2004. I was hospitalised with a
possible MS diagnosis. It's a long story but I was researching a link between
my maladies and a toxin as a possible cause of my health complaints when I came
across aspartame and its numerous effects on health. My problems I believe can
be related to the vast quantities of Diet Coke I was drinking, 1.25 litres
every second day and I was addicted to this stuff. Diet coke was my preferred
drink. I also had lots of sugarfree chewing gum, pocket breath strips, diet
foods etc. Coke and Wrigley say its safe because FSANZ say it is. I deleted
aspartame from my diet in Sept 2004 and my symptoms have gone or abated at the
least. I was put on a nasty anti-depressant as well back in March so life was a
struggle. I have avoided all aspartame since Sept 2004 and got off the
anti-depressant in Nov 2004 and am slowly feeling like my old self. I know
aspartame did terrible things to me and I hope I have not suffered permanent
damage. I fear for our kids. - Andrea, by
email
[388]
Blackouts from aspartame (March 2006)
I
just wanted to tell you about the effects of aspartame on my insulin dependant
father in-law. He has drunk at least a can of diet soft drink every day for the
last 10 yrs since becoming diabetic, thinking he was doing the right thing. But
about 12 months ago he started having regular blackouts every few months or so.
He is 6ft 5in and a very big man so when he falls there is a lot of room for
damage of some description. The last blackout on his veranda whilst sitting on
a chair putting on his boots resulted in a badly dislocated shoulder with
permanent damage. He no longer drinks diet drinks after I researched and found
some absolutely shocking information linking aspartame to blackouts and has not
had a blackout in over 12 months. Aspartame is definitely not recommended for
diabetics and no-one should ingest this poison. The alarming thing is I have
recently found it in salad dressing and things kids would eat. It’s also in
most low fat products. - Simonne, by
email [and see our
new Factsheet: sugarfree sweeteners]
[387]
HHT (Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia) and a low salicylate diet (March
2006)
Our
family has been largely failsafe for the past couple of years due to our
daughter’s behaviour, but an added side benefit seems to have emerged. My
husband has a rare disorder called Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT)
which causes his capillaries to balloon and bleed easily. His blood count is
always very low and like all HHT sufferers, nosebleeds have always been part of
his life. He has had far fewer nosebleeds since he's avoided salicylates and
that's the only change that he's made. I wonder if it could be that the lack of
salicylates decrease the bleeding? He can't ever take aspirin, so I suppose it
makes sense, but if my suspicions are correct, then other HHT sufferers might
benefit as well. I would think that it's worth investigating and I will
certainly share it with anyone who is interested or concerned. – Chris, NSW(vwilder@optusnet.com.au) [and see our
new Factsheet HHT and salicylates]
[386]
Effects of ‘sugar-free” polyols (January 2006)
A few months ago I started chewing sugar free chewing gum several times a
day and since then, my stomach has been almost continuously bloated. On
occasions the amount of gas in my stomach is so extreme that I have to force
myself to burp to relieve the pressure in my stomach - Male, 30s,
I was suffering with a sort of what I thought was "gastritis",
causing extreme obnoxious embarrassing gas and bloating, and after an hour or
two, constant gas every 10 minutes for hours and hours .... it was so bad I
wanted to run away from myself, I know that’s funny but it was quite
disgusting, the doctors told me I had a spastic colon but I noticed the
"health" food candy bars I thought were healthy had sorbitol and my
stomach feels perfect since I've been reading the labels and staying away from
the sorbitol - female, 30s, USA, sorbitol, daily
I ate 5 caramels that I thought were safe because they were free of
artificial colours and other additives. A few hours later I had excruciating
stomach pains and sudden diarrhea – female, 40s,
[385]
160b: “anaphylactic reaction” to annatto (January 2006)
I am a 30 year old Nurse living in the
[384]
160b: “rage and headbanging” from annatto (January 2006)
My daughter has been exhibiting rage and headbanging that has has
progressed over the last 9 months with many other symptoms . After I dsicovered
your website I eliminated annatto a week ago and the headbanging diminished but
has not disappeared. Annatto was in her vitamins and granola bars that she
consumed daily. It was also in many other items that she consumed such as ice
cream, Doritos, salad dressing. I am now
eliminating all additives you recommend to avoid. -
[383] 160b:
“banging his head against a brick wall” (January 2006)
My son used to bang his head when he was little. He's 12 now and we are
doing the diet for his behaviour. After the annatto challenge he started
banging his head against a brick wall for about half an hour. When he stopped
he told us that he had a headache so bad that banging his head seemed to be the
only way to make it feel better. -
[382]
635: Irritable bowel symptoms (December 2005)
A few weeks ago I started having a Continental Low Carb instant soup
every day. I knew the 635 was in there, but thought I didn't react to it. BIG
mistake. No doubt you're expecting a description of the rash and swelling. Yes,
I did get those, but not until week 2.
In week 1 my stomach progressively got sicker and sicker. By the end of
the week I could only lie on the lounge and visit the loo. The doctor diagnosed
mild food poisoning that turned into a very nasty stomach bug. Antibiotics and no food for three days
cleared the bug. So what did I do? I had a miso soup from a local Japanese
restaurant. A few hours later my stomach started going odd again and I began to
itch. By that night the typical 635 rash and unbearable itch had set in. For
some bizarre reason I didn't think of 635 with the miso. The next day I had one
of those damn instant soups again and of course the same thing happened but worse.
Needless to say I have ditched the soup and banned 635. My son is
actually quite pleased because one of the things that make him itch makes Mummy
itch, so he feels a little less alone about it. The itch and rash have gone,
but my lips are still very dry and cracked. But I have LEARNT MY LESSON! –
Megan NSW.
[381]
One liners (November 2005)
A big thank you for your recent informative and inspiring seminar, I
bought your book ‘Fed Up with Asthma’ that night and have not been able to put
it down - Qld
My son was a chronic biter and after seeing several shows on TV about the
additive 282 I took him off that bread and he stopped biting. - by email
My little girl child is diagnosed with autism and in the last two weeks
I've eliminated all of these numbers from her diet and she's already looking
healthier. - WA
I am continuing to stick to low sals vegies and I think it has made a big
difference for my son's sneaky poos, his stools are now firm and well formed
and he has been going to the toilet everyday (finally!) - failsafer, Vic
Almost all the bread over here has 282 in it. They call it calcium propionate
and everyone thinks it's calcium. Trickers!!! - failsafer,
Thanks for talking to my 8 yo daughter when she came to your presentation
here last year. She still remembers being a ‘Star’ for a day and it helps with
her acceptance of what we ask of her with diet. - failsafer, Vic
I got your book ‘fed up’ a few years ago and since then I have tried the
diet off and on but never with much success due to a lack of commitment on my
part. My sister had real success with her daughter on the diet. Having recently
reevaluated how my children react to food chemicals, I am intending to do the
diet again. - by email
When I read your book ‘Fed Up’ I wished that I had read it when my
children were younger. I spent thousands of dollars and hours at doctors. In
the end I worked everything out for myself and some doctors admitted that I
knew more than they did (and some doctors did not admit they were wrong). - Qld
Some days my 16 month old daughter was very hyperactive, followed by a
horrendous temper. Your books have saved me - she has been on the elimination
diet for 3 weeks now, and I have fallen in love with her all over again, she’s
the angel I always knew I had. - by email
[380]
635: Lasted two weeks and was agony (November 2005)
Recently I suffered an extremely itchy rash that kept me up at night and
became very inflamed and sore from scratching. I consulted the doctor and all
he could tell me was that it was a rash, and it could be a virus. That was all
he could tell me. That and he asked if I'd ever had chicken pox ... this rash
was nothing like a chicken pox rash. The rash itself lasted two weeks and was
agony, to say the least. I still bear marks on my arms from scratching. I went
through the usual what did you eat routine and nothing out of the ordinary -
although I did have Hungry Jack’s in the 30 hour time frame.
(Later) As I tend to avoid most overprocessed foods, I can honestly say
that my rash after 3 weeks is much better. The rash I developed was small,
intensely itchy bumps over my stomach and back, and my arms. These bumps were
constantly itchy, antihistamines helped but did not alleviate much. I couldn't
sleep and felt irritable although that
had a lot to do with no sleep. However I still have some marks on my arms where
I scratched too hard - reader by email.
[379]
Behaviour due to hairspray, airfreshener (November 2005)
I stopped wearing hairspray about 6 months ago when we went totally
failsafe and saw great results with our children's behaviour. Two weeks ago I
was going out without the kids, so after putting them to bed I sprayed on some
Sunsilk hairspray and liked the way it looked. So the next day I did it again
and within a couple of hours my 3 year old son's behaviour changed. He was
overactive, very fidgety, hitting and kicking, and headbutted his sister hard
enough to give her a blood nose. As time went on he was crying a lot with loud
silly behaviour and wanting demands met immediately. That night he could not
get to sleep. I wore the hairspray for three days not putting two and two
together then we realized it must be the hairspray as their diet is so failsafe
it couldn't be the food he was eating. I stopped wearing hairspray and his
behaviour returned to normal. I have also noticed that when I visit my mum who
uses airfreshener - lots of air
freshener - my son's behaviour deteriorates after a few hours. - Vic
[378] Mr
Revolting due to dairy (November 2005)
Thanks for your Fed Up book which was recommended by the allergy clinic -
we have been searching for years and getting nowhere but now it seems we have
found a large part of the answer to our 6 year old son's behaviour problems. We
are still working through the challenges, but to our surprise, the first
challenge we did (dairy) was a definite FAIL! We almost didn't even eliminate
dairy, because I was sure that was not a problem for him, however I decided to
err on the side of caution and I'm glad I did! He became progressively
grumpier, looked pale, seemed tired and complained of tummy aches. After a
couple of months of beautiful behaviour and no tantrums, we were back to ‘Mr
Revolting’. We are now dairy free again, and it has taken about 10 days for him
to get back to normal. - NSW
[377] I
thought we were low salicylate (breastfed baby) (November 2005)
I cried when I read the stories on breastfeeding babies because that's
our world since my son was born 16 months ago - screaming and arching his back
until sore big farts release all day and night. I thought we were low
salicylate (citrus, broccoli, tomato...) but it turns out it's all the things
we were eating - grapes, watermelon, spinach - a difference is already obvious
since cutting out high salicylates. -
[376] One
liners (July 2005)
Your work has changed my son’s life – I know you probably hear it from
everyone, but please keep doing what you're doing, it's such important work,
and the fruits of your labor are starting to pay off!
I saw you on A Current Affair last week and started my son on failsafe
foods on Monday -the transformation is amazing - he is so calm!
Going to the supermarket feels good - 'no, nothing in this aisle'... and
saving at the checkout - you didn't mention that the failsafe diet was also
cheap! I think it is the simplicity that I like most, everything used to be
over the top and out of control.
I was searching the internet for bad behaviour when your report came up
and every single symptom you listed described my daughter - I immediately cut
282 out of her diet and the difference in her was almost instant - I am sure
that if I hadn't come across this, the doctors would have labelled her ADHD and
I would be none the wiser.
My son’s eczema started when we introduced solids – having started
reading your book I can see all kinds of foods he currently eats which may be
causing a reaction so we’re about to try the elimination diet.
After seven weeks on the failsafe diet, we are much improved - I feel
great, my 7 year old no longer wets the bed or has accidents, my 9 year old is
no longer depressed and I can actually read his hand writing!!!
My son is the original sticky-pooh boy since introduction of solids and I
have never understood why until now so thank you.
I have taken my son to psychologists, school counsellors, child nurse,
hearing and ENT specialists, optometrists, etc, been through the ‘why is our
son the naughtiest and roughest in school?’, ‘why is our son so defiant and
angry?’ then I saw A Current Affair and followed the link to your site - bought
the book the next day, read it, totally gobsmacked that there was a name for my
son's behaviour, glad it wasn't ADD, and now am compiling my shopping list to
try and start a new eating habit for him. Maybe I won't have to sell him after
all!
We have been on the failsafe diet for nearly three and have had excellent
results for the whole family - I have had no pre-menstrual migraines, my 18
month old’s eczema all but disappeared and my three year old's behaviour has
changed dramatically.
[375]
Sick and tired of asthma (July 2005)
I purchased your book earlier t