Food dye and behavior/learning problems: Anyone have a child w/ this?

[BWVDenise]

I was wondering if anyone here has a child with sensitivity to food dye or other food allergies that cause behavioral problems or learning problems. I have heard of the Feingold program and read the information on the website but I was wondering if there is any other way to go about figuring out if a child's hyperactivity is associated with what they eat.

 

[disneyvacationmom]

My son was very sensitive to apples-no one would believe that he would misbehave after apple products. Finally when he was having an allergy test, I insisted that they test him for apples-sure enough he's allergic. i read a book once called "Is that my child"( I think) It was written by a Dr. in Buffalo NY It was that book that got me eliminating things from his diet. It's a good read if you can find it. I got it from the library. Good luck.

 

[janette]

I don't know anything about food allergies but these are some helpful sites about learning differences.

http://www.schwablearning.org/
http://www.ldonline.org/
http://www.allkindsofminds.org/
http://www.dys-add.com/

 

[shortbun]

I have always been able to link food dye
to my son's manic behavior. He acts like his
"on" switch is stuck on. Caffeine affects him
too but in a different way. I'd say the best
way is to totally cut out food dye and then
under a controlled and monitored situation,
reintroduce it. Make a food diary and write
down times so you can track reaction time too.
My nephew's autism is affected by wheat.
You are definitely what you eat.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Yes my older dd (11) has allergies. I have never had them pinpointed however.
1)She can have REAL lemons but give her "fake" lemon products and she gets "sick"/feels bad. He face may or may not turn red.
2) When she was little and now (but not as bad) her face will become swollen, chapped and red within minutes of eating certain Nacho cheese sauce. I mean you can watch her face change right before your eyes. As she has gotten older it has changed, I think, into stomch issues.
3) To address the behavior, ah well I know that foods do affect her, but I never have sat down to try a formula. It would be very difficult but I am sure it is possible to pinpoint which foods make her hyper.

Thanks for the info, I may have to look into this as well.

 

[DisMNagain]

If different foods can make us get hives and rashes it only makes sense to think that yes, of course it can also alter our behavior and our moods.

Our vet told us years ago that some dyes in colorful pet foods and some pet toys like those bright birdie climbing aids can cause our pets to be sick and/or behave differently.

Why not true for humans too?

 

[worm761]

i agree with shortbun. create a food diary. it may help and if you want to go to the doctor and present a possible food allergy/reaction then they will ask you to do this.

red dye has a been known to cause hyperactivity in children. for my son it seems to be milk. the more he has the more he bounces off walls and the worse his behavior gets.

{{HUGS}} and good luck!

 

[piratesmate]

When I was teaching in the mid-70s I had a student whose parents disagreed on how to deal with his "hyperactivity." (There was no ADD/ADHD then.) Rather than put him on meds, they started with the Feingold diet for him. It did seem to make a difference - mostly in a reduction in the frequency & intensity of his disruptive behavior.

I don't really know of another way to find out what may be associated with his behavior. However, I wanted to mention that I also tried the Feingold diet at the same time as my student. I was having debilitating headaches & migraines. I was very surprised when my headaches all but disappeared & the migraines happened far less frequently - like every other month instead of once a week. When I tried to add foods with preservatives (like hot dogs) & certain other additives back into my diet, the headaches resumed.

Trying to remove one food item at a time may sound easier, but if there are combinations of foods causing the problem - or the problem item is not obvious, it can be really hard to isolate.

Deb

 

[Muppet]

My friends little boy goes from lovely to wild from eating the blue m+ms. They take it quite seriously over here in the UK and recently a school cut out all additives etc from school dinners and 56% of parents saw a big differece in the behaviour but best of all teachers had a remarkable 61% better concentration and behaviour in the after dinner lessons.

 

[ChiTownZee]

I have a friend who has her son on this. I know Red dye #40 is supposed to be one of the worst.
She doesn't do it religiously, but her sons behavior has improved a lot.

 

[Jeafl]

Yes! My son had behavior problems in pre-school, and we ended up finding a child psychologist who did extensive food sensitivity testing. We found a major sensitivity (allergy) to corn syrup, which is in just about everything. Also, red and blue food dyes are among the worst offenders. Once we took my son off the corn syrup and dyes he became a different person He was calm, easy to get along with, and very focused. I can't tell you what a difference it made.

A book called "Is this Your Child?" has been really helpful. I can't remember the author, but PM me if you want more info.

 

[disneyvacationmom]

Jeafl that sounds like the book that I read. It was written by a DR. in Buffalo NY. It was an excellent book. I was tempted to make an appointment with her.