Wednesday, January 19, 2011

milk is easier than corn...

Not too long ago here, I expressed the thought that we would be trying to take corn out of Josiah's diet.  Starting sometime in November, some of his ADHD-type symptoms began to return and worsen.  It seemed like he was reacting to all kinds of things he was eating. 

Now I can see, hindsight is 20/20!  Just before Thanksgiving, Josiah developed the stomach flu.  Then he started showing signs of lactose intolerance.  Finally, I took milk out of his diet completely to see if it would make any difference for him.  For a few days, nothing.

Then, like a switch had flipped, his ADHD-type behaviors again seemed to disappear.  He stopped spinning around constantly, fidgeting, and having trouble with attention and focus.  He began to obey again rather than resist every direction.  When I grabbed some pizza made with a milk-based white sauce to heat up for him again at lunch one day, the behaviors quickly returned.  Now every day off of milk is an improvement.  We even tried some vitamins today that had caused a reaction while he was still on milk.  They are working for him fine now.

Here's a casein-free recipe to celebrate!

Gluten Free, Casein Free Mac and Cheese

2 T. of butter substitute

2 T. potato starch

1 c. warm milk substitute (I used unsweetened coconut milk--coconut milk is my family's favorite milk sub.)

1 c. or more of cheese substitute (we like Daiya cheese)

8 oz. elbow macaroni (Tinkyada is our favorite)

Melt butter, add potato starch.  Stir until smooth paste.  Slowly add warm milk; stirring constantly until thickened.  Add cheese and stir until melted.  Pour over pasta.

To be honest, this was not a smashing hit for my kids, but I've heard it is sometimes best to leave favorites like mac and cheese out of the diet for awhile if they are used to the real thing.  Eric and I thought it was pretty good.  We'll try again in a few months and see if it goes over better.

This sauce is great if you have children with milk intolerance or allergies, and worth a try if they aren't used to milk!  The Daiya cheese is the best substitute we've found.  It's a bit pricey, but we don't use it too often, or just use it to sprinkle on top of tacos.  That way, a little goes a long way.

1 comment:

Larin said...

I am thankful for the internet and the tender mercies I come across when researching how I can help my son. Thank you for your blog.
Awaiting my Feingold packet is painful and I cant tell you how impatient I am. lol I cant wait to try this diet and I hope that this is the answer I have prayed for. How soon did you feel like this was the right diet for your son? I bought a really old Feingold book from Amazon but it was really out dated. The symptom list that this diet can help is my son exactly. I am so excited!! I just need more direction and I cant wait to dive head first into this change.
I have never rated my sons behavior on a scale of 1-10 but after yesterday I explained to my husband that if his behavior and control is normally bad at a 5 daily, yesterday was a 10. By far the worst. It has all reached an enormous head while I wait for my packet. Why now? Maybe this will be a great jumping off point and give me a day that I will always remember as a contrast to what was.
Mostly I am alone in my situation. Nobody gets the sorrow of not being able to help your child gain control. I am uplifted when I find sites like yours where strangers like us can relate.
Email me if you have any other favorite sites that can help us on our journey. knappycrew@gmail.com Thank you!! Larin