Hi! I Am A Mom Who Needs Help

[Omshanti2]

Hi! WOW!. This forum is fantastic!

Hoping you can help.

My son, Zachary, is 3 years old.

He has speech delays. He has recevied early intervention and is now in special ed. pre-school.

His speech has increased and at one point I did place him on a gluten free diet after researching that there could be an increase in speech. I saw an improvement in behavior. He was less whiny, more in control, more focused. Not on the diet he was out of CONTROL!!!!! Tantrums!!!!!!!!!

He was on and off the diet becuase I heard concerns from family members about his weight and concern he wasn't eating enough.

He eats more now and I have started him on the diet again. I want to stay on it full force. I have learned new food ideas and as a family we have grown accustomed to it.

I have a few questions I am hoping I can get help with:

1. Should he be ceasen free, too? Would that make even more of a difference as well?

2. Should I have him allergy tested by a doctor?

3. He does have a large belly, is this a sign as well?

4. What else can I do, I would love any advice or ideas!!!!!!!!!

Thanks!

I appreciate all the help I can get!!!!!!

[ShayFL]

Many benefit by removing Casein and Soy as well.

[Omshanti2]

Thank you so much for your help!

Many benefit by removing Casein and Soy as well.

[MarsupialMama]

Casein is a dairy-derived milk protein. It is refined to a white powder by several processes, but it is used as a binding agent in many things. It is highly used in producing industrial glue. This is why it is used in foods like dairy-free cheeses and whatnot - to hold them together.

Personally, something that is used to make industrial glue (and other things like it) is not something that I think would be ideal to eat - imagine what it does in your intestines......(yikes). Some people find partial healing with going gluten-free and then complete healing by going dairy free.

Soy is also controversial, causing many allergies. In my opinion, edamame (green soybeans), homemade soymilk, etc are easier to digest than all the soy-protein products. Most of those are loaded with chemicals, MSG, and very hard on your system.

It can be difficult to remove many things at once, because you look around and say "Okay, so what CAN I make to eat that isn't on the 'No' list?" It does get easier though.

We are dairy-free, soy-free and gluten free, and there are many many foods that are so yummy. Lots of fruits, vegetables, potatoes, soups, rice dishes, casseroles, etc. I even make gravies, sauces, and cheese dips out of cashew nuts. :-) Different, but yummy!

Having a large belly is a sign of intestinal troubles - from bloating, to celiac disease, to constipation, etc, so the simpler diet the better. You don't need elaborate meals.

Allergy testing is a personal thing. I wasn'tl over-inspired to do it because we had so much success so far with gluten/dairy free. I guess if the problems were not improving, then I would go further with testing, but for now we are giving time for healing.

[Omshanti2]

Casein is a dairy-derived milk protein. It is refined to a white powder by several processes, but it is used as a binding agent in many things. It is highly used in producing industrial glue. This is why it is used in foods like dairy-free cheeses and whatnot - to hold them together.

Personally, something that is used to make industrial glue (and other things like it) is not something that I think would be ideal to eat - imagine what it does in your intestines......(yikes). Some people find partial healing with going gluten-free and then complete healing by going dairy free.

Soy is also controversial, causing many allergies. In my opinion, edamame (green soybeans), homemade soymilk, etc are easier to digest than all the soy-protein products. Most of those are loaded with chemicals, MSG, and very hard on your system.

It can be difficult to remove many things at once, because you look around and say "Okay, so what CAN I make to eat that isn't on the 'No' list?" It does get easier though.

We are dairy-free, soy-free and gluten free, and there are many many foods that are so yummy. Lots of fruits, vegetables, potatoes, soups, rice dishes, casseroles, etc. I even make gravies, sauces, and cheese dips out of cashew nuts. :-) Different, but yummy!

Having a large belly is a sign of intestinal troubles - from bloating, to celiac disease, to constipation, etc, so the simpler diet the better. You don't need elaborate meals.

Allergy testing is a personal thing. I wasn'tl over-inspired to do it because we had so much success so far with gluten/dairy free. I guess if the problems were not improving, then I would go further with testing, but for now we are giving time for healing.

THank you so much! Your information has been extremely helpful. I think I will give it a try. He is gluten free now but I will slowly try to take out dairy as well.

What do you use in place of milk/soy milk?

Rice Milk? ALmond Milk? What brands are good?

THANK YOU!

[Mama Ruthies]

Our 4 year old son also has speech delays which we know are related to gluten. He's been off gluten since Nov. and his speech started to really make strides in April. In July, he got a piece of "gluten pizza" and he regressed in speech, pronounciation was bad, and initiation slowed way down. He is finally (after over 9 weeks) starting to get back to where he was.

Many feel that taking dairy out at first helps the body heal. We used almond milk as it tastes better and the rice milk we had used (Rice Dream) does contain some gluten even though it says gluten free---Westasoy is OK, or at least was when we were dairy free. Coconut milk is also good, especially in smoothies.

From what I remember for the Is This Your Child book by Doris Rapp, eliminating milk for I believe a four day trial should show positive changes. You might want to check the book.

We had our son evaluated by one of the top doctors in the country for late talkers, and he said that our son presents exactly as the other kids with celiac have. Make sure that your son is getting the right therapy--the school district had hinted at a number of different diagnosis, all which were incorrect and therapy based on that could have caused regression.

Blessings,

Amy

[khieken]

My son had speech delays too, but I had never heard until now that it could be gluten-related - very interesting! My kids have more behavior-type issues and I have seen some moderate improvements in behavior after ~4 weeks gluten-free. We have made a few mistakes along the way, so I know we haven't been totally gluten-free. I had no idea that Rice Dream milk contained gluten - so do you have to call every manufacturer to determine if there is gluten in their products (I didn't see any ingredient on the milk carton that looked like it was gluten-containing)? I'll get this one of these days!

Karen