any hfcs-free families out there?

[Cullens_Girl]

I'm really struggling here... ODS (turns 5 next week) is very food-sensitive. His behavior gets pretty out-of-control when he has too much HFCS, food-dye, etc. I've gone so far as to limit the amount of refined-sugar he gets as well.

I'm burnt out by the whole thing. Nobody takes it seriously and I find I'm constantly detoxing him from the food he gets outside the home... sometimes because I'm not there, sometimes because I have no backbone and sometimes because I let treats slip through the cracks.

Its not fair to him that I'm constantly harping on his lack of self-control when I'm setting him up for failure. He's doing alright in pre-k. I spoke with his teacher and says hes well behaved for the most part at school. Home is a completely different story. He's moody, defiant, disobedient, picks on his little brother... no self control. He really is a sweet and awesome kid, but the last month has been horrendous. Guess I'm looking for people to commiserate with.

[kjbrown92]

Two of my kids can't have corn, so they can't have HFCS. One of them can have beet sugar but not cane sugar, and the other vice versa, so we just don't do that much sugar in general with them. It's a once-in-a-while treat. And they're both sensitive to different food dyes so we don't do those either. One of my kids is 4yo and the other is 9yo. I talk to their teachers, I talk to anyone's house where they go, my whole family knows what they can and cannot have. Instead of harping on your 5yo, turn to the other adults. To help others understand, take a video of your child before HFCS and after HFCS. Sometimes that helps others see. Or keep a journal to document the effects. When my DS has soy, he reacts with tantrums, crying, etc. for 10 days after ONE small exposure. It's not fun for anyone, least of all him.

Commisserate all you want. Many of us here either live it, or have seen it.

[Cullens_Girl]

Originally Posted by kjbrown92

Two of my kids can't have corn, so they can't have HFCS. One of them can have beet sugar but not cane sugar, and the other vice versa, so we just don't do that much sugar in general with them. It's a once-in-a-while treat. And they're both sensitive to different food dyes so we don't do those either. One of my kids is 4yo and the other is 9yo. I talk to their teachers, I talk to anyone's house where they go, my whole family knows what they can and cannot have. Instead of harping on your 5yo, turn to the other adults. To help others understand, take a video of your child before HFCS and after HFCS. Sometimes that helps others see. Or keep a journal to document the effects. When my DS has soy, he reacts with tantrums, crying, etc. for 10 days after ONE small exposure. It's not fun for anyone, least of all him.

Commisserate all you want. Many of us here either live it, or have seen it.

awww thanks for the validation... tantrums, tears, etc. are something else from this past month. I KNOW a lot is from Halloween. I really limited the candy, but even one piece throws him over the edge. Sigh - I know I need to stay on top of this... I was so good for a while- now I just need to be vigilant... I'm going crazy here! This type of "allergy" (some would say its a cop-out) is so hard because its not one that you can test, kwim?

[FairyRae]

Is there a way for you to make candy/treats/etc that are corn and refined sugar free? (Maybe you already do?) Perhaps if your ds has some sweet alternatives in those moments he won't feel deprived or like he has to use will power to deal w/ these issues when others offer him things?

I realize this is probably a lot more complex w/ a 5 year old, but I made a bunch of homemade candy for my 2.5 yo ds for halloween--we trick or treated w/ cousins then went back to their house and all ate candy together. I just swapped the candy he got trick or treating w/ the candy I made (and it was really good) and he had a blast eating it w/ his cousins. Maybe you could find out (when possible) if there will be treats given out at school, and pack alternatives w/ your ds so he'll have something? Or set up something w/ his teacher so that she has a box of HFCS-free cupcakes/cookies/candy etc for him to choose from when the class is sharing in something like this? (And possibly try and keep various sweet treats in your purse, etc. for when you go out so that you feel like you have other options in those 'no backbone' situations?)

I've actually given treats I've made to ds's grandma and aunt for when they are watching him for me--they can take them out of their freezer and give them to him--that way they feel like they can give him desserts and still not be giving him foods he reacts to.

Good luck with this!

ETA: Check out the allergen free candy store--there are options that just use honey to sweeten as well. I haven't shopped there yet but am thinking about it for the future!

[kjbrown92]

Originally Posted by Cullens_Girl

awww thanks for the validation... tantrums, tears, etc. are something else from this past month. I KNOW a lot is from Halloween. I really limited the candy, but even one piece throws him over the edge. Sigh - I know I need to stay on top of this... I was so good for a while- now I just need to be vigilant... I'm going crazy here! This type of "allergy" (some would say its a cop-out) is so hard because its not one that you can test, kwim?

It's a food intolerance. It's not a cop-out. If you're child reacts to a food, why would you give it to him. And you can test for it, though the testing isn't 100% accurate (of course, allergy testing isn't 100% accurate either). I got ALCAT testing for my kids, which showed their intolerances, and some of theirs are behavior issues. Milk causes bedwetting in my DS (among other symptoms). I mentioned soy. Eggs cause uncontrollable crying the next day. Etc. The ALCAT test is testing for an inflammatory response to the food (not an IgG test, not an IgE test). And an elimination-challenge IS the gold standard for food allergy testing (as well as food intolerances). So if you keep a journal and show a direct correlation, that IS a test. And you can say, "see what happens?" A friend of mine just pulled all sugar (and a lot of carbs) from her 8yo because she was having major blow-up tantrums. She's amazed at the difference in her child overall.

We also get candy from naturalcandystore.com and I make a lot of treats. However, it may be that he's reacting to all sugar/high carbs, so be careful even with those. My son has safe things in his classroom, and he always brings snacks wherever he goes.

[luminesce]

We don't consume HFCS, artificial food colorings, artificial flavors, preservatives, etc. (I actually don't think DS at 2.5 has ever eaten these.)

We limit refined sugars to only a few foods. Otherwise, we eat a little maple syrup and honey as sweeteners. In general, though, we don't do a lot of sweet stuff and the less we do, the less we seem to want or need.

Are you keeping a food journal? We would have never figured out DS' intolerances without ours (and even with a journal, it is hard!)

Oh - just wanted to say - try making muffins and baked goods with just fruit instead of sugar (or at least fruit with much less refined sugar.) Also, you can opt for less refined sweeteners like honey or maple syrup.