Feingold Diet

[justmama]

Someone PLEASE break this down for me. I am SOOOOOOO overwhelmed. I try really hard to give my kids things that are healthy and balanced and safe but I'm finding more and more information that what they eat will really affect them in ways I previously did not understand. I have an asthmatic 2 year old daughter and an ADHD(inattentive) 9 year old daughter and I'm seeing things that the feingold diet is quite helpful in managing both conditions. But there is SO much out there that I am having trouble breaking it down into manageable parts. What CAN you eat? Can i do this in steps? The 2 year old, I am not worried about but the 9year old will have a really really hard time changing her diet drastically all of a sudden. How do I make this work and well for not only them but for myself and my 5 year old? I am also vegetarian so that's a limiting factor in our diet. Just feeling really overwhelmed and stressed about food.

[heatherdeg]

From another thread on this topic

Originally Posted by webjefita

If you go to http://www.feingold.org/ and download that free book "Why Can't My Child Behave" on the front page, you'll get like an 80-page introduction to the program. It does include a list of approved whole foods, and a sample 4-day diet with a very limited selection of approved foods for all meals and snacks. I am going back to trying this again, since I don't want to buy the materials. Good luck.

I'm not sure if that will help you, but it's a start.

All diet changes can feel overwhelming--even just the elimination of a single item. Just take a deep breath. It's usually just DIFFERENT and different is hard when you have habits and routines already.

[Polliwog]

Thanks for asking your question. It's one that I've been thinking about a lot lately. I've briefly looked at Feingold but it's really scary. My (adopted) son was recently diagnosed with ADHD and I've got it as well.

Heather, thanks for that info from that other thread.

[justmama]

yeah i did download that book and it's just frightening. there's less that she CAN eat than what she can. And I'm vegetarian so trying to cook for the entire family is a nightmare. I think we are just trying to concentrate on all food dyes and preservatives this week and then pick something next week to include in the "ban" list.

[MarciaD]

Originally Posted by justmama

yeah i did download that book and it's just frightening. there's less that she CAN eat than what she can. And I'm vegetarian so trying to cook for the entire family is a nightmare. I think we are just trying to concentrate on all food dyes and preservatives this week and then pick something next week to include in the "ban" list.

That's not true at all. You won't be giving up anything except the salicylates in the beginning. They are added back after a month or two. There are approved brands of foods for just about anything you enjoy eating. We've been using the diet for years and my grown son and his family continue using it. Please give it a trial. Being on the diet is so much easier than dealing with the behaviors.

[sunny*pa*mom]

We started Feingold about 2 years ago. I agree, at first it is completely overwhelming. If doing it in steps works for you, then you should do that, but realize it may take longer to see the results. For us, we took a trash bag and threw away or donated anything that was unacceptable. We joined the program and their food guides make grocery shopping manageable. Their forums are also helpful, especially since you have an older child. We changed all of our food and then realized we had other triggers - soaps being a big one. It is a long process but for us, the results have greatly outweighed any inconvenience. Eventually, we cut out most processed foods altogether. My son's chemical intolerance really led our entire family to a healthier place. It is a huge pain to read every single label so now when we do buy processed food, we buy "organic." By definition, it is free of dyes and preservatives. They also publish a restaurant guide which may be helpful.

My son was younger and not in school so it was much easier to change his diet. What really helped our family was to have everyone eat the same. That way, my youngest didn't feel like he was missing out. And really, to say that eating petrochemicals is bad for one kid but ok for everyone else didn't make a lot of sense. At first, it is really hard to make those changes but I swear it gets easier and once you see the results you'll never want to go back. Sometimes my mother feels sorry for me because my son's diet is so hard, but I just tell her it's really simple --- he can only eat food. Actual real food, no petrochemicals or manufactured additives. I would start with the food guides and go from there. As overwhelming as it is at the start, the result is a healthier, happier child. I just treated it like a new job or a new class. I figured there were lots of things I knew nothing about at one point, but I just dove in head first.

My son isn't sensitive to salicylates so that does make it easier. At first, we cut them out but we reintroduced everything slowly and he never reacted to them. It is really restrictive until you identify your triggers. Good luck. I hope my ramblings made some sense.

[milkmamamerina]

We just started Feingold about a month ago and it is a life changer!
It is really overwhelming at first, but 20X more overwhelming if you don't actually join the organization. At this point we have started on stage two (not recommended by the organization, but seemed easier as a starting point to me) We will be implimenting stage one after we travel this spring. The plus side to starting at stage one instead of easing into it is that the results will be more obvious and you can add foods 4-6 weeks later instead of making all new cutbacks, which might be discouraging to an older child.

The materials have a two week menu plan with recipes, details about how to tell if the behaviors you are seeing in your child are a food reaction or something else, and the message board is very active and VERY helpful. Many people on the program have other food limitations (check out my daughters allergies lol). There are shopping lists and an "any brand" list (things like any flour, any whole milk, etc.) that really helps all the shopping around. There is even a recipe only message board.

The theory of "all organics are ok" is unfortunately not always true because oils or fats used in making the products may come with preservatives (sometimes BHT) in them when they are shipped from a third party. If the third party oil has less than 2% of the preservative, it does not get listed on the product you purchase. Milk is best whole because vitamin A palmitate is frequently preserved with BHT. The Feingold organization has volunteers who contact manufacturers to determine if they use safe products in their manufacturing and provides an extensive list of which foods are approved.

If you are trying to do Feingold without the support of the organization, it is like reinventing the wheel. It is worth every penny of the membership fee.

The blue book on the main page is a great place to find info all in one place if you are trying to decide on joining.
http://www.feingold.org/pg-blue.html