SPD: can it be helped with special diet/supplements?

[HappyLamb]

my 6 y.o. son has SPD. In some of the books I've been reading, it seems that the issues stem from neurotransmitter "issues." So based on all I've read on how GFCF diets help kids with autism, wouldn't it make sense that there would be a nutritional component to SPD as well?  I haven't found any literature on tjhis, and I don't just want to give a "shot in the dark" (kwim?). Has anyone have any experience with this. In particular, my son has these issues, which are being addressed through OT:

-over-responsiveness, especially auditory

-gravitational insecurity

-difficulty self-regulating

-high anxiety

does anyone have any thoughts on this, places for further research, etc?

[SpottedFoxx]

GFCF will help ONLY if your child has a sensitivity to it.  My son's behavior wasn't consistent.  He'd be fine and then he'd explode.  Not every day.  We figured it may be something he is eating so we went with the easy route - we cut out food dye.  Viola!  New child!  We can now time it.  If he eats something with food dye, he's a melty mess within 10 minutes.

Our behavioral therapist believes that a lot of families who are seeing "miracles" with the GFCF diet isn't because their children have an actual sensitivity to the gluten or casen but rather are eliminated artificial color and flavors which are what are truly causing the issues.

Just my therapist's 2 cents :)

[HappyLamb]

Originally Posted by SpottedFoxx 

GFCF will help ONLY if your child has a sensitivity to it.  

Right. I guess I need to clarify my question: do all of you wise parents out there think that there might be a connection to my son's diet and all of his SPD issues? See, I've read that some  kids with ADHD have had luck with Feingold. And that some kids on the autism spectrum have had luck with GFCF (for example). Or whatever diet they try. Meaning, I've read quite a bit about kids with these two disorders seeing improvements with various special diets.  But I've never read about any diet that has helped a kid with SPD, but it seems that there should be something to it.   Does that make sense?

I really feel that there must be a dietary/nutritional component to this, but I'm not sure what it is. We already don't do food dyes/coloring. (Doesn't mean that I wouldn't try Feingold). But I think that I'm hesitant to put forth the expense and hassle of starting a diet (for example, gluten free) that I've never heard of working for my kids' issues....does that make sense?

Edited by HappyLamb - 6/10/11 at 7:45am

[crunchy_mommy]

I'm curious about this as well. We already eat GFCF and avoid all artificial colors and flavors though, so I'm not sure what else could theoretically help.

[SpottedFoxx]

For my son, I decided to start out slow and easy.  I removed food dyes.  Once he detoxed it from his system (a few weeks), no more melt downs.  Well, no more unexplainable melt downs - just normal kid stuff meltdowns.  I also removed artificial flavor which further calmed him.  

[KimPM]

I just want to make it clear that a person can react to ANY food, not just gluten and casein.

My DS has WAY more trouble with his SPD issues after he has eaten any food that he's sensitive to. His reactions can last for 1 or 2 weeks, sometimes longer. Sometimes there's an obvious rash or bruising around his eye that goes along with an offending food, sometimes there's not and it's just behavioral reactions we see. We've determined 13 foods he's sensitive to. We've determined them all through food journaling and trial elimination. His texture sensitivities affect his mouth, so the list of foods that he will actually eat is pretty short. That makes it a bit easier for us in one way - it's easier to suspect which food is a problem, because he tries so few new foods. On the other hand, there's less we can substitute when doing trial elimination, so we have to do it carefully and not all at once. One thing he's sensitive to is cow dairy, but instead of going dairy free, my first step was changing to goat dairy. Thankfully that worked for him (it won't work for everyone). He also has problems with rice and oat, but wheat seems to be okay for now. He's also got sensitivity to a number of different fruits, but we've found a few that he can have, thankfully.

The thing that makes it tough is that he also has a reaction to a specific type of tree pollen. So when he's reacting to that, it's hard to sort out food issues at the same time. We just have to do food sleuthing away from tree pollen season for that tree.

Finally, you also want to avoid any foods he's sensitive to that also might appear in his personal products (shampoo, creams, etc.). If you haven't looked at the ingredients on those, you might be surprised at the variety of food ingredients in them.

[HealthHomeHappy]

We do GAPS (it's a gut healing diet, grain and sugar free) for my ASD 4yo and my NT 2yo is on it most of the time. My NT 2-year old gets ADDish and pretty defiant even if he has non-gluten grains. We tried GFCF and saw improvement at first, then regression so we moved to GAPS. In our case, with all 3 of us (I try these diets along with them for support, at least in the beginning) we see a noticeable improvement within 24-72 hours and it has done wonders for my 4yo's sensory issues.