Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Holy Moly. What Do We Eat Now?

I have a trio of fun giveaways going on right now:

Family calendar giveaway from BusyBodyBook right here.

JumpStart Get Moving Family Fitness game for the Wii right here.

Spinbrush MyWay! (for girls) battery operated toothbrush right here.

***

Mister Man is special needs. We've known this for a really long time - we've been in early intervention since he was 17 months old (and would have been in earlier, but it took that long to go through the bureaucracy). We got the official diagnosis of autism in April.

I know that people with autism frequently have allergies. And I know that their allergies are expressed differently than some others. Rather than being anaphalactic or hives, they tend to be behavioral based - aggression, hyperactivity, stimming, impulsivity, etc. When my mom eats something she's allergic to, she gets horrible migraines. When Little Miss eats an allergen, she has issues with her lungs, sinuses, GI tract, etc. I suppose this shouldn't be a surprise to me.

Today, we finally got the results from Mister Man's allergy tests. I'm still stunned. I'm still freaking out. I'm still struggling to figure out how to do this. To give you a sense:

Foods To Avoid Completely
Dairy
Cane sugar (any and all forms of it)
Bananas
Strawberries
Beef
Salmon
Peanuts
Chocolate
Cocoa powder
Coconut
Grapes

Foods To Eat No More Than Once A Week (mild allergens)
Soy
Eggs
Honey
Molasses
Peaches
Cranberries
Walnuts

Foods We Can Eat (thank goodness!)
Wheat (phew)
Corn (phew)
Chicken
Bison
Tuna
Turkey
Quinoa
Flax
Cinnamon
Beet sugar
Agave
Maple Syrup
Cacao (not cocoa)
Garlic
Rice
Blueberries
Pineapple
Apples
Oranges
Carrots
Corn
Potatoes
Lemon
Lime
Tomato
Fish Oil (sans salmon)
Sesame
Almonds
Sunflower seeds

Dairy? Dairy I've learned to avoid thanks to Little Miss. And thankfully, wheat is ok. But beef? And cane sugar? Do you have any idea how many foods have sugar in them?

PB&J is gone for good. Sushi - can't do the soy sauce. Cheeseburgers? Pfffft. Turkey bacon? It has sugar in it. Bread? Good luck finding a commercial bread without sugar of some sort. My homemade pizza? My s'mores pizza? Smoothies? Gone, gone and gone.

Did I mention we have three birthdays in my family we're celebrating in four days starting Saturday? And that we also have a classmate's birthday party this weekend? Apparently I'm going to add sugar free baking to my repetoire awfully quickly.

And now I'm freaking out about all the things we didn't test. The salt and parsley I put in our quinoa tonight? Oops. The basil and oregano I use all the time for seasoning? Pears? Cherries? Plums? The list goes on and on.

So if you see me rocking in a corner over the next few weeks, you'll understand why. My brain exploded today, and I'm still looking for the pieces.

11 comments:

Tara R. July 28, 2010 at 7:19 AM  

Holy Moley!! That's one harsh 'avoid' list. Maybe a nutritionist could help with substitution suggestions. This makes me wonder about whether my son is reacting to food allergens... that would explain some of his behavior if that's what it is.

Food for though... (had to be said.)

Hyacynth July 30, 2010 at 9:55 PM  

Oh, Michelle. I would be so completely overwhelmed, too.
But I've switched to Agave nector and using bison meat, both of which are wonderful. You'll be able to do this. You are crafty in the kitchen.

Michelle July 30, 2010 at 11:26 PM  

Tara - The person who did the testing is a nutritionist and definitely had some ideas. It's just getting used to it. Andddd maybe something to think about for you - I hadn't even thought of that.

Hyacynth - Actually, thinking about what we CAN do, it's not so bad. It's only when you focus on what you CAN'T do that it gets overwhelming. I'm in a different place right now. For now ;)

Mary~Momathon July 31, 2010 at 12:34 AM  

So sorry you are going through this! It's hard but there are worse problems. Luckily, food is something you can control!

Our 2nd daughter has food allergies and my first response was "food allergy? a person can be allergic to food? are you kidding me!"

When we got our "taboo" food list for our daughter, we went grocery shopping. Walked up and down the aisles in tears wondering what we'd ever eat. What a shock when your menu changes so drastically! We adjusted and it became easy after a while and then became our normal.

Our list was all dairy, beef, chicken, citrus, strawberries, and various odds and ends in the fruits. Borderline on eggs. Did you know most turkey products are injected with chicken fat or chicken broth? And french fries cooked in pure vegetable oil are prepared with beef fat in the french fry factory? Ugh.

Hardest part was eating out. We mastered that too! Best wishes with your list - he will be so much happier without these things in his system.

Pat July 31, 2010 at 9:38 AM  

That's mind-boggling. Did the doc ask if people ever get over any of these allergies, or is it usually life-long? I feel for you. I have no suggestions as no one in my family has ever had any food allergies. It seems like I'm hearing more and more about kids with food allergies. Good luck; I wish the best for you and your family, Michelle.

Sherry @ Lamp Unto My Feet July 31, 2010 at 9:52 AM  

Oh, wow! I can't even imagine.. :(

tracey.becker1@gmail.com July 31, 2010 at 8:09 PM  

Holy Moly is right. Good luck, hon.

Michelle July 31, 2010 at 11:34 PM  

Mary - There absolutely are worse things, but not everyone is on board with this. We're going for a second opinion. But the key is focusing on what you CAN eat, I've found. Fortunately for us, chicken is ok!

Pat - If we are clean for six months, we can try introducing some of the foods periodically to see if he can tolerate them. It isn't a life sentence, so we'll see!

Sherry - I have friends who have it far worse (although the sugar is a kicker) - dairy, corn, soy, rice, gluten in one child.

Tracey - It'll work out. I've already figured out how to do cupcakes!

Alexis AKA MOM August 1, 2010 at 7:01 PM  

Oh lord girl, I don't know how you do it. You rock my dear!

septembermom August 2, 2010 at 7:29 PM  

Wow, I don't know how you do it. I'm just overwhelmed reading this.

Michelle August 2, 2010 at 10:49 PM  

Alexis - Rock? Oh I don't know about that. No matter what you need to do, you do it. It's just how it works.

Kelly - I was, too. But now... there is so much we CAN do - and still things that are easy: sourdough bread with almond butter or tuna fish. Chicken breast or turkey burgers, chicken hot dogs or quinoa. It's all good. I just need to do some planning.

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