Diet Number Two:
THE SPECIFIC FOOD REACTION DIET
In addition to the more generalized gluten-free, casein-free diet, I also place
virtually all children on an individually designed diet that restricts all of the specific
foods to which that particular child may be reactive.
This specific food reaction diet, which is also commonly referred to as an anti-
allergy diet, is of vital importance. It’s hard for most kids to recover from 4-A
disorders if they do not go on this diet. It’s really that important.
Food reactions – including (1) IgE allergies, (2) IgG sensitivities, and (3)
intolerances – run rampant among the 4-A population. It is rare for me to meet a
child with a 4-A disorder who does not experience at least some food reactions.
You will need to learn the differences among these three types of food reactions in
order to best help your own child to recover from them.
These food reactions include reactions to gluten and casein, which are present in
about 60% of all the children with autism that I treat, and they are also common
among other 4-A kids. However, even more 4-A kids have at least some mild,
isolated reactions to other, specific foods. Many have severe reactions to a
number of specific foods.
Testing is the first step of the specific food reaction diet. It determines the foods
your child reacts to. There are three basic form of testing:
(1) skin testing
(2) blood testing
(3) elimination challenge testing (in which a patient eats a food to see if it causes
a reaction).
I generally recommend that patients first do a blood test, or occasionally a skin
test, and then confirm the results with elimination challenge testing. Elimination
challenge testing is the most reliable way to diagnose food intolerances, but it can
be difficult.
Talk to your doctor about testing for allergies, sensitivities, and intolerances. You
may find that many conventional allergists are far more concerned with classic
allergies than they are with sensitivities and intolerances, which some of them
tend to dismiss as unimportant. In my opinion, though, sensitivities and
intolerances can cause a great deal of harm, particularly when there are a
relatively large number of them. The harm from each may not be especially
damaging, but the cumulative effect is sometimes devastating.
Determining food reactions can be tricky. But stick with it. It can make a great deal
of difference is your child’s recovery.
