This show is dedicated to teaching you the details of how gluten can destroy the gut and cause a myriad of problems in our sensory kids, as well as the general population, so don’t think this episode is just for children, it may be for you too! I will explain what gluten is, how it affects children when “leaky gut” syndrome is suspected, explain the difference between a gluten sensitivity, a gluten allergy, and having Celiac Disease, give you a list of foods that have gluten in them, and a list of gluten-free foods, and then share some websites with you so you can continue to learn about this topic.

Gluten is the sticky protein that comes from many starchy foods.  It holds bread and pastry products together, like pasta, cakes, crackers, and dressings and sauces that have a thickness to them (more than an oil and vinegar-based consistency).

Leaky Gut Syndrome is a condition that has been scientifically validated mostly by alternative doctors in this country.  This term refers to very tiny perforations or tears of the lining of the intestines, which reportedly lead to excessive absorption of microbial toxins and allergens from food proteins that haven’t been broken down or digested properly.  This can result in toxic overload. It’s not yet known if this is a genetic disorder, if it’s present at birth, if it’s due to environmental factors, the overuse of antibiotics (resulting in a yeast overgrowth in the intestines), or related to immunizations or other unknown factors.

When foods are not properly and fully broken down in the intestine, they get absorbed through the intestine wall and then identified as a toxin in our blood stream.  This travels to every part of our body and can therefore cause interruptions in many different bodily functions and processes.  It is thought that untreated yeast overgrowth can cause this damage to the colon and turn into candida.  Candida is a barbed, toxic fungus that is very difficult to kill completely, as it pokes itself into the wall of the intestines.  Some medications and treatment remedies for candida can decrease the overall load of candida in the digestive tract, but it’s hard to kill off the roots that have imbedded themselves into the lining of the gut.

When gluten is not broken down & digested properly in the colon it can present itself as a gliadomorphin, which has been shown to have an opiate-like affect on the body and brain, often affecting areas of the brain such as the temporal lobes, involving speech and auditory integration.  These opiates are a type of narcotic often craved by people who react in this way to gluten. Opiates are like morphine and heroin, they reduce pain and induce pleasure, and are hence reasons why people may feel addicted to gluten-based foods and appear to be drugged, in a fog, or zoned out.

An allergist can test for a gluten allergy, or in the most extreme case, they diagnose Celiac Disease. This is a condition in where the body has an extreme allergic reaction to the smallest amounts of gluten, causing damage to the intestines.  In these cases, gluten needs to be avoided at all costs.  IgG and IgE blood tests can provide more information to identify a gluten sensitivity, as they look at immediate reactions and delayed response reactions.  It has been said by various professionals that it takes up to 3-12 months to completely get rid of all traces of gluten that are currently present in the body, while others have said it takes a few weeks to a few months.  This is an example of how scientific data varies, and each client’s body is different.  Pediatricians and primary care doctors should be able to write a prescription for a urine peptide test now that can tell if you have improperly broken down proteins in the urine causing this leaky gut response.

Gluten sensitivities may result in frequent diarrhea, poor mental functioning, thyroid diseases, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, Grave’s disease, depression, anemia, early bone disease, Downs Syndrome, eczema and infertility, etc…

Gluten is often hidden in:
Bread crumbs found in your peanut butter/jelly jar and/or toaster, frozen French fries, ketchup, laxatives, ice cream, mayonnaise, caramel flavoring or coloring, soups, stamps, play dough, toothpaste, mouthwash, wallpaper paste, dextrin, maltodextrin, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, lactic acid, modified food starch, natural flavorings or ingredients, artificial flavorings, wheat products, rice syrup, soy sauce, malt vinegar, barley, white flour, bulgar wheat, cake flour, cereal, croutons, farina, graham crackers, hydrolyzed oats and vegetable proteins, kamut, malt, milk, pasta, rice syrup, rye, sauce mixes (as a slight thickeners), soba noodles, and many vitamins & medicines.

Some Gluten-free foods are:
Fish, chicken, beef (all meats), vegetables, fresh fruit, and nuts, as well as cornmeal, corn, brown rice, white rice, millet, buckwheat, soy flour, beans, flaxseed, tapioca flour, quinoa, applesauce, corn flakes, corn chips, potato chips, and cheese.  All packaged food should have a proper warning label if they have any top allergic ingredients in their products (look in the organic section if they have one).  More and more grocery stores are carrying organic and gluten free products on their shelves.  Any time breads, crackers, pastries, sauces and/or dressings are desired, you will need to make sure the package has a “gluten free” label on the front or back. Corn, soy and milk are replacement ingredients which may have their own separate reactions, depending on the person and his or her nervous system.

Here are just a few common websites to teach and guide you toward having greater knowledge on gluten, as chances are, if you found this podcast you are already pretty savvy on the computer in order to do further searches:

www.gfcfdiet.com

www.gluten.net

www.autismdiet.com

www.celiac.org

Best of health!

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Thanks Jen for coming back this week to share more about your struggles to help your son Ben, and to provide the listeners with tips and recommendations you can offer, after all that you have gone through in your great attempts to raise Ben. His greatest challenges have been related to getting through the school year without his processing difficulties being understood or validated, and his social challenges have been another great challenge for him in and out of the school environment.

Jen shared with us how she and her husband found services for Ben over the past few years and what they have done to help him get through his kindergarten school year, so he could gain public funding through the McKay scholarship to help pay for private schooling of the family’s choice for the following school year. Jen emphasized the fact that Ben’s needs change and their personal funding changes each year, so they seek community resources that are the best match for them at the time. They are currently receiving Occupational Therapy to address his eye contact when speaking to others, to help him control his behaviors and emotional outbursts, and to help him and his parents understand sensory processing and activities they can do at home to help him process and function better on a day-to-day basis. He also has received behavioral therapy, and is currently enrolled in music therapy and takes a dance class, both which he loves!

Next year is will be attended a private school that has very small class sizes with teachers who have extensive background training in Autism and behavioral interventions and a sensory therapist on staff who works with every child on campus, on a weekly basis.

Jen offered great recommendations on this podcast for teachers in order to be better equipped to handle children with sensory-based difficulties, like Ben. Her recommendations included:

1. Be aware of how fast things are changing around you (i.e.- research, & the prevalence of children with varying needs and difficulties, etc. ..)

2. Don’t be afraid to take little steps toward trying something new to help a child, even if you haven’t done such a thing before.

3. You are encouraged as the teachers of today to not necessarily go off of what you may think about a child from past experiences (as no two children are the same), but to look at each child’s individual needs.

For all parents out there, Jen strongly feels that if you keep your problems a secret, then you can’t get help. She encourages everyone to speak up and share their difficulties with others, so others can learn and be helpful. Jen’s job to help Ben: be his best; have a good day at school; learn how to socialize with friends successfully; and control his emotions is a job that is very exhausting and emotionally draining. She encourages parents out there to be partners with each other, work together as a team, spend their own time with each child, and then to learn to ask for help from others, and then take it when it’s offered!

Jen feels that life is a marathon, not a sprint, and the “people” she and her husband have found to help them are more valuable than the specific treatment that each professional has provided. So parents out there, connect yourselves with great people that you feel confident with, and make sure to keep yourselves surrounded by supportive people, not just the nice people, but the nice ones who are great at helping your child make steady gains. Thanks again Jen, your stories and feedback are invaluable!

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One of many challenges Jen came across was dealing with the public school staff in order to help Ben be understood by his teachers and peers. This was an extremely hard time as Ben attended an ESE pre-K program and then was mainstreamed into kindergarten with speech therapy.

Jen describes how no one took the time to really understand his difficulties. This resulted in major anxiety, increased frustration and a strong desire to not want to go back to school. His teachers perceived his behavior as manipulative and thought he was acting out being hypersensitive to sounds so that he didn’t have to eat in the lunchroom. This was clearly due to having any of the following: low tone, difficulty with sensory processing and filtering, and certainly from an absent acoustic reflex.

Jen shares her daily difficulties as well as her victories that have helped Ben make some great overall gains. Tune in for details on this week’s episode, and then next week we will have Jen back to talk about tips and recommendations for teachers and struggling parents. Thanks Jen!

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