Page 62 - Summer 2017 Journal

Dr. Feingold encouraged us to reach out to other families and use the practical experience we had gained to help them test out the program. We knew how to do this since we had received a crash course in what would later be called the Feingold Diet. None of this knowledge was available in other books or at universities; I often tell people that the supermarket was our classroom and our kitchens were the labs (and the guinea pigs were our kids!)
ADDITIVES AND DYES
The diet focused primarily on eating food that is free of synthetic
dyes and artificial flavorings. As an allergist, Dr. Feingold knew that a person can be sensitive to or allergic to virtually anything. But unlike foods such as wheat or peanuts, these additives offer no benefit to the consumer, and simply enable food manufacturers to increase profits by making food with fake ingredients in place of the real thing. In addition, dyes are generally easy to identify in food. Removing them was a good first step as parents looked for the cause(s) of their child’s abnormal behavior.
Dr. Feingold’s primary intent was to show that food (and especially the chemicals added to food) can have a profound effect on behavior.
Dr. Feingold also recognized that the use of food additives had increased dramatically beginning in the late 1940s and had continued to accelerate. A child growing up prior to World War II ingested food dyes and artificial flavorings in the occasional lollipop or Halloween candy; but now these chemicals were added to countless foods. It wasn’t only breakfast cereal, fake orange juice, toothpaste, vitamins and snack foods that contained dyes, but unlikely foods such as applesauce were given strange colors. As with drugs, the dose determines the outcome, and children were being overdosed on these potent chemicals. He saw that the rapid increase in the use of additives coincided with the rapid increase in the number of children who were having serious behavior and learning problems.
The program needs to be simple enough that even the most exhausted mother can try it. A switch from one version of an Eggo frozen waffle to another version is a simple step to take, even for a stressed-out mom.
We parents who used Dr. Feingold’s program learned how to provide alternatives to the things that had previously filled our shopping carts. This was key to our success; we knew that taking away the foods our children enjoyed would fail, but substituting similar products free of the additives would not “leave a bad taste in their mouth.”
In the 1970s most of us were stay-at-home moms, so a little more food preparation was very doable. The dramatic, often rapid change in our children made it more than worthwhile and we were no longer worn down by the daily struggles we once faced. Even if a child accidentally ingested one of the no-no’s and had a reaction, we no longer worried that it was because we were bad parents. We generally could figure out what caused the problem so we could avoid it in the future, and we knew that it wouldn’t be long before the reaction would be over and our real child would be back.
OTHER BENEFITS
The new regimen brought other benefits.
Our formerly picky eaters soon were enjoying the real food we provided, and because they were typically bright, they quickly understood how additives were affecting them. Even three- year-olds, who were not able to pronounce the words, were telling people that they don’t eat “ficials”—artificial additives.
Our kids enjoyed being in control of their own bodies, getting good grades, winning at sports, having friends, and just feeling good. They were happy to eat Mom’s homemade cook- ies instead of the ones from a package; in fact, their friends also preferred the natural versions.
For many parents, the long-term goal of better health is not enough to convince them to improve their diet, but the prospect of three days with a hyperactive child is a terrific motivation!
PRODUCT INFORMATION
Despite the joy of finding solutions to our
child’s behavior problems, we still wanted to be able to use processed foods. It soon became apparent that we needed to have a way to sys- tematically research brand name products, and so our Product Information Committee was formed. Like all of the other aspects of our volunteer work, we taught ourselves how to do this. As food companies became better at hiding ingredients in their foods and in the components of the foods, we have become more skilled at discovering their secrets.
We pooled our knowledge about which processed foods our children tolerated and we developed a detailed questionnaire for the manu- facturers. This enabled us to create lists of “safe” brand name foods and made it easier for the new family to use the program. The food list grew to become a book, and we began to investigate restaurant food, especially the major chains that provided detailed lists of their ingredients.
THE WHOLE FAMILY
The Feingold emphasis is not on eating
better so you won’t get cancer in the future, it’s about preventing your child’s meltdown right
now.As the diet became more “user friendly,” it attracted a larger number of interested parents. Even the more stressed-out mothers saw that they could change from the mac and cheese
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Wise Traditions
SUMMER 2017