Feingold Diet?

ajweeks

New member
OK, my husband and I agreed that we should wait to make a decision about whether or not to try meds with our son until after we have gotten multiple opinions and seen different doctors.

In the meantime, we want to rule out anything we can that might also be affecting his behavior. Many of you on this board eat special diets, have any of you tried Feingold? Is it worth the $69 for their diet booklet and food lists?
 
ADS

scatterbunny

New member
Rebekah (Skaterbabs) does Feingold. I've considered it, but wanted to start with the least invasive/life-changing dietary changes possible, so for us, that was eliminating dairy. We also chose dairy first because that's what dd seems addicted to (sometimes an indication of a sensitivity), and she's a bedwetter (I've heard bedwetters commonly have a sensitivity to dairy). We figure that if dairy doesn't seem to be "enough", we'll try cutting out gluten as well, or try a new route altogether.

I just have to say, GOOD FOR YOU GUYS for wanting to do as much as possible naturally, before moving on to medical/chemical treatment options.
 

LuvBug

New member
Its worth it IMO. Ive touched base with it but have not bought it yet. I had a friend a few years ago that used it with her DS and it worked well for him, so I got a few tips from her including food to avoid. Then most recently a friend of my sister's DS was diagnosed with something that required a diet change... I wish I could remember exactly what he was diagnosed with, hes only like 2-3 so it wasnt mental/emotional like ADD/ADHD but something physical(an ailment to his digestive system I think). Anyway! He was put on the feingold because it is recommended for children with his condition, and as a byproduct his mental/emotional health also changed. He use to be skiddish, hyperactive and hard to understand(even more so for a 2-3yo lol!) and he has quieted down some and is easier to handle(still a 2-3yo though lol!).
So Id say it is definitely worth looking for, and if I can ever remember what his ailment was Ill come back and add it lol!
 

Suzibeck

Active member
YES! I bought it because dh told me to go ahead, probably 2 1/2 years ago. Once it came, he decided he couldn't support me in feeding our kids this way so I never implemented it. I do try to avoid as many of the things on the list as possible, but dh will feed them off list things. Our kids issues are relatively mild however, he would be much more supportive if their issues were major. He is not a bad guy, really.

If you want to implement Feingold, you need to become a member, get the list and the updates. They will email you when something goes off list, which happens with some frequency. You will also get access to their message boards which can be a tremendous help. It isn't always just what is in the food itself, it can be what is sprayed on the packaging, and that is never listed on the label.
 

mamato2

New member
When I was teaching preschool years ago I had a little girl in my class who was on the Feingold Diet. Her mom noticed right off the bat that as a baby she was WAY more sensitive, fussy and just generally unhappy than her other kids. Apparently the change in this child was amazing when they modified her diet. She was a very calm and quiet gentle child when I knew her which was not how she'd been before the diet.
Having seen a child (different one) spin around in circles and literally bounce off furniture due to eating a food he was allergic to, and listening to the little girls mom, (as well as reading studies on allergies) I am convinced that food sensitivities/allergies can be behind many undesirable or inappropriate behaviors.
C.
 

ajweeks

New member
Well it seems like Feingold is the way to go. I have a question about dairy though. I was doing some reading and it seemed to imply that whole milk was acceptable, just not skim or low fat. Is that true?

My only reservation is that we don't eat meat, except for fish, and I want to make sure that we'll be able to make the same sorts of things with modifications.

What about soy and other "fake meat" products that are out there?
 

Lys

Senior Community Member
Dairy is by far worse than eating meat.
Here's a ton of info on dairy
http://www.milksucks.com/more.asp
Also, humans are the only mammals that continue to consume milk after weaning, and it's not even our own species milk that we do consume.
Cow's milk is just that- breastmilk from cows!
 

abacus2

Well-known member
Why all the mystery with the Feingold diet? What are you supposed to avoid? I'm very, very leary of anything you have to buy before you know what you're getting. If you can't even follow it by reading labels, how on earth to you follow it eating out?
 

ajweeks

New member
Well I think the diet charges because they keep a current food list with approved and not approved items. From what I've read, it is sometimes not good enough to even just read labels.

About diet though, do you usually see specific reactions to food before you try a diet? I would think that if your child has a sensitivity to a certain food you would notice a difference always after eating that food. Is this not true? We also already eat a diet that isn't full of sugar, additives and dyes.

I ask because my son is very inconsistent. Yesterday, he had a perfect day at school. He didn't eat anything special yesterday and in fact had OJ at breakfast, which is something Feingold tells you to avoid. He might eat this same food and have a rough day at school, there is no pattern. Would a pattern be hidden somewhere?
 

Suzibeck

Active member
The cost is for the research and keeping up on the information. Companies have to have their products undergo testing in order to be approved for Feingold. They are not required by law to list everything on the label. Nebulus terms like "natural flavors" may or may not have something you can't eat. There are plenty of junk foods items that are OK. I know regular Doritos were OK, when we got the program. I don't know if they have been removed from the list because we have not kept our memebership. The list is huge and constantly changing so it would be very difficult keep the information up to date, not to mention the expense of it. Also, the list is different for different areas, based on foods/brands available. I have no problem paying for that service because I would have no way of knowing without the legwork the Feingold people do. There may be a list of fresh foods somewhere that are OK or not OK, I'm not sure. But that would only help with produce that is completely unprocessed.

An expample, most store bought milk is off limits, there are one or two brands that are OK. It has something to do with the chemicals used is processing the milk. This is not listed on the label so one would have no way of knowing this information if Feingold Assoc. didn't do the leg work for you. Our labeling requirements to not require us to be informed of these "additives".
 

Suzibeck

Active member
About diet though, do you usually see specific reactions to food before you try a diet? I would think that if your child has a sensitivity to a certain food you would notice a difference always after eating that food. Is this not true? We also already eat a diet that isn't full of sugar, additives and dyes.

Yes and No. There is a list of ailments on their website that the diet can help. Everyone will have good days and bad days. From what I've heard, after a child has been on diet for a period of time, reactions from going off diet are very dramatic. This would be in part due to the overall improved behavior and in part to the body reacting more strongly after having some time to heal. Since salicalates (sp?) are found in so many foods, as well as additives and preservatives, it can be very difficult to pinpoint which foods are causing the problem. My kids' biggest trigger is red food dye, avoiding that improves things enough that dh doesn't want the hassel of the whole diet. It takes some getting used to but is very worth while if you have a child who really responds to it. I have no doubt my kids would see more improvement with the full diet, but not enough to warrant the extra work.
 

skaterbabs

Well-known member
We're a Feingold family, and it is ABOLSUTELY worth the cost of member ship to me because they do the research to know which items are free of chemicals but have chemical preservatives on the packaging, or "natural flavoring" that's anything but.

As for the milk issue, the reason whoel milk is recommended over reduced fat is because when you remove the fat from milk you must add a stabalizer (sp). Vitamin A palmitate is then added, and the vit. a palmitate is very often preserved with BHT. But whole milk doesn't need the chemicals added, so ANY brand of whole milk is fine.
 

scatterbunny

New member
Yes, even organic lowfat milk has the stabilizer added. I just shopped around looking at the labels, only whole milk does not have it added. Even Hayley's rice milk and almond milk have vitamin A palmitate. :(
 

southpawboston

New member
Dairy is by far worse than eating meat.
Here's a ton of info on dairy
http://www.milksucks.com/more.asp
Also, humans are the only mammals that continue to consume milk after weaning, and it's not even our own species milk that we do consume.
Cow's milk is just that- breastmilk from cows!

i'm staying neutral on the matter, but just wanted to point out that if you rely on a site called "milksucks.com" then i hardly think you are getting unbiased objective information. :rolleyes:
 
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southpawboston

New member
Yes, even organic lowfat milk has the stabilizer added. I just shopped around looking at the labels, only whole milk does not have it added. Even Hayley's rice milk and almond milk have vitamin A palmitate. :(

palmitate is not bad, it's the BHT added to it as a preservative that's bad. but not all palmitate has BHT added to it; i'd be surprised if organic milk had palmitate WITH BHT. if anyone can actually find direct evidence of it, i'd love to see it!
 

didymama

New member
Dairy is by far worse than eating meat.
Here's a ton of info on dairy
http://www.milksucks.com/more.asp
Also, humans are the only mammals that continue to consume milk after weaning, and it's not even our own species milk that we do consume.
Cow's milk is just that- breastmilk from cows!


umm. must disagree with this. PROCESSED dairy sucks, yes. but milk in it's raw form is highly nutritious. real-milk.org or real-milk .com (brain fart on the right one) has more info.
 

southpawboston

New member
i grew up in an area of many dairy farms, and our neighbors were dairy farmers. i never met a kid who grew up on a dairy farm who had food allergies...
 

scatterbunny

New member
LOL. I also grew up in an area of dairy farms (Tillamook, Oregon--Tillamook County Creamery Association, Tillamook Butter, Tillamook Cheese, etc. etc.; I don't think we're big on the east coast, but we're huge in the western half of the US), and there's a HIGH incidence of ADHD/emotional/behavioral issues in this area. My mom worked for years with special needs students in the public schools here, and now works in the same area in another part of the state.

Anyway, just my take on it--allergies don't always present themselves in "classic" form. Behavioral and emotional problems are not always linked to food, even though it is often the culprit (I'm finding this out first-hand with Hayley).
 

didymama

New member
there are differnt feed methods. conventioal feed is like junk food for cows. pasture fed is far better. this can make a difference. it could also be something else-water issues, dental issues etc.
 

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