I was reading an article in the magazine put out by Goodness Me, the health food store in my area. The article was about how food can affect the development and behaviour in your child, and I was immediately hooked.
My son, Alexander, is autistic. He is high functioning, but there are things in school where he is behind, naturally. I want to do my part in giving him the best - I want his development to be encouraged along. Now, I'm not entirely sure what will do it, but after reading this article, I'm going to run a little experiment with the food we feed both Alexander and Isabel.
Now, Alexander is the kind of boy that likes his routine. He likes eating more or less the same thing every day; it gives him a sense of comfort. He is also really picky about the vegetables he eats - he doesn't eat any, unless they are mashed potatoes, smothered in butter. That is going to change - sorry, buddy. Isabel loves meat and veggies - she's not a fan of starches to begin with. Here is what we are currently feeding them.
Breakfast:
- Smooth & Creamy yogurt
- Honey Nut Cheerios
- vitamins: multi vitamin, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, Omega 3,6,9s
Lunch (to school - nut free):
- sandwich with butter and jam (whole grain bread)
- unsweetened apple sauce
- Black Diamond cheese string
- banana chocolate chip mini loaf (from Costco)
Supper:
- whatever we are eating, which usually is grilled chicken breast with steamed veggies and some sort of starch, like quinoa or rice, sometimes potatoes or sweet potatoes.
Snacks:
- he likes bananas, hard-boiled eggs, Bear Paw cookies, gluten free pretzels and apples - to name a few.
So for the next four weeks - starting November 25 - I will be taking out the wheat and most dairy from their diet and replacing it with gluten and dairy free options. Here is what I'm thinking:
Breakfast:
- Shakeology - vegan chocolate flavour
- vitamins (same as above)
Lunch:
- sandwich with butter and jam (gluten-free bread)
- unsweetened apple sauce
- hard-boiled egg
- gluten free pretzels
Supper:
- we'll probably remove rice from most dinners, replacing it with quinoa. But other than that, we don't need to change much else.
Snacks:
- grapes, almonds, apples, bananas.
This does mean that we will have to hide the gluten-filled food and cheese sticks for a while, but I'm sure we can find a space to put them. Isabel won't be happy, but this might be a good thing for her too.
At the end of every week, I will post about how the week went and if there was any significant changes in my kids.
