gluten-free,casein free diet

[fm1]

We've decided to try the gluten-free,casein-free diet for the benefit of our daughter with autism, but in truth, the whole family will probably be on it to make it easier for her. (I'm sure it will be harder for me to do BE but anyways...)
Anyone used this diet and have some advice, hints, or anything?
Thanks so much for your support,
fm1

[Novelia]

fm1 said:

We've decided to try the gluten-free,casein-free diet for the benefit of our daughter with autism, but in truth, the whole family will probably be on it to make it easier for her. (I'm sure it will be harder for me to do BE but anyways...)
Anyone used this diet and have some advice, hints, or anything?
Thanks so much for your support,
fm1

I am on this diet and will be for life. I have benefitted tremendously. Gluten and casein, for those who are sensitive, can mess with hormones, and are part of the reason why I ended up with low estridiol in my 20s (I'm 35 now). With the advice of some friends online, I had testing done by Enterolab at the beginning of last year www.enterolab.com . This lab is cutting edge. I found out that I am both gluten and casein intolerant, which explained my rather mysterious health ailments over the years. As you may know, gluten intolerance does not always lead to full blown Celiac Disease. And yes, autism and gluten and casein are linked in many cases, as is Asperger's Syndrome.

There is an excellent support group for this called Gluten and Casein Free Native Nutrition. The members follow a traditional diet (plenty of naturally raised animal products, etc. and good fats that are also great for BE, if you read some of the things posted here). The link is
health.groups.yahoo.com/group/GFCFNN/
One of the members, a woman named Heidi, posts frequently and knows a great deal about the effects on the mind. She has Asperger''s, but has improved since going gluten and casein free. It may be surprising to read some of the dietary recommendations, but not so suprising when you do research and look at history. Worth a look! Really nice people in that group. They will be happy to help in any way that they can. Lots of science types and everyone is open to natural methods of healing instead of Rx drugs.

[Novelia]

Here are some sites that may be of interest to you:

www.pecanbread.com - a site with many kid-friendly recipes for the SCD (Specific Carbohydrate Diet). The SCD was originally develped for people with Celiac Disease.

www.paleofood.com - all recipes are gluten and casein free

www.celiac.com - great information about gluten sensitivity

bodyecology.com/autism.php - Donna Gates, the creator of the Body Ecology Diet, is very interested in how diet can contribute to autism and ADD. Worth a look, maybe?

members.cox.net/harold.kraus/gluten.htm -
Harold Kraus' comprehensive site about gluten intolerance. Harold (who is gluten intolerant and has Asperger's Syndrome) has done a really impressive job collecting information on this subject. This site is one of the favourites of the GFCFNN group for this reason. I found it during many hours of searching for information online.

Special dietary notes:

Although oats are technically gluten free, most are contaminated by gluten during processing, so they should be avoided, sadly. I was still eating oats for a long time after going gluten free, wasn't doing as well as I had hoped, discovered this, omitted oats and did much better (gluten was contributing to my problems with chronic fatigue syndrome and related things (fibromyalgia).

Many people find that coconut milk is a great substitute for
milk both to drink and in recipes. Wilderness Family Naturals www.wildernessfamilynaturals.com has some nice coconut products, including coconut flour.

Contamination by wheat and the other gluten grains (barley, rye, kamut, spelt, triticale) is common, so be sure to check labels carefully and, ideally, don't buy things from bulk bins.

I hope that you find some of this helpful. I've been researching this for over a year.

[fawnmarie]

You might also want to start out with a heavy-metal cleanse.

Fawn

[fm1]

Thanks for that information, I'll check it out. I'm going to ease into it to make it easier, and we'll see if there are any changes. I tried to put my family on a low glycemic diet a couple of years ago because it seems so sensible to me , but I gave up pretty easily after my husband kept coming home with bags of bread! How do you fill a man without bread, pasta & potatos?! This time I'll stick to it with short term goals.
Anyways, thanks a lot!
fm1