A Favorite Snackbar

Finding packaged foods Jordan can eat and is good for him is a very difficult task. On my way through Costco a couple weeks ago, I see Mrs. Mays has a box of bars. Hmm, that holds possibilities. 

The first thing I check - the ingredient list, because it always tells the real story. My priorities -Jordan's allergens first, health a very close second. I'm pleasantly surprised.  It's mainly nuts, seeds and fruit. Although it does have evaporated cane juice, it's second to last on the list and there are no chemicals listed!  There are 3 different varieties, Acai Strawberry, Pomegranate Blueberry, Goji Cranberry so they vary slightly, but here is the list for the Pomegranate Blueberry: cashews, almonds, pistachios, blueberries, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, dates, pumpkin seeds, raisins, rice malt, natural flavors, freeze dried pomegranate powder, evaporated cane juice, sea salt.


They are gluten-free and dairy free, along with no preservatives! No only that - the boys (not to mention my husband and I) love them.

The only down-side is that they are somewhat crumbly, so I make sure they are eaten at the table or outside, not in the car.

At just under $16 for a box of 20, they are less than $1. per bar!!! By Jordan's food standards, for a packaged food, that's a deal!

A Journey Through The Digestive System

Digestive Wellness for Children – Chapter 3

DIGESTION. In very basic terms, the digestive system is a 25+ foot tube that starts at the mouth and ends at the rectum. It includes the mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, pancreas, liver, gallbladder and large intestine. It is the basis for the body’s nutrient supply system – turn food into particles the cells can use for energy, maintenance, repair, growth – and a block, malfunction or failure in one part impedes the effectiveness everything downstream. We never really think much about our digestive system, unless we have a problem.

MOUTH. It is an amazing, intricate system. It actually starts with our mouth and how well we chew! Foods need to be broken into small particles, not swallowed as large chunks, so that enzymes can later finish breaking them down.

ESOPHAGUS AND STOMACH. The esophagus is a tube that takes food from the mouth down to the stomach. In the stomach hydrochloric acid (HCI), enzymes, and the contractions of the stomach work to kill bacteria that can cause food poisoning, break protein bonds and begins breaking down fats. The stomach has completed its job when food is liquefied into chyme.

SMALL INTESTINE. Averaging around 17 feet long, if stretched, the small intestine in the primary area where absorption of nutrients takes place. However, that isn’t all that takes place – a lot happens in the small intestine. Digestion of food is completed and nutrients are absorbed through the intestinal wall and into the blood stream. It also blocks the absorption of harmful things like chemicals, large food particles, etc. Also in the small intestine are billions of beneficial microbes that are critical to general health and to a strong immune system. 70% of the immune system is located in the gut.

PANCREAS, LIVER, AND GALLBLADDER. These organs all play a role in the digestive system. The pancreas although often thought of in its role of balancing blood sugars also plays key roles in digestion and absorption of nutrients through the production of enzymes.

The liver creates bile to emulsify fats, breaks down hormones, is critical in the processing of nutrients, chemicals, and drugs that are in the blood, determining which to keep, which to change, and which to eliminate. If the liver is congested, these functions can be greatly compromised.

The gallbladder stores bile for when a supply is needed. Bile emulsifies fats and breaks down fat soluble vitamins.

LARGE INTESTINE. The large intestine is primarily responsible for reabsorbing water back into the body and eliminating waste. Like the small intestine it contains beneficial microbes, necessary for health, digestion, disease protection, and the production of certain vitamins. The main issues to be aware of with the colon are frequency of movement and transit time. Ideally, you should have two to three bowel movements a day. And food should take between 12 and 24 hours from mouth to elimination. Anything less (diarrhea) or more (constipation) will have effects on health.

MY COMMENTS. The digestive system is a critical basis for health. The simplest things can make big differences – chewing food well (drink your food and chew you drinks!), taking digestive enzymes or eating raw foods, making sure the gut bacteria is balanced with beneficial bacteria, keeping the liver decongested.

For all children with multiple allergies, and for a huge percentage of autistic children, the health of the digestive system is the key to reversing the issues, particularly regaining the functioning of the small intestine and enzymes. At least 70% of the immune system is in the gut, specifically the small intestine. One of the common supplements used for autistic kids is L-glutamine, one of the reasons is because the small intestine uses L-glutamine (an amino acid) to repair itself and for energy. The small intestine is also where yeast starts to overgrow and can create leaky gut syndrome, a huge issue for many of these kids, but more about that in a couple of weeks.

Elimination is also key. These kids are sick because they are toxic. They have to eliminate toxins. The 4 avenues of elimination are: the lungs, the skin, the colon, and the urinary system. As relates to the digestive system, toxic kids need a decongested liver and bowels that move regularly. The liver needs to be able to filter the toxins out and the bowel needs to get rid of them, otherwise the toxins just keep recirculating.

Sorry Sweetie, You're Allergic: Explaining Allergies To Children

A very difficult part of food allergies or autism, if you are sticking to a diet, is explaining to the child that they can't eat what someone, or everyone, else is eating. As every child is different, I'm sure ways of explaining and what works will be different as well. I'll share what has worked for us.

For foods that he has an obvious reaction to such as dairy, which results in stomach pains and vomiting, it's not too difficult. "Sorry sweetie, that makes you sick; but this doesn't you may have this."

Foods that may not have such an obvious reaction can be a bit more difficult. For us, gluten is the most difficult to explain. It doesn't make him physically sick, in fact there are no signs of it bothering him, except that after weeks of eating it, he struggles with his speech and his communication abilities greatly diminish. When it is removed from his diet, 3 weeks later he is speaking great again. Because he wants to eat some of the other things that have an obvious reaction, I have explained that we are working to help his body heal, so someday he can eat those things.  When he wants to eat something with gluten (or junk food that he isn't allergic to) in it, instead of explaining that it will make him sick - because one of these days he'll try it and happily tell me that, "It doesn't make me sick!" when he doesn't see any affect from eating it - I explain that, "It isn't good for your body and won't help your body heal."  He often replies, "But, when my body is healed, I'll be able to have it?" Depending on what the item is, makes a difference in my answer. If it's healthy, I'll say, " Yes, when your body has healed, you'll be able to eat it." If it's not healthy, I'll say, "Yes, someday you may be able to eat it, but it still won't be good for you."

It has been my experience that helping him understand that certain foods make him sick or prevent his body from healing has really helped with him wanting foods he can't have and accepting an suitable alternative. I also always keep something he can eat in my purse - a Larabar or dehydrated fruit strip. Even if he can't have what everyone else is having, at least he can have something that he likes very much.

Digestive Wellness For Children - Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Our Kids: Overfed and Undernourished

The focus of this chapter revolves around lifestyle challenges parents face, particularly in the area of what we eat. What is normal today is actually causing us to be unhealthy: fast food, processed food, and refined sweeteners.

We are eating a lot of food, but not getting the nutrients our bodies need. The average person gets 50% of daily calories from high calorie, low nutrient foods. Even when we eat “healthy” foods, they aren’t what they used to be in terms of nutrient density. For example, broccoli has only half the amount of calcium it had 50 years ago. Cauliflower has 40% the vitamin C.

The biggest issue is the food choices we make. Foods like soft drinks and refined sugar consume minerals from the body and do not add any to it. Minerals are critical for the functioning of the body from the operation of the cell and bone strength, to nerve, brain and muscle function. Eating out has surpassed home cooking as the option of choice for food. We spend $110. billion on fast foods, where we spent $6 billion in 1970.

Our bodies are made up of the things we eat. If we don’t eat the nutrients that fuel our bodies, deficiencies show up, manifesting first as things like irritability, lack of attention, mood swings. Is it surprising us that 20% of children have learning and behavior problems?


What Do We Eat per Person per Year? (Statistics from the USDA, 2001)

• 142 pounds of caloric sweeteners
• corn sweeteners (79.2 pounds/person) –increased significantly from previous usage
• beet and cane sugar (61 pounds/person) –dropped significantly from previous usage
• 24.3 gallons of coffee
• 87.9 pounds of added fats and oils – 32.5 pounds of hydrogenated vegetable shortening
• 26.7 quarts of ice cream sherbet, frozen yogurt, and ice milk
• 25.1 gallons of alcohol – 21.6 as beer
• 46.4 gallons of soft drinks
• 4.2 pounds of potato chips
• 22 pounds of candy
• 38 donuts

My Comments:
Food is the area that I think is one of the hardest for people to change. We love our food. We eat for pleasure and comfort. Certain foods are connected with special events. And, we are so pressed for time, convenience becomes critical. Whatever the reason, what we eat is a very personal issue and is difficult to change because we don’t want to change, we like our food and the convenience. To change involves sacrifice. Yet, if we don’t give some things up and start eating differently from the standard American diet (SAD) eventually we will become sick, especially our kids because they likely never had a good nutritional foundation. When we begin to think of everything we eat as moving us toward health or away from it, it can make the choices and changes easier.

This strikes at the heart of autism and allergies. Anything nutrient deficient does not move my son toward health. Anything processed - hydrogenated oils, refined sugar, corn sweeteners, antibiotic and hormone laden meat, food colors - they all work to damage his body further rather than toward restoring healthy function. We have stayed far away from these things and have worked to feed him excellent nutrition, seeing everytime he takes a bite as an opportunity to give his body vitamins, minerals, fats, etc that he needs. We are are seeing great results (with additional supplementation, of course. When the bank account of nutrients is so extremely deficient it needs some major deposits)! 

Welcome to Food Allergy 911

This blog is inspired by my son, Jordan, who was allergic to all food, except sweet potato. Doctors were not able to help him. I researched the causes of allergies in order to save his life. Later, we learned he had autism as well. The causes behind allergies and autism are related along with asthma and ADHD. The purpose of this blog is to help others who find themselves with health issues, particularly allergies and autism. Although the principles used to recover from allergies and autism are health principles that are good for everyone. Originally, we made changes in our lives for Jordan, now our whole family practices these health principles, although not as rigidly as Jordan does.

Jordan has caught up to his age appropriate level of relating to others, speech ability, his sensory issues are gone, and his gross motor skills and coordination continue to improve. No one would ever guess that he ever had autism. His allergies are still in the process of healing and continue to diminish.

If your looking to overcome autism, allergies, asthma or ADHD or simply looking to live healthier lives, you will find help here.