<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>
We went through a similar process when our daughter was diagnosed--a
miraculous turnaround in temperament, personality, energy, and health,
followed several weeks later by what seemed to be a relapse. Allergy
testing revealed multiple food allergies and sensitivities, and we had
to relearn everything we thought we knew about food and nutrition. Here
are a few tips for Peter (I hope these are not duplicates):
*As others have pointed out, Rice Dream is not GF. You can make your own
rice milk by pureeing cooked rice with water till you get the right
consistency. You might also want to add a GF calcium supplement to this.
*Peanut butter is a common allergen; try some other nut butters, like
almond or hazelnut, or spreads, like sunflower seed spread. They're more
expensive than peanut butter, but well worth it if Peter will eat them
as a protein source.
*Try some variations on the bean/legume theme. Our whole family enjoys
fried chickpea patties, and the same concept works with almost any
veggie. Just mash the veggie (chickpeas, squash, whatever), add enough
GF flour to hold it together in patties, and fry in GF oil.
*Try stew or soup. The meat and veggies should be very tender and easy
to mash up for him. If he doesn't eat the actual soup, maybe he'll at
least drink the stock and get nutrients that way.
*Be creative with the presentation. At that age (and later), our
daughter enjoyed it when I made faces out of her food and we joked about
eating the eyes, mouth, hair, and so on. (For instance, ears out of
sliced apples, kiwi eyes, alfalfa sprouts for hair, whatever strikes
your fancy.)
*If he's having URI's, he'd probably like some sort of frozen shake
concoction to soothe his throat. Maybe a special straw with a favorite
character on it will make him more likely to drink such a shake.
I would highly recommend allergy testing to determine problem foods,
along with keeping a food/reaction journal to see if you can pick up any
patterns that testing might miss. Good luck with this situation.
--Trisha in New York
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