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Subject:
From:
Gail Fritz <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Milk/Casein/Lactose-Free List <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Wed, 23 Jan 2002 22:52:48 -0600
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Hi Val, welcome to the list.  I can't help you with the list instructions
you requested but I can talk to you about the PDD issues as they relate to
dairy in my son (4.5 yrs).  He is "officially" dairy allergic and was
finally tested around 22 months-2 yrs.  Until then it was a nightmare
dealing with a chronically ill child that displayed autistic like symptoms.
By the age of 16 months he was diagnosed by different psychologists as
having Aspergers Syndrome or PDD-NOS.  His symptoms were self-injurious
behaviour, repetitive "stimming" and the like.  He also suffers from Sensory
Integration Dysfunction (an inability to correctly process sensory stimulus
resulting in bizarre external behaviours and responses - he "overloads and
short circuits").

When we were seeking intervention for Sensory Integration the SI therapist
recommend we continue to pursue the dairy issue.  We did and discovered the
allergy.  The elimination of dairy ingredients in his diet made a profound
impact on his behaviour.  The allergist described it as having an internal
itch that you can't scratch, so he [my son] would just bounce off the walls
or engage in behaviour that would attempt to redirect his sensory
processing. (Similar to pressing on your head when you have a headache, only
more extreme like banging his head on the tile floor or rubbing his hands on
the carpet until his hand was bloody.)

SI is very common in children that do have PDD and other disorders in the
Autistic spectrum.  I recommend the book The Out of Sync Child (by Carol
Kranowitz).  Dairy elimination will help, but chance are you might want to
learn to see if the child might need SI therapy as well.  It is done through
occupational therapy that you can administer at home... play therapy.  The
book is very educational and also has checklists that you do to decide if
the child fits the profile (most PDD-types do!).

Many Autistics are getting great results from a Gluten-Free/Casein-Free diet
(GFCF).  The "real life" support group I attend, about 70% of the
Autistic/Autism-related children that are on a GFCF diet are showing
improvement.

In our case, the elimination of dairy also eliminated the diagnoses of
Aspergers and PDD.  Now, if my child gets dairy, he may still sit in a
corner for half and hour to sniff and smell a triangle (?????) or he might
beat his head against a wall or spend 20 minutes trying to push a weight
bearing wall down with his bare hands, he may sit in the middle of the room
and scream unintelligible utterances at nobody in particular.... but
Autistic spectrum he is NOT.  Without dairy he is actually a fairly typical
kid.

Fair warning though, if the child is anxiety prone you will have to be
careful that "food issues" don't develop.  When we first started my son on a
dairy free diet he became fearful of ALL food and still carries some food
issues to this day.

Best of luck, I hope something I said may have helped someone.  Sorry for
the length.

Gail

>  Background info:  My grandson is recently diagnosed with PDD (diagnosis =
> within Autistic Spectrum) and we've just begun the process of going to a =
> dairy free diet for him.  I'm looking for  information on what food is =
> milk-free and what is not and how to cope, including coping with the =
> developmental
> delays and behavioral changes sometimes brought on or aggravated by
> milk (Autism, Asperger's, Attention Deficit, etc.) plus support for
> parents with children who suffer from milk-related illnesses

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