Will a Special Diet Help Your Child?by Kristyn Crow | More from this Blogger 26 Sep 2006 06:16 PM
The Brain Thrives on Good Nutrition One thing is certain: all human beings are benefited by a healthy, nutritious diet. Our brains and nervous systems function better when we're taking in the right vitamins, minerals, and nutrients. For children who are already struggling with brain processing disorders, a balanced diet is certainly a necessity. Children on the autism spectrum (and other conditions) often have digestive problems or compromised immune systems. If their bodies are not absorbing nutrients properly, this can deprive the brain. Jacqueline McCandless, M.D. has written a book called, Children with Starving Brains, which addresses this fact. Clearly, the role your child's diet is playing in his disability should be carefully considered. Is Diet a Factor in Your Child's Behaviors or Medical Problems? Observe your child carefully and ask yourself the following questions:
Chart Your Child's Eating Patterns Determining whether dietary factors are playing a role in your child's problem behaviors is a difficult undertaking. It requires charting what your child is eating, at what times, and when you are noticing the problem behaviors or signs of poor health. Along with charting and taking notes, you will need to experiment with removing various ingredients from the diet and watching for reactions. However, some parents report that making dietary changes was well worth the effort for their son or daughter's well-being. Ultimately you must decide what is best for your child. You know him or her better than anyone else, and you've got parental instinct. Know What Makes a Healthy Diet Honestly, do you know exactly what kind of meals your child needs for optimum health? Many parents don't. Maybe this is a good time to start educating yourself. Here is an excellent website for understanding good nutrition for children: Kids Health for Parents And here is a fun website for kids, with an interactive game that helps them "learn" about the food pyramid and other healthy facts: United States Department of Agriculture Blast Off Food Pyramid Game In my home...
Do you have a success story involving changes you made to your child's diet? Please feel free to share it. Kristyn Crow is the author of this blog. Visit her website by clicking here. Some links on this blog may have been generated by outside sources are not necessarily endorsed by Kristyn Crow. Learn more about Kristyn Crow  Kristyn Crow is the mother of seven children, and the author of three children's books. Visit her website at www.kristyncrow.com. Relevantspecial needs tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags diet, eating problems, food allergies, nutrition, special diet Discuss this article
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Parents of children with special needs often get recommendations from other parents about putting their kid on a specialized diet. "I took my son off all artificial colors and additives and his hyperactivity went away," or, "When my daughter stopped eating processed foods, her ADHD improved," or "No more sugar for my son. It makes him lose focus," etc. Some people swear that hyperactivity is caused by food allergies. It can be confusing for parents of newly-diagnosed children to know whether or not to pursue some of these dietary suggestions, and if so, which ones. 
I've been trying to improve my family's general nutrition in my home. One thing I have done is to prepare salmon once a week. I'm able to buy a very large salmon filet for about $15.00 at Costco. It will feed our entire family of nine, without leftovers. (People think they can't afford salmon, but for our family, eating at McDonalds would cost a lot more.) It's also very easy to prepare. A nutrition expert on the Oprah Winfrey show said that salmon, with its fish oils and other properties, was the "healthiest food a human could consume." He said that ideally we should be eating salmon three or four times a week or more. That's a bit much for us right now, but I figure if I can cook it once a week, I'm contributing to better health for my family. My kids look forward to our Sunday salmon dinners. 
