Gluten/dairy intolerance - "dippy and slow" child?

[Bumpsadaisie]

I'm wondering if my DD (5) has an intolerance to dairy and/or gluten or something. My DH and my sister are both dairy gluten intolerant (finding this out only in adulthood) and they were both quite "away with the fairies" as children.

My DD is very bright but she is incredibly slow, in her own little world and not on the ball. Of course this may just be 5 year old behaviour but she does seem to take forever to do things compared to her peers.

I am wondering whether to get her to do a York test as I wonder whether some of this behaviour might be intolerance related. My DH and my sister say that if they eat the things they are intolerant to they feel fuzzy and lethargic and slow.

Anyone got any experiences?

Thanks

Give it a go and see what happens - won't do her any harm, and then if you're still concerned take her to the docs

Do you get this test done through your GP?

Not sure if you can get it on the NHS. The York test (comes up on google) is about £250 and they test 250 foods to see if you are intolerant and if so, the degree of intolerance. My DH and sister feel so much better now they have cut out gluten and dairy.

Intolerance is different to being allergic, though I can't quite remember how - is an allergy an immune system response whereas an intolerance isn't? I think the NHS investigate allergies but not intolerances but am sure there are many others on here who might know more than me.

There's a lot of talk about children with ADHD being gluten intolerant, and some making massive improvement after going ona gluten free diet. I wondered wether ds could take this test to determine wether we should go down this road. He's certainly not allergic to it.

well,why don't you cut gluten out of the diet for a coupel o f weeks and see if it has any difference?

OMG this is soooo my DD2.

She's got no clue about anything. She was dairy intolerant and I have stuck to fairy free because I can't trust her even at four to make any sense regarding if she feels ok after eating it regularly.

no idea if gluten is a factor too. Not noticed any problems.but then we are used to her scatty ditsy clueless ways

My understanding is that you can't test for intolerances only allergies. Intolerances need to be diagnosed by exclusion diet. The first thing to do is keep a food /symptom diary.

The York test, from what I have read is not scientifically proven to be a way to determine allergies or intolerances - no evidence that it works. I have a child with dairy intolerance ( exclusion diet diagnosis) and Coeliac disease, she is perfectly 'with it'.

york test is an igG test. and doesnt pin point intolerance allergies very well one way or another.

certainly gut problems can lead to poor concentration and may explain 'fairyness'. but to be frank, there are many causes. Also, worth remembering that children all develop at different times and levels. Time itself may resolve this issue with young children.

I wouldnt point the finger at food intolerance without other clear symptoms.

Nameless is completely right, the York test is scientifically unproven and not accurate. Allergies (IgE mediated) can be tested for via RAST and skin-prick tests, however non-IgE (more of an intolerance) can only be accurately identified through exclusion/challenge diet.

Please don't waste your money on the York testing, it's bunkum.

Anecdotal evidence.
DD1 was always, "away with the fairies" and, despite being basically bright, (top groups in primary) spent most of High School, by her own admission, "looking out of the window because school is so boring and I don't understand any of it".

In year 11 she developed horrendous, screaming in agony, IBS, and after a barrage of tests which discovered nothing, was given a repeat prescription and told to get on with it. She got a couple of As, a couple of Cs and a raft of Bs at GCSE.

Anyway, we were not happy at the prospect of her taking drugs for the rest of her life, and by a process of elimination, discovered that dairy, and a few other foods were triggering her IBS. She is very strict with her diet now, has come off her drugs and is massively better; not just the IBS, but her health generally.

But the inprovement in her academic achievement at A level was quite marked I felt. Her concentration and understanding were so much better. She got 4 Bs at A level and was close to an A in all of them. Kids normally drop a grade from GCSE, and we expected her to come out with Cs. She seems a lot more focussed now. Of course it may be coincidental.

Yes! Gluten and dairy intolerance can cause brain fog and away with the fairies and things like that.

Best thing to do is cut them out of your diet. Especially gluten.

Unfortunately the undigested peptides can take a long time to leave the system. Weeks for dairy and months for gluten. So you need to cut it out for a good amount of time before you'll know.

It's not an intolerance or allergy that is causing the brain fog. It's a digestive problem. The peptides aren't being digested and are entering the blood stream rather than leaving the body. And if they happen to get to your brain they bind with the opiate receptors - ie they have the same effect as taking morphine!

(So one symptom of this problem is craving gluten or dairy)

Although you need to cut out gluten for months to be sure either way, you'll probably notice an improvement much sooner.

www.greatplainslaboratory.com/home/eng/peptide.asp

please take medical advice before removing milk or gluten from diet with a young child.