to cut out sugar from my son's diet. And how on earth do I do it?

[newrecruit]

DS is 8 and I think he reacts really strongly to sugar.

If he drinks fruit shoots / squash (very rarely) for the next half an hour he's terrible. Twitchy & physically can't sit still.

He struggles with concentration all the time and I think cutting out sugar night make a difference - or I'm jut making excuses.

DS2 is 5 and has never reacted in the same way.

Has anyone else managed to do this.

I don't want to cut out carbs - he needs LOADS of food and can eat more weetabix/ pasta than I can. However I think refined sugar might be the problem.

Or am I jut ening precious.

I have tried to cut as much sugar as possible from my children's diet.... People think I'm precious & a little crazy but it has made a difference in there attention, behaviour, attitude & education. They also appreciate treats more now.... All food home made including bread

I think going for a healthier diet as a family is a good idea and if you make your own food from scratch using the best quality ingredients you can afford, rather than using bought products it will be a lot healthier. You can still allow the odd cake or biscuits, homemade, but as a treat rather than everyday snacks. I think its a bit sad never to enjoy a cake or biscuit and I wouldn't cut them out entirely, but I think its great to make your diet a lot healthier.

coffeetofunction
bread has sugar in, so does veg, and milk, and cheese and fruit

and statistically you are suffering from reporting bias about their improved behaviour

DD has had very little caffeine due to soya allergy so no normal chocolate/ice cream.
If they happen not to give kids the chocolate he may not have had much.
To have had a lot of caffeine i would think that is several chocolate bars in a day, so probably unusual and xmas or easter so more obvious.
I guess though they could be putting it down to the sugar in the chocolate.

We had a reaction to e numbers in calpol, once we switched to soluble paracetamol it was fine.
Some even say not suitable for children and may cause hyperactivity.

Cut out processed food. Cook from scratch so that you know what is in the food you are preparing.

It's common sense and not difficult to do.

JaneAHersey
Out of interest, are your children teenagers yet - you know, those big smelly things that go out and buy whatever meals they fancy when they are at college?

Just that my views on

• not banning things
• involving them in the choices
• talking openly about food choices

are based on trying to persuade young adults who have access to canteens and takeaways to make sensible choices

If you eat sensibly as a family and don't ban things,they eat sensibly when they do get the choice for themselves.

I think it's obvious when the OP says her son has never had caffeine what she means is that she's not giving him espressos, coke or energy drinks, nothing to do with the trace amounts in every day food

We simply don't know what she thinks or even which drinks she is counting!
I was merely saying that when she says he has never had caffeine she was probably wrong - e.g. He is quite likely to have had coke to drink at a party.

I don't really buy into this "sugar" thing either to be honest.

Yes, when I say caffeine I mean tea, coffee, coke or any other drink.

Obviously there are traces in chocolate.

He doesn't have fruit shoots at home but does sometimes have them when we are out or at parties etc and I can see a difference

L

We cut out all gluten/granulated sugar for 3 months this year and it was amazing how mich better we ALL felt and slept. I baked a lot more than usual and we had some treat that the kids would still prefer to sugary treats now. God for it, you have nothing to lose by trying.
Cookie + Kate is a great foodie site that has some decent recipes, and HFW has brought out a good book lately, i'd also recommend Pippa Kendrick.

Go for it, not god. :)

Oh meant to say we used honey and maple syrup instead if the sugar, so were still getting some.

Cutting out highly processed foods and making your own is very educational . I make a one off cake for dd who has allergies . This cake has 400g of sugar in it . That's right 400g!!! Now I know that's atrocious cos I see it before me and so only make this cake twice a year (bday Xmas). You never see the sugar in processed and so ignorance is boss.
My family have to avoid all crap cos Dh had a stroke and dd has allergies. I read every package well and put back 85% of what I pick up.
Sadly bought food is junk . Or nearly all anyway .

It's not the sugar making him hyper.

That would be like saying if you put a lot of fuel in your car, it will go faster.

Of course, too much sugar is bad for us (and most of us do eat too much sugar, these days) so it probably wouldn't hurt to cut back.

Do look at the additives, though.

Studies have recently shown that while single additives may not cause problems, a "cocktail" may do.

Also, perhaps you should consider having him assessed for ADHD.

thewidowdonkey
Oh meant to say we used honey and maple syrup instead of the sugar, so were still getting some
ROTFLMAOPMPL

Sorry, what exactly is the difference between
sugar from honey
sugar from maple trees
sugar from sugar beet
sugar from sugar cane

FFS you lentil knitters, sugar beet has the lowest food miles and carbon footprint

but they are all SUGAR

WOW, I just love being on a thread that drips scientific illiteracy from every pore

If there was a like button talkin, I would have just hit it.
So common this belief that honey "sugar" is better than silver spoon

This ridiculous thing about food drives me crackers! Unless you are letting your child sit there downing litre bottles of coke whilst eating the whole of the sainsburys cake isle I don't get it. Nothing should be banned. Unless of course there is a true allergy taking place and then you would really know it believe me (son has an epi-pen/major nut allergy).

tinks there are other reactions to foods than just allergies. Intolerances for example. And as I have Crohn's disease, certain hard to digest foods are a no-no for me, as they irritate my insides. Even just a kernel or so of popcorn will have my insides growling menacingly.

Agreed, Chronically.

DS has a gluten intolerance (along with dairy and eggs). He used to go to bed every evening telling me "Mummy, my tummy hates me!" He couldn't sleep for the pain. Which is obviously hugely debilitating for a young child at school.

DD2 has intolerance to eggs, pork and coconut. I used to give her eggs for breakfast a lot (quick and easy to cook, a good, high protein breakfast). If not eggs, sausages or bacon quite often, and she would spend loads of time on the loo every morning.

Cutting out these foods has made a huge difference to their quality of life, even though the foods may not be fatal to them.

Ah yes, food intolerances, things that only seem to exist in upper middle class western families

Bless

sorry for the lack of sympathy
but I wonder how your kids would cope with hunger / reality / truly unprocessed food

a good dose of worms seems to clear up most auto immune digestive diseases
maybe time to re introduce them to London prep schools
and I hated having to take pripsin in the 70's, this is my revenge

Talkinpeace you're talking our the wrong end of your pipe .

waltons
its a scientifically informed meerschraum
and no, I'm not

there is about 6 teaspoons of sugar in a fruit shoot, you would give him less sugar if you gave him a donut.