Lots of ASD and dietary issues in the family... am pregnant and thinking about precautionary diet for my baby... has anyone done this?

[lucy101]

Hi there,

I am not sure if this is the right place to post this but from looking through old posts I have found people have done this.

My husbands father and brother are Aspergers, and a couple of his cousins are autistic. My husband has eczema (which disappeared on a dairy free diet) and I am dairy free due to a neurological issue which is not related to ASD. My husband's brother (with Aspergers) I believe also has problems with his stomach from comments he makes about his bowel movements...

I am just thinking about whether a good idea for us could be a dairy and/or gluten free diet for our baby as a preventative measure. I would like to BF if I can (and maybe should for as long as I can, even 2/3 years if I go down this diet route) but am wondering if any one here has followed a DF/GF diet from weaning and if so, how easy it has been, whether you think it was worth doing, and whether there are any research/books/sites etc. out there that might help.

Any advice/thoughts would be gratefully received!

Yes definately, I did this with my DS1, he is my third child and have two DD with Aspergers Syndrome. We all follow the Failsafe diet from the Sydney Allergy unit at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, which has worked wonders with my eldest DD in particular. Altered for each of our specific difficulties.

try www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info

They cover Dairy and Gluten free but also additives both chemical (preservatives, colourings and flavour enhancers) but also natural chemicals (salicylates and amines) which can often be a factor with behavioural and neurological issues. (My eldest DD would never had made mainstream eating these foods!)

I have weaned my son, dairy, soya and gluten free without too much difficulty (it can be more expensive tho)

The RPAH have a cook book which is all chemical free recipes called friendly food, and the woman who runs the food intolerance network has one called the failsafe cookbook. Some of it is really lovely stuff.

Hope that helps
and for what its worth, the attitude that means you want to help with these potential problems before hand will help enormously if you ever have to face them.
Good luck

I did with dd2, as dd1 is gf/cf, and ASD, and improved massively once gf/cf.

Dd2 is 3.6 now, still gf/cf, although does have the occasional gluten product. She has a very similar gut profile to dd1, so I am very thankful that I have kept her dairy and gluten free.

Must dash now, but will come back later , maybe tomorrow (house guests!)

Yes with ds2 & ds3. Both gluten free - ds2 until 2, ds3 until 4. Ds3 was also on goats rather than cows milk. He is v similar to ds1 in gut terms (high iag in urine). Also had ear infections repeatedly. We've also avoided antibs and vax.

Ds2 now 8, ds3 now 5. Both NT - no ASD traits at all.

Thanks so much for your replies when I know you have a lot on your hands. It's great to hear that some of you have done the same thing, so I am going to keep researching how to do it!

I did wonder if any of you had a suggestion for any particular brand of formula if you had any problems breastfeeding, even if temporarily (this has happened to a few of my friends)?

I did this

When I got pregnant with DD , Ds2 was 6 and we were aware of all his diet related issues.

With DD i avoided gluten dairy ( and additive) as much as possible. I took a good quality vitamin and mineral supplemet. I also took omega supplements.

DD was exclusively breast fed for three years. She had no vaccinations at all. I didn't introduce gluten or diary until she was three and she took fish oils too.

She is nearly 8. No ASD type behaviours or associated conditions. She had excema which is diminishing. She also had asthma type attacks but they are also reducing in frequency and severity
She is still unvaccinated. Mostly I have banned sweeteners and highly processed food but she eats school dinners etc with no problems.

HTHs

lucy - I never had problems with breastfeeding but there are formulas for children with allergies. I expect I would have used those. Sorry no brand suggestions though