Dietician and diet advice

[Mrsdoodle]

Hi, I have a DD who is 4 1/2. She has Sensory Processing Disorder and dyspraxia, though her difficulties for the moment are not severe and I think I am the only person (apart from the OT) who thinks there is anything wrong with her.

I've recently put her on a gf diet. She has suffered near constant tummy aches for at least the past 2.5 years, plus joint pains, lethargy, chronic food cravings for carby foods and mood swings. I've found it a bit complicated because some of her symptoms and behaviours which could be gluten related kind of fit with the SPD too.

Initially I saw a huge change within a week or so of cutting out gluten, which lasted about 6-8 weeks. It was like seeing her real personality for the first time. Then quite suddenly about a week ago she seemed to regress and apart from the food cravings which have cleared up, seems pretty much back where we started. I'm nevertheless convinced that something dietary can be done to help her.

Her 'at rest' state, when nothing else is going on to distract her, is very on edge / emitting some sort of moaning noise and she says that she is feels 'fragile' and is always in some pain either in her tummy or one of her joints.

I have posted on the allergies board and people there kindly recommended a few things which may be causing the problems such as gluten creeping in or lactose intolerance, and from reading I know that quite a few people with SPD have tried gluten and casein free, but I am unwilling to mess around with her diet too much more because it is already so limited and milk/cheese/yogurt are her only source of protein. Can I see a dietician to advise me? Are there tests which can be done for food intolerances? I know that it's too late to test for coeliacs now that she is already gf. Does anyone know of a good dietician who could do comprehensive testing for tummy issues (we are in the southeast and could get to London)? I am going back to the GP but don't have much confidence, and would love to see someone who gets the SPD aspect.

If anyone has any general advice or similar experiences, or specific recommendations for a dietician or tests, I would be very grateful. Thanks.

Hi

I've recently started a gf cf diet and tbh my daughter has progressed leaps and bounds. Her speech is a lot clearer, better grammar and like you said she's showing her personality a lot more. She's also a lot calmer.

I've contacted Lucinda Miller who works in south west London who I believe had a child with dyspraxia but a lot of his symptoms have gone just through diet and supplements.

I'm in the process of getting my daughter's urine tested to see what deficiencies she has and probably doing a hair test. I've heard excellent things about her from the biomed yahoo group.

I would recommend her as she is very lovely and is great with children.

Hth

No experience but I have heard many on here mention Dr Goyal who I believed is based in/near London. You might want to search this board for more details about him.

Unfortunately dr G is unavailable at the moment.

Sue Simmons works fro the same clinic that Dr Goyal did and is outstanding. She also has ASD or SN child I believe and is fantastic in engaging with children at appointments. Dr G is of course not replacable

Thanks very much for all the helpful responses. It's a shame that this Dr Goyal is not available - any idea when he might return?

Do you know whether the two people mentioned are actually able to test for gluten and casein intolerance (I'm not really even clear on whether this is possible, but some of the reading that I did suggested it was)? Perhaps not in any event as my little girl is gf already. Do they provide personalised guidance on day to day diet, and on supplements if necessary? My DD has such a limited diet that I'm concerned about cutting out food groups without expert advice, though it's also very difficult to get supplements into her...

Also, if you don't mind me asking, any idea about costs? I'm hoping the GP might refer her for some testing on the NHS given that she is in fairly constant pain, but I've not had a particularly helpful response from them so far so am keen to pursue other avenues.

Thanks again.

tests can be done at Biolab but not always reliable from what I read and understand. DS was found borderline for G and no problem with casein. However there are lots af other alergens like soya. An experience dietician can also suspect on check up and conversation and observation; physical cues such us rings or dark circle under eye, pale look, parents advice irritability after some foods or hyperactivity, changes in stools etc.