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The Critical Role Of Water... Nature's Natural Chelator...
Posted May 2005 |
Water - Our most important nutrient - and perhaps our
most important chelator... THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE WATER YOU
DRINK! We had been drinking distilled water because we live in an
area that has a very high iron content in the water. It appears
"distilled" water is considered "dead water" and that ionized water may be
much better for you.
http://www.waternutrition.com/
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| More food choices Posted May 2005
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Zachary is finally showing a desire to eat different
foods. I found cf/gf/soy free/ organic fruit bars which he
loves... made by ReNew Life (800-830-4778). They are
kind of expensive, but so are other snacks and this one is certainly one I
would consider among the healthiest for him. Zachary is also eating
nuts now... peanuts, almonds, sunflower seeds, etc. Brazil nuts
are high in selenium (best natural source of selenium... something children
with autism appear to be low on and something believed to be helpful for
metal detoxification... selenium supplements, according to some on parent
discussion boards do not appear to be the way to go... too much selenium can
also be a problem though... so... just a couple of brazil nuts a day is what
I plan on giving him... )
He is also eating baked potato wedges (high in B6) and vegetable soups
of all kinds (homemade - quash, carrot, potato, etc.... no preservatives...
organic as much as possible.. these still have to be pureed or he won't eat
them). |
| Getting Zachary to eat rice spaghetti again |
As a result of our "small setback" (see Chapter 15),
Zachary refused to eat rice noodles for quite a while. I found
that if I put just one teaspoon of gluten free catchup (available from
Gluten Pantry), that he ate them just fine. The catchup has a distinct
vinegar taste and so I never put more than one teaspoon for a huge bowl of
noodles. Update: He is now eating these fine again...
decided to go with organic catchup by Muir Glen (available in health food
stores). |
| "Chicken Juice" |
They say that chicken broth has something in it that
helps us get over
colds/flu.... so, what I do is cook chicken in a roasting pan - I just
put the breast or other parts in there - I use chicken that HAS BONES
and SKIN - then I just add about 1/2 inch of water (nothing else), stick
it in the oven and cook it until done. My little
guy eats the chicken meat AND then drinks the chicken bouillon too.... I
give him about ONE CUP of it in a cup with a little sea salt and organic
black pepper. He loves it...I give it to him warm. It is actually
one of his favorite drinks... I call it "chicken juice"... and some
times, when I'm asking if he wants "Orange juice or rice milk", he'll
respond, "no, chicken juice".... LOL. He drinks this about one a week
and just LOVES IT!... and I know it helps keep him healthy. Just
thought I'd post for other parents in case you wanted to try it.
:o) |
| 01-21-02
(zinc and yeast control) |
I decided to put Zachary on a zinc supplement and give
him a product called "yeast control" (to help with recurring yeast
infections). I get both through Kirkman Labs. |
| 02-05-02
(zinc ok... yeast control still a problem...comment on borage oil...
cutting back on dairy free chocolate!) |
I can get Zachary to take the zinc (in a big cup of water
that he drinks with a straw or in very diluted orange juice just before bed)
...but, the yeast control is still a problem. He refuses to take
it. I think the taste is still too strong and I find it very hard to
hide. If anyone has a suggestion, I'd love to hear it!
Also, I noticed that Zachary's back had a lot of little "bumps" on it...his
skin was very dry. I had run out of borage oil at about the same
time (for about a week). I started giving him the oil again, and
now his skin is clearing up, so it looks like that might have been the
problem...but, I don't know for sure. Although I did not give Zachary
a lot of chocolate, I've decided to go completely without it for a while...
I recently noticed his face was red after I had given him some.
I know chocolate is a problem for many kids. |
| 02-17-02 |
I put Zachary on digestive enzymes from
http://www.houstonni.com/.
He seems to be doing well on them. I have started reading info
on site called
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/enzymesandautism/ and a lot of parents are
saying that they can start to reintroduce normal foods to their kids after
using these enzymes a while (see Journal for more on this).
Also, someone pointed out to me that BORAGE oil only has Omega-6 and
9...that Omega-3 comes from fish oil/flax seed oil. So, guess I'll
have to consider the flax seed again. I know Barlean's Organic Oils
offers a mix of both flax and borage...will probably go with that. The
digestive enzymes do seem to help Zachary's eye contact. I have
noticed it is much better since he is taking them (something many parents
with children on enzymes have also noticed). I will make sure
Zachary is on enzymes at least 5 months or so before even attempting
to reintroduce casein and gluten foods. I'm also thinking about giving
him Grapefruit Seed Extract (GSE)...many parents say that helps tremendously
in yeast control. It tastes strong so you need to hide it in juice (2
or 3 drops). Here is a link for those who are interested in
trying this/learning more - may be much cheaper than cranberry extract and
probably just as good at controlling yeast:
http://www.nutriteam.com/index2.html. Anyone who has a heart condition should speak
with their doctor prior to taking GSE!!! (I once had someone tell me GSE can
have serious consequences for heart patients). |
| 03-01-02 |
I gave Zachary GSE for first time yesterday...2 drops in
diluted juice. He took it fine. I ended up finding this at
a local health food store (GNC). It cost me $11.00 for 2 oz
bottle...should last a while! |
| 03-03-02 |
Read on enzymes and autism thread that probiotics (i.e.,
acidophilus) should not be given at same time as enzymes...just wanted to
mention that. Suggested that enzymes be given before the meal...probiotics
after. Also mentioned that fluoridated water can also negate enzyme
effectiveness, as can chlorine (swimming pool - water absorbed through the
skin). |
| 04-04-02 |
I bought Zachary a bike today (with training wheels).
Within two hours, he was riding it like a pro...and going much faster than I
would have expected for a first time on a bike. Still a problem
with braking though...LOL. He is doing well. I plan on
putting him on enzymes to help with breakdown of phenols too in the next
week or so...new product from Houston Nutraceuticals, Inc.http://www.houstonni.com/.
Zachary's eye contact and overall disposition are excellent. He
is "answering" my questions a lot more now too...pretty well with one or two
word answers, but definitely signs of conversation. He is also
getting "sneaky"... knowing when he is doing "something he shouldn't be"
(like playing with his sister's stuff) and now trying to "hide" the
evidence. Too funny! |
| 07-15-02 |
I took Zachary off the TMG.
He had been on it for just over 2 years. This is the product Kirkman
Labs recommended to help trigger speech development.
Here is the really interesting thing... Zachary has
only been off TMG for 3 days and during that time, I've noticed much much
better ability to converse. Is it
possible that TMG helps with initial speech development but that after a
time it actually hinders speech dealing with conversation?
I have no way of
knowing. I haven't seen any studies looking into this issue.
This is simply something I have observed in the last couple of days...
something others have noticed as well. I'm very puzzled
by this. Nothing else has changed in Zachary's diet in over 3 months.
Zachary knew many many words... but conversation just wasn't coming...now,
it is coming fast... just since I've removed the TMG. He
is also less hyper than he used to be. This is all very
interesting and exciting. :o) |
| 08-07-02 |
Well, since Zachary has been on enzyme for about 5 months
now, I figured it was time to do a "first test"...
so, today, I gave him a huge chunk of cheddar cheese to see how he would
react... NO REACTION whatsoever... no red ears,
no red cheeks, no abnormal behavior... nothing! I'm thrilled.
I gave Zachary 2 enzymes (peptizyde) just prior to giving him the cheese.
I will continue to monitor him closely and will only reintroduce other milk
products very very slowly... perhaps spreading them apart by weeks rather
than days... but, this first test with cheese and enzymes has been very very
exciting to say the least. :o) I decided to start with casein
because it takes 3 days for it to leave the body... gluten can take up to a
year. |
| 08-08-02 |
I noticed Zachary had dark circles again today... could
be due to cheese from yesterday... so, I'll be watching that carefully. |
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