Do raw/vegan children behave better?

[swiss_miss]

Hey guys, do any of you who's children are raw or vegan and dont consume refined sugar/flour products behave better than kids who eat SAD? by "better" I mean are they less aggressive, more calm and generally just more peacefull and happy? Have any of you experienced behavioral changes in your kids after switching them to raw/vegan and/or taking them off white sugar/flour products? If so please share your experiences! Thanks! :)

[eachpeachpearplum]

Yes, yes yes!

Due to various food intolerancs my kids have eaten a very restricted diet since birth (20mo & 5yrs).

This includes no grains or sweetners other than a little honey and agave.

When my daughter does have suger her entire behavior changes into a hellcat. She is normally a great kid with an even disposition. When this happens I sit her down and explain what has happened and try to get her think through what is going on. I tell her about the sugar and get her to understand that the sugar is what is causing her to act that way I dont get angry as I know she "under the influence" and just have to wat it out.

If she eats grains she tends to get moody and unhappy. But mostly her bowels just stop - no exaggeration here.

When I was a younger I was diagnosed with dyslexia and was depressed most of the time. Since being raw those systems have dissapeared.

I hope this helps.

EPPP

[Purl]

My 2 oldest have had a MAJOR change. The diet is working better than their meds ever did~

[sport]

I have seen TV footage where putting kids on SAD but healthier food has caused a vast change in behaviour so I think that going raw would cause an even greater change.

[firefaery]

My kids each have significant food allergies. They never had refined anything, but I noticed that removing grains in general from their diets resulted in happier, calmer and more attentive kiddos. I notice a huge difference between kids on a standard american diet (with food coloring, additives, refined sugars, flours and preservatives) and my kids. We actually got both kiddos off the autism spectrum by removing anything remotely processed and doing EVERYTHING ourselves. They are far happier raw.

[BDraw]

Ditto the YES YES YES!!!! At least I can tell it with my littlest. She is much more even tempered. On SAD, she is a little hellcat, and a strongwilled one at that. On raw, she is still strongwilled, but with more purr.

[eachpeachpearplum]

Ditto the YES YES YES!!!! At least I can tell it with my littlest. She is much more even tempered. On SAD, she is a little hellcat, and a strongwilled one at that. On raw, she is still strongwilled, but with more purr.

"On raw, she is still strongwilled, but with more purr"

I love it that my daughter ALSO, PUUURRRR. . . . !

[veganfamily]

no grains ever?? even sprouted? why?
-brandy

[firefaery]

Grains contain phytates which are enzyme inhibitors. They will be partially dealt with if you sprout them, but not completely. They can rob the body of essential minerals.
My kids went on a gut healing program that worked. Completely. It was difficult but worth it. It cured food allergies, eczema, sleep problems and behavioral issues. They were both on the autism spectrum and aren't anymore. It's amazing how intertwined all the body's functions are. The program allows no grains-basically because they are disaccarhides and sit in the gut feeding harmful bacteria. We still were able to do some baked goods using almond or hazelnut meal. Like I said, it was worth it.
My daughter and I both have celiac disease anyway-we do better off grains regardless. Much better since she went raw, I'm better as I get there.

[stRAWberry fields forever]

Firefaery:

I'd be very interested to hear more of the specifics about this "gut healing program" you speak of.

[firefaery]

I am new to this board-can I post links and things? Mention books? Or should I pm you? I'm happy to share.

[veganfamily]

i would also like info on the gut healing program - yes, you can leave links.
My husband wants to know where you get your protein from; don't nuts and seeds have the same enzyme inhibitors?

Do you (or anyone) live somewhere cold in the winter? Cause i know that when it is snowing outside, we will want rice or something. What would we do in that case?

-Brandy

[firefaery]

Yes. Nuts and seeds also have enzyme inhibitors. We soak those as well, but there aren't any books outlining the detrimental effects of nuts on the human body. There are several written about grains. Many believe that we were never meant to eat them and it wasn't until the advent of agriculture that we did.

THe diet is based on the book "Breaking the Vicious Cycle" by Elaine Gottschall. It was first written as a cure to crohn's disease but has been adopted by a large contigent of the autism community as it brings speedy and lasting results. www.pecanbread.com is a site dedicated to the specific carbohydrate diet (based on BTVC) and autism. It wouldn't likely be helpful to many people here, as it is mainly cooked. There is a website www.breakingtheviciouscycle.com that discusses the diet, but the book is a must read. www.enzymestuff.com is another one with great info regarding neurological problems and healing them. It explains very clearly what a damaged gut is and how it does and doesnt' function. Her book, "Enzymes for Autism and Other Neurological Conditions" is a very good read as well-even if there is no autism. It covers PDD, behavioral issues, parasites, bacterial overgrowth and so on.

The specific carbohydrate diet can absolutely be done as a vegan, theough Gottschall warns against it. Her protein requirement are very outdated. I did much research about this and it is absolutely possible to get all dietary requirements (except possibly b-12 and vitamins A and D if your gut is damaged)

We don't eat grains. When we were doing cooked we made cakes, cookies and muffins with nut butters and flours. They were divine. There are many recipes on the pecanbread website to get you started. Most raw, dehydrated recipes are fine to use as well.

I live in New England. If I feel the need for cooked (I am only about 95% raw) I do have an occasional pancake or waffle (made with almond flour or butter)

The end result is that you have eliminated any pathogens, healed the lining of the gut, allowed the villi and microvilli to be repaired, chelated some heavy metals and introdruced the beneficial bateria into the gut. What this means is that you gut can no longer leak proteins into the bloodstream-therefore no more allergies, eczema, asthma, behavioral upsets caused by cerebral allergies, less heavy metals in the body-but more importantly the ability to deal with the load you have, and resolution to many other conditions.

Hope that answered some quesitons. I did this with a group of people and am in contact with far others (helping as they get started) and everyone has had great results-once you get through die off! It is very common to have autistic kids go off the spectrum-you can read about this as well on all three sites I posted.

[Ginger]

Most definitly! my child is a whole nother kid on raw!

[Conscious Midwife]

My children ages 2, 3, 12, 14 and 18 all behave and focus better on a reduced animal protein and NO white sugar or HighFrucCornSyr diet. Glycemic #'s alone affect the behavior of us all including me and hubby. Being African American I am always concerned about preventing diabetes, which runs rampid among AA's.

My toddlers sleep better when meals are Vegan.