When researching the role of diet and behaviour some of the problems that parents report as improving include being easily distracted, acts without thinking, excitable, restless, fidgety, can’t sit still, tantrums, difficult to control, “irritable, touchy and cranky”, “off with the fairies or on another planet” demanding and argumentative, problems settling to sleep, and sleep problems. Many of these problems occur in ASD children as well as in ADHD children, and many children had features of … [Read more...]
What’s smell got to do with it?
Transcript from Ockham's Razor, 16 May 2004. Presented by Robyn Williams. If bitterness is a warning via taste, is flavour a warning via smell? Brisbane dietitian Joan Breakey investigated the role of flavour as a warning via smell and discovered that strong flavoured foods remained high risk for some, but others were able to tolerate the stronger flavours, providing the foods were fresh. Program Transcript Robyn Williams: Do you remember the Feingold diet? You’d have to be … [Read more...]
Pain as a symptom of food intolerance
We have often seen symptoms such as infant eczema, chronic daily headaches, related to diet, or heard that diet can be one of the migraine treatments, or natural remedies for ADHD and some other food intolerance symptoms. Now it is time to think of pain itself as another important symptom that changes with diet. In May 2010 I listened to a well presented talk on reflux in babies and children by a senior paediatric Gastroenterologist at RCH Brisbane. He reported that the amount of distress in … [Read more...]
History of Joan’s work with diet and ADHD
Joan Breakey M AppSc BSc DNFS Cert Diet TTTC. APD [Accredited Practicing Dietitian] My experience of work in the area of Diet and ADHD now spans 35 years. Work began in 1975 in Queensland, after Feingold’s Hypothesis in the US First group closely followed - 75 families – reported in Australian Family Physician 1978. I also followed up diet use in self help groups, attending meetings and discussion groups for over 20 years, meeting or hearing from many families allowing … [Read more...]
Genes, environment and bioactive food components – the food intolerant sample
Joan Breakey1 1Private practice, Fernvale 4306 Australia DAA Conference Proceedings 2006 There is a population group whose genetic make-up predisposes them to adverse reactions to particular substances in food. They emerged from patients whose dermatological complaints were due to salicylates and related compounds [such as additives] in the diet, then from hyperactive children reacting to the same compounds. The tendency for adverse reactions runs in families. Investigation over the … [Read more...]
Abstract: Food tolerance in infants who responded to dietary investigation of suspected food sensitivity
J Breakey, K Fergusson 2001 Outline of problem investigated The aim of the study was to provide detail on food tolerance in young children investigated for suspected food sensitivity. Rather than conducting a single case study it was thought that information on all young children seen in a 12 month period would provide a more useful picture of current practice. The children were typical of those seen over the last several years in a private practice specialising in dietary … [Read more...]
Evidence base for food sensitivity
There are two important parts to the evidence for the low additives and natural chemicals elimination diet when beginning diet investigation for suspected food intolerance. See the attached articles for detail on this complex issue. Basic research We need to remember that we are dealing with adverse reactions to foods or food chemicals that most people tolerate. So the early research was experimenting with just what to exclude at the same time as doing double-blind placebo-controlled … [Read more...]