If you look at labels in the supermarket, it seems just about everything has wheat, gluten (several other grains fall under the no-no list) and dairy and way too much sugar. When we first started (going cold turkey really is easiest... dropped the kids off at school, completely emptied out the fridge and cupboards, went shopping for replacements using a list of o.k. foods before they got back home) we had to either grocery shop without Alex or speed the shopping cart past all those aisles with the bad stuff (which at first seemed just about every single one except those with household cleaning products, toilet paper and the pet food aisle).Eating out is near impossible unless you're lucky enough to be near a restaurant that would be accommodating not just about preparing food your child can have but are also careful about cross contamination. French fries baked or cooked in sunflower oil are o.k. but if it's the same oil they cook (wheat flour) breaded things, it's just as bad as eating the wheat product. Even soy sauce has wheat in it. Most hot dogs, too. Forget about snacks like cookies, pretzels. No more pasta (gasp!), butter, ice cream, cereals, waffles, yogurt, soda and just about every fruit juice, pudding, cheeses, milk... and you really should be avoiding candy anyway.
So, you ask, what the hell am I supposed to feed the kids???Believe it or not, you do find stuff they will like. It takes a little time, some experimentation, some research and lots of label reading but you do find them.
First, when you can, buy organic. No pesticides, growth hormones, etc. Just about all veggies are o.k. on the diet. Some fruits are no-no. Meat, poultry, pork all o.k. I keep the kids away from fish (they don't really like it anyway) because of the amount of heavy metals in their flesh. This is more important for ASD kids as their bodies can not filter these out like a healthy person can.
So, yes, this will mean one will have to cook. No more throwing frozen chicken nuggets or fish sticks in the oven for quickie dinners. Restaurants and fast food out of the question (unless you can be sure that the local McDonald's and Burger King cook their fries separately from breaded items on their menu). Btw, many Outback Steakhouse and P.F. Chang's restaurants offer a gluten/casein free menu. Just call ahead and ask to make sure they have it and their cooks are careful about cross contamination.
There are replacements. This is where research and leg work come in. Places like Whole Foods and Wild Oats will have a huge selection of gfcf foods. Google the closest smaller health food stores in your city to find those. Usually the people in those (also health conscious) are more than happy to help with questions, even ordering products they don't have on hand for you.
Ok, so a list... (some makers will not be careful about processing wheat/dairy products in the same equipment as the gfcf labelled ones... you can supplement with digestive enzymes like Houston Nutraceutical's Enzymedica when in doubt)... and this is just a small list of what's available if you just take the time to look...
Lay's potato chips (salt, potato and sunflower oil only)
Rice Krispies
Envirokids cereals/snack bars (Amazon Corn Flakes, Panda Puffs, Gorilla Munch, etc.)
many Arrowhead Mills cereals like Maple Buckwheat Flakes
Tinkyada Brown Rice pastas (very good... Alex couldn't tell the difference!)
Mary's Gone Crackers (yes, I have)
organic tomato sauces
Kinnikinnick snacks (KinniKritters Animal Crackers, Kinnitoos "Oreo" cookies, Kinnikinnick chocolate chip cookies)
Glutano products (pretzels, etc.)
quinoa
rice
potatoes
popcorn (no butter)
Earth Balance Buttery Sticks (perfect for replacing butter in just about everything)
corn and corn products (if ok on it... same with soy products... get tested for allergies and food sensitivities)
some fruits
vegetables
meat, poultry, pork
bacon, eggs
Quaker plain/lightly salted Rice Cakes
EnjoyLife cookies
Silk milk and other soy products like their yogurts
Whole Soy & Co. yogurts
Pacific Almond/Hazelnut milk
Rice milk
Organic Rice Divine ice creams
Toffuti ice cream (not "Cuties" ice cream sandwiches)
Ian's Alphatots and Supertots, Ian's Chicken Nuggets ("breaded" with something other than wheat flour)
organic frozen fries (bake)
EnerG Wylde pretzels
I.M. Healthy Soy Nut Butter
Ogran products ("bread" crumbs)
Van's gfcf Waffles (comes in plain and blueberry... very, very close to tasting like Eggo Waffles)
Applegate Farms Stadium hotdogs
Barkat products (ice cream cones!)
Amy's Spinach pizza (with the green labels saying gfcf... other pizzas aren't)
many deli meats (read labels)
asian foodmarkets have cellophane noodles made of rice and green beans... great for stir fries
Tamari wheat free soy sauce
there are mozzarella-style soy and rice "cheeses" (I haven't tried any yet)
and there are many gfcf cake, muffin, pies, bread, cookies, etc. mixes to choose from.
You'll come across some gfcf breads in the market (frozen health food section). They are all awful. If you absolutely can not live without bread, get a bread maker and make your own. I personally can't be bothered since Alex was never a bread lover anyway.
There are also plenty of gfcf cookbooks out there. Many, many dishes can be cooked with substitutions and you'll likely never miss the gluten/casein in them. Tinkyada rice pasta with bolognese sauce is totally doable. Summers can be the easiest... lots of grilling! In the top photo Alex is happily scarfing down grilled chicken wings.
While going to birthday parties might be an issue, when your child has his/her own birthday party there's no reason why you can't make your own gfcf ice cream cake (a lot of "cake decorations" while not sugar free are gfcf... just do not over do it and think of this as a once-a-year kind of desert)! I'll put up how I made one for Dana's birthday in a later post. And, yes, it was yummy!
