When you cannot have dairy, nuts, dyes, gluten and you want ice cream, Mackie found a solution! Have you ever heard of mashed potato ice cream cones? Well Mackie loved his.
Kids with Fetal alcohol syndrome and other neurodevelopmental disorders often have food intolerances and those foods we love, have consequences for them triggering struggles with attention and behavior.
Mackie has food allergies and intolerances that make life challenging to keep him on track. Gluten-free, that is not a problem at our house as most of my family has celiac disease and I have been Gluten-free now for 35 years and raised my children without gluten in the house. Dairy free is more of a challenge, then add his intolerances with soy, proteins, and he reacts strongly to food dyes. Add in his peanut allergy and the fact we limit sugar as kids/adults with FASD crave sugar from their prenatal exposures to alcohol. Sugar addiction is real.
Taking off on Mackie’s Trivia thread: Did you know that many Red and other food dyes are banned in other parts of the world? And here in the US we feed it to our children without thinking. Recently Aldee Grocery Stores and other US manufacturers, restaurants are promoting dye free food products.
Did you know that even white foods or medications can contain blue dye? Marshmallows sometimes have blue dye, the same with some ice creams? I don’t get this!
Not only are food dyes in our foods but also medications. We have found dye-free over the counter medications but the pharmaceutical manufactures have not followed suit. We have to limit his antibiotics to ones that have no dye or his therapists, teachers and sisters will pay the price, but most of all Mackie. He will become over the top irritable and lose impulse control and do things he would never do normally. Mackie says “Dye turns me into a werewolf”. Be sick or in trouble from the medication? Not a good option.
Food labeling laws are wonderful and if I am not sure, we google the manufacturer and ask. Our pharmacists has been known to call to verify before giving Mackie medications. But the medications need the same level of labeling as are required of the food companies.
Mackie is no longer eating mashed potatoes ice cream and we have found coconut and almond alternatives. So far he only has a peanut allergy and not a nut allergy. Fingers crossed!
In the meantime there is science behind the fact Mackie reacts to food dyes. Check out the science and read this article. Banned in Europe, Safe in the US. and decide for yourself.
Mackie’s Mom
It's Mackie's World 