Halloween Candy

It's that chilly and spooky time of year again!! Halloween! For most of us this is a fun time of year filled with parties, dress up and treats.
It can also be a stressful time for those of us with kids on special diets. How do we allow our kids to have a carefree Halloween experience, and keep them safe at the same time?
Firstly, too much sugar for any kid is a bad idea, let alone for children with various brain development issues. Then there are the allergies to contend with.


Here are my ideas on a fun time Halloween without deprivation for any child!


1. Set the ground rules. If your child is old enough, or cognitive enough to understand, explain what foods they are, and are not, allowed to eat. Explain that any candy or treats must be examined by Mom, Dad or teacher first.
If they are not able to make these distinctions themselves then make sure you, or any adult involved in the moment, examines the candy before giving it to your child.


2. Take control. If your child is attending a party where there will be home made foods, as well as packaged candy, then it is important to check the food out yourself. Make a plate up for your child that he is allowed to eat from. Offer to make treats for the party that are safe for every one to enjoy.


3. Get others involved. By this point all child care workers, teachers, friends and family should be aware of your child's diet restrictions. Make a list of safe candy for day care, school, grandparents and others who may be involved in the Halloween experience. And always provide safe alternatives for your child to enjoy.


4. Enjoy the Trick or Treat! It is a lot to ask a small child to not eat candy when they are being handed scads of it at every door! Bring a special treat along for your child to enjoy while trick or treating, so they are not tempted to dip into the pillow case for a fix.


5. Don't trick or treat on an empty stomach. Make sure your child has eaten a healthy, warm meal before hitting the streets. This will lessen the temptation to raid the sack!


6. Place more emphasis on the fun of Halloween, rather then the food. Build up the excitement of dressing up. Get dressed up yourself! Carve pumpkins, hang up spiders and webs, get together with friends and family for a fun time!


7. Do a swap. When your child comes home with their monstrous sack of goodies, go through it with them. Pick out the bad ones and replace them with your own stash of your child's favourite safe candy. Or if you can get your child to agree with it, trade in candy for small toys or money to spend on a bigger toy. 


8. Be prepared. Give yourself time to read labels while shopping for candy. Purchase candy to have on hand for day care and school events, so your child does not miss out.


Remember you are not the only family restricted by food. There are so many kids allergic to nuts, eggs, soy, gluten, milk and other foods. They all have to go through the same process to keep their kids safe. Find a friend going through the same thing and make a plan together.


There are numerous lists of safe candy on sites all over the web. I have yet to find one that is specific to Canada, and or to a GFCF diet. Your best bet is to take some time and read all labels. Some tricky candies are Smarties. Smarties seem like they should be GF but they are not. 


Some GF candy that I know is GF are:
M&Ms, except Crispy M&Ms
Maynard's Gummies
Hersey's chocolate
Aero
Cadbury's chocolate


Here is a recipe I took from Clean Eating Magazine for Cocoa Coconut fudge, that I modified slightly. This is an easy, no bake, gluten free, dairy free and sugar free (optional) treat! My kids love it and I am addicted to it!


Cocoa Coconut Fudge


1/2 cup coconut butter
1/2 cup honey or maple syrup or 1/4 cup and 1 tblsp agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup cocoa powder


Soften the coconut butter so it is easier to work with. Mix the syrup or honey in to it, along with the vanilla. Sift the cocoa to remove any lumps and stir into the mix. Pour into an 8x8 pan. You can now decorate the top with anything you want. Nuts, candy, sprinkles. Put into the fridge to set, about 20min. 
Makes 16 servings. Must be refrigerated to avoid a messy melted blob.


You can buy coconut butter at Choices, Famous Foods or WholeFoods, along with Agave nectar. These are expensive ingredients but well worth the cost!


Happy Halloween!!

10 Steps to going Gluten Free

If there was one thing I wish I had when I set out to switch Matthew's diet to gluten free it would be the following lists that I will post over the next week. There is so much information out there on the internet, but despite that, I still didn't know what I needed to know to get the job done without a whole lot of trial and error, and not to mention, money!
It can sometimes be weeks or months before one can get in to see the dietician and acquire the correct information. Even then you may not get the insider info that can be so helpful when changing the diet for a child. Being gluten free for an adult can be challenging, but when you are doing if for a child who is a picky eater, it can be daunting.

 The following advise is NOT for a child with a Celiac Disease diagnosis. In this case you must eliminate gluten from your child's diet entirely and immediately. If your child has autism, ADHD, FAS, or other developmental disabilities, and you do not have a celiac diagnosis or testing for celiac disease pending,  then you must begin your journey with an investigation.

1. Talk with your child's paediatrician. You might be surprised by the response you get! The paediatrician has a list in your child's file of different issues that may improve with a diet change. If you do not get a favourable response to your inquiry then you have a choice to make. You can go it alone and work to change the doc's mind, or you can look for a new doc. It does help to have the support of the paediatrician to make these changes. He can help you collect the appropriate information to assess whether the diet is making a difference.

2. Start keeping a food journal. If you have not already started a journal for your child, start now. I started keeping journals on and off since Matthew was a baby. Feeding charts, sleep charts and behaviour issues. I admit that I am not the best a keeping this practice up. I have numerous note books around the house with little notes jotted down about various issues we were having. They can be a great resource for you and your child's health care team. Make notes about what your child eats, how much, when, and any behaviours you notice associated with the foods. Personally I think it is important to start keeping this journal about one month before eliminating wheat entirely.

3. Start making a list of your child's favourite wheat foods. This list will be handy to keep in on hand when you go to the grocery store looking for replacements for those foods.

4. Start introducing your child to new gluten free foods. If your child is really picky about food you may want to start with foods that are easy for him to accept, like crackers. Once your child accepts a new GF food, eliminate its wheaty counterpart entirely. You don't want your child remembering how good the old stuff was!

5. Start reading food labels. Next time you go shopping read the labels on your favourite foods. You may be surprised what is in there! If you can find a GF alternative then try it. Watch out for malt, MSG, barley, and barley malt colouring. All these ingredients are wheat based.

6. Start collecting recipes. There are a number of great GF web sites and cook books that offer great child friendly recipes. One of my favourites is the Kid Friendly Autism ADHD Cook Book. This is a great resource for information and some wonderful easy recipes.

7. Do a trial period. Now that you have a number of GF foods your child is eating under your belt you can begin a trial of the diet. A trial period can be anywhere from two weeks to a month. I do not recommend going longer then a month with out making a solid decision. During this time it is really important that you make sure your child is completely gluten free. By the end of two weeks you should have a good idea of any changes that have occurred with your child.

8. Reintroduce the offender. After about two weeks reintroduce wheat for a day. Give your child a wheat serving at every meal. Take notes on your child's reaction. Your child might have a large reaction, or no reaction at all. You may feel you do not need to do this if you have already noticed a reduction in your child's symptoms. We did not do this for Matthew, as we suspected he may have celiac. We noticed his language increased and he was a much happier child. Again I stress, do NOT do this if your child has a Celiac diagnosis!

9. Get educated. If you have decided that you want to continue with a gluten free diet for your child after a trial it is time to really educate yourself about the gluten free lifestyle. It is a lifestyle for sure! Visit www.celiac.ca and www.talkaboutcuringautism.org for advice on what foods to avoid and other food options. You will need to make some changes in your kitchen too. You will need a new GF toaster, baking tins, cutting boards, bread knife, etc., and learn how to keep your child safe from contamination. The TACA site is full of great information on the GFCF diet and how to work it. It also has a great section on picky eaters. Personally,  I don't believe autism is curable. I do believe that it can be managed and diet is just one way to make things better for a suffering child.

10. Get your favourite grocery store on board! We are very lucky here in Vancouver to have a great selection of GF options. However not every store will carry every thing you need. I found myself shopping from 5 different stores to get all the little bits! It was a full time job just shopping for Matthew's food, not to mention, expensive. Now I have it down to one main store, and I occasionally visit alternatives if I need some one off item. Save on Foods and Price Smart are the big name chain stores that carry the best selection of GF items. They are very good at bringing in requested items too! I am so pleased with how responsive they have been to my requests.

Here are a few hints for GF grocery shopping:
1. Most GF baked products, including bread, are kept in the frozen foods sections. Ask a manager, rather then a staffer, where you can find these items.
2. Check you labels!
3. Cheerio's, Rice Crispies and Corn Flakes are all coloured and flavoured with barley malt. They are not GF.
4. Watch out for soy sauce,jar sauces, and vinegar's. These often contain wheat.


In a later post I will get more detailed about what items can be found at what stores.

The above advice also can apply to eliminating dairy or any other food that may be causing a problem.

Soccer Dogs

Soccer Dogs

There have been many times that Matty’s physiotherapist from CFA has insisted that Matthew needs to be involved in some kind of team sport. Every time she says it I think in my mind, “ how is Matt going to play in team sports???” Sure, he loves to kick a ball, he loves to run around, he loves running after other kids…for about 5 minutes. Then his attention span drops off and he starts looking for ways to escape. He might wander off or start spinning around in circles. Or he will get the idea to distract the adults by running off and doing the exact opposite of what they want him to do. I just could not see any kind of team activity going well.

So she sent me some information for Soccer Dogs, and organization for kids with special needs. She told me she has another child on her caseload that just loves it. I had a quick look thru the information and passed some emails back and forth with a woman named Barbara and we were signed up.

So Saturday morning we turned up to the field were we were told to go, at John Oliver School.  As we drove up we saw various kids and parents in bright uniforms heading to the meeting spot. Matthew was immediately nervous and overwhelmed and started pulling me back to the car. So I assured him it would be all right and picked him up so he would feel safer. The first person I spoke to as I approached was your typical soccer mom type. Abby was bright and inviting which immediately put me at ease. She pointed me in the direction of Barbara, who was getting every one organized with their uniforms and such. Once we got Matthew into a uniform, which was surprisingly easy, we were introduced to Barry, Matty’s one on one volunteer for the hour. Barry immediately got Matthew engaged with the ball and attempted to take him out to the field for a warm up.  Matthew stuck to Paul’s side like glue, so Paul spent the hour on the field with the kids. Future soccer coach, I think! Even though Simon is too young to play he was out there kicking the balls around. There was no way to get him off the field! Soccer Dogs takes kids from age 4 on, but Barbara saw the talent in Simon and said he could play in the spring! 

We even ran into some friends!

Once I got my own bearings I was able to take a good look around and see what was going on. There were at least 80 children of various sizes and various abilities, with about 40 volunteers. And every single child was happy and smiling, including Matthew. Not only were the kids smiling, but the parents were relaxed and smiling too. I felt like I had been transported to a world full of angels and that Matthew’s disabilities were immaterial!

There was a game going on between the older kids in the far field, while the younger kids kicked the balls around with the volunteers.  There were nets, balls, uniforms, and cleats, all supplied to the kids. All the kids got a snack at the end of the hour and there was coffee for the parents with a small donation. The whole thing was so well organized and much larger then I expected. All we have to do is give a deposit of $50, which we get back at the end of the season.

So now on a lazy Sunday afternoon I am at my computer steeling a few moments away from my family. I have had a chance to go thru the Soccer Dogs web site, which is very well organized and professional looking. I realize as I read about the mom that started it all that ‘typical soccer mom’ is THE mom! Reading Abby’s story of how she came to start Soccer Dogs sent me into tears! I will let you all read if for yourselves. It is a heroic story of how one mom can change things so profoundly while advocating for her own child.  

http://soccerdogs.ca/about

So sorry for the poor pictures! But once Matthew sees the camera its all over! So we had to focus on game play, rather then taking good pictures!

Studies that blame mothers

So, I am watching the news the other night and Kevin Newman from Global is talking about some study done that children of women who work indulge in too much TV and eat too much junk food. This made me feel wild inside! He didn’t elaborate much. The whole piece was all but a minute long. No information about how most families can hardly make due on a double salary income. Or about how kids are unsafe walking on their own in any given neighborhood, so they get picked up in cars rather then walking or taking the bus. Or how about the government has made so many cuts to education the parents have to pick up the slack some how at home…or not, because, after all, mom works.

So lets get down to it. Why not just say moms are making their kids fat and lazy? And when we are looking 20 years down the road and all these kids are obese and hanging out in mom’s basement playing video games, or doing drugs, we can blame it on her again.

I know of plenty of kids who eat too much junk food and watch too much TV and their mom’s don’t work. How about doing that study? How about studying how no matter what moms do their kids are being programmed to want junk food by marketing companies that see obesity as dollars in their pockets? And how every time kids turn on the TV to watch yet another show with emaciated teen-age girls who are made up to look like Pamela Anderson, they are bombarded with food commercials like Pizza Pops and fried chicken? How about doing the study about how the government is not helping mom’s to stay at home with their kids, if they want to, or making quality after school care affordable, or implementing healthy eating initiatives in the schools? How about doing a study on the levels of sugar, fat and salt that have crept their way into the food products we all eat? (Actually I think those studies have been done, but I regress to drama when I am upset)

I grew up in a house with a working mom. I can tell you that I watched very minimal TV and I ate apples and crackers for snacks. There was no pop and there were no bags of chips found in our home. We also did not have Hanna Montana and the Gossip Girls. I walked myself to and from school, as did my siblings. Having a working mom taught me independence and taught me that being a woman is never a good excuse for not accomplishing things in life. It was not all rosy either, but problems are problems regardless of whether a mother works or not. 

My parents made a choice every time they went to the grocery store about what food would be available to us for snacks. They made the choice to put the TV in a very small sitting room with only enough room for two people to watch at any given time. They made the choice to not put TV’s in our bedrooms. These are choices based on their priorities as parents. These choices had nothing to do with my mother working.  It comes down to family priorities. If health is a priority then mom, AND DAD, will make conscientious choices about the activity levels and foods that their kids eat.

Can we please stop blaming moms for everything? How about supporting women in the work place, and at home, to be the best they can be, rather then grinding them into the ground with studies that blame.