A Sick Day...

I got to spend Valentine's Day cleaning up vomit and wiping Andy's face as he hovered over the toilet. Sound pleasant?

For the record, this is totally the fault of his SPD. Why, you ask? I'll tell you. His stomach distress was caused by one of two reasons. Either a) one of the million things he constantly sticks in his mouth had germs on it, or b) his ingestion of red sprinkles pushed him over the edge.

To explain the germ thing...Andy likes to chew on things. I bought him some chewy pencil toppers for school. We put the first one on his pencil and within a few days he managed to break the pencil it was on and then throw it away...with the pencil topper still attached. The other ones from the package somehow disappeared. I have looked and looked and never was able to find them. I haven't ordered replacements yet.

When I went to Andy's Friendship Party on Friday I saw that all of his pencils are chewed to the point that the paint has flaked off of them and the metal ring that holds the eraser is all deformed. I was disgusted! That is so gross! I immediately talked to the principal and have arranged for him to be allowed to chew gum in class, and have ordered some replacement chew tubes for his pencils.

However, he chews on all kinds of things, even when at home. He likes to put his Nintendo DS stylus in his mouth while he plays. I have found him with the wrist strap for the Wii remote in his mouth. Or the nunchuck. Anything and everything. This is all relatively new to me. He never used to mouth things. It's been within the last 6 months, but it's gotten bad quickly. There's no telling what germs he's been exposed to in the last week.

If it wasn't germs, it was Red40. As you probably know, I have Andy on a Red40 restriction. He's been on the restriction since July 2009. My dear husband took the boys out yesterday morning to get donuts for breakfast so I could sleep in. Good in theory. However, he let Andy pick out a chocolate donut with red and pink sprinkles on it. Against my better judgement, I figured it wouldn't hurt too much to let Andy eat it. He ate the whole thing.

I should have known better. The last time Andy "accidentally" ingested something with red40...orange soda while out with his uncles...he was up all night with diarrhea and severe abdominal pain.

So, which one do you think it is? Does he have a virus from some germs he picked up? Or is he sick from the red40? I have no idea. It really could be either one. Or maybe a combination of both.

All I know is that I'm sick of cleaning up puke.

What's the Deal with Red Dye #40?

Those of you close to our family already know I don't allow Andy to have anything containing Red Dye #40. I had someone ask me recently why I had restricted it, so I figured it was a good time to talk about it on my blog.

Red Dye #40 is an FDA approved dye used to color foods and food products. It is derived from petroleum and provides no nutritional value to the foods that contain it. It is strictly there to change the appearance of a food. Unfortunately, it is not only used to make foods red. It is sometimes used to make orange foods, purple foods, brown foods, etc. It is even sometimes used in combination with yellow dye to make baked products more golden.

You would be shocked to discover how many foods actually contain this dye. Some of the foods aren't even red!! A few of the strange ones I've discovered are canned biscuits, crescent rolls, white cake mixes, Eggo Waffles, and even some brands of tortilla chips! I have to read the ingredients label on every single item I buy at the grocery store to make sure I don't accidentally purchase something that contains red40. There are many cereals that also contain red40. It is even in some medications...antibiotics, vitamins, tylenol, advil, etc!

So why is red40 bad? In 1970, Dr. Ben Feingold (an allergist) discovered the link between red40 and behavior problems. Red40 can cause aggression, impulsivity, hyperactivity, attention deficit, and tantrums in some children and adults. This is not an allergy per se, but more of a sensitivity to the dyes.

The problem is so widespread, and the research so damning, that the UK has begun a push to remove red40 from its foods. Several foods in the UK use natural dyes, such as those from plants and vegetables, while those same foods in the US are made with artificial dyes. For example, McDonald's has removed red40 from their strawberry shakes in the UK, but continues to use red40 in the US version.

The US has not taken a stance against these harmful dyes, and the FDA does not test the dyes for safety. The FDA does now require that foods containing artificial dyes list those dyes on the ingredients label, but the FDA states that they feel the dyes are safe for consumption.

I just wonder why, if there are natural options available, do manufacturers continue to use these potentially harmful artificial dyes in their foods?

We decided to put Andy on a red dye restriction after I repeatedly came across red dye warnings while doing research on SPD. We removed the dye from his diet on a Friday, and by Sunday we had seen a huge change in his overall mood. He was much more mellow and laid back. We were shocked by the dramatic change!

After sharing my story of success, two friends of mine decided to try removing red dye from their households. One had a child with ADHD, and one had a very spirited child who threw frequent tantrums. Both saw marked improvement in a matter of days.

So that's my story. If you are dealing with tantrums in your house, or any of the other side effects I mentioned, see if you can relate it to red dye 40. It is very possibly the hidden culprit.