Food sensitivitity and TS

[mar]

Hello Everyone

 

I haven't been on much laterly because I am desperatlty trying to figure out what is going on with my son. First of all I would like to thank all of you who have responded to me throughout the last couple of months. I am so forever grateful to you all and too this site!!!! I have learned so much in the past three months that my head is spinning (it's a good feeling)!! I feel so much more knowledgable about everything. I have started keeping a journal these past few months mainly on behavior and some with food (since I wasn't sure what foods he has sensitivities to at the time). Just to let you all know my ds has been doing so much better with anxiety and OCD in the last 4 weeks (which was my main concern in the beginning). But I am completely into this food sensitivity thing lately. I mentioned in another post that he is sensitive to so many things which some were confirmed with a skin prick test. It is crazy!!! Once again if it wasn't for this site I would have never known!!!! His tics have been good. Everything has been real mild (remember that my husband has this so it does run in the family) .

 

Anyway, I am amazed with the recent discovery! He had a "Danish cofee cake" one day. It's crazy because he came home from school and was fine in regards to behavior and tics(very mild). He did homework without any issues and then had the cake. Within 10-20 minutes he started jumping around (hyperactivity) rolling around on the ground and within 1 hour if that (thanks to my logs and all the people who suggested it on this site) had 4 tics (blinking eyes, mouth opening, lip licking, breathing tic) he had all these at once (he has never had more then two tics at a time). I cried that night wondering what happened since he has been doing so well. After getting his food sensitivity test back I realized that 6 of his sensitivites where in their (egg whites, milk, citrus, lemons, yeast,soy). I am starting to think that food is playing a big role in his behavior and tics!! I might be going crazy but who isn't trying to figure this stuff out. I am happy and sad at the same time as I am trying to figure all this out. I am planning to start an elimination diet as soon as the holidays are over. I will let you know how it goes.

 

I want to thank everyone one on this site. This site has taught me sooooo much. Thank you Chemar and faith with all your knowledge. I really hope and pray that I will figure some of this out and be able to help others like you two have!!

 

Thanks to you all!! I will lets you know how things proceed!!

[ameecram]

Hello Everyone

 

I haven't been on much laterly because I am desperatlty trying to figure out what is going on with my son. First of all I would like to thank all of you who have responded to me throughout the last couple of months. I am so forever grateful to you all and too this site!!!! I have learned so much in the past three months that my head is spinning (it's a good feeling)!! I feel so much more knowledgable about everything. I have started keeping a journal these past few months mainly on behavior and some with food (since I wasn't sure what foods he has sensitivities to at the time). Just to let you all know my ds has been doing so much better with anxiety and OCD in the last 4 weeks (which was my main concern in the beginning). But I am completely into this food sensitivity thing lately. I mentioned in another post that he is sensitive to so many things which some were confirmed with a skin prick test. It is crazy!!! Once again if it wasn't for this site I would have never known!!!! His tics have been good. Everything has been real mild (remember that my husband has this so it does run in the family) .

 

Anyway, I am amazed with the recent discovery! He had a "Danish cofee cake" one day. It's crazy because he came home from school and was fine in regards to behavior and tics(very mild). He did homework without any issues and then had the cake. Within 10-20 minutes he started jumping around (hyperactivity) rolling around on the ground and within 1 hour if that (thanks to my logs and all the people who suggested it on this site) had 4 tics (blinking eyes, mouth opening, lip licking, breathing tic) he had all these at once (he has never had more then two tics at a time). I cried that night wondering what happened since he has been doing so well. After getting his food sensitivity test back I realized that 6 of his sensitivites where in their (egg whites, milk, citrus, lemons, yeast,soy). I am starting to think that food is playing a big role in his behavior and tics!! I might be going crazy but who isn't trying to figure this stuff out. I am happy and sad at the same time as I am trying to figure all this out. I am planning to start an elimination diet as soon as the holidays are over. I will let you know how it goes.

 

I want to thank everyone one on this site. This site has taught me sooooo much. Thank you Chemar and faith with all your knowledge. I really hope and pray that I will figure some of this out and be able to help others like you two have!!

 

Thanks to you all!! I will lets you know how things proceed!!

 

 

My son had the IgE/IgG blood tests done and showed 23 food allergies. We are currently treating him for a leaky gut, which is what I really think is going on with him. He has a huge history of allergies, as do I, and we have no family hx of TS. It's very hard to eliminate all the foods, but well worth it. Let me know if you have any questions and good luck.

[laurena82]

). I am starting to think that food is playing a big role in his behavior and tics!! I might be going crazy but who isn't trying to figure this stuff out. I am happy and sad at the same time as I am trying to figure all this out. I am planning to start an elimination diet as soon as the holidays are over. I will let you know how it goes.

 

(((((((((((hugs))))))))))) to you! Boy, can I relate....yes, it is a GREAT feeling to actually IDENTIFY what's causing it......then, to know that it can be eliminated or SIGNIFICANTLY reduced by just "healthful choices" instead of pharmaceuticals with all sorts of side effects, etc........that's a GREAT feeling....

 

.....but then....the overwhelming reality of trying to DO this in our society....! No wonder there are so many food allergies...we're being sensitized to so many things because these common things (soy, corn, wheat, dairy/whey, etc) are in EVERYTHING !! !! !!

 

The elimination diet...while miserable to go through....is, in my opinion, THE way to "diagnose" food allergies......because.......!! as you clearly saw with the "danish" episode........if you've avoided stuff for awhile, THEN add it back.....you GET the EXACT symptoms it's causing....only GREATLY amplified.........

 

......it just leaves NO DOUBT in your mind that the food causes that specific symptom.

 

 

We did that food elimination thing as a family when my son had the TS/tics going on,.....and, as a by product, my husband learned that his frequent headaches were caused by corn....I learned that my irregular heart beats were caused by corn.....and I also saw the dramatic worsening of my son's asthma/wheezing with corn.........

 

I probably would have NEVER made that association otherwise......

 

 

BEST WISHES! and enjoy the holiday season

[Chemar]

Hi

as the others have posted, yes! foods can be major tic triggers

 

my son doesnt have food allergies per se, but he does have MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) and so exposure to chemical food additives can set his tics off dramatically.

 

we have had a number of cases of parents who have reported tics resolving once they remove allergens

[szcasey]

Hi,

 

We had IgG testing done for my then 5 yo son (he turns 7 today) and removed the foods he's allergic to (dairy, gluten, eggs, soy, apples and strawberries) and saw a huge improvement. However, his tics have slowly been returning. He's very frustrated, especially by the vocal coughing tic.

 

Ameecram, what are you doing to treat your son's leaky gut? At the suggestion of our GP, we were using aloe vera juice and MSM but we're currently on a break from it. Would love to hear what you're doing and how it's going.

 

Thanks and best,

Sarah

[ameecram]

Hi,

 

We had IgG testing done for my then 5 yo son (he turns 7 today) and removed the foods he's allergic to (dairy, gluten, eggs, soy, apples and strawberries) and saw a huge improvement. However, his tics have slowly been returning. He's very frustrated, especially by the vocal coughing tic.

 

Ameecram, what are you doing to treat your son's leaky gut? At the suggestion of our GP, we were using aloe vera juice and MSM but we're currently on a break from it. Would love to hear what you're doing and how it's going.

 

Thanks and best,

Sarah

 

Hi Sarah,

 

We currently have him on a liquid supplement called GI Revive, he is taking probiotics, digestive enzymes, a yeast fighter, and some allergy supplements. His little gut is reacting to everything, and we had his neurotransmitters tested and many were very elevated due to his body responding to the allergies. I don't completely know what I'm talking about , but I think we have a good direction now. His tics haven't gone away by any means, but they are minimal, and all the tics he has seem very allergy related...throat clearing, scratching his skin when excited, snorting...actions you would find with allergies. He has never had any type of head jerking or neck tics. I would love to know more about your child's history as well.

[szcasey]

Hi,

 

Hi Ameecram,

 

Thanks so much for your response! I greatly appreciate it!

 

Where to begin... LOL. It all started with rapid blinking (in October) but we didn't think anything of it until October the following year, when my son started a strange leg or hip tic that would cause him to fall. It was very hard to watch and he was in a lot of pain at bedtime from all the ticcing. We had all sorts of testing done to rule out brain tumors, seizures, etc. Nothing helped. I started researching and learned about TS... he had everything but the vocal. We took him to a neurologist in NYC who half-heartidly mentioned that some TS patients have seen good results by checking for allergies. That started me on an interesting journey... found this site and a few Yahoo groups and the TSA-USA.

 

After the allergies were discovered (gluten, casein, eggs, soy, apples, strawberries), we removed the foods and symptoms greatly improved. However, he did develop a minor vocal tic and we then got the TS diagnosis. TS doesn't run in the family so I am not sure where/why this came out of the blue.

 

Our supplement routine (a lot I learned from Cheri on this site and Bonnie Grimaldi), includes Vit D3, Calcium, b6, b12, vegetable based digesive enzyme, probiotics, taurine, l-tryptophan, amino acids, grape seed extract, zinc and magnesium... I'm still trying to find an Omega 3/6 that he won't react to.

 

Additionally, this summer he was diagnosed with a tic borne illness (not Lyme; can't think of what it is at the moment), so he's been taking some pretty heavy-duty antibiotics. Not good for his little GI tract, but it needs to addressed.

 

Not sure why, but his tics are slowly returning with a little more force since (we've been on the diet almost 2 years and the supplements we slowly added over this period as well). Maybe the stress of his b-day and Xmas. Maybe a new allergy? His couging tic is finally gone. That was tough on him. His teacher kept sending him to the nurse. It was highly disruptive; the only thing that would stop the cough was to have him talk/read/sing.

 

Best,

Sarah

[ameecram]

Hi,

 

Hi Ameecram,

 

Thanks so much for your response! I greatly appreciate it!

 

Where to begin... LOL. It all started with rapid blinking (in October) but we didn't think anything of it until October the following year, when my son started a strange leg or hip tic that would cause him to fall. It was very hard to watch and he was in a lot of pain at bedtime from all the ticcing. We had all sorts of testing done to rule out brain tumors, seizures, etc. Nothing helped. I started researching and learned about TS... he had everything but the vocal. We took him to a neurologist in NYC who half-heartidly mentioned that some TS patients have seen good results by checking for allergies. That started me on an interesting journey... found this site and a few Yahoo groups and the TSA-USA.

 

After the allergies were discovered (gluten, casein, eggs, soy, apples, strawberries), we removed the foods and symptoms greatly improved. However, he did develop a minor vocal tic and we then got the TS diagnosis. TS doesn't run in the family so I am not sure where/why this came out of the blue.

 

Our supplement routine (a lot I learned from Cheri on this site and Bonnie Grimaldi), includes Vit D3, Calcium, b6, b12, vegetable based digesive enzyme, probiotics, taurine, l-tryptophan, amino acids, grape seed extract, zinc and magnesium... I'm still trying to find an Omega 3/6 that he won't react to.

 

Additionally, this summer he was diagnosed with a tic borne illness (not Lyme; can't think of what it is at the moment), so he's been taking some pretty heavy-duty antibiotics. Not good for his little GI tract, but it needs to addressed.

 

Not sure why, but his tics are slowly returning with a little more force since (we've been on the diet almost 2 years and the supplements we slowly added over this period as well). Maybe the stress of his b-day and Xmas. Maybe a new allergy? His couging tic is finally gone. That was tough on him. His teacher kept sending him to the nurse. It was highly disruptive; the only thing that would stop the cough was to have him talk/read/sing.

 

Best,

Sarah

 

Thanks for the information Sarah. I came to realize my son was having tics long before I realized what I was seeing, so I didn't document them like I should have. It's a slow process, and right now we are staying away from 23 foods, the big ones being gluten, corn, dairy, soy, and eggs. Hopefully, eventually, things will start to look up. I have never been back to the neurologist, only one time over a year ago when she thought he would most likely grow out of them. His ped game me info on TS, which didn't help anything. He may very well end up having TS, but I have no need to get a diagnosis, I'm going to continue treating his symptoms as best we can, and hope for the best:) Our hardest times are during the spring, summer, and fall, when his allergies really flare up. It is so hard at times to watch, and so sad when it feels like your child is being judged by other parents and kids. Good luck to you as well. Please let me know if anything changes with your son.

 

Amy

[laurena82]

Interesting figure......I just read this am that they estimate 4% of US kids have food allergies.......!