The Mr. Homeschooling Doctor loves to find articles for me.

Today’s article was:  ‘Milk and Cookie Disease’: The new childhood health condition caused by diet.

It’s a nice, vague little article in which Julie Wei, MD, pediatric otolaryngology, suggests that too much dairy and sugar, particularly before bedtime contributes to chronic sore throats, runny noses, stuffy noses, constipation, and tiredness in the pediatric population.

Conversation tonight then centered in our home around how “us doctors are gettin’ there.”

S-o…

S-l-o-w-l-y…It’s embarrassing at how slowly, really.

We have two issues.  First, food intolerances to things like wheat and dairy are significant in the population, yet unrecognized.  Second, most children are eating way too many dairy, wheat, and sugar products at the expense of vegetables, fruits, and meats.

Our children are suffering (obesity, poor concentration, allergic rhinitis, constipation, reflux), and we adults, who are struggling too, continue to feed them food items they do not need, at the expense of their health.  Why?  Because it tastes good?  They beg for it?  It’s a part of childhood?  A kid almost has to have diabetes before we’ll consider it okay to not feed him a cracker, juice, soda, cookie, cupcake, or ice cream snack.

I’m asking you to stop.  Take the high road.  The road less traveled.  The hard road.  If you’ve read this, you’ve heard it from a doctor.  I’ll stand on doctor ground tonight.  After seeing the changes in our home, I’m that concerned and passionate about this topic.

Our kids need us to reign in their soda, snacking, and poor food habits.  Maybe it’ll get us to thinking about what we eat, too.  A very good thing.

“Wei (MD) recommended her patients eliminate all dairy and sugar before bedtime, and  their symptoms improved significantly…Five-year-old Jonathan Giambrone is one of these children. A heavy snorer since  he was a baby, his enlarged tonsils and adenoids made it difficult to sleep…he would pick foods that were easy to swallow, like yogurt, smoothies,  applesauce and cottage cheese. And every night he would drink chocolate milk  before going to sleep…

After learning about Wei, Giambrone cut down on  Jonathan’s nighttime snacking and allowed him to drink only water before  bedtime.  ‘In a three week period, we noticed a substantial difference,’  she said. Jonathan also had his tonsils and adenoids removed two weeks ago,  which Giambrone hopes will make even more of a difference.”

Why not try a dairy elimination for two weeks, not just nighttime elimination?  And how about trying to take out dairy BEFORE the surgery?  What if…

At the end, the article makes a stab at constipation, a problem we found to be directly cured by dairy elimination in our home.

It’s nice to see articles relating symptoms to food, but we still have a long way to go.  I understand that gluten and dairy are staples, but if we can’t tolerate them, there are PLENTY of other very nutritious food sources.  If we’re concerned about vitamin D, calcium, B vitamins, and fiber, let’s enlist the help of a nutritionist for patients.  Even if patients are tolerant, most of them could benefit by leaning a lot less on grains and dairy.

By the way, not that it matters, and it’s probably quite evident by my simple operation here, I do this on my own.  I have no sponsor.  I have no web programmer.  I don’t get money for any of this, from any source.

Food matters.  Like a drug, foods treat us each differently.  Take only what you need, and watch for side effects.

Terri

Read full Milk and Cookie Disease article:  http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/07/14/milk-and-cookie-disease-new-childhood-health-condition-caused-by-diet/#ixzz2Z4QoeRdi