I figured that after 35 posts, it is time to get intimate. Many of you know me, but I am amazed at how many of you who log in do not know me. This is my unavailing. But, what I really wanted you all to know is why I am doing this, why I feel compelled to type each night, many times asking myself that same question. Here is my story.
My quest for enlightenment really began many years ago. I have been health conscience a major part of my life to some degree or the other. My first real experience was in jr. high- the first time I could really choose what I wanted to eat for lunch. I ate Hostess Cherry pies and milkshakes for a good part of the 7th grade. I started to get headaches everyday and felt horrible at the end of the day. In the 8th grade, it dawned on me that maybe it was what I was eating. Me and one of my best jr. high friends decided to go off sugar for a couple of months. It was the best thing I did. I understood the power of food. Throughout the rest of my school years, I was on and off again on the food craze. I went away to college and for the first time, gained weight. When I came home, I decided that eating right needed to be a priority, I was not a little teenager anymore who could eat what she wanted. I was married and thankfully married a guy who was very health conscience so it made it easy to eat right. We were very dedicated to a strict diet, no pizza's , milk, cheese, etc. We lived like this for a good 5 years. However, my real quest for knowledge in food as a healing tool began when my first child was born.
My son started getting ear infections at about 8 months, the time he went off breast milk as he couldn't nurse and after 8 months of pumping milk, I was done. He had constant ear infections for 8 months. He was on antibiotics nearly the whole time. The last time I went to the Dr. for his ears, he once again handed me the prescription. I was so upset. I had seen several Dr's and not once did any of them ever ask why he was having infections, all they could do was hand out a prescription like a robot. I tore up the prescription in his face, yelled at him that he knew nothing and stormed out of the office. I took my little child and promptly went over to the nearest book store. (This was 13 years ago, no luxury of the google.) I found a great book by a leading specialist in ear infections. The book told how 99% of ear infections are caused by allergies and listed the top allergens. It discussed the problems with antibiotics and the misuse. I immediately eliminated the top allergens from his diet and within a week, 8 mos of problems were gone, never to return. Why couldn't a Dr. tell me that? That was the beginning of my frustration with Western medicine.
Now, to speed things up to my last child. This sweet little boy, although born with a few little problems was doing well and very happy. At about 6 months, he started to get eczema all over his body. He started to get angry at about 9 months and would bang his head all of the time. He developed late, walking only at about 16 months. Since I had 4 other children, I knew there were things not right. I knew that his body was off since his skin was so bad, he also had ear infections and had to be on antibiotics from a surgery. I took him to the Dr. and the Dr. told me that some kids just have eczema, just put some cream on it, mind you he had it from head to toe. I asked him about allergies, he just said that he would grow out of it. I knew in my heart that he had problems. I started to see him slip. I started to suspect autism. I took him back to the Dr and in a matter of 2 minutes, the Dr. assured me that I was a neurotic mother and was overreacting, that he definitely did not have autism. Well, unfortunately for the next six months, I went off his statement and wasted precious time in treating him. My mother intuition told me otherwise. I had him screened by a different person six months later and he was autistic. I poured my attention into research and found so many links between his skin problems and other issues with nutrition and learned more than I ever wanted to about autism, the role of the gastrointestinal tract and what America is doing to children. I began to get so angry. So angry that Dr's don't know this. So angry that kids are not treated correctly and are deteriorating. I talk to moms all of the time who have so many problems with their kids, constant stomach aches, constant ear infections, anger, ADD, etc. I always ask them one question: "Has your Dr. ever asked you about your child's diet? " Without exception, the answer is no. The truth is, the Dr.s don't understand nutrition, they only recieve about one week of training in this area. Most mothers, truthfully don't want to know. A pill is so much easier. However, the pill only masks the problems. In the meantime, autism has soared from 1 in 10,000 in the 80's to 1 in less than 100 now. What is that saying?
For my little son, I changed his diet, a very strict diet and the anger and the eczema went away. He still has problems with speech and a few areas, but most wouldn't know he is autistic and every day we are making progress. I have learned that the stomach is the most powerful organ in the body. What antibiotics do is destroy the lining of the stomach that helps absorb nutrients and fight the bad things. It is very difficult to get that lining back. Allergies start to develop and cause so much havoc on the body, developmental problems, autism, ADD, etc. You have to take away all the allergies and let the stomach heal. I now have a great Dr. that knows everything and has learned through the problems with her own children. She is a very small percent of physicians that study the stomach. The sad thing is that Eastern medicine has know this for centuries.
This is long, but the moral of my story is this: I write because I am angry every day when I hear your stories, angry that you haven't been asked the right questions by your Dr. Angry that kids have to go through unnecessary trials in life. But, what I have learned through this blog is that there are wonderful mothers out there who love their children and want nothing but to be the best mother's for them. I hope that through my endless research and quest for information I can shed a little knowledge unto you, that you will also ask questions. That you will not just accept what the Dr.'s give you when you know something is wrong. There is a cure out there and a cause almost all of the time. Do your homework, ask questions, google, google, google. What we are feeding our children is as important as what we teach them. Don't waste time that could end up costing your child permanent damage. Disease can be erased. It is our jobs as moms to save little lives, make them better and give them the best future possible. This is my passion.
