Download DBA Nutrition and Behaviour

DISEASE RISK
EPIGENETICS
RESEARCH
SHOWN THAT
DIET CAN
SIGNIFICANTLY
AFFECT THE
EPIGENETIC
PROFILES
REGULATES
GENE
EXPRESSION
BY DNA
METHYLATION,
HISTONE STABILITY
AND Mrna PROFILES
Optimum Nutrition
and Behaviour
“How does your child’s diet affect
their behaviour?”
INTRODUCTION
 Are children today having a kids life crisis?
 Mental and behavioural problems are on the
increase in our children.
 Autism, dyslexia, hyperactivity, depression and
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
 Clinical research points its finger at sub-optimal
nutrition.
 Lets identify how to maximise your child’s
potential and stay emotionally healthy.
Diagnosis?
 ADD-Attention deficit disorder without
hyperactivity
 ADHD-Attention deficit disorder with
hyperactivity
 Dyslexia
 Autism
 Or just “interested” in everything?
What we need to consider.
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Blood sugar imbalance
Food additives and colourings
The gut connection
Allergies
Lack of Essential Fatty Acids
Heavy metal toxicity
Amino acid imbalance
OPTIMUM NUTRITION
Optimum Nutrition aims to provide the body with the
perfect balance of vitamins, minerals and nutrients so that it
can perform at its best
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Every child is unique
Nutrients work together
Environmental factors affect health
Lifestyle affects nutritional needs
WHAT ARE CHILDREN MADE
OF?
 Each cell is a complete and complex
factory, dependant on raw materials
 Each cell is part of a system which is
very finely tuned
 Genetics play a role
 “normal” is not enough ???
 Do what is best for your child
Symptoms of sub-optimal
health
 Skin colour and texture
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Eyes
Appetite
Digestion
Bowels
Immune system
Energy
Moods
Alertness
Sleeping patterns
Breathing
Weight
Symptoms of hyperactivity
and/or inattentive children
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Brain fog
Mood swings
Tearfulness
Aggressiveness, hostility, anger
Overactivity
Headaches
Ear infections
Bedwetting
Digestive disorders
Aches and pains
Short attentions span
Learning problems
Respiratory problems
Irritabilty
Drowsiness/inappropriate fatigue
Depression
THE ENERGY ROLLER
COASTER
 Blood sugar imbalance causes the energy
roller coaster
 Refined foods give fast acting sugar, causing
energy highs
 Insulin then activated to bring blood sugars
down but can cause an abrupt energy reduction
or ‘crash’
 This leads back to sugar cravings and the roller
coaster!
 Complex carbohydrates break down into slow
acting sugar
 When in balance blood sugar creates
sustained energy levels and mood
THE ENERGY SOLUTION
 Provide small and frequent snacks
 Always eat breakfast
 Balance complex carbohydrates, proteins and
fats
 Watch for hidden sugars
 Dilute fruit juices
 Mix dried fruit with protein
 Limit convenience foods
 Use fresh fruit
 Avoid cola and caffeine
Food additives/ E numbers
 7,000,000 North American chidren take Ritalinproperties similar to cocaine.
 Side effects-stomach pains, weight loss, growth
retardation, muscle twitching, agitation, insomnia, etc
 Before additives added to our food, no such disorder
existed as ADHD.
 UK Government now confirms that colourings used in
food and drinks are likely to cause tantrums and
disruptive behaviour.
 Can obtain a leaflet from Ministry of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food with list of E numbers.
THE GUT LINK
 “Digestion is the great secret of life”-you
are not only what you eat but what you
digest.
“What the patient takes beyond his ability
to digest does harm”
 What can your child’s mucosal lining
tolerate? It will be comprimised. That’s
the key to his/her brain health.
The Gut / Brain link
 A toxic bowel is a build up of the bad bacteria,
parasites, yeasts and their toxins
 And partially digested food material due to lowered
digestive enzymes including the casein/gluten peptides
 This brew then leaks abnormally through the gut wall
and creates oxidative stress
 Research has suggested that these toxins play a role
in elevating cytokines (often found raised in autistic
children). Cytokines are messengers linking immune
system, gut and brain.
 This causes a chronic inflammatory process
 Therefore the integrity of the mucosal lining is
compromised causing commonly found bowel
problems
The Gut /Brain Link
 Elevated levels of nitric oxide (microbial) can affect
anti-oxidant enzymes and can cause neural death
 This also increases permeability of the blood brain
barrier allowing the entry of peptides
 Due to enlarged gaps in the gut wall pathogens such
as mycoplasma, parasites, yeast and other bacteria
pass through
 If the blood brain membrane has increased
permeability then inflammation, ischemia and toxicity in
the brain may occur
 This also triggers learning and memory problems
The Allergy Link
Most commonly put forward as a contributing factor
The strongest evidence involves gluten (mainly wheat)
and dairy (casein)
They get into the system by faulty digestion and
absorption (leaky gut)
These peptides mimic brain endorphins and cause
damaging opoid effects in the brain (enlarged eye
pupils)
Can test –challenge testing/ELISA testing
For gluten removal it takes longer-perhaps 6 m
 The effects of removing dairy are usually rapid.
IF ALLERGY IS A
PROBLEM
 Adverse reaction to food e.g. peanuts (Type 1)
 Immune reaction – response is for life
 Can be hereditary
 Food sensitivity (Type 2)
Symptoms
 Eczema, asthma, hay fever, colic, mouth ulcers,
bloating, diarrhoea, constipation, rashes, psoriasis,
stomach pains, behavioural problems
 Stay off peanuts until 5 years old
PROBLEM FOODS
The most common foods to cause sensitivity are:
 Wheat – either gluten or wheat itself
 Other gluten grains such as barley and rye
 Dairy – either lactose or milk products such
as milk, cheese and sometimes yoghurt
 Soya products
 Citrus
 Eggs
WHEAT AND DAIRY
ALTERNATIVES
 Wheat
Oats, rye, rice, corn, barley, muesli,
buckwheat, quinoa, millet, bulgar wheat,
chickpea flour, lentil flour, almonds,
 Dairy
Soya milk, soya yoghurt and cheese, rice
milk, oat milk, butter, whey milk, almond
milk, coconut milk
DAIRY OR NO DAIRY
 Dairy sensitivity can contribute to:
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Childhood diabetes
Asthma
Eczema
Glue ear
 No cows milk until one year old
(Government guidelines) because cows
milk is poorly digested by infants
 7% of babies have cows milk
 Breast milk is best!!
DAIRY OR NO DAIRY
 What about calcium?
 Eastern cultures
 Low in use of dairy products and
low in osteoporosis
 Possible link – stress+junk
foods=osteoporosis
 Calcium in cows milk is not well utilised
 Green vegetables, nuts and seeds
 Yoghurt?
WHAT TO DO
 Avoid suspect food for a few weeks
 Give essential fatty acids such as fish oils/flax
oil
 Give digestive enzymes such as aloe vera
 Start reintroducing food, keeping a check on
symptoms
 Use antioxidants to boost immunity such as
Vitamins A, C, E and bi-flavinoids
 Drink plenty of water to detoxify
 Add Vitamin C as an anti-inflammatory
Smart fats
 Your child’s brain is 60% fat.
 Essential fats are essential for your brain
 Deficiency linked to depression, dyslexia,
ADD, fatigue, memory problems,
Alzeimers, schizophrenia
 The myelin sheath surrounding neurons
is composed of phospholipids and O3
and O6 fats
PROOF
 Research by Dr Alex Richardson shows
children low in essential fats are more
predisposed to dyslexia, dyspraxia and ADHD,
autism-.web-www.fabresearch.org
 Research also shows children breast fed have
higher IQ’s at 8yrs than bottled fed.
 Cannot be synthesised by the body so need to
be provided by the diet.
Why is there a problem?
 Too much saturated fats or trans fats (damaged
polyunsaturated)-blocks the conversion of efa to hufa’s
which play a structural role as well as important for eye
and brain function.
 Also mineral deficiency especially zinc blocks
conversion.
 Also stress, alcohol, caffeine and smoking.
 Salycilates-apples, prunes, raisins,
raspberries,almonds, apricots, blackcurrants, oranges,
strawberries, grapes, tomato sauce, plums,
cucumbers. Block efa’s to prostaglandins for
communication.
 Also the balance is now 1:20 to O6 not 1:1 preindustrial revolution.
CLINICAL SIGNS FOR EFA
DEFICIENCY.
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Eccessive thirst
Frequent urination
Rough, dry, scaly skin
Dull, lifeless hair
Soft brittle nails
Eczema, asthma, hayfever
Poor night vision, sensivity to bright lights, visual
disturbances
 Poor concentration, distractability, poor memory
 Emotionally sensitive
 Sleep problems
ESSENTIAL FATS
 Eat seeds and nuts-flax, hemp, pumpkin, sunflower,
sesame. Grind and sprinkle on cereals, soups, salad.
 Eat herring, salmon, mackeral, tuna 2-3 times a week.
Need 300-400 mg both of EPA and DHA per day, or
triple to correct a learning difficulty.
 Use hemp or flax oil for cold dressings.
 Minimise intake of fried food, processed and saturated
fat from dairy and meat.
 Supplement with fish oils for O3 fats and starflower or
evening primrose oil for O6 fats.
 Use eggs fed on a high O3 diet.
DETOXIFICATION
 Heavy metals can affect neurotransmitter
pathways
 Hair Mineral analysis will identify them
 Also will show mineral levels to help
detoxify.
 Liver support-antioxidants/milk
thistle/amino acids
 Epson salts
Neurotransmitter
metabolism
 Amino acids are the building blocks of our cells
 Anedotal evidence that certain aa’s are beneficial to
people with autism
 Found supplementation very beneficial.
 IAG found to be high in the urine of ASD’S
 Metabolite of inadequate conversion of tryptophan to
5HTP.
 This is needed for manufacture of serotonin
 Serotonin is an inhibitory neurotransmitter
 Needed for sleep and relaxation therefore reduces
hyperactivity.
 Can supplement with 5HTP
VARIETY – THE SPICE OF
LIFE
 80% of food intake comes from just 11
foods.
 Increasing the number of foods increases
the variety of nutrients obtained
naturally
 Lead by example
 Include your child in choice and
preparation of foods
AN IDEAL DIET FOR
CHILDREN
 70% Complex Carbohydrates
 for energy production
 vegetables, fruit, grains, beans, pulses and
seeds
 30% Protein
 for growth, and muscle and hormone
production
 fish, meat, dairy products and added fat
 Water – we are 80% water. It is
necessary to ‘flush out’ toxins
FRUIT AND VEGETABLES –
WONDERFOOD?
BUT – how do you get children to eat them?
 Start early and keep quantities small
 Choose colourful and sweet
 Cherry tomatoes, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes
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Hide them in omelettes, pizzas, rice etc
Grate into purees, soups and sauces
Use vegetarian main courses
Offer as a first course while your child is
hungry
Why Fruit And Vegetables?
 Apples
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High in Vitamin C – increases immunity
High in Pectin – aids detoxification
Works to lower cholesterol by up to 10%
Neutralises excess acid
 Apricots
 High in antioxidants for immunity
 High in iron for energy
 Broccoli
 Fights cancer because contains indoles
 High in iron (energy)
 Brown rice
 High in iron, magnesium, Vitamins E and B6
 Contains gamma oryzanol for health of the gut
 Carrots
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High in Vitamin C - immunity
Helps respiratory system (Vitamin A)
Essential for healthy skin (Vitamin A)
Good for eye function (Vitamin A)
 Flax oil
 Rich in essential fatty acids which reduces
 Inflammation and therefore decreases allergies
 Important far nerve and brain function because contains
EPA/DHA
 Important for hormone balance
 Garlic and onions
 Anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal (active compounds)
 Helpful against asthma, anaemia, arthritis (support the
liver)
 Helps to detoxify pollutants
 Papaya and pineapples
 Rich in enzymes which are beneficial
for digestion of proteins
 Clean up dead tissue in the gut wall
 Olive oil
 Protects against heart disease
 Is high in antioxidants
 Aids digestion and helps prevent constipation
 Bio yoghurt
 Helps maintain bacterial balance in the colon
 Helps protect against bowel cancer
 Grapes
 Has cleansing properties
 Useful for gout and rheumatism
 Regenerative for fatigue as contains fructose
 Oats
 Reduces cholesterol and blood fats
 Good for blood sugar balance
 Provides Vitamins B & E, calcium, magnesium,
potassium and silicon
 Oily fish, nuts and seeds
 Contain essential fatty acids
 For brain structure and nerve messages
 Improves cardiovascular health by
reducing cholesterol
FAST FOOD NOT JUNK
FOOD
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Humus in pitta bread
Baked beans
Frozen peas
Tuna mayonnaise
Omelettes
Sausages
Vegetable or chicken nuggets
Additive free fish fingers
 Quickie dips and salads
 3 bean salad
 Guacamole
 Coleslaw
 Fresh soup (cartons)
 Pasta, rice and baked potatoes
 Toasted sardines
GOOD FOOD ON A
BUDGET
 Pulses and grains e.g. red lentils in
stews and bolognaise
 Vegetables and fruit in season
(from the market)
 Mackerel, and sardines
 Casserole cheaper cuts of lean meat with
pulses, grains and veg e.g. neck
of lamb with pearl barley
 Use your freezer where possible
FOOD FADS
BE POSITIVE!
 Happy meal times
 Don’t worry if your child won’t eat – don’t fuss
 Children have different appetites at
different growth times
 Do not give junk food to tempt
your child to eat
 Do not give in to cravings for saltier and
sweeter foods
 Check they are not unwell
PROVERBS 22;6
 TRAIN A CHILD IN THE WAY
HE SHOULD GO, AND WHEN
HE IS OLD HE SHALL NOT
DEPART FROM IT.