Walk, stop running, be careful, listen, stay in bed, sit and eat, talk quietly, pay attention, focus, what did I tell you?  All day long and for many years I have repeated these words to my son James who is now six. 

 People told me to quiet him down and make him stop running.  "If you can think of a way, let me know"  I'd  answer.  They didn't understand that although I reprimanded James, it did little good.  I'm certain they doubted my parenting skills.  Others thought James had a hearing problem.

 There was no speed control when James' motor started running.  Most holidays were spent watching James run around in circles, yelling.  I fretted about how he would behave at parties, dinners, and church.  I worried that James was hearing too many negative comments about himself.  It was hard to catch him doing something good.

 James wasn't learning like my daughter had.  He did not remember the letters I taught him.  His fine motor skills were poor.  He was five and could not sing the alphabet song.   "Boys learn slower than girls" people would say. 

 I hoped that James would outgrow all these things.  Instead he got worse.  While all the other children kicked the ball at soccer, James stood  at the other end of the field looking at the sky, conversing with players as they ran by.  Once he ran up to a boy on the side line and pushed him for no reason. 

 His behavior was awful at church.  One time he did a somersault on the altar.  I'm sure the priest hadn't seen that before!  Ashamed, I tried to make him walk back to our pew.  "Stop running" I said, squeezing his hand.  "I want to stop mommy, but I can't" he replied.   I cried, knowing he was right.  He was not in control of his own body.

 Other times he placed himself in danger because of his impulsivity.  I was constantly worried that he would bolt in front of a car in the parking lot or run off in a store.

 I began to fight with my husband about the possibility of needing medication in the future.  "He isn't going to learn or have friends," I told him.   I was depressed and stressed out.  I spent Thanksgiving of 2007 in the bathroom crying.  I  made an appointment with my doctor to see about getting medication for myself because the chaos was taking its toll on my own mental health.

 In the meantime I heard that red dye 40 caused hyperactivity. I removed it from his diet.  I didn't think it would work, but I tried it anyway.  This step eliminated the strawberry milk he was drinking two times a day.  After two weeks I noticed a change.  Maybe I would not need medication, and I hoped James would not either. 

 One trip to the doctor's office, and one green lollipop later, and I knew all artificial colors were bad for James.  He ate the pop in the waiting room and twenty minutes later he was like a rabid squirrel in a phone booth.  I didn't think I would be physically able to get him into my car.

I was encouraged and  started to do research on the Internet.  I asked around for information on ADHD and diet.  Finally I found the Feingold organization.  I had so much more to learn, but joining the knowledgeable and supportive Feingold organization made it easy.

 From them I learned that James couldn't tolerate artificial colors, preservatives and flavors.  I changed our home and personal products such as dish soap and toothpaste.  I monitored James reaction to natural salycitates.  I found the natural salicylates particularly interesting, because prior to Feingold I had noticed that he reacted to apples. 

 James has adjusted to his diet.  He understands that he can only eat certain foods.  He does not complain when I bring additive free foods to parties.  At Halloween he looks forward to trading in his candy for a toy.  At Christmas Santa brings all natural candy.  I send acceptable treats in to school.  Grandparents and family see the diet working and ask what they can give him. 

 James has gone from being a 10 on my hyper scale to being a typical active 6 -year- old boy.  He is learning how to read and do math.  He has no problems falling asleep.  He talks with a regular volume and tone.  He says "thank you, I love you," and hugs me more.  He answers me when I speak to him and follows directions.   I laugh when I have to ask him to walk faster.  He even sits in church and plays soccer.  The best evidence of his change is that one family member thought we had medicated him.  Our biggest compliment is that his teacher has put her own son on the Feingold diet.

 I am grateful to James for making me think about the foods that fuel our bodies.  I am certain there are unseen health benefits for our entire family, and have already discovered that my daughter's migraines were a result of eating artificial vanillin. 

 Each Thanksgiving, when I sit back and reflect on what I am thankful for, I will always remember the year I found Feingold.

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 WHY DO I PREFER FEINGOLD OVER OTHER DIETS?

If you're going to use diet as part of your treatment you need to do it right. 

This means you need to have a systematic way of testing your child's diet.  Most children will benefit from a diet that removes artificial colors, flavors and perservatives.  Some members, like me, find they need to go a little further.  My son, through an elimination test, was found to have issues with too many apples and oranges.  About 6 months into the program we went gluten free as well. 

 Doris Rapp, who is well known for her elimination diet book once gave an example of a person limping because they have 5 nails in their shoe.  If they remove 3 nails they are still going to walk with a limp.

So if you are allergic to all dyes, but only remove red.  If you are sensitive to chemicals, but only remove them from your food......  If you take out only artificials, but you also have a problem with gluten.....you will still show the offending behaviors and symptoms. 

The feingold program is a test to find out what might be triggering your problems.  

If you don't find all your child's big triggers, you're not going to see results.  This means you need support and practical information to figure out what these triggers are. 

Unfortunately foods have hidden ingredients that are not listed on labels.  Many children react to even the smallest amount of artificials and the reaction can last for more than one day.  For example my son ran across my kitchen cabinets like a little rodent after he ate white pancakes that had a small amount of red dye in them.

I read several books before joining Feingold.  The books told me what not to eat, but they didn't tell me exactly what to eat.  I was left to do alot of label reading on my own, and unless you buy organic or eat only homemade foods, you aren't going to have an effective diet. 

The books would explain how going gluten free benefits some .    But, how do I know if I should go gluten free?  Where do I buy gluten free products?  What are some gluten free recipes?  What do I pack in my child's lunch? Which ketchup, ice cream etc. are gluten free?

Members of Feingold get a food book that tells you what name brand products are completely clean of artificials.  It does take a little time to figure out how to do your new shopping, but the results can make it more than worth while.  It just becomes a matter of buying this cracker instead of that cracker.  These chips instead of those chips. 

 The Feingold program also includes swapping out household and personal products.  They give medication in a patch, so why wouldn't the petroleum in laundry detergent effect your child in the same way the petroleum in artificial colors does?  You'll learn name brands of detergents, shampoos etc. that are healthier.  Some folks share their homemade cleaning solution recipes.  I actually save money on cleaning products now.

 Members of Feingold have access to a member bulletin board.  This is a place where members can ask questions, problem solve together and support one another.  This is invaluable to me.  The tips you learn on the bulletin board are what makes implementing the diet easier and more effective.  The tips I learned there are what taught my son how to accept and follow his diet.  You learn how to navigate birthday parties and difficult relatives.  Have a question, someone has an answer.

If you are concerned about saving money and sticking to the program the bulletin board will provide answers.  Several members are single moms who use WIC.  It can be done.

There are other reasons why I prefer Feingold, but the food book and the bulletin board are the top two reasons.  Well, that and the fact that our chances of getting cancer have been greatly decreased.

 Here is a link to the website which shares other moms stories.  http://www.feingold.org/pg-success.html

Many do not realize the Feingold organization is a non profit organziation.  There is no one at the top making the big bucks.  They rely on a few paid staff and volunteers who get paid with the satisfaction of helping others.

Thanks for listening.

   The Feingold  program removes artificial ingredients from home and personal products.  You get a book that tells you exactly what brands of food to buy.  They research for hidden ingredients.  For example BHT can be hidden in vitamin A palpitate.  Even cheerios sprays it's packaging with BHT.  I know what I can get at BJ's, Walmart, CVS and my usual grocery.  You learn to buy things like fritos instead of cheetos for example.  Actually you can buy all natural cheetos too!

I don't find the diet restrictive.  It has been mostly a matter of changing brands.  My son is terrific about it.  After the first couple weeks it gets easier.  

 There are a few single moms there with children on WIC.  They are able to figure out how to stick to the diet and manage their budget.  It is more difficult for them, but they figure it out and are rewarded by the results.

 The Feingold Program can also help Autism, aspergers, ocd, ppd, learning, behavior, and other health problems.  It is for both children and adults.