Keep it Simple

When you are switching to a gluten free casein free diet - keep it simple. I know tons of people who go out and buy hundreds of dollars worth of gluten free cookies and crackers only to find that their child spits it out screaming in horror.

In the beginning there needs to be a taste bud shift. This is true for anyone changing their diet - my husband recently went off sugar -the first week we kept it simple, in the second week I gave him an apple (he's not a big fruit eater) he moaned the entire time he was eating it telling me how good the apple was. The point is that if I had given him the apple the day after he went off sugar, he probably would have turned his nose up - and he's an adult! When comparing an apple to a Snickers bar, unfortunately the Snickers is going to win. But once his taste buds had a chance to be "cleansed" suddenly an apple was a HUGE treat. The same is true for our kids - only more so. They are creatures of habit, their taste buds are more sensitive and some of our kids have texture and temperature issues as well.

When switching their diet don't fight city hall - If you know they won't eat cold things - don't force the issue during the diet change.

Start by making a list of what your child will eat. For some of us it is a short list. When we switched to GFCF my son ate Macaroni and Cheese, Chicken Nuggets, Hot Dogs, pickles, cheese and crackers, toast, yogurt, mashed potatoes and french fries - as well as brocolli, carrots and mashed squash. If you look at the list it's a GFCF nightmare.

In the first week I did what most parents do, I feed him protein and potatoes. If that's what you need to do to get them started, do it. But just keep in mind that you aren't going to be able to do that for long. But to get started, do it. For the first week my son lived on chicken and potatoes, or chicken and french fries (if buying french fries from a restaurant make sure they are gluten free - McDonalds are not - the last I heard In and Out were) we also fed him Shelton's Gluten Free Chicken and Turkey Hot Dogs (found in our local health food store - also available at Whole Foods Market for $2 more than at the health food store.) Do the best you can nutritionally the first week, but get through it without introducing a lot of new foods. Tomorrow we'll talk more about what gluten free products are worth buying in the second week.