Does Food Intolerance Really Create Behavioral Issues In A Child?

Posted on Wed, 23 Sep 2015

Question: Our son is little hyper. Never sits at one place and always on the go. He does not pay attention to his surroundings. He has developmental delays. Based on advise of a child psychiatrist we did food intolerance test for our son.mSome blood reports (preliminary) have come today which are about food intolerance. Reports indicate intolerance to following food
Dairy products
Almonds
Lentils
Egg white
Soybean
Rice
Caesin
And few others items
Following came under borderline
Pomegranate
Egg yolk
Cherry
Potato

What does food intolerance actually indicate? What kind of doctor should we consult for this. We are concerned that all main items that today we give him are advised to be avoided by the report.

Does food intolerance really create behavioral issues in child?
Please advise.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Pradeep Kumar Jain (53 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Better you consult an allergist and psycologist

Detailed Answer:
Hello

Thanks for asking to healthcaremagic

Food intolerance is non allergic hypersensitivity to foods and unlike food allergies here there is no involvement of immune system.
The common food intolerances are Dairy product,eeg white,soya,lentils,gluten(protein in wheat,rye and barley),shellfish and food preservatives.
The intolerance to rice and potato is very less common.
You are right as these cereals are the main component of diet,it is very difficult to avoid them.
There is still controversies regarding the connection between the food intolerance and its behavioral effect.But it has been seen that the food to which the child is intolerant if given can cause behavioral changes in the child like irritability,depression,anxiety and also hyperactivity.
It's relation with attention deficit hyperkinetic disorder has also been studied but not yet established.
You have mentioned that he is on antiepileptic medication. ADHD is more common in children with seizure disorder(this may be a cause of abnormal behavior)

I would suggest you to continue the diet as you are giving unless there are signs like vomiting,loose stool,skin rashes or breathing problem; as providing proper nutrition is prime importance.Consult an allergist and psychologist for need of reevaluation if any and management accordingly.

Please do ask if you have any more query.
Regards

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar