Are you or the kids on a limited diet, but want to keep it healthy? Don’t know where to start with substitutions? I’ve been doing this for years, and have the whole range of intolerances in my house… let me help you!
- Wheat and gluten
If you can find the time, homemade bread can be so nutritious and delicious
Like most wheat-based breads, gluten-free breads are often full of preservatives (watch out for 280 – 283, as these cause nasty reactions in sensitive kids). The Burgen gluten-free loaves are free from those preservatives, and the bread sticks together nicely for sandwiches (thanks to the sugar, no doubt!). Find that one in Woolies. Check labels and look for wholegrains and seeded varieties for a little more nutrition, like sorghum, buckwheat, brown rice, millet, quinoa. Dovedale is a good natural brand, which makes nice toast (bit dry for sandwiches though). That one is in Coles.
I make my own these days, using a gluten-free bread recipe from The Holistic Ingredient, that’s quick and easy.
Gluten free pastas are easy to come by – buckwheat is a healthy and low chemical alternative to rice and corn and available in the major supermarkets and health food shops. Aldi make a brown rice penne, it just needs a rinse after cooking to stop it going stodgy (and leftovers from going hard – if they do, reheat in boiling water).
Freedom foods make a good range of gluten-free cereals and are available in both major supermarkets.
- Dairy
coconut milk is a lovely natural milk alternative, if you can tolerate sals and amines
Cow’s milk dairy seems to cause a reaction in a lot of people, and it’s in a lot of foods. So check labels and look for the writing in BOLD under the ingredients – companies are required to list highly allergenic foods such as milk and soy there, so its clearer for the consumer.
Many people are ok with sheep and goat’s milk products – I love Meredith Dairy sheep’s yoghurt and Blue Bay goat’s mozzarella, which I get from my local grocer at Hornsby – Freshco. They order it in bulk for me and I just pick it up once a fortnight. They have a delicious goat/sheep milk halloumi too. Talk to your local guys – they are often willing to help out their customers!
Alternative milks are so readily available these days – I alternate between Pure Harvest rice milk or Coco Quench and either Bonsoy or Aldi’s organic soy milk (none of which have any nasties). Bonsoy is quite expensive, but unlike all other soy milks, it doesn’t contain any sunflower oil – an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid which we already get too much of in our modern diets. The research on soy and human consumption is polarising, but in a nutshell, whole soy products are likely good for you, while processed soy (including soy milk) is potentially not. To lower your risk, ensure you always choose products made from whole soybeans and never soy protein isolate or other soy derivitives.
- Salicylates
There are plenty of fruits and veggies to enjoy!
Fruits and vegetables are so healthy, and kids should enjoy as much as they can tolerate on a daily basis. Some things might need to be avoided all the time – like mandarins, stone fruits and berries – while others can be enjoyed every day – like pears, just-ripe bananas, red delicious or golden delicious apples, and sometimes – mangos (in summer or the frozen variety), pawpaw and delicious stewed rhubarb.
Plenty of veggies are in the moderate salicylates column (according to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital Allergy Unit) – potatoes, sweet potato, lettuce, carrots, beetroot, cabbage, butternut pumpkin and all types of peas and beans (except broad beans). If you need to stick to low salicylates, eat peeled white potatoes, brussel sprouts, leek, cabbage (red & white), chives, lentils, iceberg lettuce, mungbean sprouts (not alfalfa), swede and spring onions. Work out what works for your family and stick with that!
Honey is a lovely natural sweetener, but really high in sals, so swap for rice malt syrup or maple syrup – and always in moderation. Avoid dried fruits and tomatoes and really soft avos, and opt for homemade treats like frozen banana/soy smoothies.
- Amines
Low salicylates, amines and glutamates, gluten free and dairy free – and delicious!
Found in meats and fish, amines can be kept low by cooking fresh produce on the day it’s bought or freezing straight away. Our kids eat fresh salmon, crumbed mackerel (recipe to come), chicken without the skin, beef, lamb and eggs, but not pork (unless it’s a special treat, homemade bacon, once in a bluemoon). We avoid any processed meat, such as salami or smoked salmon, as these are really high in amines and only buy plain chicken sausages from one place – that we know is preservative-free – Dural Poultry & Meat’s on Old Northern Road.
Amines are also in wine, tasty cheeses and chocolate, so stick with clear spirits (obviously not for the kids!), less strong cheese such as mozzarella over fetta or parmesan, and carob over chocolate. See my recipes page for carob bliss balls (left) and they-won’t-even-know-its-not-chocolate carob cake.
Love your nuts and seeds? Stick with cashews and cashew spread.
- Glutamates
hidden vegies bok choy and spring onion make this a healthier meal, and still intolerance-friendly
These are the sticky, salty, tasty, umami-flavoured things that you just can’t stop going back for! Naturally-occurring as well as artificial, as in mono-sodium glutamate (MSG). Avoid all flavour enhances or 600 numbers and opt for ‘plain’ varieties of chips and snacks (but always check labels, as plain can still have added MSG!). The Aldi original brown rice crackers are ok (although they do have an antioxidant in them, which can cause a reaction in some people). Sakata plain or wholegrain original are a good choice. The less ingredients the better, and try not to eat too many processed foods at all, as they are high in omega-6 and too much sets us up for chronic disease later in life.
Also stay away from any commercial sauces and stocks (think meat pies and sausage rolls, too) and try to make your own. Simple stocks using leek or onion, garlic, carrot, celery and leftover bones (chicken or salmon heads or lamb) make great bases for homemade risottos and slow cooks. For a tasty sauce, find pears in sugar syrup (Aldi does one with vanilla), and simmer until reduced by half. Add a dash of apple cider vinegar (or citric acid or malt vinegar if super sensitive), pinch of salt and blitz it up.
Fermented and pickled foods are great for your gut, unless you have a glutamates intolerance, then steer clear. Also avoid mushrooms, tomato, seaweed and spinach and replace with root veggies, bok choy and lettuce, and if salicylates are ok, rocket, snow pea sprouts, zucchini and watercress. Stick with simple dishes flavoured with garlic, sea salt, saffron and spring onions for savoury, and vanilla and carob for sweet.
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