I’m sure we’ve all heard about the link between disorders such as autism/ADD and allergies to wheat and dairy.  We’ve heard about the Glycaemic Index and making sure our blood-sugar levels are balanced.  But how many of us are ready to put these ideas into practice in our daily lives?

I, for one, have turned a blind eye to this subject for too many years, because let’s face it, I like pizza and ice cream!  But at what cost?  That’s why this week I decided to be sensible and shift our family’s diet for good.

I will be honest: I like tofu, but I hate soya milk/yogurt, so I don’t know how to cut out dairy completely.  But the no-gluten has turned out to be surprisingly easy.  The main issue is cost.  There is corn pasta, for example, which is delicious and naturally gluten-free…but it costs twice as much as a bag of normal wheat pasta, and you can’t go and get it from your local corner shop at 7pm when you realise you’ve run out of food!

So we’ve decided, for now, to try having almost no gluten or dairy – to minimise our intake of such foods greatly and save them for occasional treats.  As it turns out, this is simply achieved.

We also happen to be vegetarian, so we’re following a book called The Low GI Vegetarian Cookbook by Professor Jennie Brand Miller, Kaye Foster-Powell and Joanna McMillan.  Everything looks fantastic, and at the back they even lay out what to keep stocked in your pantry, fridge and freezer.  We did a big shop yesterday of mostly tinned and frozen foods, as well as bagged beans, seeds and nuts – so it will keep over the next couple weeks, plus it’s all so good for you, as well as being filling.  Last night, I even made a crustless apple crumble with cinnamon, apples, oats, a tiny smidgen of butter, lemon juice and agave syrup, the ultimate natural healthy sugar substitute.  It was just as good as any other apple crumble, but it had hardly any calories and was even good for you.

This isn’t about dieting – it’s about cutting down on the allergies and living sensibly.  I also have to say the cooking has been so beneficial for my ADD.  It fills up spaces of time when I would otherwise feel listless and overwhelmed by racing thoughts – it focuses my attention so much that my mind is clear and even my Tourette’s tics seem to calm down for the time.
So now the only question is: how many of you are ready to join me?

Vrinda Pendred
Editor & Founder of Conditional Publications