Developmental Delayed: How to Start a Clean Diet

When my Monkey was 3 years old his pediatrician suggested a clean diet. He explained a clean diet at that time consisted of removing artificial sweeteners, food dyes, partially hydrogenated oils, nitrates and high fructose corn syrup. He also told me that  there was no proof that it would help him progress. He had seen many kids in his practice show improvement. I trusted this doctor so I thought to give it a try. I was motivated to further help our son, so I started this change right away.  Here we are 7 years later and we are on the same clean eating plan. Since I started my healthy lifestyle, I recently also change our diet to include products that have no more than five ingredients.  

It was very overwhelming in the beginning to find out what foods did not have these ingredients in them and what foods he could eat. My monkey was three years old at the time, I explained it to him as simple as I could so he was aware that some of his favorite foods were going away. I remember going to our pantry and I had to remove all the food. I was unaware of the big change this meant. I did not want to overwhelm him with the changes so I changed out one to two products a week. We were not dealing with an allergy so I decided to do it slowly. Yes, we had days he would repeatedly ask for food he use to ate and I just explained why we were doing this. I helped him find foods he liked so we try different brands.  I explained to him that we are what we eat. So if we eat junk, we are junk. We will not feel our best. 


 Seven years ago there wasn't much information about clean eating on the internet. (There was one site that helped me, but I could no longer find it to link it)  I went to the store and I walked up and down the aisles looking for foods it did not have these ingredients. There wasn't much in the stores, so I ended up at Whole Foods because I couldn't find foods such as fruits snacks without food dyes. Do you know how hard it is to find fruit snack without food dyes? 

As the years went by more and more has been available on the market. We saw changes in Monkey within 4 weeks of his diet change. His biggest change was how he interacted with us and his eye contact. We were also seeing a behavioral therapist, occupational therapist and a speech pathologist so the combination of consistent hard work is what help my Monkey. I am grateful for the changes I saw in him that is why I will continue this healthy plan because it is also good for us. Later after I started my boy on this plan, I started myself because I did not want to eat things he could not. I also wanted to do it with him so I knew the difficulty. As time passed, we found new foods we liked and it became easier. 
My monkey still follows this plan and I pray he follows through as a adult.  I am considering becoming gluten-free also. Casein nor gluten was recommended by the doctor, but I read all the information how it's harmful to our health.  I have read the health benefits and I do see how it can be beneficial. 

Occasions do come up where there are foods that are not on our plan. For instance, going to the movies, hanging with friends and birthday parties. Monkey does eat what is offered, but does not eat seconds and knows that is it. So he will still half an ICEE at the movies, birthday cake at parties and such. 
I'm thankful that the pediatrician recommended this and that we had faith and just tried it. The food market has changed so much in the last 7 years. There are many products out there for us to try and not feel deprived. 

Once Monkey was released from all therapies we decided to keep living a clean diet because it's good for our health. Just remember to make your dietary changes in small steps because it can be overwhelming. As we look back, we have replaced all our old favorites and found new favorites! It's such a great gift to give ourselves for optimal health. 




Here is a list of foods my Monkey likes: 

Aldi organic fruit snacks
Cascadian cereal
Chex cereal
Walmart brand saltine whole wheat crackers
Goldfish
Pretzels
Homemade popcorn with coconut oil
Walmart brand peanuts
Hormel all natural deli meat without nitrates
Oscar Mayer hot dogs without nitrates
Pepperoni found at Sprouts and Whole Foods
Capri Sun fruit veggie drink
Honest drinks
Edy's ice cream
Canyon Boulder chips found at Sprout
Tositos corn chips
Zevia soda as a treat
Roasted and salted cashews
Stur water flavoring 
Hunts ketchup
Kind bars
Lara bar
Spouts brand sandwich bread
Sara Lee wheat bread
Blue Diamond Nut Thins Walmart, Sprouts
Fage 2% greek yogurt 
Almond milk for smoothies
Milk without our rBST hormone Braums, Sprouts, Walmart


PS: Cooking homemade is a great way to have a clean diet. 
Soon I'll post about the foods I like that are considered part of a clean diet. 



More articles related to Monkey's history

The Day Monkey Enjoyed the Wind


Monkey: Beating Sensory Challenges