Dear Dr. Cordain
I am extremely passionate about the Paleo Diet. I have lost 59kg and cured severe depression, my husband has cured his IBS and our son, Joshua, was cured of severe reflux by adopting your recommendations for a Paleo diet.
In the first eight months of his life, we were really struggling with Joshua. He screamed and swallowed constantly, and despite trying various medications, nothing relieved his pain. I had to keep him upright after breastfeeds for at least an hour, no one else could hold him or change his nappy because he would scream in pain if they didn't hold him in the right way. If I made the mistake of letting him fall asleep after a feed, he would scream when he woke up. He never slept for longer than two hours. I also had a daughter who was only 16 months old when Joshua was born, and it was very difficult to feel like a real mother to my daughter when my son was so demanding. I was beyond exhausted.
At eight months old, the pediatrician told me that I had to give up breastfeeding and put Joshua on a special formula. I had been raised to be very pro breastfeeding, so I wanted another opinion. I contacted the Australian Breastfeeding Association, who put me in contact with a Specialist Dietitian and Lactation Consultant. Under her supervision we tried an elimination diet. By doing this, we identified that I was intolerant to wheat gluten, dairy and eggs, and I was passing this through to my son. We didn't know how to proceed from there, so we went down the path of gluten free starches and grains, and rice milk. I was concerned about the health implications of this diet because it seemed very unhealthy, so I kept searching.
When I discovered the Paleo Diet, I felt like everything fell in to place. Yes we are intolerant to wheat, gluten and dairy, but so is everyone and they just don't know it yet. We still cannot reintroduce eggs, because they cause us abdominal pain, flatulence and diarrhea, but we were suddenly able to live healthily and our health improved dramatically from then on. Joshua's reflux disappeared as soon as we changed our diet. He was happy, sleeping and there was no more screaming in pain. It was such a dramatic change that nothing but the change in diet could be responsible.
I am so very grateful for what Dr. Cordain's research and interest in Paleolithic Nutrition has done for my family. I would like to help spread your message to my community, as I will talk to anyone who will listen about the Paleo diet. I am certain that other mothers in a similar situations would jump at the chance to do something that could bring relief to their child, because not knowing what you can do is heartbreaking. We have been paleo for 3 years now and will continue to be for the rest of our lives.
Georgia
