Three of my dear friends here in Charlotte are also amazing health coaches (Haynes, Adri, and Carolyn). They have graciously provided us with many of their most kid-friendly, dairy-free recipes to help get you started. All of these recipes are also gluten-free. I wanted to begin introducing you to meals and snacks that are more focused on fat, protein, vegetables, and fruit and less on simple carbs and grains. The goal is nutrient-dense foods that nourish and help reduce your child’s overall systemic inflammation.
SEVENTH: Purchase Staples
Consider subscribing to Thrive Market; see my website for more information and a special HKHM link. It is a great membership-based online market and a good, economically friendly resource for healthier non–genetically modified food options. This is especially helpful if you live in a remote area and don’t have a health food grocery store around the corner!
You will also be able to get things like chia, hemp, and flaxseed, along with coconut oil and ghee. Some of you may be new to these foods and I want you to have an easy resource. You will also be able to get organic and dairy-free friendly snacks and some of the other ingredients for the recipes in section III.
YOU CAN’T UNSEE RESULTS
This book is all about how to help your child become healthier. But my covert and ultimate goal, after your child feels better, is to help you, the parent, foster a peaceful inner landscape. Your inner state and self-compassion ripple out to everyone around you, especially your kids. Remaining keenly aware of how we impact the children around us is one of our most powerful tools. We have an awesome opportunity to lead by example. I admire you and I’m beyond grateful you chose to take this journey with me!
Now that you’re walking this path, it’s difficult to turn back and unlearn what you have learned. At least that has been the case for me and many of the families I work with. Once I knew what an impact food and mental state had on kids’ recurrent illnesses, I could no longer simply write an antibiotic prescription and let a family walk out the door. I had to educate them about what I was learning, about a way of eating and being that could support their child’s health and stop the recurrent illness cycle.
Thank you for reading and thank you for taking the time to do the hard and important things. They are not always the easy ones.
FOR ADDITIONAL BOOK RESOURCES
Visit my website for more info:
sheilakilbane.com/book
TAKEAWAYS
First prepare your mind and your kitchen.
Start the program when you are feeling good about yourself and life in general. Don’t add stress on top of stress!
Checklist: Pantry overhaul
Explore food substitutions
Working blender
Storage containers
Travel cooler bags
Review recipes in section III
Purchase staples (see Dr. Kilbane’s approved packaged food list at the end of the recipes in section III)
SECTION II
the 7 step healthy kids, happy moms program
This program walks you through the HKHM process I use in my clinic in Charlotte, North Carolina. I recommend the entire family do the program together. I have seen many parents lose weight, go off medications such as antacids, and feel a whole lot better themselves. Most importantly, this program allows your kids to participate and understand their own health.
Let’s work together to decrease your child’s and family’s systemic inflammation, which ultimately allows the immune systems to function optimally!
PROGRAM OVERVIEW: THE 7 STEPS
STEP 1
THE ASSESSMENT
The assessment is your child’s current health status. Think of it as the starting point on your roadmap. We have to figure out where we are to know where we want to go. Given the pressures of parenting a child with a chronic illness, it’s important to write this down instead of telling yourself you’ll remember. Additionally, this tracking can be invaluable if you need further medical support.
You’ll begin by taking a close look at your child’s skin. First, take a good look at the complexion. Is the skin supple or dry, smooth or rough, any rashes or dark circles under the eyes? Do you feel small bumps on the cheeks, backs of arms, buttocks, or thighs? Is there a red ring around the anus or does your child complain of burning with bowel movements? All of these can be signs of excess inflammation.
Before and After Photos
Please take before photos so you have before and after comparisons. Take a full-body picture, then a close-up of their face, directly in front of them, as well as any rashes they may have. Record the date. Sometimes the changes occur gradually, and they can be subtle. Photos help us identify the changes more easily over time. If you feel comfortable doing so, you can submit your photo to our closed Facebook group, Dr. Kilbane’s Healthy Kids, Happy Moms Book Club. You can share your story, your wins, and your setbacks and receive and give support to and from other parents in the group.
BEFORE AND AFTER THE PROGRAM
Take photos each week, from the same angles using similar lighting (possibly take them all in the same spot in your home). Take a final photo when you finish the program and include the date.
The photo example I have included shows one of my wonderful young patients who had tics so bad that he had pulled a muscle in his neck. He experienced an 80 percent improvement in his tics once we removed gluten from his diet and added some foundational supplements. He is now in college on a full scholarship and is studying engineering. How awesome is that?!
My goal is that when your child is ready to leave your home, they understand their body, which foods work best for their systems, and which supplements they may need on an ongoing basis. As they move into adulthood, I want them to have good energy, restful sleep, and a fulfilling, meaningful life.
Next, move on to the Assessment below, filling out what is pertinent to your child. If you don’t write down and quantify the specific symptoms before starting the program, it can be difficult to realize how much progress you and your child are making.
STEP 2
IDENTIFY INFLAMMATORY ILLNESSES
INFLAMMATION-LEAKY GUT-ILLNESSES
STEP 3
IDENTIFY TRIGGERS OF INFLAMMATION
FIVE TRIGGERS OF INFLAMMATION
Identifying the underlying triggers of inflammation helps us get to the root of your child’s illness. Decreasing the exposure to these triggers helps reduce systemic inflammation, which ultimately lessens the intensity and frequency of childhood illnesses or may resolve them altogether.
TRIGGER 1. Food
Our bodies react to foods in many different ways. Refer to the table in chapter 4, Five Ways Food Triggers Inflammation in Our Bodies for more detailed information.
Food Allergy. If you suspect your child has a true IgE-mediated allergy to one of these foods, please visit your doctor or an allergist and have them tested.
Food Sensitivity. Proceed through the selective elimination diet (what we will be doing in the HKHM program).
Celiac Disease. See your doctor for bloodwork if you suspect this. Your child must be eating gluten for testing to be accurate.
Food Intolerance. Go see your doctor right away if there is blood in the stool. This can be a sign of a food intolerance.
Histamine Intolerance. Review the high-histamine foods in chapter 4 and keep a food journal (see an allergist if needed).
TRIGGER 2. Environmental Allergies
Bloodwork or skin prick test check for the IgE protein to indoor and outdoor allergens (kids typically do not develop outdoor allergies until they are about two years old; however, indoor allergies can develop before the age of two).
TRIGGER 3. Environmental Toxins
Triggers in this category are largely outside the scope of this book and to some extend, outside of our control, except for the following three.
Mold. Look for visible mold or water damage (any leaking appliances or a basement that floods) at your home or your child’s school. Visit my website, s
heilakilbane.com/book for more information.
Heavy Metals. Seek out an experienced environmental medicine or functional medicine doctor. See step 6 for resources.
Herbicides and Pesticides. Eat as much as possible from your home garden, a local farmer, or organic foods (your child’s body will excrete these chemicals once she stops ingesting them).
TRIGGER 4. Infectious Diseases
If your child has a current acute illness, your healthcare provider can help you determine the underlying issue. Other abnormalities may exist in the gut microbiome. For children with serious illnesses, seek out an integrative or functional medicine doctor (they may use a stool study, bloodwork, or other testing to determine underlying issues).
TRIGGER 5. Stress
Physical stress. A medical doctor (sports medicine, orthopedic surgeon, ENT, primary care physician, physical therapist, chiropractor, craniosacral therapist, acupuncturist) or other professional trained in bodywork may be able to help you identify physical or anatomic stress on your child’s body and give suggestions on how to address it.
Emotional stress. Sometimes an undiagnosed learning difference, such as dyslexia or an auditory or sensory processing disorder, can cause the child’s nervous system to be in fight-or-flight all day long at school. Seek out a psychologist or therapist (OT, PT, SLP) to help get an accurate diagnosis and support. Determine whether you have a good fit between your child and her teacher, school, or extracurricular activities. Parental stress also impacts kids. If appropriate, parents can go to counseling to increase family communication and strategies for managing stress.
ESTIMATE PERCENTAGE CONTRIBUTION OF EACH TRIGGER OF INFLAMMATION
Now that you have reviewed your child’s possible triggers of inflammation, estimate what percentage you think each area might be contributing to their illness and symptoms.
If your child has current symptoms of one of the illnesses we have been discussing, they likely have some degree of excess inflammation (which means their cup runneth over).
BEFORE THE MINI-CLEANSE, ESTIMATE YOUR CHILD’S CUP OF INFLAMMATION
STEP 4
DECREASE FACTORS THAT HARM GUT HEALTH
Healthy soil represents a healthy gut microbiome. Depleted, dry soil represents an unhealthy gut microbiome.
CIRCLE THE FACTORS THAT MAY BE HARMING YOUR CHILD’S MICROBIOME STEPS TO DECREASE THEIR IMPACT
Not drinking enough water Your child should drink half their body weight in ounces.
Consuming artificial dyes and colors Avoid foods with artificial dyes and colors
Eating produce sprayed with herbicides Eat organic whenever possible, and when you can’t, increase consumption from the EWG Clean 15 list and decrease consumption from the Dirty Dozen list. (See appendix.)
Not eating adequate fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based foods regularly (seeds, nuts, and legumes). These high-fiber foods become food for the beneficial bacteria in the gut. Increase consumption of plant-based foods. People who eat up to thirty different plant-based foods each week, have the healthiest microbiomes. (See appendix for high-fiber foods.)
Eating at fast-food restaurants frequently Decrease eating out by meal planning and meal prepping for the week. Involve the kids as much as possible and make it fun! (Check out the recipes in Section III.)
Taking recurrent rounds of antibiotics Review the list of prebiotic, probiotic, and high-fiber foods in the appendix. Can you incorporate one or two of those each day into your child’s diet? Consider starting a probiotic supplement.
HEALTHY GUT VS. LEAKY GUT
HEALTHY GUT VS. LEAKY GUT
Concept creation in conjunction with Deborah Allen, RPh, as an adaptation from the book Leaky Cells, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, with permission from the authors, Jess Armine, DC, and Elizma Lambert, ND.
The next two steps, 5 and 6, will guide you through the 5 Rs of gut healing
Remove the triggers of inflammation
Replace needed nutrients
Reinoculate with the beneficial bacteria called probiotics
Repair the lining of the GI tract over three to six months (about the same time it takes to heal a sprained ankle), so it no longer leaks proteins and molecules into the bloodstream to trigger inflammation
Reintroduce foods and create your long-term roadmap for foods and supplements
STEP 5
5 Rs OF GUT HEALING USING FOOD
OVERVIEW: STEP 5 AND 6 (FOOD AND SUPPLEMENTS)
The 5 Rs of Gut Healing
BEFORE BEGINNING THE PROGRAM
Take it slowly. It is best to change only one thing at a time for your child whenever possible. Kids can have reactions, good or bad, to food changes and to the addition of supplements. For this reason, I have created a structured plan. Please follow the timelines and don’t rush the process. You can always take more time for any of the steps if needed, but if you make changes abruptly, your child may feel worse before she feels better, and when she does feel better, we won’t know which variable made the difference.
Be particularly diligent if you decide to proceed to removing dairy and gluten. If you remove them simultaneously, your child (and the adults in the household) may feel irritable, feel fatigued, and have trouble sleeping. This is why I recommend removing foods gradually and one at a time.
This simple mnemonic, the “5 Rs” will help you remember the process we go through to heal a leaky gut. The 5 Rs happen simultaneously, and we loop back around three times for the removal process: first, to remove dyes, processed foods, and sugar; second, to start supplements and, for some of you, to remove dairy; and third, to remove gluten if needed.
THE PROCESS
The goal is to shift your child’s diet to one that is organic, filled with plant-based foods, and anti-inflammatory.
The extent of food changes that you may need to make with your child depends upon your child’s overall health and the severity of his symptoms.
For some of you, the Mini Cleanse for Kids may be all that is needed to get your child’s system back into balance. However, after the Mini Cleanse, if he or she is still struggling, please move on to starting supplements, removing dairy, and then possibly removing gluten.
Mini Cleanse for Kids
We clean up the basics of your child’s diet. Remove or decrease sugary drinks, artificial dyes, refined sugar, and processed foods (snacks, meats, and fats). You can make these changes quickly, one change each day over one week. Or you could do it more slowly and make only one change per week, or even one change per month if that works better for your family.
Supplements (See Step 6)
I recommend all kids start and take the supplements for at least three to six months. If your child is still symptomatic after the Mini Cleanse for Kids, you can begin the supplements while removing dairy. If your child is no longer symptomatic after completing the Mini Cleanse, you can jump to the section on supplements and begin the Replace, Reinoculate, and Repair, using the supplements coupled with good nutrition.
Dairy
Remove dairy gradually over three weeks. The first week you remove it from breakfast, the second week from lunch, and the third week from dinner and snacks. At that point, your child, and hopefully the entire household, will be dairy-free and will remain dairy-free for another three to four weeks. Use the HKHM - SYMPTOM TRACKER each week to monitor changes such as easier bowel movements.
Gluten
Remove gluten if your child is still symptomatic after being dairy-free for a full three to four weeks. Remove gluten gradually the same way we removed dairy while remaining off dairy. If your child and family feel great after removing dairy, there is no need to remove gluten unless you just want to try it and see how you feel. Before removing gluten, please get tested for celiac disease if you have any suspicion that your child has celiac disease. (Refer back to chapter 4 to review the symptoms of celiac disease.)
For kids who are still symptomatic after removing gluten and dairy, please see your doctor and consider s
eeking out an integrative or functional medicine doctor as well (see step 6 for resources).
Repair Over Three to Six Months
If your child has persistent symptoms despite being off gluten and dairy, don’t wait another six months, but go have him checked out by your doctor. If needed, seek the help of an experienced integrative or functional medicine doctor who can do further testing to identify the root cause of your child’s symptoms.
If your child has experienced improvements, continue what you are doing (with nutrition and supplements) for the next three to six months (this may take more time if your child has been struggling for a long time and/or if they have been on many rounds of antibiotics). Remember, it’s like we are healing a sprained ankle, except it’s your child’s gut that we are healing. We are also allowing time for their systemic inflammation to decrease.
Reintroduction
If and when it’s time to reintroduce foods back into the diet, we will create a long-term food plan for your child and family.
Healthy Kids, Happy Moms Page 14