RE: banana's & phenols!

[Guest guest]

Ok.. breathe.. I do not have the master list. There are over 200 products

that contain phenols. This is the master list I work off of.

My son is a very limited eater and EVERYTHING he eats is LOW in sugar (or no

sugar,) NO yeast and completely gluten and casein free.

These items we eliminated:

food dyes

tomatoes

apples

PEANUTS

Bananas

ORANGES

Cocoa

red grapes

colored fruits

avoid natural flavors or processed foods (my rule, anything with more than

10 ingredients DOES NOT make it in my sons stomach!)

You can also get info on phenols from www.feingold.org.

Well, I haven't seen these things specifically listed on any of the phenol

lists that I know of, but they are both " colored fruits " , so I guess they

would qualify. Watermelon is red, so that is a definite flag, cantaloupe is

orange which is better.

Basically, all foods have phenols, just some have more phenols than others,

and a child with PST has trouble processing them, so you want to reduce the

HIGHLY phenolic foods so the child's body does not get overloaded in trying

to process the phenols it is getting anyway.

What I would do is remove all the highly phenolic foods, and then you can

add back say cantaloupe and see what happens. If your child is okay with it,

then try adding back something else. Just not too much fruit in any one day

or you will probably see some reactions.

KEEP A food journal. Track what your child eats and watch bevaviors (extra

hyperness, stimmy outbreaks,) rashes on face / bottom, violent outbreaks, or

night wakenings. My son used to laugh at night for an hour (scary!) I

removed bananas and these episodes are gone! We replace them with PEARS,

MANGOS and do not have a problem.

Here is the TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION:

Sulphur Transferase Abnormalities

Waring (1993), encouraged and supported by O'Reilly (1993) and other

parents, has published data which convincingly demonstrates deficiencies in

the sulphur- transferase capabilities of people with autism. They have

demonstrated also that this inadequacy is the consequence not of an absence

of the responsible enzyme (sulphur transferase) but of the sulphate ions

which are needed if the sulphation is to be accomplished.

If this sulphation process is not functioning satisfactorily there are many

possible consequences which may be of relevance in the autistic syndrome.

These have been described elsewhere (Waring 1993). It is worth recording

that similar deficiencies have been reported in people with migraine,

rheumatoid arthritis, jaundice and other allergic conditions all of which

are frequently reported as being common in the families of people with

autism. I am unaware of any survey which actually demonstrates this and

nothing better than anecdotal evidence exists.

Clearly, if there is a deficit of available sulphate in the body attempts

can be made to replace it. Unfortunately, sulphate ions are not absorbed

from the gut so this route is not a possibility. The main source of free

sulphate in the body is the amino acid " cysteine " which is obtained from the

breakdown of appropriate protein material and it is this stage which may be

faulty in people with autism. Some parents have attempted to combat this by

feeding their children with abnormally large doses of cysteine in tablet or

powder form but, as far as I am aware, the only result is a high

concentration of urinary cysteine. Other parents have introduced other

sulphur containing amino-acids to the diet and claim these to be beneficial.

Unfortunately the claims are difficult if not impossible to assess since

those parents experimenting with this intervention are likely to be

experimenting simultaneously with many others. Interestingly, the sulphur

containing amino-acid " Taurine " which may be given to patients for this

purpose, is reported as having an anti-opioid effect (Braverman 1987).

Since free sulphate is not absorbed orally, parents have been experimenting

with alternative routes. One route which is increasing in popularity, is the

percutaneous one. Magnesium Sulphate (Epsom Salts) are placed in the bath

water in the hope that the sulphate will enter the body, if not via the back

door, via an alternative route. Many parents have claimed benefits from this

therapy and some high functioning adults have tried it for themselves. The

majority claim positive changes in behaviour but some of the high

functioning people have reported increased irritability (and so stopped

using this therapy). Any perceived benefits may, of course, be totally

unrelated to the sulphate element of the salts. It could be that the

Magnesium (which is often supplied as a supplement to people with autism,)

is the significant component.

The question arises as to whether sulphate ions could enter the body in this

way but, if so, it could provide an intellectually satisfying explanation

for the long history of the use of spas in the treatment of rheumatic

conditions.

Sulphur transferase activity is important for many biological reaction in

the body and some of these may be of relevance in the aetiology of autism.

For example, the system is involved in the breakdown of bilirubin and

biliverdin, the breakdown products of haemoglobin which are seen where

bruising has occurred. It may be pushing speculation a long way but it is

possible that the dark rings so often seen around the eyes of people with

autism may be evidence of a lack of activity within this system. This system

is also required for the breakdown and removal of phenolic compounds, indeed

the tests used for estimation of its activity relies upon the conversion of

paracetamol to its sulphate.

An inadequately functioning system will also result in abnormal metabolism

of some neurotransmitters. In particular, serotonin, (5-HT) metabolism will

be affected and the appearance of unusual metabolites (such as the

hallucinogen bufotenin) could be predicted. Such an observation has been

reported (Himwich 1972) but its significance is uncertain.

Other Interfering Foodstuffs

As indicated above, an adequately functional sulphur transferase system is

a prerequisite for the removal of phenolic compounds from the body. Since

the availability of available sulphate ions is finite, the same will apply

to the ability of the body to deal with such compounds. Thus when certain

foodstuffs with high phenolic content are eaten they will utilise the

available sulphur transferase resources of the body and thus exacerbate the

problems referred to above.

Many parents have observed that apples, oranges and other citrus fruits,

chocolate (possibly on account of the phenol flavouring vanillin) and

certain other foods will induce severe deterioration in the behaviour of

their children with autism. Interestingly, two parents (who must remain

anonymous) have contacted me independently and stated that when this

situation arises, they have observed that " Cranberry Juice " will markedly

reduce or even eliminate these effects. Whether this due to the sulphur

content of the juice or some other mechanism or whether the effects are

imaginary remains to be determined.

Some parents have found that there ate other foodstuffs which can cause

problems; in particular they have removed all traces of pigment form the

diet of the child ( 1995). Since all of these dietary exclusions tend

to be in addition to gluten and casein removal, it is difficult to ascertain

precisely which elements of the exclusion are of relevance to any reported

improvements.

Synthetic Colourings

There has been considerable discussion in the media for many years about

the involvement of synthetic pigments, in particular tartrazine, in

worsening the symptoms of autism. Considerable anecdotal evidence exists for

their role in increasing hyperactivity (where autism is not involved).

Parental reports suggest that removal of synthetic pigments from the diet

have, in the vast majority of cases, made no difference whatsoever.

I hope this helps you. By keeping things simple I was able to identify what

foods were bothering Jeff and which ones were OK. Keep being Sherlock

Holmes!

Good luck

A (Jeffs Mom)

Ackerman

Re: banana's

Yes for some kids a bannana does make them react poorly, I think its a

phenol issue. but for us at least no problem with fruit. F

banana's

> do banana's give lot of people problems? seems I ekep seeing the word

> Banana; why would they? are they Phenol or something?

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