The main feature of oppositional defiance is irritability
• oppositional defiance generally develops between the ages of 1-3 years
• the child's behaviour depends on interaction - when life is good the child is good but the child can overreact when asked to do something he or she doesn't like
• children with oppositional defiance like to say 'no'
• children with oppositional defiance display a pattern of negative, hostile and defiant behaviour lasting at least six months and including at least four of the features listed below
Symptoms of oppositional defiance
• losing temper
• arguing with adults
• refusing adult requests or defying rules
• deliberately annoying other people
• blaming others for own mistakes
• touchy or easily annoyed
• angry and resentful
Oppositional defiance can exist with or without ADHD
• oppositional defiance runs in families
• your child doesn't have to be diagnosed with ODD to have features of oppositional defiance that will respond to diet
• adults can be oppositionally defiant too
The bad news
Medications for ADHD can make these children worse because they are better able to focus on being defiant.
Behaviour management is hard to do and doesn't always work
• avoid confrontations
• avoid arguments
• avoid smacking
• never back these children into a corner
• offer options
• be calm and positive
If untreated, oppositional defiance may progress to Conduct Disorder which includes lawbreaking.
The good news
Oppositional defiance can be well controlled by changing what the child or adult eats. You can see this with your own eyes in the dramatic video of the Shipley Project in which eight extremely oppositional chronic juvenile offenders literally change under our eyes as they follow an elimination diet for three weeks.
Most parents have never noticed an effect of food
A few children 'go ballistic' soon after eating food colours but for most families, the effects of food chemicals creep up, unnoticed. What most people see is this:
* food chemicals can build up gradually, resulting in good days and bad days with no obvious cause
When a child eats fast food or spaghetti, he or she might be irritable or have a bad day at school the next day or the day after.
Not everyone reacts to the same food chemicals.
Some natural "healthy" foods can be a problem.
Some families are more sensitive than others.
Some other effects of food chemicals
* eczema * migraines * tinnitus * irritable bowel * bedwetting * sneaky poos * difficulty falling asleep * restless legs * asthma * arthritis * impairment of memory or concentration * anxiety * depression * panic attacks * unexplained tiredness
These symptoms may appear in other members of the family.
These are common problem-causing foods
• additives in soft drinks, cordials, lollies, flavoured snacks, chips and biscuits, takeaways, icecreams and "healthy" foods like bread (preservative 282), yoghurt (colour 160b) or sausages (preservative 223).
• natural chemicals in some fruits, juice, dried fruit and vegetables, especially tomatoes, oranges, sultanas, grapes and broccoli.
• Food chemicals can pass through breastmilk and affect babies.
"Where do I start?"
Some families see an improvement just by cutting down on the worst foods:
• switch to preservative-free bread
• avoid artificial colours in products such as drinks, lollies and icypoles
• water is the best drink – kids drink water better if given their own water bottle
• avoid citrus and tomatoes
If that's not enough, you can do an elimination-and-challenge diet supervised by a dietitian to find out which food chemicals cause problems. Ask for our list of failsafe-friendly dietitians.
When symptoms are severe, dairy foods and wheat or gluten may have to be avoided as well as additives and natural chemicals called salicylates and amines.
What can we eat?
The plain, natural, unprocessed foods that children ate 40 years ago were low in additives. Contrary to public opinion, white sugar does not affect children's behaviour.
Some additive-free alternatives:
eg. Brumby's bread, pure (not softened) butter or Nuttelex margarine, Arnott's Saltine biscuits, Glengarry shortbreads, traditional rolled oats or Rice Bubbles, Kettle plain chips, failsafe sausages, Peters original vanilla icecream, Pascall's white marshmallows, Darryl Lea butterscotch, home-made magic cordial: dissolve 1 cup sugar in 1 cup warm water and add ½-1 tsp citric acid. Dilute to taste.
Additives to avoid
The following additives may cause problems. Some people may also need to avoid natural food chemicals called salicylates, amines and natural MSG.
COLOURS
102, 104, 107, 110, 122-129, 133, 142, 151, 155
160b annatto natural colour (160a betacarotene is safe)
PRESERVATIVES
200-203 Sorbates in processed fruit, veges, cordial, wine
210-213 Benzoates in soft drinks, cordials, juice drinks
220-228 Sulphites in many foods including cordial, dried fruit, sausages, hot chips, wine, these additives are associated with asthma
249-252 Nitrates, nitrites in processed meats like ham, devon, salami
280-283 Propionates in bread, crumpets, hamburger buns, also in fruit juice and cheese. Whey powder in bread is a natural form of these preservatives.
310-312 Antioxidants in vegetable oils, chips, fried food,
319-321 soymilk, biscuits, not always listed. 300-309 are safe
FLAVOUR ENHANCERS
620-635 Glutamates in tasty foods. (HVP is natural MSG, 621 is MSG, 635 can cause rashes)
ADDED FLAVOURS in many foods and children's medicinal syrups
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