For the past three years, peace has been in short supply for Kate and Mike Rawlings as the behaviour of their older child has spiralled out of control.
Isobel, now eight, would routinely turn meal times at their Northampton home into a battlefield, repeatedly getting up and down from the table and shouting at Kate, 42, a dietitian, and Mike, 43, a sales manager.
Reading this made Kate wonder if diet could be affecting Isobel’s behaviour, too. ‘Her uncontrolled bursts of anger had been happening more and more frequently, and we were all on tenterhooks trying to avoid triggering an explosion and not knowing what to do when she kicked off,’ she says. Dr Richardson sent Kate the Strengths and Difficulties questionnaire to fill in about Isobel’s behaviour. It is used in scientific studies to assess emotional and behavioural difficulties in children. She then analysed the results.
SUGAR SABOTEUR‘Of all the dietary changes you can make to try to improve a child’s behaviour, reducing sugar will usually have the most rapid — if not the most significant — impact,’ says Dr Richardson. Studies have shown that high-sugar, high-fat diets can increase the risk of ADHD in children , while diets rich in vegetables and fruit appear to protect against these types of behaviour.
‘Even a homemade sandwich counts as a UPF if it’s made with shop-bought white sliced bread and processed ham,’ she argues. What’s more, a diet high in UPFs tends to be low in fibre — and whereas children of Isobel’s age should eat about 15g of fibre per day, Dr Richardson says she was eating less than 5g a day.
Dr Richardson says: ‘Every time children eat crisps, biscuits or cakes they are filling themselves with what are essentially toxic fats,’ explaining that highly processed fats are thought to make brain cell walls less flexible, impacting communication between them and in turn affecting mood. ‘While most people don’t seem to have problems with this, the theory is that these “opioid peptides” make gluten and milk products seem highly addictive to some sensitive individuals — enough to trigger disruptive behaviour or mood swings, and so strong cravings for these foods.’
‘It is quite remarkable to achieve this change in behaviour in such a short space of time, as it can take up to three months for a dietary change to impact behaviour.
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