Irritable Bowel

[johns74]

To illustrate the importance of experimenting with a no cereal diet.

Sweden had massive problems with gluten intolerance. When they stopped mandatory iron fortification of foods, the problem went away.

At least I read that from a website.

So I would eat fruits. If one is not breastfeeding, I would suggest anything, coca cola, etc. But if one is breastfeeding fruit and fruit juices.

 

[InChristAlone]

I have been gluten free since last fall, and I did see lots of issues clear up, a main one being nausea and fullness. When I do eat cereal it was usually Reese Puffs since that was one of the ones with the least amount of added iron. Some of them have a TON, and I know this is a problem. I figured I did need some iron since I have been breastfeeding 6 yrs. But since I've never had an issue with hemoglobin or anything yes it is best to avoid it.

 

[johns74]

Does breast milk contain significant iron?

 

[InChristAlone]

No, it doesn't, I just looked, it is more likely I would need more through pregnancy and menstruation than breastfeeding.

 

[FredSonoma]

In terms of iron being a problem, ESPECIALLY the fortified type in cereals, I highly recommend you read this post: http://freetheanimal.com/2015/06/enrich ... thing.html

It is a very recent post hypothesizing that the fortification of grains with iron is responsible for a whole host of health problems. For one, it's just way to much iron, and two, it's in a different form than would be found naturally in foods.

 

[InChristAlone]

Thanks, I have plenty of motivation to stay away from it now on, it was one of the last things for me to let go of after doing a more 'eat the food' approach (after being a super strict health nut at times). But I knew the iron was bad news... I was tracking it in cronometer and many days I went over even the recommended amount.

 

[Birdie]

Janelle too bad about the peppermint being not good with breastfeeding. I wonder if it's enteric coated, bypassing the stomach therefore, if it might be okay. But plenty of other things to zone in on.

I've been considered a health nut all my life. Well, since age 16 when I began to buy my own raw milk with my allowance. Funny, that's what it's called when you begin to pay attention to nutrition. I do cringe at my safflower oil days though.

Hope you are doing better with the IBS.

 

[Birdie]

My first IBS attack was the night before 5 days of State Board exams began. I wasn't GF then.

But, I think the next attack was 10 years later, still not GF. And after being GF for years,
another attack. Then, a couple of years ago, quite a few episodes.

So for me it was more than staying gluten free. I know I need to stay away from too much fat later in the day...
But, otherwise, funny how I've forgotten what helped other than the enteric peppermint which is easy to remember.. A pill... :)

 

[YamnayaMommy]

Thanks, I have plenty of motivation to stay away from it now on, it was one of the last things for me to let go of after doing a more 'eat the food' approach (after being a super strict health nut at times). But I knew the iron was bad news... I was tracking it in cronometer and many days I went over even the recommended amount.

Hi. I found this interesting old thread while trying, as a breastfeeding mother, to troubleshoot digestion issues. Did you ever resolve your IBS symptoms?

I have been dealing with days of normal-to-hard stools followed by days of soft/watery/frequent stools. Need to figure out the extent of correlation with my cycle beyond the rule onset of menses brings diarrhea.

And the topic of breakfast cereal is also interesting. I have never, ever had breakfast cereal in my house as a kid or adult. And up until a few months ago I would have regarded giving kids sugary cereals as obvious negligence. However, my baby had low iron at his one year check up. Which is surprising because he eats liver, eggs, beef, oysters, etc. (The pediatrician gave me some insane vegan handout advising me to feed my iron-deficient baby lots of legumes and leafy greens. And I still don't understand how you're supposed to hit the RDA 10 mg of iron for babies without using iron-fortified food.) I then went looking for iron-fortified baby foods and discovered that breakfast cereals have tons of iron in them, and that they weren't as full of junk as I had assumed. Like cocoa crisps is just rice, sugar, cocoa powder, and added vitamins. So I've been allowing my 4 year old, 2 year old, and 1 year old to have sugary breakfast cereals on occasion. They are not tempting to me, and my children are thrilled.

 

[thomas00]

I'd be careful there. Peat has pointed out that cereals are fortified with ferrous sulfate, one of the worst forms of iron.
Iron's Dangers

I don't know what Peat considers a safe level of iron for a baby but 'low' according to pediatrician might be OK according to him, especially if your baby has no health issues. I don't know.

 

[YamnayaMommy]

I'd be careful there. Peat has pointed out that cereals are fortified with ferrous sulfate, one of the worst forms of iron.
Iron's Dangers

I don't know what Peat considers a safe level of iron for a baby but 'low' according to pediatrician might be OK according to him, especially if your baby has no health issues. I don't know.

yes I take the concern seriously. The rice crispies though have ferritin phosphate. I think I remember reading ray peat’s saying that iron is more important for young children, and understood him to mean that only mature individuals need to avoid it.

 

[YamnayaMommy]

I'd be careful there. Peat has pointed out that cereals are fortified with ferrous sulfate, one of the worst forms of iron.
Iron's Dangers

I don't know what Peat considers a safe level of iron for a baby but 'low' according to pediatrician might be OK according to him, especially if your baby has no health issues. I don't know.

But yes I would be interested in knowing more of his thoughts on the right amount of iron for babies and children, especially if it differs from the mainstream.

I really don’t know how the 10mg rda for iron can be met through unfortified foods.

 

[Beastmode]

But yes I would be interested in knowing more of his thoughts on the right amount of iron for babies and children, especially if it differs from the mainstream.

I really don’t know how the 10mg rda for iron can be met through unfortified foods.

Hi. I found this interesting old thread while trying, as a breastfeeding mother, to troubleshoot digestion issues. Did you ever resolve your IBS symptoms?

I have been dealing with days of normal-to-hard stools followed by days of soft/watery/frequent stools. Need to figure out the extent of correlation with my cycle beyond the rule onset of menses brings diarrhea.

And the topic of breakfast cereal is also interesting. I have never, ever had breakfast cereal in my house as a kid or adult. And up until a few months ago I would have regarded giving kids sugary cereals as obvious negligence. However, my baby had low iron at his one year check up. Which is surprising because he eats liver, eggs, beef, oysters, etc. (The pediatrician gave me some insane vegan handout advising me to feed my iron-deficient baby lots of legumes and leafy greens. And I still don't understand how you're supposed to hit the RDA 10 mg of iron for babies without using iron-fortified food.) I then went looking for iron-fortified baby foods and discovered that breakfast cereals have tons of iron in them, and that they weren't as full of junk as I had assumed. Like cocoa crisps is just rice, sugar, cocoa powder, and added vitamins. So I've been allowing my 4 year old, 2 year old, and 1 year old to have sugary breakfast cereals on occasion. They are not tempting to me, and my children are thrilled.

They tried to get us to give our 7 month old iron pills after testing"low" on iron. They didn't a full iron panel which is part of their negligence on providing proper diagnosing.

The easiest, most effective and SAFEST way is through food. Giving your children these cereals are only creating more problems with all the crap in them.

Pediatricians are garbage and the only difference between them and doctors for adults is they're more subtle with the bull**** they give to parents on raising healthy chid.

Besides nutrition, consider other factors like more sunlight exposure, better indoor lighting (incandescent,) etc.

 

[YamnayaMommy]

They tried to get us to give our 7 month old iron pills after testing"low" on iron. They didn't a full iron panel which is part of their negligence on providing proper diagnosing.

The easiest, most effective and SAFEST way is through food. Giving your children these cereals are only creating more problems with all the crap in them.

Pediatricians are garbage and the only difference between them and doctors for adults is they're more subtle with the bull**** they give to parents on raising healthy chid.

Besides nutrition, consider other factors like more sunlight exposure, better indoor lighting (incandescent,) etc.

yeah, I hear you. Our pediatrician, who I like, didn’t push supplementation or further testing. He just said his iron was low and to give him more iron rich foods, as illustrated in the vegan handout of legumes and greens.

I’m not very concerned about it because baby is robust, happy, was walking at ten months, etc.

And I think you’re right about the light. My baby was born in February, which is a pretty awful month in Chicago. I wonder if his low iron was reflecting typical Midwest winter deficiencies.

I’m agnostic about breakfast cereals. I’ve read other people on this forum arguing that some of these rice-based cereals are eu-metabolic, especially for growing people. There’s no pufa or gluten. Cocoa crispies are rice, sugar, and cocoa, plus some b vitamins and ferritin phosphate. With low fat milk it seems like a decent convenience food for children?

 

[YamnayaMommy]

They tried to get us to give our 7 month old iron pills after testing"low" on iron. They didn't a full iron panel which is part of their negligence on providing proper diagnosing.

The easiest, most effective and SAFEST way is through food. Giving your children these cereals are only creating more problems with all the crap in them.

Pediatricians are garbage and the only difference between them and doctors for adults is they're more subtle with the bull**** they give to parents on raising healthy chid.

Besides nutrition, consider other factors like more sunlight exposure, better indoor lighting (incandescent,) etc.

But all this obscures the more basic question about what is ideal iron intake for young children and can this be met through unfortified foods. I lack the science and medicine background, and time, to figure this out but am interested if anyone else knows a good resource.

 

[Beastmode]

But all this obscures the more basic question about what is ideal iron intake for young children and can this be met through unfortified foods. I lack the science and medicine background, and time, to figure this out but am interested if anyone else knows a good resource.

Lacking the science and medicine background is actually a plus.

Fortifying foods is a strategy from the consensus of crap science and medicine. Another great example of not going after the cause and trying to do something about the effect.

Lack of light is bad for anyone. An abundance of crap light is terrible for anyone. Especially a growing a baby/child.

We as parents have the best sense for our children and our children are very "clear" on what works and what doesn't. My toddler can take a nibble of a fruit and she'll immediately want to devour more or she'll push it away b/c it's not sweet.