Jordan is getting a little better as far as his behaviors go at home. I believe he does much better at school than at home though because I haven't received anything stating otherwise. But sometimes while at home he just acts out because he can't have chips or use the remote. The diet removing salicylates and additives he is on is supposed to be helping with that but it just seems as if the diet alone isn't enough. I remember reading about salicylates being in detergents and soaps, toothpastes and lotions. I did some research yesterday morning to find that salicylates are easily absorbed through the skin and lungs. So now I feel the need to go even further and start working on the non-edibles.
I already know the detergent I buy is a culprit because it's blue and has a fragrance. It's also one of those no name, brand name detergents like Xtra or something like that. I decided to go with Tide Free & Clear which is hypoallergenic. Reading up on salicylate free products, I found you are not supposed to use ones that have parfum listed as an ingredient. When buying personal care products for Jordan, I had been making sure they were gluten free. Now I have make sure they are free and clear of just about everything. I mean seriously, I feel like I can only brush his teeth and wash him and his clothes in plain water. The first thing I looked at was his body soap. It has a lavender scent to it and looking up that soap is exactly where I found out you want to avoid parfums. I have to change his body soap immediately as well as cleaning products that leave wonderful smells. I also needed to change the liquid soap we wash our hands with. As I was trying to find the products that didn't have salicylates, I came across a forum that talked about Seventh Generation. This was the product I decided to go with for hand soaps and cleaners. However, what was said in the forum was this particular brand was plant based and when you are dealing with plants, you are dealing with salicylates. I tried to find another product online that wasn't plant based and free and clear, but it wasn't so easy. I opted to just go to the store and do research there instead of the internet.
Since I had to return the yogurt I bought him Saturday because I got french vanilla instead of plain, this was perfect opportunity to find and buy the right products and get started with the swap out. When I got there I found most of the products that are free and clear are plant based. And if they didn't mention it I couldn't tell by the ingredients listed if they were or not. I figured I wasn't going to find anything there that was not plant based and decided to go with Seventh Generation's (SG) brand liquid soap and Field Day's all purpose cleaner. I then went on to find another body soap and came across A La Maison which is made of filtered water, palm, coconut and/or olive oil, natural vegetable glycerin and tocopherol (vitamin E), Out of everything I bought only the body soap is okay, and that is because I couldn't find anything relating to tocopherol being a man made form of vitamin e. The hand soap from SG and the all purpose cleaner contains synthetic preservatives and the lotion contains sodium phytate and sodium benzoate which are preservatives as well. It also contains aloe barbadensis which can be compromised by a hidden preservative. Unfortunately I didn't have the time to do proper research before leaving for class yesterday. I probably would have saved myself a lot of trouble having to return these items. I will probably use the hand soap because for one, it's already opened and two, it's probably slightly better than the one we already use. For lotion, I will just use the coconut oil I stopped giving him as a supplement due to it's antifungal properties. I will have to do more rigorous research or find a recipe for my own household cleaner.
Yesterday was a little overwhelming. I was thinking this process was going to be a lot easier that it turned out to be. I was expecting these salicylate free, dye free, preservative free products to fall on my lap and that just did not happen. I knew I needed to do more research, but I should have double checked these ingredients while at the store instead of going full speed with what I saw that looked okay to use. On a brighter note. I did buy the bone broth I was eyeing for Jordan. Come to find out the bone broth you buy in the store doesn't contain bones. Working on the gut will help him become less sensitive to what his body is coming into contact with. While doing all this research, I came across some information that said the reason why some children have a sensitivity to phenols, which are the salicylates, glutamates and amines, is because they are deficient in PST enzyme and sulfate. When the gut doesn't have enough of the sulfate it needs to repair the gut lining, every 3 days or so, it leads to gaps in between the mucin and the gut lining. So instead of trying to find all of these different products to use around the home, I will build his tolerance by continuing with the gut healing foods yogurt, sauerkraut and the new bone broth, use the new soap and check his toothpaste which I haven't done yet, and give him the Epsom salt baths I hear is good in helping to increase the sulfate levels within the body. It doesn't mean I won't do everything in my power to keep him from coming into contact with them, I just can't stress about not finding the products that will work.
Even though I almost worked myself into a frenzy yesterday, I remembered that I am an overcomer. Sunday's message was right on time for what I had to deal with Monday. Looking for products to use around the house to help my son ingest less salicylates was not an easy task. I almost felt defeated at times. But I had to remember, to be an overcomer, you have to have something to overcome.
James 1:12 (MSG) Anyone who meets a testing challenge head-on and manages to stick it out is mighty fortunate. For such persons loyally in love with God, the reward is life and more life". I know I will find everything I need for this next step. I just have to stick with researching every avenue I can and let God do the rest.
I already know the detergent I buy is a culprit because it's blue and has a fragrance. It's also one of those no name, brand name detergents like Xtra or something like that. I decided to go with Tide Free & Clear which is hypoallergenic. Reading up on salicylate free products, I found you are not supposed to use ones that have parfum listed as an ingredient. When buying personal care products for Jordan, I had been making sure they were gluten free. Now I have make sure they are free and clear of just about everything. I mean seriously, I feel like I can only brush his teeth and wash him and his clothes in plain water. The first thing I looked at was his body soap. It has a lavender scent to it and looking up that soap is exactly where I found out you want to avoid parfums. I have to change his body soap immediately as well as cleaning products that leave wonderful smells. I also needed to change the liquid soap we wash our hands with. As I was trying to find the products that didn't have salicylates, I came across a forum that talked about Seventh Generation. This was the product I decided to go with for hand soaps and cleaners. However, what was said in the forum was this particular brand was plant based and when you are dealing with plants, you are dealing with salicylates. I tried to find another product online that wasn't plant based and free and clear, but it wasn't so easy. I opted to just go to the store and do research there instead of the internet.
Yesterday was a little overwhelming. I was thinking this process was going to be a lot easier that it turned out to be. I was expecting these salicylate free, dye free, preservative free products to fall on my lap and that just did not happen. I knew I needed to do more research, but I should have double checked these ingredients while at the store instead of going full speed with what I saw that looked okay to use. On a brighter note. I did buy the bone broth I was eyeing for Jordan. Come to find out the bone broth you buy in the store doesn't contain bones. Working on the gut will help him become less sensitive to what his body is coming into contact with. While doing all this research, I came across some information that said the reason why some children have a sensitivity to phenols, which are the salicylates, glutamates and amines, is because they are deficient in PST enzyme and sulfate. When the gut doesn't have enough of the sulfate it needs to repair the gut lining, every 3 days or so, it leads to gaps in between the mucin and the gut lining. So instead of trying to find all of these different products to use around the home, I will build his tolerance by continuing with the gut healing foods yogurt, sauerkraut and the new bone broth, use the new soap and check his toothpaste which I haven't done yet, and give him the Epsom salt baths I hear is good in helping to increase the sulfate levels within the body. It doesn't mean I won't do everything in my power to keep him from coming into contact with them, I just can't stress about not finding the products that will work.
