98 Diet Wise
her. Finally, as if that were not enough, she suffered from terrible migraine.
Things had reached crisis point when it was suggested by the head of the
school that Maxine’s parents should take her to a child psychiatrist. Like
many of us they had a suspicious dislike of doctors of that persuasion,
but being sensible people and teachers themselves they did realize that
something would have to be done. Luckily, about that time they heard about
my clinic in Stockport, already internationally known, and decided to come
and see me.
To cut a long story short, we found Maxine to be allergic to a
wide variety of foods, including wheat, corn, egg, tea, beef, pork and yeast.
Her reaction to onion was interesting. Temper tantrums were apparently a
feature of Sunday evenings, and bearing in mind the above history it is easy
to understand that the parents had naturally ascribed these to a resistance to
going to school next day. However, it turned out that weekly Sunday roast
and onions was the real culprit! Since that time I’m told that Maxine hasn’t
had a single headache, but the truly remarkable aspect of her recovery is the
way her schoolwork has improved beyond all recognition. She moved to the
top of the class in some subjects and came very near it in several others.
Lo and behold, as a student she was not dim and uncomprehending but
actually very bright!
Judging by her relationships with others, Maxine became a new
person, garrulous and extrovert, making friends easily. She began to bring
friends home and no longer frightened them off with her wild behavior.
Teachers recognized the improvement, and this time a letter from the head
of the school, instead of complaining, was full of pleasant surprise and
inquired what might be the cause of the change.
The flood of calls and letters we received after Maxine’s story was
publicized revealed that, all too sadly, her case was far from unique. A great
many anxious parents whose children have similar problems are at their wits’
end, wondering what to do. The tragedy of it is that the steps needed are so
very simple: a few days on the diet given in the next chapter is all it would
take for most of such children to recover and begin to behave normally; for
the rest, advice given later in the book would provide a remedy.
The effect of poor eating on our future generations is quite
devastating. The harm it does tends to be self-perpetuating. All parents
should study this book and its implications; teachers too.
A later chapter looks at the special problems associated with
children’s food reactions.