82 Diet Wise
ViolenceThe fact is that allergies and intolerance to foods can produce inappropriate
stimulation, as well as depression of function. Not surprisingly therefore,
violence was one of the problems I frequently had to investigate and try
to solve. That could be a child suffering “smashing up” attacks or an adult
disposed to murderous violence, after eating trigger foods.
It is notorious in the police force that Christmas is a time of peak
family violence. I’m speaking here about Britain, where we don’t have a
Thanksgiving equivalent, but I did notice a 2005 news item, reporting that
four 17-year-olds were killed in Boston over Thanksgiving and a quadruple
homicide claimed four more young people in a Dorchester basement.
This might seem paradoxical in the season of good will; but I
have a possible explanation, based on what I’ve observed over the years.
What do we all do most of in the festive season? Eat and drink! In fact our
intake over that period is so excessive that the majority of people, if they
are honest, feel rather below par. Just too much spuds, stuffing, pudding,
cakes and ale wreak havoc on our bodies and minds. For most people that
means feeling depressed and wanting to sleep on the sofa. But the reader
will now surely recognize that for some people, that means disturbed brain
function, hyperstimulation and inappropriate emotions, all waiting to come
out as aggression. No studies have ever been done on this but I feel my
hypothesis is a very strong one. If your family is prone to rows at Christmas
or Thanksgiving, consider this a possibility and get smart about it.
Super-strength child
Probably my most outstanding case of child rages was David, a young boy
of five from Ireland, whose outbursts were so extreme that parents truly
did have to nail down the furniture. Incredible though it seems for a child
of that age, he was able to muster enough strength to tear a door from
its hinges. His distraught parents explained that they really did have to nail
down the furniture. His allergy turned out to be wheat, mainly. His parents
had figured that out by following the instructions given in my first edition
of this book, The Food Allergy Plan, and when we finally got together in
Manchester I was able to confirm their findings and add some new aspects
to origins of the problem.
Ultimately, David, his mother and I went together on Gay Byrne’s
show. Almost every soul in Ireland listened in to Gay, who was the Irish
equivalent of Larry King! I wanted to say that David’s whole problem had