Today marks 2 weeks on FODMAP, and Augie has had it. He is so hungry and just flatly refuses to eat his FODMAP elimination diet. "They" say that toddlers won't starve themselves, but I am honestly not so sure about that...
Eyeing Augie's shrinking waistline, I decided to give in a bit and "cheated" with lunch. Cheated, as in gave him 1/3 cup of grapes instead of 1/4 cup. Cheated, as in gave him Amy's Dairy-Free Rice Macaroni & Cheeze. This frozen meal, which is dairy/soy/gluten free, has two possibly offending items: coconut oil and pea protein. Coconut and peas are prohibited on FODMAP elimination diets, but I wasn't clear about the oil and protein part (especially since soy oil is actually acceptable on elimination diets). So, in a panic to feed my starving son something that somewhat resembled his all-time-favorite meals, I served it to him. He was SO darn happy while eating lunch it almost brought tears to my eyes. I think I was also tearing up because I feared what these possibly inadmissible ingredients might to do his (hopefully) healing gut. We will find out soon enough...
Tomorrow Augie is seeing a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. We will be doing stool testing, among various other things, to see if we can determine if anything else is ailing my son. I will also beg for us to start reintroducing low-FODMAP foods into his diet because this kind of living is pretty unsustainable!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Thursday, June 7, 2012
FODMAPing on the go
I imagine that when I leave the house with Augie (and his sister, who had the same enterovirus as Augie but recovered quickly) these days, I somewhat resemble a nomadic tribe on the move. A trip to the park for an hour? Well, better pack three different kinds of FODMAP-friendly snacks to ensure that a picky toddler on a severely restricted diet has enough options if hunger pangs strike. Spending the day at Grandma's house an hour away? Better load up three grocery bags full of food to cover the two meals and umpteen snacks that will undoubtedly be eaten, even though Grandma has assured us that she has X,Y, and Z for Augie.
Today was our first full day "on the road" while FODMAPing. I made no less than three calls to Grandma this morning to get a full inventory of dietary options for Augie that already exist in her house. I then proceeded to pack the standbys that usually satisfy Augie and, even though I basically brought every single transportable FODMAP-friendly food item, I was still nervous about feeding Augie. And, of course, like most other things related to child-rearing, we all survived the day quite well.
If you are FODMAPing your toddler and are looking for great, store-bought, portable snacking items to take with you for the day, I have a few to recommend. These have passed the toddler snack test in my house - meaning that besides being FODMAP-friendly, they have met the following additional criteria:
1. yummy taste
2. acceptable texture
3. easily handled by chubby little fingers
Without further adieu...my short but acceptable snack list:
Original Tings Crunchy Corn Sticks
Popchips - Original Potato Flavor
Nut Thins - Almond Flavor
and, of course,
Cheerios (plain, not Honey-Nut. Goodness no. Sorry, Augie.)
Today was our first full day "on the road" while FODMAPing. I made no less than three calls to Grandma this morning to get a full inventory of dietary options for Augie that already exist in her house. I then proceeded to pack the standbys that usually satisfy Augie and, even though I basically brought every single transportable FODMAP-friendly food item, I was still nervous about feeding Augie. And, of course, like most other things related to child-rearing, we all survived the day quite well.
If you are FODMAPing your toddler and are looking for great, store-bought, portable snacking items to take with you for the day, I have a few to recommend. These have passed the toddler snack test in my house - meaning that besides being FODMAP-friendly, they have met the following additional criteria:
1. yummy taste
2. acceptable texture
3. easily handled by chubby little fingers
Without further adieu...my short but acceptable snack list:
Original Tings Crunchy Corn Sticks
Popchips - Original Potato Flavor
Nut Thins - Almond Flavor
and, of course,
Cheerios (plain, not Honey-Nut. Goodness no. Sorry, Augie.)
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, anyone?
Like most toddlers, Augie loves a good old-fashioned grilled cheese sandwich. Although many people on FODMAP can eat lactose-free dairy, Augie absolutely cannot tolerate any type of dairy. No dairy for a toddler who loves milk and cheese? It has been pretty traumatic for us, mom in particular! I set out to find a suitable grilled cheese sandwich that would satisfy Augie. This one is pretty darn good - and a FODMAPing child who can have "real" cheese is sure to like this, too!
No-Dairy FODMAP-friendly Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Ingredients:
2 slices Udi's Gluten Free White Sandwich Bread
Earth's Balance Spread
1 mozzarella flavored Rice Cheese slice
Toast Udi's bread slices until light golden brown.
Place slice of Rice Cheese in between the toasted bread.
Melt 1 tbsp of Earth's Balance spread in a skillet on the stovetop at medium-high.
Place the sandwich into the skillet, let sit for 10 seconds, then flip so both sides are coated with Earth's Balance spread. Let the sandwich cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until the bread is nicely browned and the cheese is melted. Cool for a minute or two and serve whole or cut into little pieces, however your child prefers.
No-Dairy FODMAP-friendly Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Ingredients:
2 slices Udi's Gluten Free White Sandwich Bread
Earth's Balance Spread
1 mozzarella flavored Rice Cheese slice
Toast Udi's bread slices until light golden brown.
Place slice of Rice Cheese in between the toasted bread.
Melt 1 tbsp of Earth's Balance spread in a skillet on the stovetop at medium-high.
Place the sandwich into the skillet, let sit for 10 seconds, then flip so both sides are coated with Earth's Balance spread. Let the sandwich cook for 2-3 minutes on each side until the bread is nicely browned and the cheese is melted. Cool for a minute or two and serve whole or cut into little pieces, however your child prefers.
FODMAP-friendly Peanut Butter Cookie recipes
My 17 month old son, Augie, loves snacks, and among his favorite are fruit, crackers, and milk. Sadly, after Augie contracted enterovirus, he could no longer tolerate his three favorite food groups. Thankfully, Augie is happily drinking enriched rice milk and, as such, seems to be fine not eating yogurt or cheese. Since his FODMAP elimination diet calls for strict portioning of the few low-fructose fruits he is allowed to eat and ZERO wheat, gluten, or soy products, I was more than worried about what kinds of snack foods I could get a somewhat picky toddler to eat.
The first FODMAP-friendly cookies I made for Augie continue to be his favorite...and they could not be any easier or more delicious! I found the recipe on the FODMAP information sheet our nutritionist provided to us, and since Augie is not allergic to either peanuts or eggs this was the perfect cookie for him. Here it is:
Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup Peanut Butter (make sure it is not sweetened with honey!)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix ingredients well (I just use a large spoon). Form 1-inch balls on to ungreased cookie sheet. Press the top of the balls with the back of a fork to make the tell-tale Peanut Butter cookie crisscross design. Bake 10-12 minutes until the cookies look dry on top. Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet before removing and storing in an air-tight container. Makes 20~30 cookies.
If you have some rolled oats at home and would like to make a chewier cookie, try these:
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies*
Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
3 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1/4 cup butter (or Earth's Balance Spread)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1¼ tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
pinch of nutmeg
Preheat oven to 350.
Cream together the butter and sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy.
Add eggs, vanilla, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Mix.
Add peanut butter and mix.
Add oats and mix slowly until well-combined.
Scoop a teaspoon of dough onto greased or parchment-covered cookie sheet.
Bake 10-12 minutes until lightly brown at edges. Remove and let cool on wire rack. Makes 3~4 dozen cookies.
*adapted from here. I left out the chocolate chips and nuts and substituted the butter with Earth's Balance Spread.
The first FODMAP-friendly cookies I made for Augie continue to be his favorite...and they could not be any easier or more delicious! I found the recipe on the FODMAP information sheet our nutritionist provided to us, and since Augie is not allergic to either peanuts or eggs this was the perfect cookie for him. Here it is:
Peanut Butter Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup Peanut Butter (make sure it is not sweetened with honey!)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix ingredients well (I just use a large spoon). Form 1-inch balls on to ungreased cookie sheet. Press the top of the balls with the back of a fork to make the tell-tale Peanut Butter cookie crisscross design. Bake 10-12 minutes until the cookies look dry on top. Let cookies cool on the cookie sheet before removing and storing in an air-tight container. Makes 20~30 cookies.
If you have some rolled oats at home and would like to make a chewier cookie, try these:
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies*
Ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
3 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1/4 cup butter (or Earth's Balance Spread)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1¼ tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
pinch of nutmeg
Preheat oven to 350.
Cream together the butter and sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy.
Add eggs, vanilla, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Mix.
Add peanut butter and mix.
Add oats and mix slowly until well-combined.
Scoop a teaspoon of dough onto greased or parchment-covered cookie sheet.
Bake 10-12 minutes until lightly brown at edges. Remove and let cool on wire rack. Makes 3~4 dozen cookies.
*adapted from here. I left out the chocolate chips and nuts and substituted the butter with Earth's Balance Spread.
Welcome to FODMAPing a Toddler!
My name is Ilissa, and I am FODMAPing my toddler son, Augie, in the hopes of helping his gut recover from a terrible enterovirus that has rendered him intolerant to fructose.* I started this blog one week into the FODMAP diet because, surprisingly, there is very little information to be gleaned from the internet on following a FODMAP diet with children. I thought it would be nice to have a resource for other parents looking for no and low-FODMAP recipes and meal plans to follow with their children...so welcome to FODMAPing a Toddler.**
Ilissa & Augie
To learn the technical ins and outs of FODMAP, click here.
*We are following a FODMAP elimination diet under the strict guidance of a Certified Pediatric Nutritionist. I absolutely do NOT recommend a no or low-FODMAP diet for any child without proper medical diagnosis and support.
**I am neither a nutritionist nor a medical doctor and will not be offering medical or nutritional advice on this blog. This blog will serve as a resource for recipes and meal plans that I have followed or tried on my FODMAP journey with my son and is offered as anecdotal support only.
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