The toxins in our food

I am often asked why we keep Hunter on a GF/limited food coloring/no preservatives/all natural diet.  "We used to eat all of those things when we were younger."  "What's the harm in eating food coloring?" "His diet won't affect his behavior."  Here's the best scenario to prove that diet can make a difference- in all children.

Your kids arrive at a birthday party to a sea of activities.  Face paint, treats, Capri Suns- and the very large, brightly colored frosted cupcakes.  By the time the party is complete, your kids have transformed from shy guests to running and jumping across the furniture in the house.  Just a natural excitement from being around other children?

I found THE best article tonight related to our food and exactly what we are eating.  It is from the TACA (Talk about Curing Autism) website and I am going to highlight some of the key points below.  Here's the link as well, for those who want to read more in-depth.
http://www.tacanow.org/family-resources/toxins-in-foods-the-environment/

HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup)

High Fructose Corn Syrup – Research by the IATP in 2009 shows a significant level of mercury in products that contain HFCS. HFCS is found in sweetened beverages, sodas, breads, cereals, breakfast bars, lunch meats, yogurts, soups and condiments. When  making HFCS, caustic soda, among other things, is used, to separate corn starch from the corn kernel. For decades, HFCS has been made using mercury-grade caustic soda produced in industrial chlorine (chlor-alkali) plants. The use of mercury cells to produce caustic soda can contaminate caustic soda and ultimately HFCS with mercury. Currently, there is no way a consumer can tell where the HFCS (or any other ingredient) in their processed foods came from or how it was produced, so avoiding all products containing HFCS is the safest course of action.
Please be aware that some honey, because of the bee shortages, is now being diluted with HFCS. Your safest bet is to buy honey only from a local bee grower, and remember real honey will crystallize, honey with HFCS won’t. A label that says “Pure Honey”, “Organic” or “US Honey” doesn’t mean it’s safe.

Colors/Dyes

Artificial colors and dyes have been proven many times to cause or exacerbate hyperactivity in children.  Dyes (water-soluble) and lakes (fat-soluble) include Yellow 5, Red 40, Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Orange B, Red 3, and Yellow 6.
Some artificial dyes are carcinogenic and some are not vegetarian.

Preservatives

BHA, BHT and TBHQ are the main nasty preservatives found in foods.  They are generally used to keep fats from becoming rancid. It is also used as a yeast de-foaming agent. BHA is found in butter, meats, cereals, chewing gum, baked goods, snack foods, dehydrated potatoes, and beer. It is also found in animal feed, food packaging, cosmetics, rubber products, and petroleum products. TBHQ is commonly found in fast food products. As well as being carcinogenic, preservatives are also salicylates.
www.feingold.org/effects.html