Eat the Doughnut!

"You haven't lived until you've dissected a doughnut."

Several weeks ago, I posted that as my Facebook status, and got a few puzzled comments.  Most of my friends could not understand what I was talking about.

But you, my fellow parents of children with sensory issues, you understand.  Don't you?

My son is an incredibly picky eater.  In order for him to eat a plain doughnut, we have to remove the "brown" off the outside of it, so just the inside white part is exposed.  This stems from the fact that over a year ago, he gagged on a plain doughnut, and the sensory memory of that has stayed with him ever since.  So for him to be able to eat it, he has to have the outside surgically removed.  Never mind the fact that he's able to eat a plain munchkin no problem.  The memory is from the doughnut, and can't be changed, reasoned with, or explained.

So, you ask, why even bother giving him the doughnut in the first place?  Give him a different kind.  Or none at all.

Because my son isn't just a picky eater.  He's a picky eater with SPD and autism, who also happens to have an intolerance to all corn products.

That's right.  His diet, already limited by his sensory disorder, is that much smaller because he can't digest anything with corn.  That means no corn starch, no corn syrup, no modified food starch, no dextrose, no maltodextrin, and of course, no high fructose corn syrup.

I'll give you a moment to go check your pantry and see how many foods have some corn product in them.  I'll name a few kid-friendly ones:  Cheerios, Rice Krispies, several brands of peanut butter, breads, jellies, crackers, chicken nuggets, hot dogs, bologna, deli meats, yogurts...and we haven't even left the house.  Forget about fast food or eating out most places.
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