The Body Ecology Diet was developed by Donna Gates to help peple with all kinds of ailments (digestive problems, Crohns, cancer, multiple sclerosis, depression, Alzheimers, and autism. This is a difficult diet for children to be on for very long, but it is very helpful to understand and implement as many of its protocols as possible. This is not a strictly dairy free diet, so that accomodation should be made and understood from the beginning.
The beauty of the BED is that it really starts to take the focus off of the foods that are to be avoided (though there are plenty) - and shifts the focus to healthy foods that will help re-populate the digestive tract with the balance of good bacteria and yeast that it needs. This is helpful in restoring the immune system, which is often weekened by a chronic disease process.
The BED promotes the use of homemade kefir - a cultured (or fermented) milk that is rich in the good probiotics (life-giving organisms - antibiotics are the opposite). Children on a casein free diet would not want to drink kefir made from cow's milk, but the BED book explains how to make kefir from the water of young green coconuts. This coconut water is casein free. The website www.bodyecology.com also sells young coconut water that is already prepared in a cultured drink called Cocobiotic. This is another wonderful way to get live, natural probiotics into your child. If it is just too sour to be tolerated, a little stevia (natural sweetener from the health food store) may be added. The kefir starter can also be purchased from the website.
The BED also promotes eating raw cultured vegetable, to enrich the digestive tract with natural probiotics and digestive enzymes. A few bites with every meal is a wonderful idea. And again, the vegetable culture starter can be purchased on the website. Raw cultured vegetables can be purchased in many natural food and health food stores.
The BED also addresses the alkalinity vs. acidity (or pH) of the digestive tract. A gut that is overly acidic will create an environment that allows the bad yeast/ bacteria to thrive. The high amounts of natural probiotics, plus the use of lemon and lime juice help to balance and restore a healthier digestion and work to cure yeast/bacteria overgrowth.
Another aspect of BED is the attention it gives to food combining. An example of this dietary priciple would be to avoid eating fruit with a meal - eat it only in the morning, and by itself - preferably on an empty stomach. When this happens the fruit is digested quickly and efficiently. When you eat fruit with a meat or carbohydrate, the fruit slows down the digestion, which allows for the food to sit in the system longer and possibly feed yeast/bacteria. There are other food combining ideas that help make digestion more efficient.
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