Tourette’s Syndrome- A Christmas Miracle Story

In the holiday spirit what could be better than a holiday miracle story?

Meg and I wanted to share a heart-warming story we recently received. We actually wanted to shout it from the rooftops for every parent to know and hear.

As parents or individuals, we all worry about our kids’, their health, safety and well-being. We equip our kids with a lot of “gear” to protect them on the outside. However, to what degree are we willing to go to and protect them on the inside? For many it seems hard and challenging to change a diet even if it means a miracle is possible. So, in the spirit of Christmas, we wanted to share one such miracle story we recently received from our beloved friends, old neighbors and colleagues, Matt and Chelsea.

Their nightmare began…

When they started noticing their son having some neurological issues and behavioral outbursts. They took him to the best doctors and got the diagnosis. Tourette’s Syndrome. Tourette’s Syndrome has no known cures. We know their son Matteo well. He was always the sweetest mild-mannered curious young boy. As one would imagine, this diagnosis seemed unbelievable. The doctor said there was no treatment only drugs to sedate his loud outbursts and behaviors.

About Tourette’s Syndrome

A little bit about Tourette’s Syndrome from the CDC: Read more about it.

Tourette syndrome is a condition that affects the brain and nerves, causing people to make repeated movements and sounds, also known as motor and vocal tics, that they cannot control. The symptoms usually begin in childhood, can vary from mild to severe, and change over time.

5 things you may not know about Tourette’s Syndrome from the CDC

Nowhere in the research does it share food could play a role in helping with Tourette’s.

National Institute of Health shares this fact sheet on Tourette’s.

The Mayo Clinic shared many other conditions associated with Tourette’s plus behavioral therapy and medications was what they use to help manage symptoms. Many people with Tourette’s experience the following:

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
Autism spectrum disorder
Learning disabilities
Sleep disorders
Depression
Anxiety disorders
Pain related to tics, especially headaches
Anger-management problems

Mayo Clinic Treatment states: There’s no cure for Tourette syndrome. Treatment is aimed at controlling tics that interfere with everyday activities and functioning.

And lastly, this article from NIH states “Current evidence suggests no single diet to benefit individuals with TS. However, reports from parents of children with TS suggest that certain allergens in food may exacerbate tic-related symptoms.”

The miracle…

Matt’s email.

…You know I love food, nature, yoga, and being in the kitchen. But, I wanted to share with you something kind of amazing. Earlier this year, Matteo was diagnosed by a neurologist with Tourette’s Syndrome. Yeah, can you believe it? He had lots of “tics”, opening his mouth really wide, flapping his arms against the sides of his body, shrugging his shoulders and making random noises. Chelsea took him to a neurologist and the Dr. said, he has Tourette’s and its genetic and there is nothing you can really do about it. There are some medications you can give him to sedate him and blah blah blah. You know we didn’t do that.

After doing some research and giving him certain vitamins, B, Fish Oil and Magnesium, we saw a little improvement, but some of the underlying issues of Tourette’s are anxiety, ADHD, uncontrolled emotional outbursts, etc. You know we already eat cleaner than most, but we did a deep dive and got even cleaner. The main thing we did was become a gluten free family…Well guess what?…. Matteo has not had any tics or other symptoms since we removed gluten from his diet. I truly cannot believe it. He has been gluten free for the last 2-3 months and he has not had a physical or vocal tic since! His behavior is great and he has virtually no signs of Tourette’s. Can you believe it? Of course you can, but I wanted to share this with the two of you, because like you said, food can be a powerful healer.

I have tears in my eyes as I write this, but I wanted to thank you for waking us up to the fact that something like gluten could have this kind of effect on someone. Chelsea and I can hardly believe what we are seeing, but it’s working.

Thank you for all that you do. We are so grateful for you both and know that there are so many others who are benefiting from what you are doing. Keep up the great work.

Love,

Matt, Chelsea, Matteo and Owen,

Never under estimate the healing power of food.

No matter what the diagnosis or condition one has, food plays an enormous role in everyone’s healing process. Meg’s and my goal has always been to help people discover their individual power foods to fuel their body’s. We are all made differently. No two people are the same. That is why we can’t encourage you enough to know your personal power foods and help your kids know theirs. Talk about how foods make them feel. And listen closely when they share they get stomach aches or can’t eliminate. And last, don’t just take a doctors word as final. Listen to your gut and never give up. I didn’t with my family, nor did Matt and Chelsea. When you know deep inside there are more possibilities, trust and know. And know that the food we eat matters.

If you know of someone who might benefit from this story, please pay this miracle story forward.

The greatest most important gift is our health. When we don’t have our health, we have nothing. Health IS our wealth.

If you know someone who could benefit from our services and support: coaching, teaching or our online Cleansing with Food Reset courses and more. Please share this gift of health. We now offer GIFT cards.

May this story lift you up as it did us. Our hope is it will help you or someone you know.