Kids are starting back to school and healthy nutrition is on every parents' mind.  Take a look at Jennifer Harshman's view on the effect of a common nutrient in bread, cereals, bagels and mini pizzas -- gluten & casein:

It's back-to-school time, and although parents and students are hoping for a good school year, most are unaware that certain foods can have a negative impact on school performance. Each year, increasing numbers of students are diagnosed with medical conditions such as Autism, ADHD, asthma and allergies - dubbed the "New Childhood Epidemics" by Dr. Kenneth Bock. Students who have these or other medical problems miss out on so much, and it could be related to their food.

Gluten and casein are proteins found in common foods - gluten in grains such as wheat, rye and barley, and casein in all dairy products. Both are also found in many food additives. These proteins cause problems for an estimated 33% to 95% of the U.S. population and are listed as more than 200 ingredients on food labels. Eating these proteins can cause or contribute to a list of medical symptoms that has been reported to be more than 250 items long. Just a few of these are malnutrition in various degrees, abdominal pain, bowel problems, sleep problems, weight gain, diabetes, ADHD, autism, asthma, allergies, sinus problems, mood swings, irritability, impulsiveness, difficulty sitting still and difficulty concentrating.

If these ingredients are so common, and they are served in every school in America, what can parents do? Parents of students who exhibit any of the signs of food allergies or sensitivities and parents of students who struggle in school can talk with their doctors. They can ask their doctor and the school to participate in a dietary trial, to see if a gluten-free, casein-free (GFCF) diet will help their children. A GFCF dietary trial consists of avoiding gluten and casein for a minimum of three months.

Why so long? It takes approximately three months to get gluten out of the intestines. Until the body is cleared of it, symptoms caused by gluten will persist. Here's encouraging news: some people notice a difference in just a few days.