{"id":9450,"date":"2020-12-18T14:00:55","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T22:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.everywomanover29.com\/blog\/?p=9450"},"modified":"2020-12-18T09:54:10","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T17:54:10","slug":"christmas-tree-phenols-as-a-trigger-for-anger-meltdowns-anxiety-hyperactivity-insomnia-aggression-self-injury-and-autistic-symptoms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.everywomanover29.com\/blog\/christmas-tree-phenols-as-a-trigger-for-anger-meltdowns-anxiety-hyperactivity-insomnia-aggression-self-injury-and-autistic-symptoms\/","title":{"rendered":"Christmas tree phenols as a trigger for anger, meltdowns, anxiety, hyperactivity, insomnia, aggression, self-injury and autistic symptoms?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"christmastree<\/p>\n

Are you aware that the aromatic oils that give pine trees their wonderful smell are phenols and that these phenols may be a trigger for anger and meltdowns, anxiety, hyperactivity, irritability insomnia, self-injurious behavior, digestive issues and autistic symptoms (such as stimming, swinging and hand-flapping)? All this can be caused by an indoor Christmas tree in susceptible individuals.<\/p>\n

My colleague Julie Matthews writes about this here: Avoiding Holiday Havoc: Healthy solutions to avoid meltdowns and keep the holidays happy<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen phenols are not able to be broken-down and detoxified by a process called sulfation, which is low in many children with autism and ADHD\u201d, they can cause these symptoms and also red cheeks and ears. She shares that \u201cphenolic compounds come in many forms including artificial petroleum-based food additives, and salicylates (a type of phenol) found in plants and foods like strawberries and spices, as well as pine trees.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the above blog, Julie shares this story about a client with a 10-year old son with autism. He severely regressed during the holidays and it was because of the Christmas tree. This is what the mom shared:<\/p>\n

During the Holidays our son regressed severely.\u00a0 He became anxious, aggressive, and self-abusive. He cried and had tantrums regularly throughout the day. He couldn\u2019t sleep anymore and was up for hours at a time, night after night. He was hand-flapping like crazy.\u00a0 We have a swing in the house for him and he now wanted to swing all day long, constantly, and do nothing else. He lost eye contact and he stopped responding to his name.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Once the Christmas tree was removed the improvements were dramatic:<\/p>\n

The next day, he was much calmer. He seemed to have \u201cexhaled.\u201d Within 48 hours, our son was completely back to normal.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I shared Julie\u2019s blog on my Facebook page and a father in my community shared a similar experience about his autistic son\u2019s severe reactions to phenols:<\/p>\n

Yes! My autistic son who is sensitive to phenols, would completely meltdown during the holidays. We thought it was just the change in routine and his environment, but quite by accident we discovered fragrances seemed to make him worse. We got rid of the fragrances and holiday tree\/decor and the improvement in our son was dramatic! We now realize it was the phenols.<\/p>\n

My son’s reaction to phenols\/fragrances are bright red cheeks\/ears, dark under eye circles, headaches, inappropriate manic laughter, aggression\/self injurious behavior, marathon meltdowns\/screaming, incontinence, insomnia\/less than 3 hrs sleep a night, bumpy rashes, GI issues\/diarrhea, excessive sensory stimming (hand flapping, lip licking, running around and body slamming into things.) During the holidays, the intensity of these reactions shot through the roof.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

They found out by chance that it was the Christmas tree that was causing his son\u2019s issues each year. It started when he was a toddler and they figured it was the stress and changes of the holidays that was the issue. One year they didn\u2019t put up a tree and they could not believe the difference. It was then they made the connection and learned more about phenols and made the necessary changes.<\/p>\n

By reducing phenols in his diet and environment, and giving him Epsom Salt baths and enzymes (No-Fenol<\/a><\/em>), most of the above symptoms were significantly reduced. <\/em><\/p>\n

I suspect there are many families who are seeing similar meltdowns and have no idea it could be the Christmas tree. Keep in mind that the reactions may not be as severe as these two cases I\u2019ve shared here. If you are seeing any increase in anxiety, irritability, sleep problems, digestive issues or other unusual behavior changes in your child, keep an open mind that it may be more than just the holiday changes.<\/p>\n

Julie\u2019s advice is this:<\/p>\n