Addendum:

For example, recently my wife started eating peanuts and raisins as a late night television snack. Almost immediately, she started having very restless sleep and was complaining about soreness in her muscles and back. A quick trip to the chart showed very high levels of glutamate and asparate in peanuts.

I'm just glad that my canine patients don't eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and down it with a big glass of milk like our ADHD kids do. Let's see: wheat bread (with gliadorphins and plenty of glutamate and aspartate), peanut butter (LOTS more glutamate and asparate), jelly ("sugar gel"), and all of it washed down with cow milk (casomorphins and plenty of glutamate. Oh yeah. Don't forget the arachadonic acid for you pain sufferers).

Hmmmm..... It does all make sense, doesn't it?

Foods rich in glutamate and aspartate: 1) Grains: Wheat, barley, and oats are highest. Corn and rice are lower than the previous three but higher than potatoes. 2) Dairy Products: All Cheeses (cheddar, Swiss, Monterey Jack, Mozzarella, PARMESAN) are very high. Casein is very concentrated in cheese and is 20% glutamic acid by composition. 3) Beans: Soy, Pinto, lima, black, navy, and lentils 4) Seeds: Sunflower, pumpkin, etc. 5) Peanuts: Very high, as are cashews, pistachios, and almonds. I have more detailed charts on the site to show exact values for the various nuts. Everything in moderation applies when eating nuts of any kind. So, I do not recommend you reach for nuts when you are really hungry unless you can stop after a few. Nuts are very good for you..in moderation. For example, seven almonds a day gives you what you need . 6) Diet drinks: Primary source of aspartate (aspartame) 7) Prepared foods, soups:  70% of prepared foods and many soups have MSG 8) Meats: Note- All meats are naturally rich in glutamate and aspartate. Lamb (and eggs) are the lowest,  while rabbit and turkey are the highest. However, I believe that the amount in a normal serving of meat should not be enough to cause problems. I think that it is all of the other "unnatural" sources when combined with the meats that are causing the problems.  One of my newest concerns is the presence of glutamate in the flesh of grain-fed animals, especially chickens, turkeys, and cattle. This is s topic of discussion on the celiac forums and we are now believing that this is a real concern and could explain why some celiacs are not responding to elimination diets. Catfish are also grain fed. The fact is that 60-70% of the American Diet is wheat and dairy (with heavy emphasis on cheese). This combined with the amount of artificial sweeteners being consumed and the addition of SOY has led this country into an epidemic of pain syndromes, including fibromyalgia. Epilepsy is definitely on the rise in pets and the combination of wheat and soy in pet foods is playing a huge role. I am seeing first time epileptic dogs within three weeks of starting such diets.   Food low in glutamate and asparate: 1) Fruits 2) Vegetables 3) Potatoes 4) Lamb and eggs are relatively low. 5) Tree nuts (e.g. pecans, walnuts, macadamias) NOTE: These are relatively low when compared to peanuts and cashews. I have more detailed charts on the site to show exact values. Pecans, for example, have half the amount of glutamate that peanuts have but that is still quite a bit. Again, everything in moderation applies when eating nuts of any kind. I do not recommend you reach for nuts when you are really hungry unless you can stop after a few. Nuts are very good for you..in moderation. 7 almonds a day gives you what you need .   ******************************************************   The main thing to cut out is the gluten, casein, and soy. These are the main players in epilepsy...the guys doing the intestinal harm, providing HIGH levels of glutamate, causing allergic reactions, and providing estrogens that also play a role. During the recovery phase...that time when the body is healing, regaining its vitamin stores, and getting the viruses back under control, it is best to avoid the other foods rich in glutamate (nuts/seeds, beans, grain and foods with ANY MSG or Nutrisweet. The worst epileptics should eat these and the grain substitutes very sparingly, until their neurons have had a chance to return to normal. How long does this take? Good question. It takes some longer than others and also depends on how much they've cheated and where they live. Air pollution is a major player in neurodegenerative diseases and my worst epi cases almost always live in the most polluted cities.    So, are you getting the picture yet? Think of your son as having "decompensated". He was fine until age 12 and then something changed. The "big 4" foods play a HUGE in this as they damage the intestinal villi that absorb the major vitamins and minerals he needs to stay healthy. Secondary factors like hormonal changes, environmental pollution, time of year (seizures are worst during the short days of the year), and others are also playing a role.   Some will stop seizing immediately upon removal of all dairy and gluten. Others require a much stricter diet. Other have to take major supplements like the ones outlined in How to Control Idiopathic Epilepsy Naturally . Other will benefit from light therapy to raise their serotonin levels. Think of epilepsy as a spectrum disorder, just like autism, asthma, depression, cancer, and most other things that afflict us...some individuals are much worse than others. Once we understand the nature of the food intolerances and all of the secondary players in this "syndrome", it is easy to see why the spectrum exists.   I have a paper on my site called What in the World Do I Eat? It can be found here. It gives examples of every day food that I eat, most of which would be fine for me if I were an epileptic. I DO eat just as I suggest others do. And as a result, my pain threshold is through the roof and I sleep really well now, with boundless energy during the day. Going caffeine-free really helped, but I did this last. We really can't go caffeine free until we cut out the "depressant" foods...the gluten grains and dairy and any other foods that were allergic to. For major allergy sufferers who have epilepsy, it is a great to get food allergy tested like I suggest in the paper How to Control Idiopathic Epilepsy Naturally .   I hope this helps. I know it is a lot but epilepsy is complicated. It will become "simple" as this sinks in and some time passes but it will continue to be difficult to eat right in this world we have created...until the food intolerances become more well-known and the big manufacturers of food (like Nabisco and Sarah Lee) start making gluten-free products. That day IS coming and it may be sooner than you think. Celiac awareness is skyrocketing. It should. Some researchers think 1:30 people have it and don't know it. That is BIG...and dairy and soy are potentially even worse. :(   Let me know if this brings up more questions.