Michael Turner, five, could not concentrate on anything, was disruptive in class, did not socialise with other children and would jump up and down for hours on end.

Now after a test found he was intolerant to a range of foods including milk, wheat, oranges, carrots, kiwi fruit, garlic, soya, and chicken, they have been removed from his diet and his behaviour has improved dramatically.

Mum Kaye, 25, from South Hylton, said: "It's been absolutely miraculous, it really has.

"It really has changed my life, Michael's life and everyone's lives at school."

Michael's problems started when he was about three, which Kaye originally put down to medication he was taking to control his epilepsy.

His behaviour got so bad that he was on the verge of being statemented for extra support at his school – St Joseph's RC Primary School in Millfield.

He could only stay in school for part of the day, and had to be taken home every lunchtime, which caused problems for Kaye, who works as centre manager of Sunderland Futures Education Centre at Pallion and Harraton.

After hearing about food intolerance tests by a company called YorkTest from her dad Andrew Burn, Kaye decided to have Michael tested.

Blood tests were taken at Millfield Medical Centre before being sent off to the YorkTest laboratory, where Michael's food intolerances were discovered.

Kaye changed Michael's diet and began to see the changes within a week.

Michael was calmer, concentrating more, and since the start of the new school year in September has stayed for the full schoolday every day.

Jeanette Winter, who works as a nursery nurse at St Joseph's, said: "It's a very dramatic improvement. He is like a different child."

Michael had also stopped taking his epilepsy medication a couple of months before his behaviour started improving, but Kaye is still convinced that food intolerance was the main cause of his hyperactivity.

Her belief has been reinforced when Michael has accidentally been given foods he is intolerant to, which has affected his behaviour.

* For information on YorkTest's food intolerance test, go to www.yorktest.com or call 0800 074 6185.