Autism

[fawn]

An FYI to those who have a child or know someone with a child with autism. There is a new website out by Liz Lipski who authored the book Digestive Wellness. This is the book that I've used as a text book for reference for my digestive physiology class. She is brilliant and I believe all will get a great deal of information from her.

Nutrition And Mind

[BitsyMay]

I saw Jenny Mcarthy on Ellen a while back and she said that since putting her son on a gluten free diet he has made amazing improvements.

[grbs]

Fawn - thanks so much for posting this. I have a very close friend who's 3 year old son was recently diagnosed with autism. She's feeling very overwhelmed with everyhting that is going on and I think this info might help her feel like she can regain a little control over the situation. Thanks!

[fawn]

Originally Posted by grbs

Fawn - thanks so much for posting this. I have a very close friend who's 3 year old son was recently diagnosed with autism. She's feeling very overwhelmed with everyhting that is going on and I think this info might help her feel like she can regain a little control over the situation. Thanks!

You bet!
I have a great deal of respect for the gal who wrote this book. I adore my digestive wellness book and hope this can help others.

You're right bitsy! She has brought the gluten connection to the forefront. Literally, it acts as an opiant for some autistic children.

This book goes into detail as well about how important pro-biotics are I believe.

Our digestive system is considered our "second brain"

[getting2goal]

This is intresting. Is there anything other than gluten to avoid? What about milk? Which foods help the digestive system in that situation? I would really appreciate if anyone has any information about what foods are of benefit and which arent.

[Debralynn]

Originally Posted by getting2goal

This is intresting. Is there anything other than gluten to avoid? What about milk? Which foods help the digestive system in that situation? I would really appreciate if anyone has any information about what foods are of benefit and which arent.

People have been reporting impressive results from Gluten AND Casein (Dairy) free diets on their autistic children. It is also adviseable to remove anything from the diet that could increase yeast production or candida.
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Fawn, thank you for the info on this book. I know a few moms who have been looking for just this thing!

As always, you continue to be a wonderful source of information and a major inspiration!

[Hot Tamale]

thanks, Fawn, I gotta check this out!

[weasel!]

Fawn, I was just wondering about the topic of autism and diet! What a kwinkydink.

More specifically, it occurred to me that the swell in autism-spectrum numbers happened at about the same time as the rise in American obesity, childhood obesity and childhood diabetes -- which is, of course, concurrent with the government's deciding to advise everyone over the age of two to eat a lowfat diet, take lowfat versions of dairy products, and so forth. (Also the improved technology that's used to include HFCS in so many food products.)

So I was wondering if there might be some connection between autism and inadequate dietary fat. Autism can begin to appear around age 2, which is when children are supposed to be switched to lowfat foods.

Retired brain surgeon Dr. Larry McCleary, in The Brain Trust Program, talks extensively about the importance of sufficient fat for the brain, and how all sorts of problems are caused by insufficient fat and aided by low-carb regimens. But he mostly talks about the already-developed brain, and autism doesn't appear in the book's index.

In Good Calories, Bad Calories, author Gary Taubes talks about possibility that the classic nutritional deficiency diseases (scurvy, rickets, etc.) might be caused by living on sugar and starch rather than restriction of vitamins from fruits and veg. He points out that the peoples who lived exclusively on meat and dairy, with no f&v, did not get these diseases. The sailors who suffered from scurvy were living almost exclusively on sugar and starch: hardtack, molasses, and such.

Taubes makes an important distinction: Scurvy can be cured with the vitamins from fruit and veg. But that doesn't mean that it's caused by the lack of fruit and veg. He cites an alternative hypothesis: perhaps something about the refined, high-carb, lowfat diet causes the body to require more vitamins than are provided by a traditional diet.

I wonder if something similar might be at work with the autism spectrum. I poked around the Net a little looking for someone connecting autism to dietary fat, but didn't come up with anything.

Lipski's site doesn't talk about the importance of fat for the brain, either. Has she read GCBC, I wonder? If not, can you get her to?

[cenicienta]

Thanks for mentioning the book, Fawn. I'll have to check it out.

My son actually didn't respond to the gluten free/casein free diet, although many people with autism do. So we switched the diet up a bit and are doing a more low carb approach to his diet. Haven't seen significant gains with this yet, although we aren't very far into it. It is just a healthier way of eating for our whole family, so if we don't see gains, so what. We are at least eating healthier. Autism is such a individualistic thing, you really just have to go by trial and error until you hit something that seems to work for you.

It shouldn't surprise me that there is a huge connection between the brain and the gut. I myself know how the connection messes with my own gut. As for my son, I don't really think that he ever had the leaky gut as so many autistic kids do. He never has had problems with diarrhea, constipation nor a distended belly. I think a lot of his issues have to do with autoimmunity and having a viral and fungal overload in his system.

[fawn]

Vesna
I believe your theory is a great one. But could it just be a piece of the great big puzzle? How will we be able to ever figure anything out when childrens food products use petroleum in 99% of their products in the form of food coloring and other additives?

Here's the other double edge sword on this theory. Most autistic children have texture sensory issues so feeding an autistic child can be quite a challenge I've heard.

I will e-mail Liz and see what her thoughts are on this one.

for me personally, I had behavorial issues as a child. ADHD and OCD. Fat is my best friend for sure!

[weasel!]

Fawn, you state the conundrum well! How indeed can we pin down specifics when there’s all this fabricated stuff and non-food and genetically modified product all over the food supply.

Liz recommends those “Splash” products that seem to be mainly vitamin supplements in a form that little children will deign to take, if I understand them correctly. (I didn’t think she provided a robust enough explanation of them in her PDF or Web site.) I was dismayed, though, to see the kinds of ingredients in them. Their first ingredients were things like maltodextrin and (IIRC) corn syrup -- that should raise a red flag for any LCF reader. Not only that, but she writes that corn is one of the common offenders in the diets of AS folks, yet both of those are corn products. Also they contain artificial flavors and colors.

I certainly don’t mean to bash this woman whom you obviously respect and admire! I do wonder what your thoughts are, though, or if you know more about her thoughts.

[fawn]

Vesna
Where do you see the corn syrup? I could not find it.
As far as the sugar is concerned, that is necessary for taste for children. Though, I'd rather see stevia since it is a supplement anyway. What are your thoughts?

[Hot Tamale]

Here's the other double edge sword on this theory. Most autistic children have texture sensory issues so feeding an autistic child can be quite a challenge I've heard.

Fawn: That's true. My son, while not officially diagnosed, most likely is on the autistic spectrum... He also has sensory integration disorder - and will only eat about 12 things... Its a huge puzzle...

[Linny]

Here is another site with what I consider extremely valuable information on Autism and Diet. I take Digestive Enzymes with great results.

EnzymeStuff Site - Everything about digestive enzymes