New Report Says Special Diet for Autism is Unnecessary
A report published Monday in the January issue of Pediatrics disputes the belief of Jenny McCarthy and other parents, stating that there is no evidence that autistic children have more digestive problems than others, or that diets can help the condition. The paper says that while digestive pain can impact children's behavior and warrants medical treatment, digestive issues are not more common in children with autism.
A 1998 paper had first put forth the notion that autistic children often suffered from a problem called "leaky gut" or "autistic entercolitis". That paper has since been discredited, and the report issued today says that there is no evidence that autistic entercolitis even exists. The report does at least call for more scientific research into the efficacy of special diets, but says that right now there is no scientific evidence to support them.
Currently, one in five autistic child is on some form of special diet, with most eliminating gluten or casein, a milk protein. Jenny McCarthy and others credit special diets with helping their children "recover" from autism. As such, tyhis report is likely to ruffle some feathers.
Comments
Gluten free diets have done wonders for Jenny McCarthy's bank balance.
Well at least you didn't call her a "refrigerator mother" as was the consensus medical opinion for the etiology of autism until recently. There is an interesting write-up on vaccines and autism here
http://healthjournalclub.blogspot.com/2010/01/first-glance-at-autism-and-at-vaccines.html
for anyone who cares to read it.
As a Pediatrican myself...I bet to differ. I believe the Autism Spectrum Disorders are so wide and variant and not all diagnosed efficiently that this article can't make the claim that special diet cannot help because I have seen different in clinic
As a teacher who works with many adolescent aged kids who have been diagnosed as autistic, I can tell you that though gluten free diet may be fads, the idea of eating properly may still be an issue. The spectrum -labeled kid who eats poorly in general-- soft drinks, sugar, and other general junk foods certainly isn't helped. Perhaps this is a time to take a deep breath and restate the obvious which is that all kids need to eat healthy food and get rest. You would be amazed how many kids don't.
I was trained to believe that diet made no difference in disease and especially not in autism. When I saw it work, I was forced to decide whether I should believe my eyes or what I was taught. Now, I've treated literally hundreds of children with autism using nutrition and have seen tremendous improvement. I've also seen benefit in children with ADHD, migraine, even epilepsy. Diet may not be the cure, but it is better than what mainstream medicine has offered families with autistic children.
This "study" should give us all, doctors and laypeople, pause in terms of the validity of the research that is published. Tens of thousands of parents and health care practitioners describe significant improvement in core autism symptoms with diet. It should also really make us wonder if the one size fits all model of medicine and research gives us the whole story.
The headline states that the finding is that special diets are unnecessary. The text above states that more research is needed, and currently the evidence is not there to support them. These are radically different statements. Having worked in this field for 27 years, it has been interesting to read the research over a period of years, and to also see how that research translates into headlines. I will be very interested to read the report. I will not be surprised if there is some difficulty getting solid scientific evidence that a specific diet helps with autism. There is no scientific evidence that there is one autism. We believe that there may be at least 20 variants, and that many of them may have no physiological overlap. They all result in impairments to communication and socialization. I will be surprised if any treatment for "autism" helps more than about 15% of children who have that diagnosis.
I assume this is based on a press release? I can not find a January 2010 edition of Pediatrics. The current issue, according to their website, is Dec '09...
Yes, diets are not necessary! Feed you kids all the crap that everyone else eats..trans fats, dyes, preservatives, high fructose cron syrup, etc. and they can get gut disease like the rest of the population.. Anybody ask why so many people are being diagnosed with IBS, Crohn's etc.? Why are we doing gallbladder operations on teenagers and colon surgery on kids in their twenties. Anybody look at the mom's gut health that she passes on to her child? If a child does not have good gut bacteria they get overgrowth of yeast, bacteria, ear infections and rounds of antibiotics. Gee, then they get developmental delays and yep there's autism. Wake up doctors...our diets are causing the chronic autoimmune diseases we see in our population.
You're an idiot. The article is referring to specific restricted diets... but apparently you're too stupid to understand that.
I think that this research should give us all a pause in terms of the validity of the research that is published. Tens of thousands of parents and health care practitioners describe significant improvement in core autism symptoms with diet.
I think that this research should make us all stop and pause to think about the validity of the research that is published. Diet may not be the cure, but it is better than anything that mainstream medicine has offered. Believe me, I have witnessed it.
My son was lost in his own world until I removed gluten from his diet. I saw an immediate and dramatic result. He made more eye contact, began responding to his name, and dramatically improved his language. I've been very skeptical of all biomedical treatments; but I have no doubt that removing gluten from my son's diet made a huge improvement in his social skills.
There are a very large proportion of Autistic kids with digestive problems. I'm not a doctor, but isn't constipation or incontinence a digestive problem. Results from a reputable lab show that my son's body is low in nutrients and minerals even though he's recieving supplements daily.
This article states "digestive issues are not more common in children with autism." Compared to what? People with Autism comprise less than 1% of our population. Are they comparing the percentage of Autistic peolpe with digestive problems to the percentage of the rest of our population with the same problems?
I'm beginning to feel like most pediatricians have an agenda against any information that shows benefits from alternative treatments. And an agenda against any information that shows that their treatments may have contributed to Autism.
Instead of looking for a way to help people with Autism; it seems like these studies are intended to hinder it.
A recent autism success story has me researching online. Emanating from an interview with a local grandmother who has no profit motive, I am convinced that special/restricted diets should be the first line of offense against autism symptoms.
It made me reflect back on another case. The adoptive mother of an autistic child that I cared for told me that he was "allergic to milk" but that he craved it - so I had to be careful about his access to it. According to her, it contributed to his bowel problems. She had me feeding him a bowl of dry Cheerios every morning. In fact, his whole diet was basically processed grain products.
A more recent experience was with a young child who, though undiagnosed, displays autistic symptoms. She will consume bread to the exclusion of all other food items when presented a balanced lunch.
An online article related a story of a teacher who was so impressed by an autistic child's verbalization of "O" when she spotted the cereal on a cabinet, he used the cereal as reinforcement to encourage more exclamations and interaction.
In my experience, there seems to be a connection between what appears like almost addictive cravings and the symptoms of autism. Now, I am wondering if the problems for some children begin when parents start feeding them Cheerios. This is often the first exposure to grain in this country and many others - a convenient travel food, teething aid, and way to keep the child content while preparing a meal. (I am not saying they are harmful to the general population, but that they may be a trigger in some.)
The bottom line for me in the debate over benefits and risks of diet adjustments in autism cases - a carefully monitored, responsible elimination diet should be the first attempted therapeutic approach.
I think, if mother is taking care of her diet in period of pregnancy, then child would not suffer from these type of disorders. Now a days this is really a big concern, that would be mom don't eat fruits and vegetables. and go for easy to cook fast food and desserts Which are really harmful to body, Due to which it results to weight and obesity problems at very early age. One need to take help of Phentermine tablet to control obesity. and then child may have to suffer due to side effects of such pills or wrong eating habits. So take care !!!
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