healthykids
recent fi ndings suggest that signifi cant links exist. “One hypothesis is that by eliminating dietary triggers in the presence of food allergies or gastrointestinal distress, you’re reducing infl ammation or irritability of the immune system, and that’s affecting the way the brain is functioning,” she says.
Addressing Autism Families Have Reasons for Hope
by Brita Belli P
arents of autistic children are encouraged when they witness improvements after eliminating
gluten (wheat) and casein (dairy) from their kids’ diets. Now a parental study supports the correlation—for some kids on the autism spectrum, the gluten- and casein-free (GFCF) diet appears to be connected with remarkable changes. Laura Cousino Klein, associate professor of biobehavioral health and human development at the Penn State College of Medicine, helped lead
research that surveyed 387 parents or caregivers with affected children. For those diagnosed with combinations of autism and gastrointestinal issues or food sensitivities, the GFCF diet brought marked improvements in their autism spectrum disorder (ASD) behaviors—reducing hyperactivity and tantrums; minimizing constipation and seizures; and improving social behaviors. Klein says scientists are still working to understand the interaction between the brain, gut and behaviors, but
Dietary Turnaround One Racine, Wisconsin mom, Cindy Schultz, a tireless advocate for her autistic son, says, “As an infant, he either had constipation or diarrhea. There was never a happy medium.” The GFCF diet has improved his health and his ability to communicate. Shauna Layton, in Clinton, Indiana,
says her son experienced similar bowel problems and she also saw a remarkable turnaround in his language abilities and social interactions as they adhered to a GFCF diet and eliminated sugar and yeast. Other parents from her online support group, Together in Autism, report similar success. “Some children have never talked, and now they are saying ‘Mom,’ ‘Dad,’ or ‘I love you,’ for the fi rst time,” Layton says. A defi nitive gut-brain link with autism has yet to be identifi ed. Some scientists suggest that kids with autism are more likely to have leaky gut syndrome (intestinal permeability), which allows peptides from gluten and casein to escape from the digestive tract, cross the intestinal membranes,
26 Central Florida natural awakenings
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