gluten and dairy free diet for autistic children?

Question

I want to try this for my three year old who is autistic. Any info on this diet or autism would be appreciated.

Answer 1

My son has autism but I haven't implemented the diet because he has oral-aversion, however I have done some research on it and hope this will help you. You should talk to your pediatrician and/or a nutritionist before implementing any diet.

For a gluten free/casein (dairy) free diet (gfcf diet) it is suggested to remove the dairy first from the childs system. The casein takes less time to be completely removed from their systems, usually about 3 weeks. Now with gluten it is suggested to remove it from the diet over a period of time. Gluten can take up to 6 months to be removed from the system. One of the main reasons it is suggested to remove a little at a time is because the child will go through withdrawal. Their charateristics of autism actually worsen before they improve. It also suggested to give the diet a try for at least 6 months since it takes about the same amount of time for the gluten to leave their system. Special care must be taken when checking ingredients lists, gluten may come in forms such as vegetable proteins and starch, modified food starch (when derived from wheat instead of maize), malt flavoring, and glucose syrup. Many common ingredients contain wheat or barley derivatives. Many foods will contain gluten, but not be indicated on the ingredients, because they are not in the formulation of the product, but in the preparation of it. One example of this is the dusting of the conveyor belts in the production facilities to prevent the foods from sticking during processing. The food itself might not contain gluten, but there is gluten in the ingested product. You also want to look at products in your home besides food such as shampoo, lotions, sun screen, toothpaste, playdoh, etc. They can contain gluten and it can be absorbed into their system.

What may work with one child may not work for another. You can have completely different results in 2 childern who have the same characteristics of autism. It is definatly worth a try.

To read up on autism, I suggest the Autism Society of America , they have tons of useful info including some info about the gfcf diet, they also talk about other treatments from vitamins to different therapies, etc. I find the site to be very helpful.

Answer 2

I'm sorry but I have never seen any difference in childrenn who have been put on this diet. I have worked with childre with autism for 15 years and the only difference I have observed is that many become very pale. There is however one benefit I have observed and that is it occasionally produces verbal communication particularly in the dining room. Often I have heard a child scream at the top of their voice "I want sausage and beans" as they sit with some insipid gluten and dairy free offering in their lunch box. The parents however appear to notice huge differences. I do think that this is physiological and they really need to feel that all their efforts are making a difference. If you look hard enough you can find anything. There is also a great financial gain to be made by the people advocating and selling this diet.

Answer 3

I have never met a child who has benefited from this diet; on the contrary, it makes them miserable. Furthermore, I have not read any significant research stating that there have been any substantial gains. Now, if you child has an allergy...that is a different story, but I imagine your Doctors would've identified that by now. Remember, children with autism often have problems with food and have very restricted diets (not all of them though)...so do you really want to mess with diet?? It could create even bigger problems! Second, does your child enjoy food? If so, then do you want to risk taking away that pleasure. After all, while many children with autism are very bright they do have significant social and communication issues. If you start this diet, you may see a rise in self stimulatory behaviors or behavioral problems.
I have met a few children that have benefited from eating organic foods and taking vitamins such as iron and omega 3 (but this was advised after extensive blood work).
Personally, I was furious over the exposure that Jenny McCarthy's book received in recent months. While I appreciate that this diet help her son (and that is wonderful), she does not acknowledge that he is in a very small minority of children.
I don't mean to discourage you, just trying to give you a few things to think about before starting the diet. Good Luck.

Answer 4

As was said before, be sure you consult with a nutritionist before starting this diet.

There isn't a lot of research out there that truly looks at this diet in a large scale study. Also, most of the studies that have been done, use anecdotal reports as the basis for the research. Most of the success of this diet is parental reports, which could partly involve the placebo effect.

As a behavior analyst, I frequently work with children with autism. The teachers report that they do not see any difference in children on this diet.

However, it is worth a try. Sometimes it really clears up the gastrointestinal problems of some autistic kids.

Also, please continue with any communication therapy that you may be doing. This is one of the best, "cures" for autism. Check out "Verbal Behavior" on the 'Net to read about these therapies.

Answer 5

Be careful and do this only under a doctor's supervision. Many children with autism are already picky eaters and this diet in effect further limits foods they can have access to. Some new research is showing that some children on this diet are developing "eating disorders" and are suffering from a failure to thrive because of the combination of this diet and their already picky habits. This is not a proven intervention for children with autism in the literature although there is some anecdotal support. Anecdotal support is not the same as studies that are published in peer reviewed journals so be cautious and don't just jump on the band wagon. Do this with your doctor if you think you really want to do it.

Answer 6

hi joanna , i have heard that many people have a wonderful breakthrough with their autistic darlings with this diet .
there are online comunities only too eager to help you with this stuff.

http://dailystrength.org/support/Developmental_Learning_Disorders/Autism_Autism_Spectrum/


http://www.glutenfreeforum.com/index.php.

www.celiac.com/

i know very little about autism but id do know that getting diagnosed is the best thing that could have happened

there are great gluten free-blogs such as "gluten free girl
http://glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com/

blessings
kazz

Answer 7

ak a dr 1st whats really good for autistic kids though is surfing if you're near anywhere to take the waves soothes the kids