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shelley1974

Diet and ASd

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Does anyone know if a change in diet or avoidance of certain foods will help? Son of 8 yrs diagnosed 3 weeks ago and dont really want medication if another alternative

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shelley,

 

In our case changing a lot of things helped.

 

better school, removing anything with sodium benzoate (allergy testing showed up she shouldn't have this) in her diet and also in things like soap shampoo etc.

her health improved a great deal and her general manner is calmer i see more of the girl i know she is when these things are not bothering her.

 

good luck with your search for what helps your son.

 

N x

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Does anyone know if a change in diet or avoidance of certain foods will help? Son of 8 yrs diagnosed 3 weeks ago and dont really want medication if another alternative

 

Hi, shelley.

There are lots of varying opinions about diet and ASDs. As far as I know, no link has been proven between ASDs and diet, it's all anecdotal evidence so you have to be careful.

 

I had DS tested by the University of Sunderland's Autism Research Unit, and the results came back that he is Gluten intolerant. They also test for dairy intolerance. He started a gluten-free diet about 6 weeks ago, so it's far too early to say if it's having an effect.

I found a great book, called 'Dietary Intervention and Autism', by Marilyn le Breton, which deals with the ideas behind a gluten and casein (dairy) - free diet, and also the practicalities of starting it.

 

However, there are lots different diets and treatments which are supposed to help with ASDs, so it's worth doing lots of research on the subject (I've spent many hours looking at my computer screen :blink: )

 

There are also many people on this forum who have a lot more experience and knowledge than me, so no doubt you'll get plenty of good advice.

 

Hope that helps >:D<<'>

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HI NicM

 

Can I ask you where you would go to have allergy testing carried out, not sure if GP would be able to do it, or would you have to send off for the Sunderland testing kit.

 

Thanks

 

Jules

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jules, we went to the local hospital, the dentist actually sent us because of the amount of mouth ulcers my daughter had.

the g.p could also have referred.

It was patch testing that was done, blood tests would only have been done if there was uncertainty with the results (there was one with cocoa, but we decided against it as it wasn't as severe)

Glad we didn't cos the changes we made are enough.

 

hope that helps

 

Nic

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Thanks Nicm

 

that was helpful, shall try and speak to my daughter's epilepsy consultant next time we see him in October.

 

Jules

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glad it helps, Julie

 

it's always a minefield finding out this stuff.

 

N

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Resurrecting an old thread, but just wanted to add our experiences with casein. A professional who'd been assessing ds (nothing to do with diet) asked if I'd ever tried him on a lactose-free diet. I said I hadn't because I'd been told that findings regarding diet and ASD were inconclusive. He said lactose might be worth looking into. I did. Ds didn't have symptoms of lactose intolerance, but did have symptoms of casein intolerance.

 

This posed a problem, because his main source of protein is dairy products. I didn't want to switch to soya because some people are sensitive to tryptophan. I'd heard good reports about goat's milk (slightly lower casein), so we tried a straight substitution. I'm a sceptic when it comes to magic bullets, so I was stunned to see that within a couple of weeks ds had colour in his cheeks, no dark rings under his eyes, and his energy levels had shot up. I couldn't understand it, because the amount of casein in goat's milk isn't that much less than in cows' milk - I wouldn't have expected such a marked change.

 

It was only when I was trying to find out how casein is converted into casomorphin, the chemical that's supposed to make susceptible people sluggish, that I discovered that there are many different types of casein, that the type of casein in the milk depends on the animals' diet, and that many people are sensitive to certain types of casomorphin molecule.

 

So children may not be sensitive to dairy, as such, or even casein, as such, but to certain types of casein in some milk but not others. This started to make sense in terms of immune reactions to dairy products (asthma and sniffles) which could be triggered by molecules of particular shapes.

 

We haven't even started on the gluten yet :(

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I also had my son tested by Sunderland University and after removing gluten from his diet I noticed he seems happier and talks more. His tummy is not as big either.

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Hi

I notice that a number of you have mentioned your child has been tested for Sodium Benzoate and other additive intolerances. I suspect this could be a factor in my childs behaviour but have spoken to the doctor and she says the hospital cannot test for this as it is not an allergy (?) Can you tell me how you went about the process of having these tests carried out and which hospital did the tests please as I feel I am banging my head against a brick wall.

 

Also has anyone noticed Calpol causing hyper activity and behaviour problems. If so have you come up with an alternative or a paracetomol that is safe to give?

 

Sandra

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Hi all,

 

I have an Asperger's Syndrome(pls. refer my profile) but I have never ever think about diet because of AS. It is true that I tend to eat same food every day for a week or so. But I don't want to change that. It is meaningless. If I stop the routine things, those make me stressful.

 

 

Goody,

 

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Hi all,

 

I have an Asperger's Syndrome(pls. refer my profile) but I have never ever think about diet because of AS. It is true that I tend to eat same food every day for a week or so. But I don't want to change that. It is meaningless. If I stop the routine things, those make me stressful.

 

Goody,

 

Why is it meaningless to stop something that could help your long term health?

 

i had to literally give up gluten and milk to save my sanity. The sodium benzoate in my risperidone was turning me psychotic (something that wont happen without the risperdal). i went on the gluten, dairy, msg, aspartame, benzoate free diet 4 years ago and this has opened up a lot of opportunities for me.

 

Within 4 days of giving up dairy the cravings for it will have gone. Unfortunately it takes 8 months for the gluten to leave the system.

 

Alexis

 

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HI NicM

 

Can I ask you where you would go to have allergy testing carried out, not sure if GP would be able to do it, or would you have to send off for the Sunderland testing kit.

 

Thanks

 

Jules

 

Allergy testing wouldnt show up gluten or casein addiction.

 

Alexis

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