The popular belief that a specific diet can improve symptoms of children with autism has not been demonstrated. Eliminating gluten and casein from their diet does not produce any impact on behavior, sleep quality or bowel functions. The finding, which is the most comprehensive so far, will be presented at the International Meeting for Autism Research in Philadelphia (USA).
About one in every 110 U.S. children has ASD, which include classic autism and Asperger syndrome and other forms marked by difficulties in social interaction and communication.
The diet of autism has become based on the popular theory that some children have insufficient enzyme activity in the gastrointestinal tract, resulting in incomplete digestion of casein, a protein found in milk and other dairy products and gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and other grains. The use of so-called autism diet has become popular, with up to 27% of parents reporting their use and anecdotal reports praising. In the small group of children studied, “we have not seen a demonstrable improvement,” says study researcher Susan Hyman, MD, associate professor of pediatrics at Golisano Children’s Hospital at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, NY.
The study was done on children who participated in at least 10 hours a week of intensive early intervention designed to make the group’s behavior as similar as possible. Children were placed on a strict gluten-free, casein-free diet. The method does not seem to improve the neurodevelopmental disorders symptoms.
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