Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Did you see the news that our study was published!
This is the first time I’ve been part of a study where my name is listed as an author. I’m officially a nutrition researcher!
We studied a comprehensive diet and nutrition intervention for autism – which consisted of 6 nutrient and diet interventions. My role was to help participants understand and follow a healthy gluten-free, casein-free, soy-free diet. I worked alongside my colleague, Dana Laake. Together we created and delivered an educational presentation and conducted one-on-one nutrition consultations.
I’d like to tell you more about what we learned and how it can help children with autism right now, and over the coming weeks.
Today, I want to share some details about the effective diet and nutrition intervention used in the study. And a few VERY powerful cases from the study.
The study measured the effects of six interventions over the course of a year. Here’s when each were introduced:
Day 0: Vitamin/Mineral supplementation
Day 30: Essential Fatty Acid supplementation
Day 60: Epsom salt baths
Day 90: Carnitine supplementation
Day 180: Digestive Enzyme supplementation
Day 210: Healthy, gluten-free, casein-free diet
Day 365 – Final assessment These interventions were chosen because each of them had already been studied individually, and found to be effective. And “the goal of this study is to investigate a comprehensive nutritional and dietary intervention to treat children and adults with ASD”… and “to investigate the effect of the combination of those treatments in a long-term study.” Researchers expected their effects to be synergistic. And it appears they were, given the outstanding results of the study! Some of which I shared yesterday around increases in developmental age, IQ, autism and digestive symptoms. Here are three very interesting cases from the study that deserved additional mention because the results were incredible!
We studied a comprehensive diet and nutrition intervention for autism – which consisted of 6 nutrient and diet interventions. My role was to help participants understand and follow a healthy gluten-free, casein-free, soy-free diet. I worked alongside my colleague, Dana Laake. Together we created and delivered an educational presentation and conducted one-on-one nutrition consultations.
I’d like to tell you more about what we learned and how it can help children with autism right now, and over the coming weeks.
Today, I want to share some details about the effective diet and nutrition intervention used in the study. And a few VERY powerful cases from the study.
The study measured the effects of six interventions over the course of a year. Here’s when each were introduced:
Day 0: Vitamin/Mineral supplementation Day 30: Essential Fatty Acid supplementation
Day 60: Epsom salt baths
Day 90: Carnitine supplementation
Day 180: Digestive Enzyme supplementation
Day 210: Healthy, gluten-free, casein-free diet
Day 365 – Final assessment These interventions were chosen because each of them had already been studied individually, and found to be effective. And “the goal of this study is to investigate a comprehensive nutritional and dietary intervention to treat children and adults with ASD”… and “to investigate the effect of the combination of those treatments in a long-term study.” Researchers expected their effects to be synergistic. And it appears they were, given the outstanding results of the study! Some of which I shared yesterday around increases in developmental age, IQ, autism and digestive symptoms. Here are three very interesting cases from the study that deserved additional mention because the results were incredible!
- 7-year-old boy with pica was cured entirely within one week of starting the HGCSF (healthy gluten-free casein-free soy-free) diet.
- 27-year-old male with severe ASD and a history of severe urinary retention requiring daily catheterization was able to urinate on his own about 4 days after eliminating dairy products. By the end of the study, the young man no longer needed catheterization and had zero episodes of kidney stones, urinary tract or bladder infections.
- One 9-year-old girl with severe ASD had poor strength, endurance, and energy levels at the beginning of the study. Four months after the treatment, she no longer needed her wheelchair. We found out that her pre-treatment diet was deficient in carnitine due to total avoidance of beef products.
- Multivitamin/mineral formula
- Essential fatty acid supplement
- Healthy GFCFSF diet
This study validates using a comprehensive diet and nutrition strategy to support improvements in health, learning, and behavior in those with autism, I call this approach “nourishing hope.”
The most frustrating thing I hear from parents at conferences is “no one told me.” They were never informed that diet and nutrition matter, that their daily choices could make such a difference. In fact, they may have been erroneously told that “diet doesn’t help” or “there’s no science to it.”
Truth is, there IS science behind it. Hundreds of studies support an overall scientific rationale for using food and nutrition to be help improve symptoms. This has been my message to families for years…
Truth is, there IS science behind it. Hundreds of studies support an overall scientific rationale for using food and nutrition to be help improve symptoms. This has been my message to families for years…
Autism can be improved, and food matters.
Thanks for being on this journey with me.
Sincerely, Julie
0 Comments