Recent Study Suggesting Nutritional Intervention Can Improve Autism Symptoms

13th November 2019

Written by Justin Goddard

A recent 12 month randomised controlled study  on the effects of nutrition and nutritional supplementation on 67 children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), saw significant improvement in non-verbal intellectual ability, autism symptoms and developmental age.

The treatment group for this particular study initially started with a range of supplements (many from the usual suite of recommended functional medicine ASD supplements including essential fatty acids, B6, B12, CoQ10, digestive enzymes, L-carnitine and salt baths) and graduated over time to a healthy gluten free, casein free, soy free (GFCFSF) diet. The major principles of the dietary plan included adequate vegetables, fruit and protein, appropriate calorie consumption, replacement of junk food with healthy snacks and all foods GFCFSF.

One of the metrics used for analysis was ATEC scores (Autism Treatments Evaluation Checklist), where the lower the score, the better. You will see there were significantly greater improvements over the 12 months on the total ATEC score for the treatment group (T) vs the non-treatment group (N).

This study aligns perfectly with our Brain Train philosophy that nourishing the brain and the body is vital, in order to help our kids that are struggling with autism. Physical interventions play a very important part in development, but in many ways the success of those interventions can be amplified if a child’s brain and body are properly nourished and bio-chemistry stabilised. There are many, many studies that show the adverse impacts of gluten and casein in children with ASD, but now we have a study that shows deliberately gluten and casein and fortification with vegetables, fruit, protein and other nutritional and vitamin supplements can improve symptoms of ASD.

Read the clinical article here: nutrients-10-00369