No proof that eliminating gluten, casein from diets of autistic children is effe

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UT study: No proof that eliminating gluten, casein from diets of autistic

children is effective

By Ann Roser AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Published: 10:56 p.m. Monday, May 3, 2010

A new study by researchers at the University of Texas says there is no evidence

to support the hard-to-follow gluten-free and/or casein-free diets that some

alternative-medicine practitioners routinely recommend for children with autism.

Scientists at the Autism Spectrum Disorders Institute , part of UT's Meadows

Center for Preventing Educational Risk, reached that conclusion after analyzing

15 major studies published on those diets, according to the study published in

the summer edition of the peer-reviewed journal Research in Autism Spectrum

Disorders.

Gluten is found in wheat, barley and other grains, while casein is found in milk

and other dairy products. Putting children on a gluten-free, casein-free diet

was developed on the theory that people with autism " have insufficient enzymatic

activity in the gastrointestinal tract and increased gastrointestinal

permeability. It's suggested that they tend to absorb toxic byproducts of the

incompletely digested proteins casein and gluten, " Austin Mulloy, the study's

lead researcher and a doctoral student in UT's Department of Special Education,

wrote in a statement.

But the study says there is no scientific evidence that the diets help, and in

fact, they can lead to reduced bone thickness and cause other harm.

" As I reviewed the research, I developed the theory; the diet doesn't have

anything to do with autism, " Mulloy said in an interview.

However, an increasing number of parents of children with autism have tried the

diet in recent years, and some, including parents of children who are patients

at the Thoughtful House Center for Children in Austin, say their child's

behavior has improved as a result.

Children with autism commonly complain of gastrointestinal problems or act out

because of the pain. A January study in the journal Pediatrics said it was

undetermined whether autistic children had more gastrointestinal problems than

other children because of a lack of " well-controlled studies. "

Barnhill, director of the nutrition clinic at Thoughtful House, said that

the diets have helped many children with autism. She said that it's difficult to

do good research on dietary changes and that she hopes more research trials will

be done.

She said Thoughtful House's " clinical experience of over 2,000 patients has been

that a high percentage of children with autism have significant improvement in

behaviors, GI function, and overall health as a direct result of this

nutritionally sound, safe, and affordable intervention when done with

appropriate professional supervision. "

The UT study concludes that such diets should only be used on children with

autism who have " acute behavioral

changes, seemingly associated with changes in diet, and/or (when) medical

professionals confirm through testing the child has allergies or food

intolerances to gluten and/or casein. "

" The diet doesn't have anything to do with autism, " researcher says.