Gluten Free Cassien Free Diet for Autism

Funny you posted this particular question...you also e-mailed me about potty training...my results with potty training came AFTER the GF/CF diet (about 4 months after) when your son is able to process information more clearly HE WILL POTTY TRAIN MUCH EASIER!!!!!!!!!!!! I also sent this information out to all of my friends, family memebers and son's teachers so that they could better understand how to help my son and other children on the spectrum...so, please read the following e-mail:
I will give you my phone# and offer my help to get going on the diet, just ask...you can do it!!!!!!!!

Everyone,

I am sending you a web address in hopes that you will visit. Whether you have or know of a child on the Autism Spectrum, this site speaks of not only the educational therapies for Autism but also the physiological matters to be considered as an equal part in helping those affected by Autism. Odds are now (1/150-for females and males combined, or 1/94-considering only males) that if you do not already have someone in your life that is affected by Autism, you soon will...Please, take the time to educate yourself on the physiological/biomedical part of this disability by visiting:

http://www.talkaboutcuringautism.org

Personally I, like Jenny McCarthy, believe my best evidence for nutritional supports has been my experience with my son, Wyatt. Wyatt was allergy tested after our Neurologist referred us to a dietician that was well acquainted with the Gluten-Free/Casein-Free (GF/CF) diet. Wyatt had very strong allergies to ALL DAIRY and reacted mildly to wheat products. Wyatt has been on the Gluten-Free/Casein-Free (GF/CF) diet since he was only considered to have a Sensory Integration Dysfunction challenge (a few months before he turned three) and at the age of three was diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. Wyatt, before the diet, only ate from a very limited variety of foods and had what myself and my mother-in-law considered to be unusual bowel movements (they looked exactly like runny cow patties). After starting the diet, we noticed that we were able to be more relevant in Wyatt's world. His stools formed and looked more normal. He was less aggressive and increased his vocabulary.

After six months of the being on the diet, my husband and I were tempted to challenge the idea that the GF/CF diet even worked. We decided to treat ourselves to pizza on a Friday night. Wyatt did not have any other marked changes in his life, at that time, other than the pizza. He woke every two hours that night-stemming...his behavior became more aggressive for several days thereafter (by the way, it takes 7-10 days for Gluten or Casein to clear their system). That was enough to convince us that dairy and wheat are serious obstacles to consider in Wyatt's progress with battling Autism. Now (Wyatt is 6 years-old) and we still see consistent objections to his progress when he consumes wheat or dairy (he wakes several times that night, stems intensely and becomes withdrawn and/or aggressive).

For those of you that have children on the spectrum. If your child has any of the following:

trouble sleeping at night
extremely selective to foods that contain dairy and/or wheat (ie. pastas, cheeses and battered foods) in a self-limited diet
unusual bowel movements (loose/constipated or unusual color from your own)
PLEASE, SERIOUSLY CONSIDER the GF/CF diet. There are more and more store brands establishing a Gluten and/or dairy free label that make it cost effective and easier to decipher. What I find even more convincing/interesting is that the Wal-mart, Great Value, brand is even beginning to designate Gluten Free labels...just makes you wonder, what relevance does the gluten have if it is not having an increased impact on our physiology? There is a processed history in the gluten part of all of our diets...google it an I'm sure you'll find out more. Thanks for taking the time to read/learn about something I am very passionate about...I only wish to help make a difference, for someone, like so many have made a difference for Wyatt.

Sincerely,
A. C. B.

a group of mama's who would know a lot about this are located at the yahoo group greentaramama. it is a great resource for those who wish to live naturally or have special dietary needs. I hope this helps you. Its helped a LOT of the mom's I have refered there....

L.

I did this diet for mi daughter and we saw great improvement, mostly after removing casein. You can do one thing at a time or go cold turkey. We did first casein, you can use rice, almond or coconut. I started mixing regular milk with rice milk, then switched completely to rice milk (avoid rice dream has a little bit of gluten) Almond if no problem with allergy is better, you can find it in HEB. For butter you can use Smart Balance. Also I would recommend check ingredients in other products and avoid butter, whey and all milk derivated. I would recommend to stay away of soy, since soy protein is very similar to gluten or casein. To cook you can use coconut milk and coconut oil instead butter, they are really good. Now for gluten there are lots of products you can use instead. Some HEB, Sun Harvest an Whole Foods, carry Ian products (gluten free nuggets and fish sticks) Van gf/cf Waffles. Tinkyiada rice pasta, and Thai rice noddles, those are really good. In Sun Harvest and Whole foods you can find gf pretzels, gf/cf cereals and gf/cf cookies Pamela brand is a good one. Also the flour is good I like the hot cakes and the cookies mix. For me corn tortillas were a big help, also rice and beans. In HEB you can also find rice bread in the freezer section. For my daughter took her a while to get used to the new diet but it was worthy. Once you eliminate all casein you will see results in a week or so, for the gluten takes a little bit longer to eliminate it completely from the body. I would highly recommend go organic, and try lots of veggies and fuits, mydaughter use to be very picky now she eats ok, and I can say she's been recovered from the diagnosis, you can email me for any question
____@____.com

""A DAN doctor is (http://www.autism.com/) a doctor who has attended some conferences and they specialize in autism, ADD and ADHD we used to live in Dallas en saw Dr. Rao, I know here in San Antonio there is a Dr. Kempf but I'm not sure if she is taking new patients, but you can call her ph: ###-###-####, and Abby Kurth, M.P.H., M.S. ph: ###-###-####
When I removed milk products form my daughter diet we saw a big improvement most of it in language, then we removed gluten and she was sleeping better also her sensory issues decreased a lot. I would recommend first eliminate milk (we use rice milk and almond), then cheese and yogurt an then all the products with casein, like candy, breads with milk, butter, etc. You can try this for 2 weeks, then give him some ice cream and if you see a change in behavior, thats definitely sensitive to casein. Then do the same with gluten (wheat, oats and rye flour). It seems hard, but you would find lots of replacement at whole foods and sun harvest, good rice pastas, cereals, even good cookies and waffles, and nuggets. You can ask for a list of gluten a casein products. We did this for a year, then she was allow to have pizza from time to time or ice cream (for birthdays) with enzymes (Houston enzymes), and she was fine, some kids are ok with enzymes, but is recommended to try the diet first. For supplement we tried Omegas (nordic naturals 369 and Cod Liver Oil) and probiotics (Culturelle), those were very important to heal her gut., Also try to remove colors, trans fat, try to give lots of fruits and veggies, it sounds hard, but you get used to it. "

This is a section of an email shared by a mom who is doing such a diet. I have not tried it and only now finding out about. Please stay in touch and if you do decide to do this let me know if you think it helps please

If I tried to remove bread or milk from my familys diet I would have mutiny on my hands! So I have switched my family over to Ezekiel bread and Genesis bread. You will find them both in the freezer section at HEB. Neither of these breads have flour in them and my family actually likes them better than other breads. And as for milk, I have switched to raw milk. Its much easier on the body to digest and it tastes really good! We get it from Stryk farms at http://www.texascheese.com/milk.htm and again, my family loves it and I know that I am giving them something good for them. When you homogenized milk you change the structure of it. HEB carries a wide variety of foods.

Whole foods has a "gluten free" brochure that explains more about gluten free foods. You can find gluten free at Whole foods, Sun harvest...and lilmited stuff at Target and HEB...after a while you get better at recognizing the foods.

hi M.!

i just looked up the gluten free diet on line yesterday and there are a ton of websites! i bet stores like, whole foods, and sun harvest would have what you're looking for. jenny mccarthy just wrote a boook about her son who is autistic...you may want to check that out too. good luck! and congrats on your pregnancy!

OH*MY*GOSH!!! I am experiencing the same thing with my 6-year-old Asperger's son. If I started a GFCF diet, I would have to take away all the food that he (barely) tolerates.
I read that Jenny McCarthy started her son on this diet with much success.
The success and failure rate has been 50/50 as far as I can tell.
I find the food to be very expensive & ordering online (the only place I've seen most of this) would also add the cost of shipping.
I wish I was writing to give you some advise but I'll just tell you that you're not the only one out there. I support your efforts--it looks like you're a great mom who is doing the best for her child. I have to keep telling myself that. :)

Prayers, prayers, prayers!
C.