Autism and Specific Carbohydrate Diet - Essay Example

'Autism and Specific Carbohydrate Diet' is a great example of a paper on the disorder.
The Autism Research Institute (ARI) advocates gluten-free and casein-free nutritional modification in treating autism. There has been a call on the need to embark on nutritional adjustment in order to treat gut symptoms often accompanying Autism Spectrum Disorders. Despite the conventional approach using the approach, several studies have not supported the effectiveness of the casein and gluten eradication in relieving. In 2008, a systematic review by Cochrane Library revealed that there has not been any scientific proof to support the efficiency of this nutritional therapy (Mantos 29).

In addition, a systematic review showed that the current corpus of research o gut symptoms and autism does not support the gluten-free and casein-free diet adjustment. It noted that this diet reduces bone cortical thickness and thus predisposes to fractures. However, despite the lack of scientific proof, it was recommended that the diet is effective when a child displays acute behavioral change (Mantos 30).

Healing of gut requires the elimination of yeast and some microbial flora identified as the main cause of gut injury. This is according to Autism Network for Dietary Intervention (ANDI).  According to this network, gluten and casein have no role in the autistic gut injury or healing. ANDI identified that the gut complications arise from yeast and simple sugars; this concept is anchored on Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) (Gottschall 7). Its premise that limiting the simple sugars for at least one year would result in starvation of toxic microorganisms that is often offensive to the gut lining. When starved, the gastrointestinal tract integrity would restore thus improving the immune function. A study has shown that for GI disorders like Crowns disease and ulcerative colitis in autistic children, adherence to SCD has show healing and relieving GI symptoms incredibly.

Unlike the GFCF diet, SCD has shown that the microorganism action on the gut lining exacerbates when a child is fed on refined carbohydrates. The GFCF diet is present across food products. Casein is found mainly in dairy products and gluten is substantial in wheat, rye, barley and many grains making it difficult to single out the cause of gut disorders in autistic children. In the case of refined sugars, the theory has a substantial body of evidence. For instance, according to ANDI a grain-free or starch-free diet would suffice the GFCF due to two main reasons (Mantos 30).

Firstly, it is premised on the theory that yeast and bacteria in the gut lining damage the mucosal membrane and thus their continued existence along the gut impair healing. Based on this suggestion, it is possible that the presence of peptides such as gluten in the bloodstream of autistic children is due to the porous mucosal lining. Elimination of grain diet would eliminate the gluten level in blood. Unlike what many people think, gluten has not shown any significant prove as the offensive agent to the mucosal lining (Gottschall 9).

Secondly, it is possible that bacteria and yeast in the gut lining are responsible for disruptive behavior. This is because many autistic children have multiple food intolerances that go unidentified. It is, therefore, unfounded that GFCF is the key intervention in dietary management. On the contrary, the effects of the grain-free diet have been reported by some parents to have resulted in behavior patterns and eradication of constipation and other gut complications associated with autism (Gottschall 10).                                                        

Despite the wide use of GFCF dietary modification, there is no scientific basis on efficiency. The therapy has been premised on high levels of gluten and casein in the bloodstream, which is a factor not related to the relieving of the gut lining. Based on ANDI specific carbohydrate diet that links mucosal damage to microbial flora growth due to supply of simple sugars and yeast in the diet.