By Dr. Kurt Woeller
Are biomedical therapies for children with an autism spectrum disorder safe? Is there any risk to doing therapies such as diet (gluten and casein-free), supplements (multivitamin/minerals, calcium and magnesium, fish oil, etc.) or even Methyl-B12 therapy?
Implementing biomedical autism interventions such as the gluten and casein-free diet or nutritional supplements can be an effective process for many children with an autism spectrum disorder. The question is are they safe, or are there any inherent dangers with biomedical therapy?
The simplest statement to give is, "diet and supplement support is safe and effective." Like anything in medicine there is no guarantee of absolute safety or side effect-free therapy. Each child is different in their genetic and biochemical make-up and their reaction to therapy will vary. For example, when incorporating a new supplement such as Methyl-B12 (which helps many kids with language, social, attention and focusing issues) hyperactivity can be stimulated for some in the beginning. This reaction is not life-threatening or toxic, but some kids can respond this way - usually it is short-lived.
The same can be seen with dietary changes such as gluten and casein removal. Some children have such strong chemical reactions to these food items that when they are removed from their diet significant aberrant behavior can occur such as irritability, aggression and/or restlessness, sleeping problems, etc. Again, these behaviors usually subside on in a few days. These are not life-threatening or toxic reactions, but do indicate that gluten and casein are causing some abnormal chemical alterations - which they are known to do. On the flip side, many times positive gains are also seen such as improved eye contact, language skill, cognitive awareness, and others when these therapies are implemented.
Contrast this with common drug therapy such as Risperdal. Risperdal is a drug often prescribed for autism to help with aggressive behavior. It can be helpful in some, but the side effect profile is lengthy and in some can cause permanent neurological damage.
In my experience, biomedical intervention through the use of diet and nutritional support has never created toxic reactions or side effects that are seen with many pharmaceutical drugs. In fact, in many cases biomedical treatment has lessened the need for drug therapy all together in many children.
Don't let ANYONE tell you there is nothing you can do to help your child. Autism really is treatable! Start your child down the road to recovery from autism. Biomedical Autism treatments and therapies have resulted in many, many children improving - even losing their autism-spectrum disorder diagnosis. For more information and a free ebook on biomedical autism treatment go to http://www.AutismActionPlan.Org.
Dr. Kurt Woeller is an autism biomedical specialist, with a private practice in Southern California for over 10 years. He has helped children recover from autism, ADD, ADHD, and other disorders, and has the information you need to help your child. Get his ebook, "7 Facts You Need To Know About Autism (But Probably Weren't Told)." You can download it right now for free at http://www.AutismActionPlan.Org.
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