GFCF & Autism: Featuring Erin McCahill, RD

Why try the Casein/Gluten free diet?

Autism is a complex disease because of its affect on the digestive, immune, endocrine and nervous systems.  This illness arises from a combination of genetic factors and environmental exposures.

One theory of the cause of autism is its association with the gut. Leaky gut syndrome has been shown in some studies to occur in children with ASD. This is a result of damage to the intestinal lining, which leads to a poor absorption of nutrients. A decrease in stomach acid production, poor stimulation of small intestine secretions and inflammation occurs. Malabsorption of nutrients can cause an imbalance in neurological function and behavior, liver toxification, immunity, and hormones produced from the endocrine glands.  The brain is exposed to morphine-like peptides that have been linked to delayed and altered maturation. Foods that contain gluten and/or casein have these morphine-like substances, which are left over in the body after digestion.

Please note that this is only a theory and has not been proven to be affective in many empirical studies. However, there are a small group of studies that have proven that this diet can control some of the autistic behaviors. A GCF diet will not harm your child as long as you follow a well-balanced diet.  If you choose to try this diet, please know that its not an overnight fix and that it takes the body several weeks to repair and adjust if your child does suffer from gastrointestinal damage.

What is Gluten?

Gluten is made up of two proteins called gliadin and glutenin. It is typically found in wheat, rye, and barley grains. It can also be found in oats if cross contamination occurs in the milling process.

What are typically names on food labels that contain gluten?

Starch, Modified Food Starch, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Hydrolyzed Plant Protein, Texturized Vegetable Protein, Binders, Fillers, Malt, or Malto-dextrose

Examples of foods that may contain gluten:

·      Cereals

·      Breads

·      Imitation meats that resemble chicken, duck, fish, pork, or beef

·      Ice cream

·      Ketchup

·      Most beers

What grains DO NOT contain gluten?

·      Wild rice

·      Corn

·      Buckwheat

·      Millet

·      Amaranth

·      Quinoa

·      Soybeans

·      Oats (if no cross contaminated)

What is Casein?

It is one of the two proteins that are found in dairy, the other is whey protein.  It can be used as a binding agent and therefore is found in various foods.

What are typical names on food labels that contain casein?

Sodium Caseinate, Calcium Caseinate, Milk Protein, or Milk Solids

**Do not assume that lactose free foods are casein free! Lactose is the sugar in dairy foods.

Examples of foods that may contain casein:

·      Milk

·      Cheese

·      Cottage Cheese

·      Ice-Cream

·      Butter

·      Cream

·      Yogurt

·      Energy Bars

·      Lactose free foods

·      Soy cheese

·      Processed foods

·      Lunch meat

·      Sausages

·      Hot dogs

·      Canned tuna

·      Chicken broth or bouillon

·      ‘Fresh’ Poultry – all natural foods can have up to 5% other additives

·      Wine

·      Protein Shakes

List of Food Brands that are available Gluten and Casein Free:

·      Quinoa

·      Tinkyada Pasta Joy (brown rice)

·      De Boles Pasta  (rice quinoa and amaranth or corn)

·      Annie’s Homegrown Pasta

·      Bob’s Red Mill  (rolled oats, steel cut oats, all purpose baking flour, hot cereal)

·      Enger Egg Replacer and Enger Breadcrumbs

·      Namaste Foods (brownie mix, waffle and pancake mix)

·      Gluten Breakfast Bars (apple, cranberry, blueberry)

·      Bakery on Main Granola (rainforest, triple-berry, cinnamon raison, cranberry orange cashew)

·      Perkys Crunchy Rice Cereal and Crunchy Flax Cereal

·      SunFlour Baking Company

·      San-J Rice Crackers

·      NOoodle (made up of soluble fiber from Japanese yam)

Milk Alternatives:

·      Soy milk

·      Coconut milk (SoDelicious)

·      Hemp milk

·      Almond Breeze and Hazelnut milk

What are TWO supplements that I would suggest?

Probiotics are good bacteria that help balance the bacterial flora in the gastrointestinal tract. It has been shown to control the growth of the bad bacteria and toxins that may be produced from a damaged gastrointestinal tract. Many food items that contain the beneficial bacteria come from foods that contain casein.

A company called New Chapter has a non-dairy supplement called Probiotic All-Flora. Their supplements contain compounds derived from WHOLE FOODS that undergo a fermentation process. This enhances nutritive bioavailability because your body recognizes it as whole food, rather then chemical isolates that other supplement companies use. It is certified organic which means that the whole food ingredients are grown without the use added chemical pesticides, herbicide, residues, or genetic engineering.

Omega 3 oils are essential fatty acids that are vital to incorporate into you child’s diet. The two omega-3 fatty acids that have shown to provide the most benefit are EPA and DHA. They are both found in fish and some shellfish, however the most is found in salmon. The brain is made up of 60-70% fat, mostly of DHA. Omega 3 oils have shown numerous benefits in mental health.  New Chapter provides a supplement called Wholemega Fish oil. Many fish oil supplements undergo a high heat purification process, which can destroy some of the beneficial compounds in fish. New Chapter uses only wild caught Alaskan salmon that is pressed immediately (no heat is used to extract) to preserve the purity.

Please visit their website to find out more information:

http://www.newchapter.com/

This article was brought you to by ERIN McCAHILL, RD. If you would like to be considered as a featured guest writer for Garden | Autism Services Colorado please email us at Info@GardenColorado.org!