Does the Gluten-Free, Casein-Free Diet Actually Work for Kids on the Spectrum?
"What are your thoughts on the GFCF diet for children with AS?" It has been suggested that peptides from gluten and casein may have a role in the origins of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), including Asperger’s (AS) and High-Functioning Autism (HFA), and that the physiology and psychology of these disorders might be explained by excessive opioid activity linked to these peptides. Gluten and casein are getting a lot of attention in the ASD community and from physicians in the biomedical movement. Some moms and dads, physicians and researchers say that kids with AS and HFA have shown mild to dramatic improvements in speech and/or behavior after these substances were removed from their diet. Some also report that their kids have experienced fewer bouts of diarrhea and loose stools since starting a gluten-free, casein-free (GFCF) diet. Gluten and gluten-like proteins are found in wheat and other grains (e.g., oats, rye, barley, bulgar, durum, kamut, spelt) and foods made