How Diet Can Improve the Quality of Life for Those with Autism

In the past few decades, many have taken a great interest in managing health conditions with diet rather than taking conventional drugs. Several individuals have reported that diet has improved their health conditions much better than conventional mainstream medicine in that they heal naturally and do not have to deal with sometimes deadly and damaging side effects. Not to mention, these individuals save a great deal of money. People who suffer from Autism, as well as parents of Autistic children even report that diet improves Autism in more ways than one. But are these claims true? Have Autistic children and adults really had the success that some speak of? In order to know, let's look at a personal account, as well as at an article regarding the subject of diet and Autism to find out if Autism can really be improved in this fashion.

According to Autism Web, when dairy, gluten, and casein are removed from the Autistic individual's diet, doctors and researchers have noticed improvement in numerous areas. One area that they have noticed improvements in is that those with Autism seem to do better with speech, as well as with their ability to better cope with stresses that life presents. Another area that improvements are noticed as that their digestive tract seems to function better. When on the diet, the Autistic individual has less diarrhea and other problems with their stools. In addition, these individuals also seem more alert, and interaction with others is a little easier compared to if they were not following the diet. Autistic children who follow the diet seem to be more on track with their development versus those who are not on the diet (Autism Web).

Parents are even ecstatic about the mark improvements in their Autistic children when they are placed on the diet. One parent noticed, regarding her son who lives with Autism, that after he had been on the diet for some time, he improved remarkably. After one month, the child began to behave much differently than before. After a period of three months, the child no longer needed special services, and he was able to perform well in a mainstream classroom environment. He began to enjoy all of the things a normal child would enjoy. No longer was he in his own little world of fog. He was then able to reach out to others around them and show them empathy. As a matter of fact, he even told his mother he loved her (Matthews). This is the dream of every parent who has a child with Autism, to have their child bond and interact with them and others, as well as to have them function in a normal environment with normal children.

While there is no cure for Autism, the diet does work wonders. With the diet, Autistic children are a step closer to a better tomorrow, and parents will have plenty to rejoice over when they celebrate their Autistic children's milestones. From here, life just gets better, since parent and child can communicate and bond with one another as they should.

Work Cited

Matthews, Julie. "Celiac Disease Presenting as Autism." Nourishing Hope. 03 July 2009. Web. 23 Sep 2009. http://www.nourishinghope.com/.

"Wheat-Free Milk-Free Diet for Autism and PDD." Autismweb.com. 2000-2009. Web. 23 Sep 2009. http://www.autismweb.com/diet.htm.