The surprising body part that could be causing Autism

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I read through the whole thread, seems to me the 'real' born autistic brain vs chemical/diet altered normal brains is just a theory too so not a strong basis to argue against this diet theory (not saying that means the diet theory it is right, but to say it isn't true based on another unproved theory doesn't make sense to me).

i'm willing to give this diet approach a shot, as the links between diet, general and mental wellbeing, seem quiet well established outside of the realm of autism so it couldn't hurt.

I don't have any GI problems, but do have low energy all the time which I've often wondered if is diet related. What would people recommend in terms of foods to increase, food to avoid, supplements etc?

i know that cutting as much prepared, processed food out of my diet as possible has made a big difference in my energy levels, as well as getting more regular exercise. the amount of filler and processed sugars in prepared food messes with your insulin production over time, which has a huge impact on your energy levels day to day, and it's cumulative (with the end complication pathologically speaking being diabetes, if you eat enough of the stuff). just simple things like getting more fresh produce into my diet--snacking on fruits and vegetables, eating more salad--as well as lots of nuts, seeds, and legumes (beans, chick peas, lentils, etc). and i stick to whole grains now, and avoid wheat when possible. i also cut red meat out of my diet several years ago and have no regrets in that regard; i do, however, still eat eggs, fish, and occasionally poultry, as well as some dairy (i love yogurt and cottage cheese).

i think those few things have all contributed to an increase in my energy levels and my general sense of well-being day-to-day. now that i'm several years into this fresh food diet and more active lifestyle i could never go back to eating processed food and being so inactive. making better diet choices and being more active become self-sustaining habits if you stick with them long enough--the results make staying with the behaviour more and more worthwhile over time.

See the link in my signature for the diet/herbal protocol I followed.

I don't know how seriously to take this article.

Firstly, I am curious about the test groups for the different bacteria and how different these different strains are. Bacteria evolve quicker than other living things, so it would not surprising to hear that different people have slightly different bacteria on the genetic level. Considering this, the question I have is whether the bacteria found in Autistic people are more different than those of bacteria found from individual to individual.

Second, if the bacteria in the gut are that different in the tested groups, I would like to know information about the people who were compared. Are they from the same place? How genetically different are the groups of people, ect.

Also, it mentions that 90% of kids with Autism have 'tummy troubles' but it does not mention the comparison to how many children without it have stomach issues.

Finally, even if there is a link, it does not mean that one caused the other. It could be that they are both symptoms caused by some other problem. Then again, perhaps the level of stress that a kid with Autism experiences every day causes the tummy aches, too. I am not saying that it is completely impossible that the intestinal issues don't play a role but I feel that the other possibilities should have been expressed , too.

Also, let us not forget how scientists have been suggesting other possible causal links for years before this was suggested, such as giving children shots.

From another article I posted either in a separate thread or in the link in my sig it said that Autistics tend to have fewer strains of good bacteria in their guts, and that three specific strains were commonly missing. I can't recall the names of them, but if you check the link in my sig or search for threads I've started about probiotics I'm sure you'll find it.

Somehow I doubt the general population's rate of "tummy troubles," is anywhere near 90%.

Correlation does not equal causation, true.. however, it's been my experience - and that of hundreds of others if you lookup other articles I've posted or do a google search - that digestive issues are the cause of neurological issues and that dealing with the physical digestive issues heals the mental/neurological ones.

Yep, there are all kinds of theories.. including vaccines. If any medical theory is worth subscribing to I'd say that overuse of antibiotics is a cause considering it kills off probiotic bacteria and allows for digestive imbalances to happen in the first place.

hmm...
ive been diagnosed with both crohns, and ulcer colitis(and been hospitalize on many accounts (some icu/cdu admits) due to malnutritions and "adult failure to thrive". which was caused by the lack of absorbtion (and the lack of knowing when the last time it was that i ate).

maybe its the autism that causes the g.i. track problems.. because i had been diagnosed with autism many years before any gut issues started arrising).
or another theory could be, maybe autism is an auto immune disorder in one or many different areas in the body.. or maybe an auto immune disorder of the brain. crohns is an auto immune disorder, and so is rheumatoid arthritis(and they are sometimes linked with me. sometimes when my crohns gets really bad, the juvenile rheumatoid arthritis will just show up out of no where. but its not consistant. crohns can be 20% bad when the RA flares up, but then it also wont flare up until 30% or wont flare up at all. but the RA never flares up on its own. (crohns flare up is the only time the RA is likely to show up.)

and like health with crohns, being deathly ill one year, and then with little to no symptoms or problems the next year, then the health varies in how things are going in the body, it can get better or worse at any given moment(i think the same can apply for autism).

EDIT: so maybe if we use the word "flare up" in the way they use that word for crohns or other autoimmune disorders, it could make more sense that it can get worse or better, at any given time, just when the autism "flares up". and like in crohns' terminology, there are special diets, but none are really proven to help(the diet can help one person, and be detrimental to another person), and there are many different diets. but no cure. and what happens to one person in a flare up can be not experienced by another person with the same exact diagnosis of crohns. but a flare up in general (speaking in terms of crohns) is done by the same body responses for every individual with crohns, it just makes it appear and show in different ways (in terms of symptoms). and when its not flared up, things get better.. symptoms ease up... mentally a person can feel better too. so if this can happen in crohns, who decides that it cant happen on the autism spectrum (especially when the two are usually present in an individual. (aka g.i. tract issues is a common symptom/problem for those on the autism spectrum).

Although I agree that certain diets can worsen autistic tendencies, I don't believe any one food or group of foods can claim to be the actual cause. Autism is not a condition like gout or heart disease; it's a condition like blonde hair or long legs. The only reason it's more visible today is societal conditions have changed so as to make it so.