A friend is pushing GAPS

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Maybe not all, but possibly most. In order to say all we'd have to know with certainty that there is only one cause of autism - and we do not know that. We do know that ~90% of people on the autism spectrum have gastrointestinal/digestive issues, and I believe I know why. We also know that ASD brains are not wired the same as NT brains, and that each one is unique in it's connectivity pattern. I don't know why, but I do have a theory as to why. I really do need to update my story soon.

A healthy diet will certainly improve your life in general, autism or not.

But studies have shown that diets (such as the gluten free casein free) that designed to "eliminate or alleviate" autism are not effective.

I very much agree with you as far as food being a big factor in how we function. I feel you may be overreaching in the extent to which autism can be 'cured'. Remember a lot of people are very fond of their aspergian traits and some of the benefits they can bring. That is not to say that their are not many hardships sometimes, and of course it is a spectrum so their are different degrees. I would not seek a 'cure' through diet for many aspects of my personality, the fact that they don't fit into some NT patterns is not motivation for me to want to change them.

Also, the claim that 90% of people have digestive issues sounds completely wrong. I don't think that is anywhere close to being true.

IMO some people just fear change too much. Also, some practically base their identity on their ASD symptoms and thus are attached to them. Then there's the fact that they don't know what they don't know if they've never experienced what it's like to have their brain functioning differently/better & do things intuitively vs. via forced or practiced intellectual processing etc.

I like most of the traits I still have. No major complaints. As I've said several times over the last year or two, it's as if I've rid myself of the negative traits and retained the positive ones for a win-win situation.

My personal experience has been that gfcf along with a lot of other dietary changes & the rest of the protocol I followed = highly effective.

Here's a quote: "* Also in 2011, a clinical study performed at one of our ATN clinics clearly refuted the claim by some physicians that parents may be over-reporting or overly concerned about GI problems in children with autism. This study found high agreement – more than 90 percent – between parent reports of GI symptoms and evaluations performed by gastroenterologists. Also contrary to some popular thought, the children’s diet and medications did not significantly contribute to their GI distress."

Source for that that I just googled & was the first hit: https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autis ... -disorders

I have digestive issues, diagnosed IBS, though relatively mild. When i did the elimination diet, no wheat, oats, dairy, sugar, anything processed. All healthy and often raw veg only, fish and lean turkey. I avoided any vegetable and fruit as suggested that might cause stomach problems. I did feel better, i felt lighter, i felt slightly calmer, and i was experiencing no stomach related issues. My personality and how i am and live was not significantly altered though. There were some mild gains in terms of how i operated in work and socially, but these i were quite mild. As i said i experienced no stomach or digestive problems, and i felt a bit better. The way i connected to the world did not significantly alter though.
Your experiences like mine, are also anecdotal. Its good your diet helped you, but it is something else to assume that it would significantly improve or change the lives of everyone with Aspergers. I use the word significantly, as the key word.
I agree that people can over identify with the diagnosis of Aspergers, and use it as a reason not to change or try new things, and also 'become' the diagnosis, as it is positively identified with. This is human nature though, happens much the same with NT's. New mothers for example can inhabitant the persona of mother almost eradicating their previous one. People inhabitant the personality their job demands, or student over identify with being a student. As their is no true identity for any person to be, almost everyone grabs on to something they can be.

While a medicinal diet has been a key component to the treatment protocol I've followed, it's far from the only thing I've done - and the rest of the protocol has been far more significant in achieving the results that I have. So, I agree, diet alone isn't likely to improve peoples' symptoms nearly as much as I've done for myself. However, there are countless stories of others who have indeed significantly improved their symptoms via diet alone. I believe that if they followed up with the rest of what I've done, they'd be doing even better. But to each their own.

You completely misunderstood that statistic. 90% agreement between parent reports and GI evaluations is something totally different than 90% of autistic people having GI problems.

That was just the first google hit when I googled 90% autism digestive. I've read stats ranging from 75-90% in various articles. No matter what way you slice it, it's a higher % for a reason. That reason is that intestinal issues cause/exacerbate ASD via altering the functioning of the enteric nervous system.

You tossed off some google hit you hadn't even read and now you are trying to brush it off like it's no big deal, but it makes you look totally uncredible, especially combined with your defensive signature and your posting history on WP.

Like I said, I've read stats ranging from 75-90%. What the actual number is in reality, who knows? Probably somewhere between the published 75 & 90% I'd guess. Further, there have been several articles published over the last couple years about the gut-brain-autism connection & the involvement of the intestines. I didn't conduct any of these studies nor write the articles. Feel free to google them or look up the ones I cross posted to WP.

My signature is defensive becauese of the offensive nature of posts from others here on WP ~2 years ago. What about my posting history? Neither matters. I'm living a healthier, happier, wealthier life all around for having done what I have to eliminate/minimize ASD symptoms and don't really care whether you believe me or not.