Nutritional Issues Related to Autism

From ScienceDaily

There is consensus that children with autism have selective eating patterns, food neophobia, limited food repertoire, and sensory issues. Researchers now report that there are inconsistent results about the extent and type of nutrient deficiencies.

About 1 in 88 children has an autism spectrum disorder. This represents a 78% increase in the incidence of autism spectrum disorder since 2002 (although some of the increase may be due to improved diagnostic capabilities). Individuals with an autism spectrum disorder may have poor nutrition because they often exhibit selective eating patterns as well as sensory sensitivity that predispose them to restrict their diets.

The July 2015 issue of Advances in Nutrition, the international review journal of the American Society for Nutrition, features “Nutritional Status of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Do We Know Enough?” This article evaluates the latest scientific studies examining nutritional status and nutritional needs of individuals dealing with these complex behavioral disorders.

The authors of the article examine a number of early warning signs that nutrition scientists have discovered that may alert parents as well as health care providers to the possibility of an autism spectrum disorder. For example, they discuss research suggesting that lower folate, vitamin B-6, and vitamin B-12 concentrations could be possible biomarkers for earlier diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders. In addition, the authors point to abnormally accelerated growth rates in infants and children as a signal of autism.

Individuals with an autism spectrum disorder may be malnourished due to selective eating patterns, limited food repertoire, fear of eating new or unfamiliar foods, hypersensitivity, and other mealtime behavior issues. As a result they may require nutritional supplements or fortified foods to ensure that they fully meet dietary guidelines.

Although not all research findings are consistent, studies do indicate that children with an autism spectrum disorder are more likely to be overweight or obese. Unusual dietary patterns as well as decreased opportunities for physical activity may be contributory factors. Interestingly, the authors also point to studies indicating that individuals with an autism spectrum disorder are also more likely to be underweight than the general population. It appears that their unusual dietary patterns can lead to overweight and obesity as well as underweight.

Given the steep rise in the prevalence of individuals with autism spectrum disorders coupled with their higher mortality rates, the authors point to “enormous public health implications.” They call for more research to help diagnose autism spectrum disorders as early as possible and to develop effective nutritional strategies that enable individuals with an autism spectrum disorder to live healthier lives.

In addition, the authors also note that most nutrition research has focused on the needs of children with autism spectrum disorders. With the number of middle-aged and elderly people with autism spectrum disorders growing, the authors stress the need for research to focus on the nutritional needs of these adult populations as well.

American Society for Nutrition. “Review examines nutritional issues related to autism spectrum disorder.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 15 July 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/07/150715140901.htm>.

Related Online CEU Courses:

Autism: The New Spectrum of Diagnostics, Treatment & Nutrition is a 4-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that describes DSM-5 diagnostic changes, assessment, intervention models, dietary modifications, nutrition considerations and other theoretical interventions.

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Evidence-Based Screening and Assessment is a 3-hour online CEU course that identifies DSM-5 diagnostic changes in the ASD diagnostic criteria, summarizes the empirically-based screening and assessment methodology in ASD and describes a comprehensive developmental approach for assessing students with ASD.

Autism Movement Therapy is a 2-hour video continuing education (CE/CEU) course that teaches professionals how to combine movement and music with positive behavior support strategies to assist individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

Professional Development Resources is approved to offer continuing education by the American Psychological Association (APA); the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC); the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB); the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA); the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA); the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR); the California Board of Behavioral Sciences; the Florida Boards of Social Work, Mental Health Counseling and Marriage and Family Therapy, Psychology & School Psychology, Dietetics & Nutrition, Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, and Occupational Therapy Practice; the Ohio Counselor, Social Worker & MFT Board; the South Carolina Board of Professional Counselors & MFTs; and by theTexas Board of Examiners of Marriage & Family Therapists and State Board of Social Worker Examiners.

 

Animal Assisted Therapy Improves Medical, Behavioral and Emotional Health

By Lois Jean Brady, MA, CCC-SLP, CAS

What is Animal Assisted Therapy?

Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) practitioners blend guided therapeutic interventions with safe and highly motivating animal-human interactions that are designed to focus and share attention. AAT’s ability to capture and maintain an individual’s focus can encourage and expand joint attention, which, according to Prizant (2008), is a pivotal skill or a fundamental building block that influences the development of emotional regulation, social skills, and communication.

By maintaining interest and attention, AAT works to support language and motor activities, encourage social interaction, provide sensory integration, and motivate students to do their best. This philosophy of engaging an individual’s interest often yields beneficial results for children and adults with special needs. According to noted researcher Barry Prizant, PhD, CCC-SLP (2008), “The most effective approaches [for Autism Spectrum Disorders] infuse developmental, child-centered, and family-centered principles in educational programming for children with ASD.”

“One of the most fundamental advantages of animal-assisted therapy over other therapeutic modalities is that it provides the patient a much-needed opportunity to give affection as well as receive it. It is this reciprocity, rare among medical therapies, that makes AAT a unique and valuable route to healing.” – Dr. Andrew Weil (2011), world-renowned leader and pioneer in the field of integrative medicine.

A Brief History

Although the term Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) is relatively new, the use of animals to help people overcome illness and/or mental disorders is not a new idea. The earliest use of pet animals for therapeutic use was in Belgium in the middle ages, where pets and people were rehabilitated together, with pets providing a part of the natural therapy for the humans. Following this practice, The York Retreat in Germany and Bethel for the mentally ill and the homeless included animals, as a part of the therapeutic milieu reaping the benefits. Later, the Human Animal Bond was conceptualized by a Psychologist, Boris Levinson and Konrad Lorenz, an Austrian Nobel laureate in Physiology. This bond is explained as an intrinsic need in humans to bond with nature, especially in the background of their chaotic lives. The modern movement of using companion animals as a means of therapy had a multidisciplinary origin, involving the fields of veterinary medicine, psychology, sociology, psychiatry funded by pet food industry.

There are references to the fact that the early Greeks used horses to lift severely ill people’s spirits. In the 17th century, physicians reportedly began using horses as treatments to improve both physical and mental health issues in their patients. In the 1940s, the American Red Cross and the Army Air Corps established a farm where recuperating veterans could interact with and take care of animals while they were healing from war injuries and illness. Working with the animals was thought to comfort the recovering veterans, help them forget about the war, and focus on recovery.

How Can I Learn More?

Lois Jean Brady, MA, CCC-SLP, CAS, developed a 2-hour online continuing education course to provide therapists, educators, and caregivers with the information and techniques needed to begin using the human-animal bond successfully to meet individual therapeutic goals. The online course, Animal Assisted Therapy, is accredited for psychologists, counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists. Click here to learn more.

Lois Jean Brady, MA, CCC-SLP, CAS, is passionate about working with the special needs community. She found her calling while in high school, when she spent her summer breaks volunteering in camp programs for children with special needs. Lois has over two decades of experience working as a Speech-Language Pathologist specializing in autism spectrum disorder and is a Certified Autism Specialist. Educational accomplishments include a Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology, Certificate in Assistive Technology, Certificate in Computer Based Intervention and completion of an Animal Assisted Therapy Program.

Professional Development Resources is approved by the American Psychological Association (APA) to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Professional Development Resources maintains responsibility for all programs and content. Professional Development Resources is also approved by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC); the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB); the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA); the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA); the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR); the California Board of Behavioral Sciences; the Florida Boards of Social Work, Mental Health Counseling and Marriage and Family Therapy, Psychology & School Psychology, Dietetics & Nutrition, Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, and Occupational Therapy Practice; the Ohio Counselor, Social Worker & MFT Board; the South Carolina Board of Professional Counselors & MFTs; and by theTexas Board of Examiners of Marriage & Family Therapists and State Board of Social Worker Examiners.

 

Gestational Diabetes Linked To Autism Risk

By Anna Almendrala

Gestational Diabetes Linked To Autism Risk

A new study of more than 320,000 babies links autism to gestational diabetes.

The longitudinal study, conducted between 1995 and 2009 by researchers at Kaiser Permanente Southern California, found that children born to mothers who developed gestational diabetes before 26 weeks of pregnancy were at a 63 percent increased risk of being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. But after controlling for maternal age, education, ethnicity, household income, the child’s sex and the mother’s pre-existing conditions, that risk dropped to 42 percent.

While the overall rate of autism among study participants was 1 in 100 (mirroring national averages during the period of study), the rate of autism among children born to mothers with early pregnancy diabetes was 1 in 80.

Because this is a longitudinal association study, researchers were not able to establish a cause for the autism diagnosis. However, the associations were strong enough to warrant at least two health applications for expectant parents, according to study co-author Dr. Edward Curry.

For one, the study’s results emphasize the importance of early prenatal care. The women whose children were most at risk for developing autism were not women with previously diagnosed type 2 diabetes (who were already managing the condition with insulin, medication and diet). Nor were they women who got gestational diabetes after 26 weeks. Instead, the link between early gestational diabetes and an increased likelihood of autism diagnosis could mean that a fetus’ early exposure to uncontrolled high blood sugar may somehow affect brain development.

“We want to get mothers in early to make sure they’re on their vitamins, folic acid and that they check blood sugar to make sure it’s under control early on,” said Curry. “I think that’s the real takeaway message from this study.”

The second application, according to Curry, is for moms who know they were diagnosed with gestational diabetes before 26 weeks. These moms should remain extra vigilant about their baby’s developmental milestones. Are they making eye contact, babbling and pointing? Parents should also tell their child’s pediatrician about the gestational diabetes diagnosis, and ensure that pediatricians screen for autism appropriately at 12, 18 or 24 months old.

“We as pediatricians are supposed to be screening [by at least] 18 and 24 months, but it never hurts for the parents to have increased vigilance,” explained Curry. He also emphasized that his finding needs to be confirmed with more studies, as well as a few that can find out the causal link between gestational diabetes and autism, if there is one.

Dr. Annette Estes, the director of the University of Washington Autism Center, was not involved in Curry’s research but praised it for the large sample size, the length of time covered and the fact that the analysis controlled for multiple factors beyond gestational diabetes. The next step, said Estes, would be to do a prospective study, which looks forward in time by following pregnant moms, collecting data along their fetus’ growth and the child’s development. And, of course, the ultimate goal would be to figure out why there’s such a strong association between early gestational diabetes and the risk of autism diagnosis in children.

While scientists don’t know what exactly causes autism spectrum disorder, research to date suggests that a mix of genetic and environmental factors are at play. It’s known that autism tends to run in families and that having one child with autism increases the risk of subsequent siblings being diagnosed with the condition as well. Autism has also been linked in past studies to factors like air pollution, maternal obesity, periods of prenatal oxygen deprivation, exposure to pesticides and advanced parental age, according to the National Institutes of Health. The amount of preliminary research that’s out there right now can be confusing for parents and lay readers, explained Estes.

“The main factor that we are all in agreement is that genetics plays a major role in autism, but it doesn’t account for everything,” said Estes. “Once we get the genetics of autism a little more clear, then we can understand more about other risk factors; There’s going to be a number of risk factors, as we can see.”

“I think at this point, what parents can take away is that [autism research] is a science that’s in process,” she concluded.

Autism is a lifelong disorder that is characterized by lack of eye contact, communication delays, difficulty forming relationships and a preoccupation with niche subjects or objects. Other behaviors typical in people with autism include rocking one’s body, banging one’s head against a hard surface and flapping one’s hands, although the severity of the condition can vary from person to person, ranging from mild impairment to severe disability.

Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has determined that currently, 1 in 68 children has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and that the condition is about five times more common in boys.

Curry’s study was published online April 14 in JAMA.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/16/gestational-diabetes-autism_n_7073578.html?ncid=newsltushpmg00000003

Related Online Continuing Education Courses for Healthcare Professionals:

Autism: The New Spectrum of Diagnostics, Treatment & Nutrition is a 4-hour online continuing education (CE/CEU) course that describes DSM-5 diagnostic changes, assessment, intervention models, dietary modifications, nutrition considerations and other theoretical interventions.

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Evidence-Based Screening and Assessment is a 3-hour online CEU course that identifies DSM-5 diagnostic changes in the ASD diagnostic criteria, summarizes the empirically-based screening and assessment methodology in ASD and describes a comprehensive developmental approach for assessing students with ASD.

See more @ https://www.pdresources.org/searchlisting?search_input=autism&search_title=1

Professional Development Resources is approved by the American Psychological Association (APA) to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Professional Development Resources maintains responsibility for all programs and content. Professional Development Resources is also approved by the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC); the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB); the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA); the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA); the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR); the California Board of Behavioral Sciences; the Florida Boards of Social Work, Mental Health Counseling and Marriage and Family Therapy, Psychology & School Psychology, Dietetics & Nutrition, Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, and Occupational Therapy Practice; the Ohio Counselor, Social Worker & MFT Board; the South Carolina Board of Professional Counselors & MFTs; and by theTexas Board of Examiners of Marriage & Family Therapists and State Board of Social Worker Examiners.

 

EEG Brain Trace Can Detect Autism in Kids

A simple brain trace can help identify autism in children as young as two years old, researchers say.

A US team at Boston Children’s Hospital said that EEG traces, which record electrical brain activity using scalp electrodes, could offer a diagnostic test for this complex condition.

EEG was able to clearly distinguished children suffering with autism from others in a trial involving nearly 1,000 children.

Experts emphasise that more work is needed to confirm the BMC Medicine study results.

There are more than 500,000 autistic people in the UK.

Autism is a spectrum disorder, which means that it is not a single condition and hence affects individuals in different ways.

Generally, people with autism have trouble with social interaction and can appear locked in their own worlds.

It can be a difficult condition to diagnose and can go undetected for years.

The latest study found 33 specific EEG patterns that appeared to be linked to autism.

These patterns consistently spotted autism in children across a range of age groups, spanning from two to 12 years old.

The scientists repeated their analysis 10 times, splitting up their study group (children with a medical diagnosis of autism and children with no signs of autism) in different ways.

Around 90 percent of the time, the EEG patterns could correctly detect the children diagnosed with autism.

The team now plan to repeat their study in children with Asperger’s syndrome – one particular subset of autism.

Typically, people with Asperger’s have higher-than-average intelligence and struggle less than people with other types of autism with their speech.

Dr Frank Duffy who is leading the investigation said that the work could help determine if Asperger’s should be treated as an entirely separate condition.

And the study could also point the way to determining if younger siblings of children with autism are likely to develop the same condition themselves.

“It is a great cause of anxiety when an older sibling develops autism,” the BBC quoted Dr. Duffy as saying.

“EEG might offer a way to check for the same condition in younger siblings in advance of them having symptoms,” he added.

EEG could also be used to track what effect different autism treatments are having on the condition, he said.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/health/EEG-brain-trace-can-detect-autism-in-kids/articleshow/14431775.cms

Related articles

• New EEG Test To Diagnose Children With Autism (medicalnewstoday.com)
• EEG brain scans may detect signs of autism in 2-year-olds (cbsnews.com)
• EEGs to Diagnose Autism? (abcnews.go.com)

 

DSM Panel Holds Firm on New Autism Diagnosis

By Eric Palmer

A panel of psychiatrists revising the influential Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders are holding firm to their streamlined diagnosis for autism but are backing off proposals for changes to some others.

How the definitions turn out in the fifth edition of the DSM when it is published next year has huge implications for the pharmaceutical industry, which has reaped huge returns from doctors turning to drugs more often for treatments. Drug treatments for autism are seen to have great potential in the market, for example, so how the manual ends up on that diagnosis is being closely monitored by the industry.

The doctors said evidence did not support creation of the diagnoses “attenuated psychosis syndrome” or “mixed anxiety depressive disorder.” The first is supposed to identify anyone at risk of developing psychosis, while the second was seen as a hybrid of anxiety and depression, reports The New York Times.

They also made some changes to the definition of depression so that people experiencing the kind of common sadness anyone might experience after an event such as a death in the family were not diagnosed with a mental condition.

Dr. David J. Kupfer, who is leading the group revising the manual, said there was a decision that some proposed diagnoses needed further study after reviews of field trials on whether different doctors would reach a diagnosis in the same way.

“Our intent for disorders that require more evidence is that they be studied further, and that people work with the criteria,” and refine them, said Kupfer who also is a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh.

The proposed definition of autism–which eliminates related labels like Asperger’s syndrome and “pervasive developmental disorder”–has been hotly debated. In January, Yale University researchers presented evidence that about half of the people with the diagnosis who are considered high-functioning would no longer qualify under the new diagnosis and so lose certain treatment benefits. That was countered, however, this week at the association’s annual meeting when new data showed that few children would be affected by the change.
Read more: DSM panel holds firm on new autism diagnosis, ditches 2 other revisions – FiercePharma http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/dsm-panel-holds-firm-autism-diagnosis-ditches-two-others/2012-05-09#ixzz1uOfL5M27

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