Autism AwarenessThe amount of research on autism has grown exponentially these last 10 years, with now over 20,000 articles.

As impressive as the research is, parents, however, aren’t terribly concerned about what works in a particular study. They just want something that will help their child – and that means yesterday! Many parents of the kids with autism are very well read, and what I am going to say might be a review for that crowd. But maybe you aren’t up to speed on the 2 G’s, that is, glutathione and gluten. This blog will be a brief overview.

Glutathione (GSH) is the body’s master detox agent. Detox is important for environmental toxins like mercury and lead, and also for end products of normal biochemical processes that can be toxic. The body has several mechanisms to neutralize these. The most important, and first-line detox defense, is through glutathione.

Glutathione is made in every cell, so it can be present where it is needed at all times. Many researchers have noted that you can get a pretty good idea of a person’s disease resistance and probability of a long life by looking at their glutathione levels in the blood.

Kids with autism show a universal glutathione deficiency, according to published, peer-reviewed research. This means that these kids with ASD have trouble with basic detox processes, and that can lead to a myriad of problems, including interference with normal neuron development and communication.

We recommend LifeWave Glutathione Patches. These are super easy to use and help the body produce its own glutathione. With these patches, you don’t have to figure out how to get the child to take the supplement. If you have figured out a good way to use supplements (maybe adding them to a protein and fruit smoothie, for example) you can also add Apex Glutathione Recycler to the mix. This will help the Glutathione Patches do their job by adding some precursors and agents that help in glutathione’s remanufacture from breakdown products.

The other “G” is gluten. Many parents have experimented with a gluten-free diet for their child with ASD and noticed a dramatic shift within a few days. Most telling is what happens to the behavior once the gluten is reintroduced. Nobody is saying this will be magic cure-all, but so many parents have found this to be an essential component of their treatment formula. If you read the published literature, you will find a mix of reviews about this approach. Some will say there is no basis for believing this will help, and other studies report favorable results. Putting your child on a gluten-free diet is not dangerous, so you don’t have anything to lose. We can run some blood and genetic tests to look for the probability that a gluten-free diet will be helpful. Ultimately, you will just have to try it out and see what happens.

Just a heads up, in most cases you will not get the results you need on a low-gluten diet. You will have to learn to find hidden sources of gluten and also avoid products made where wheat is also processed. Flour can float in the air for a day or two and even these microscopic contaminants can be enough to stop the healing. So if you are going to try a gluten-free diet, make sure that it is really gluten-free.

Most parents have also found that along with a gluten-free diet, they will also have to go casein free. Casein is a milk protein. The rules here are the same. You will have to get the casein completely out of the diet for a few weeks to see what happens.