Persons with Autism tend to have food sensitivities more than food allergies. The biggest offenders can be gluten and casein. To most Autistic children especially, gluten and casein are the equivalent of poison.

Gluten and gluten-like proteins are found in wheat and other grains as well as foods made from those grains. They are also found in food starches, semolina, couscous, malt, some vinegars, soy sauce, flavorings, and artificial colors.

Casein is a protein found in milk and foods containing milk, such as cheese, butter, yogurt, ice cream, and whey.

Gluten and casein are not properly digested and form peptides, or substances that act like opiates in their bodies. The peptides then alter the child’s behavior, perceptions, and responses to his or her environment.

As they leak into the gut, undigested, they can attach to the opiate receptors of the autistic person’s brain. Essentially, many autistic children are “drugged” on wheat and milk products, as if they were on a morphine drip. This not only aggravates and distorts their already skewed spatial perception, but they also crave these foods, becoming addicted quite rapidly.

Some parents have shared with me that their child’s response to milk removal was quicker and more obvious than when gluten was removed.  Urine tests have shown that casein peptides can leave the system in about three days, but it can take up to eight months on a casein-free, gluten-free diet for all peptide levels to drop.

With the increasing awareness of gluten and casein sensitivities, there are so many viable and delicious substitutes out there for the family to enjoy. Almond milk and gluten-free cereals are two of our favorites. The hardest part is trying to monitor what your child eats while outside of the home.