Medical study proved 'too effective'

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http://www.autism-nutrition.com/probiotics-for-autism.html

 

 

PROBIOTICS FOR AUTISM

 

Medical study proved ‘too effective’

 

A medical study on probiotics for autism has proven so

successful that the study ‘failed’, according to a New Scientist

report on September 9, 2006.

 

The study, by Prof Glenn Gibson at Reading University, UK,

found that autistic children vastly improved their concentration and behaviour

when given probiotics, or ‘friendly bacteria’.

 

It involved 40 autistic children, aged 4 to 8, half of whom

were given the probioctic bacteria L. Plantanum while the other half received a

dummy ‘probiotic’.

 

It was supposed to have been a blind study, where the

participants were not told who were taking the actual probiotcs and who were

taking placebos or dummy medicine. As part of this probiotics for autism study,

parents were asked to record their children's mood and behaviour in a diary.

 

The results were too obvious. Parents whose autistic

children were taking the actual probiotics saw such great improvements in their

children's behaviour that they knew their children were taking the real thing.

 

Thus, problems arose during the ‘crossover’

point of this probiotics for autism study, where the two groups were supposed

to switch medicines. Many of the parents whose children were taking the actual

probiotics refused to make the switch as they wanted their autistic children to

continue their improvement.

 

 

IMPORTANT: Click here to read about storage of probiotics in

the tropics

 

One parent said it was " heartbreaking " to have to

stop their child taking it.

 

”It was really challenging for us and the

parents,” said Prof Gibson. “The trial ultimately failed because of

the large number of drop-outs.”

 

Due to the high drop-out rate, Prof Gibson was not able to

draw any firm, ‘scientific’ conclusion from his probiotics for

autism study. Prof Gibson noted, however, that autistic children often suffer

bowel conditions and a previous study had found high levels of a

" bad " bacteria called clostridia in their gut.

 

The probiotics for autism study was designed to reduce the

levels of clostridia and promote " friendly " bacteria instead, to see

what effect this would have. Prof Gibson said the children appeared to show

fewer signs of autistic behaviour when taking the probiotics supplement, which

was given in a powder once a day.

 

Very subjectively, we asked the parents to fill in diaries

about the mood of the children. We got very positive feedback generally, "

he said.

 

Prof Gibson said that certain kinds of clostridia produced

neuro-toxins, which potentially could be the cause of autism or a contributory

factor.

 

However, he said this was speculation. The apparent

improvement which the parents observed could also simply be because the

children had felt better.

 

" If your gut is not behaving yourself, you feel

rough, " Prof Gibson said.

 

The first bacteria in the gut is received from the mother

during birth. Later, more bacteria comes from the outside environment,

especially from the diet.

 

By the time a person reaches adulthood, he or she would have

about 100 trillion, or 100,000,000,000,000 bacteria in the intestimes –

which is more than 10 times the number of human cells in the body.

 

Most of the bacteria in the guts are probiotics or

“friendly” bacteria but when a person develops an infection, the

proportion of harmful bacteria increases.

 

The use of antibiotics destroys both friendly and harmful

bacteria. It often causes more harm than good by creating an

‘empty’ environment whereby harmful bacteria, as well as yeast, can

multiply more quickly and easily.

 

In recent years, there has been growing interest in the use

of probiotics as a natural way to restore the balance of friendly bacteria in

the guts.

 

This has many benefits including enhanced immunity, but also

positive effects on mood and behaviour.

 

Many parents of autistic children have reported vast

improvements in their chidren's behaviour with the use of probiotic

supplements. The Autism Clinic recommends a special, ultra-high potency

probiotics supplement specially formulated for children with autism.

 

Click here to read more about probiotics for autism, yeast

infection and other health conditions.