Special Diets, Supplements Not Always Helpful for Kids with Autism

Many children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are picky eaters, and parents may direct them to nutritional supplements, or gluten- or casein-free diets.

However, the study reported June 4 in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and dietetics found that these regimens leave children still deficient in some nutrients, such as calcium. On the other hand, special diets and supplements can cause children to take in excessive amounts of other nutrients, such as vitamin A, the researchers said.

“Each patient needs to be individually assessed for potential nutritional deficiencies or excess,” study lead researcher Patricia Stewart, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Rochester medical Center in Rochester, N.Y., said in a journal news release.

“Children with an autism spectrum disorder are not very different nutritionally form non-ASD children,” said Dr. Andrew Adesman, chief of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at the Cohen Children’s Medical Center of New York, in New Hyde Park, N.Y.

“Giving children with an autism spectrum disorder a multivitamin/mineral supplement will not correct many of the nutritional deficiencies seen in these children,” he added, “and may in fact lead to excess amounts of some nutrients in the blood stream.”

Wisdom Wednesday: The B Vitamins

I’m not covering all the B vitamins today, just the first three – vitamin B1, B2, and B3.

Thiamine (B1) was first vitamin discovered in 1912 as the unseen substance in rice and wheat that cured beriberi. It was just called “vitamin B”. Soon scientists realized there were many more water soluble substances and the list of B vitamins began to grow. Riboflavin (B2) was discovered in milk in 1926. Although it did not cure any known disease, it was found to be essential for growth. Vitamin B3, niacin was isolated as the cause of pellagra in 1935.

Thiamine (B1) is stimulatory in nature. When the body is lethargic, the heart rate and blood pressure are low, thiamine can be very effective. However, it is commonly a trigger for tachycardia and atrial fibrillation. I believe that “fortified foods” like breakfast cereals, where the natural thiamine is first stripped out, then replaced with synthetic vitamins is a significant factor in the onset of atrial fibrillation. Thiamine is also used to treat neuropathy and is especially effective in treating Bell’s palsy.

Riboflavin (B2) and niacin (B3) both have a calming effect. Early in the history of vitamins, they were lumped together as “vitamin G”. There are still a few supplement companies that use that designation. They counterbalance the stimulatory effects of thiamine in the B complex.

The ratio of these B vitamins is critical. In most foods, that ratio is 3:1 with riboflavin and niacin being three times as abundant as thiamin. Unfortunately, most supplement companies have ignored this ratio. A “B50” or “B100” supplement will contain 50 mg or 100 mg of each of the B vitamins without any regard as to how they are normal combined in nature.

American Children ‘Consuming Too Many Vitamins and Minerals’

A new report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) in the US says we should be concerned that American children may be consuming too many vitamins and minerals.

One reason the report gives is that the explosion in fortified foods, paired with inadequate government policies, means that many children in the US are now consuming too many vitamins and minerals.

Vitamins and minerals are essential for good health, and for many children, exceeding the required amount is unlikely to cause harm. But for some, there is a narrow band between an optimum level that benefits health and an excessive level that can cause harm. Unlike adults, whose bodies are much larger, children are more vulnerable to overdosing.

Citing several government and academic sources, the EWG report summarizes how millions of American children under the age of 8 are getting too much vitamin A, zinc, and niacin from fortified foods and supplements.

An excess of zinc can stop the body absorbing copper properly and result in anemia, changes in red and white blood cells and impaired immune function, while too much niacin (vitamin B3) can cause rashes and other skin reactions, nausea and liver toxicity.

The EWG report shows that breakfast cereals and snack bars are often fortified with vitamin A, zinc and niacin in amounts that exceed children’s daily needs. In some cases, the amounts exceed the limit that the Institute of Medicine (IOM) – a branch of the National Academy of Sciences – considers safe for children.