Diet & nutrition
The fight within
Parents may despair when their autistic
child becomes aggressive, because there is
little medical understanding or help to stop it.
But aggression is often driven by underlying
health issues. Nutritionist Stella Chadwick
highlights the many causes to consider
Aggression in autistic people is
often seen as “part of autism”.
Rarely are medical investigations
carried out to ascertain if there may
be a treatable cause of what
appears to be a behavioural issue.
But our children don’t harm
themselves or others or behave
aggressively for no reason. It is
their way of communicating that
something in their body feels wrong.
Is it medical?
Children and adults on the autism
spectrum are at a much higher risk
of suffering from various medical
50 Au t i s m | e y e I s s u e 4 7 2 0 2 2
conditions than the general
population. They also consistently
face barriers in accessing
appropriate medical care. The high
prevalence of comorbidity has
been confirmed in the US by the
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, as well as by large-
scale studies examining the records
of 2.5 million adult autism patients.
Conditions can include
persistent upper respiratory
infections, dental pain, ear and
sinus infections, food and inhalant
allergies, asthma and atopic
dermatitis, gastrointestinal issues,
sleep disturbances, headaches
and migraines, epilepsy, hearing
and vision impairment, auto-
immune conditions, hypertension,
and type 1 diabetes.
However, autistic individuals
experiencing pain or discomfort
may not be able to identify the
physical location of that pain/
discomfort within their body. They
often end up having their
symptoms dismissed.
It is not surprising that, for some
in extreme discomfort, these
conditions can manifest in
aggressive outbursts. A recent
example in our clinic was a
17-year-old man with severe autism
and a history of unexplained
aggression. He was found to have
a Helicobacter Pylori infection.
Once the infection was eradicated,
the aggressive behaviour stopped.
Gastrointestinal issues
Gastrointestinal (GI) issues are
In pain: significantly over-represented in
gastrointestinal autism. They can often be related
issues are to problem behaviours, including
common in aggression, obsessive-compulsive
autism and can disorder (OCD), sensory
lead to problem processing difficulties, anxiety,
behaviours irritability, and dis-regulated sleep.
www.autismeye.com
Common GI issues include
constipation, diarrhoea, reflux,
microbiome imbalances and
enzyme deficiencies.
A non-verbal seven-year-old boy
with chronic constipation and
significant behavioural problems,
including biting himself and others,
was assessed by our clinic. We
gave him appropriate supplements
to help with constipation and
carried out lab tests that showed
an intolerance of dairy products, so
these were removed from his diet.
Within four weeks, he opened his
bowels daily and aggressive
outbursts reduced significantly.
Chronic infections
Infections can be a GI issue,
perhaps of yeast or bacterial
overgrowth. They can also take
the form of a persistent
streptococcal infection. When we
look closer we often find there are
additional viral issues that are
contributing to mood instability and
behavioural symptoms.
Appropriate tests can help to
ascertain the infectious agents,
which can then be addressed with
a combination of medical and
biomedical approaches.
Marcus, an eight-year-old
autistic patient of ours, had
become increasingly uncooperative
and aggressive over a two-to-three-
year period following a viral illness
at age five. Tests revealed that he
had raised antibodies to
streptococcal bacteria, as well as
signs of reactivation of Epstein Barr
virus. Working with a medical team,
we found the usual antibiotics did
not make a difference. He
subsequently underwent a
tonsillectomy, which improved his
symptoms significantly. With dietary
changes and micro-immunotherapy,
his symptoms were almost gone
within six months.
Allergies and
intolerances
Allergic reactions are recognised
causative factors of anxiety and
mood disorders, including
aggressive behaviour. Other key
symptoms include an inability to
fall asleep, hyperactivity, daytime
fatigue, poor concentration and
excessive sweating.
Checking for celiac disease
should be standard, but it is also
important to note the issue of non-
celiac gluten sensitivity, which is
increasingly recognised. Enzyme
deficiency can be an issue in a
significant number of children. In a
subset of children, an adequately
monitored diet without gluten and
often without dairy has successfully
reduced symptoms and sometimes
alleviated them completely.
Removing food colourings,
Stella Chadwick is the
founder of
additives, and phenol-containing
foods (found in berries, apples,
Brainstorm Health®
and an experienced
tomatoes, cheese and many other
coloured fruits and vegetables) can
nutritional and
biomedical consultant
be a complete game-changer. You who specialises in
will find a detailed article about the working with adults
impact of phenols and salicylates and young children
(another kind of natural chemical on the autism
made by plants) on behaviour, sleep spectrum. www.
and cognition in the spring 2021 brainstormhealth.
edition of Autism Eye Magazine, co.uk
available from the back issues
page on the Autism Eye website.
A five-year-old girl with
regressive autism came to us with
episodic aggressive outbursts,
frequent night-waking, and very
smelly stools. Tests revealed a
high reaction to gluten, dairy and
soya. Within six weeks of removing
the offending foods, sleep and
bowel movements normalised, and
aggressive outbursts were almost
entirely resolved.
Our children don’t harm
themselves or others or
behave aggressively towards
others for no reason”
Au t i s m | e y e I s s u e 4 7 51
 Diet & nutrition

Online learning for parents,

carers and professionals
The unsavoury
Access trusted, side of sugar
Blood-sugar imbalance has to be one of

flexible and affordable

the most significant issues in the children
we assess. Kids addicted to carbohydrates
and refined sugar often have blood sugar
that goes super high and then crashes Five-to-one

autism learning rule for shop-

throughout the day. If you have ever felt ‘hangry’
(bad-tempered as a result of hunger), you will have a small
insight into the world of someone with uncontrolled blood- bought snacks
sugar balance. Simply put, ensure that you serve protein and We know parents have to rely on
healthy fat with any carbohydrates: this will slow down digestion packaged foods sometimes, and
Brought to you by the organisers of The Autism Show, we share in-depth knowledge and release the sugar from the carbohydrates into the bloodstream these are often very high in sugar
more steadily. and carbohydrates. A simple hack
on key topics to help you at home and in the workplace. Starting the day with a breakfast full of protein and fat instead of the usual is to ensure that the carbohydrate-
carb-heavy one of cereal and milk is a good move. Once blood sugar swings out of to-protein ratio is no more than 5:1.
Join us for live and interactive learning on Zoom webinars, or stream webinars at balance, it’s hard to get it back under control. A full-fat yoghurt with berries and For instance, a ‘cereal bar’ with 25g
your own pace over 30 days. nuts or seeds is a good swap for cereal. Remember there’s no such thing as
‘breakfast food’, so if your child wants sausages with some veg for breakfast, that’s great!
of carbs should contain at least five
grams of protein to balance it out.

Whichever option you choose, you’ll be gaining an exclusive audience with a hand
picked team of renowned autism professionals, who’ll explore the practical symptoms can be completely
Behaviours that may indicate an underlying alleviated. Our clinic assessed a
approaches which can make a real difference. Here are just a few of the areas we cover: illness, pain or discomfort
16-year-old girl with a diagnosis of
autism and PANDAS (short for
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l T apping or touching unexplained increase in significant intolerance to eggs.
behaviour (for example, self-injury Removing the problem food,
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l S ensory hyper- swallowing (‘grazing’ Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Primer using adrenal-supportive
responsivity: hyperacusis behaviour) for Health Care Professional and Policy supplements turned things around
(low tolerance of sound), l F
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tactile defensiveness, throat, swallowing Thinking Autism, ESPA Research and
sensitivity to light l M
 outhing behaviours: Autism Treatment Trust Other considerations
There are several other conditions
to consider. These include absent
Stress hormones relating to the gene responsible for seizures, reactions to medications,
It will come as little surprise that processing stress hormones. low cholesterol, auto-immune
many individuals on the autism But the body is often under conditions, mitochondrial disorders
spectrum have pronounced fight- constant stress from chronic and cerebral folate deficiency, all
or-flight responses. They can react infections, gut dysbiosis, food of which can contribute to
in what seems like an exaggerated allergies, immune disregulations aggressive outbursts and mood

For more information visit www.autismlearns.co.uk way to situations, and it can take
them a long time to calm their
nervous system down. This can be
and nutrient deficiencies.
Assessing and addressing the
root contributors to the stress
disorders. In this article, I have
highlighted our most common
findings in our practice.
partly due to genetic response is the only way to To learn more, visit www.
Accredited by Media Partners Organised by
polymorphisms (multiple forms of achieve long-term gain and reduce brainstormhealth.co.uk and www.
PARK the same gene in different people) symptoms. In some cases, thinkingautism.org.uk
VIEW
CONFERENCES
www.autismeye.com Au t i s m | e y e I s s u e 4 7 53