It’s a heart-warming story: a young boy with autism undergoes a radical gut treatment and wakes up miraculously better and speaking for the first time in his life.
But does this mean faecal transplants are a breakthrough treatment for autism?
Controversial Paleo-spruiking celebrity chef Pete Evans seems to think so, posting the story of a South Australian mum whose son has been put on diet and alternative therapies, as well as an experimental faecal transplant in Canada, for his autism.
But experts caution against putting hope in personal testimonials and celebrity endorsements.
Professor Cheryl Dissanayake, director of the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre at La Trobe University in Melbourne, told The Weekly she would “absolutely not” recommend parents of children with autism consider a faecal transplant.
While the gut microbiome – a world of living organisms inside us that have a profound effect on health and may be implicated in autism – is a promising new area of science, this doesn’t mean the condition is caused by or can be cured with altered gut bacteria.
“There’s no evidence that [a faecal transplant] is a verified treatment for autism,” she says. “Anecdotal reports cannot be relied on to determine your child’s future treatment.
“If you take any condition where we don’t fully understand the causes and mechanisms, you are going to get people with their own theories who promote them ad nauseum. But there’s plenty of evidence the causes [of autism] are biological with a genetic basis.”
Evidence points to autism being a complex disorder that develops before a baby is born, involving more than 300 genes.
However, some kids with autism do suffer from gut issues. Prof Dissanayake says it’s a good idea for parents to seek professional medical treatment for gut problems suffered by kids with autism. Any dietary changes should be carried out under the supervision of a dietitian or paediatrician, she says.
“There’s a proportion of people with autism with gastrointestinal issues and there’s no doubt paying attention to these symptoms and issues will assist with behaviour – but that doesn’t mean the underlying condition [autism] disappears,” she says.
This contradicts claims made by alternative health advocates at the recent Mindd International Forum – attended by The Weekly as part of an investigation into alternative health and wellness – that children can “recover from” autism through diet.
“We are learning more and more about the gut-brain axis,” adds Prof Dissanayake, “but there’s no evidence that autism has a basis in a dietary-related microbiome.”
People suffering from depression, obesity, and other illnesses have been found to have different gut bacteria from those who are healthy. Research has shown gut bacteria can change as a result of diet, stress and taking antibiotics.
But this doesn’t prove causation. It could be that children with autism have different gut bacteria as a consequence of the condition or stress, for example, or as part of a feedback loop between the gut and brain.
“The autism field is a quack magnet,” warns Prof Dissanayake. “In the absence of known causes and cures for autism spectrum disorders, the best available evidence tells us that early diagnosis and intervention is the best approach to managing the difficulties associated with autism.”
