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Congratulations! If you are reading this, then chances are, you have a child who has been experiencing digestive problems that include, but are not limited to irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, or even Crohn's disease. While your child's illness is worriesome enough, now you are confronted with the barage of information pertaining to the illness and various treatment regimines. Your mission at this point is to find a way that your child can grow and thrive and live as normal a life as possible.

Well, the good news is that you have found a healthy, well balanced diet that has enabled many with these illnesses to reduce, or eliminate the use of medications, with some achieving full recovery. The Specific Carbohydrate Diet is different from other diets because while other treatments attempt to control the symptoms of the illness, this diet is designed to heal, rebuild, and re-establish normal bowel patterns. You are about to embark on a journey that can change your life!

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet was initially developed by Dr. Sidney Haas as a treatment for celiac disease. Dr. Haas used the diet to successfully treat many with digestive problems, including the child of Elaine Gottschall, author of the book Breaking the Vicious Cycle. Ms. Gottschall's child had severe ulcerative colitis and was on the verge of surgery when they were first introduced to the diet.

In the next few years, the child not only avoided surgery, but was able to achieve a full recovery. Ms. Gottschall returned to school to research the diet to find out why it worked, and then, thankfully, wrote this book to share her findings with the world.

Very simply, the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, which is grain free and lactose free, restores balance where "bad" intestinal microbes have been "allowed" to overgrow and thus create problems with absoption. When the "bad" microbes are allowed to overgrow, they produce toxins which iritate the lining of the intestines. The intestines, in an attempt to protect itself against the toxins, produce mucus which coat the surface.

Unfortunately, this mucus prevents the normal absorption, creating illnesses by way of "malabsorption." The diet re-establishs "good gut" flora, while starving the problem makers by eliminating the carbohydrates that feed these "bad guys." By starving the "bad" microbes out, the intestines are allowed to rest, heal, and re-establish the normal absorption of nutrients. It is important to note that the diet is often used in conjunction with medications. If you child is currently taking medications, all medications should be continued and any adjustments should be made only after discussing the situation with your child's physician.

In recent years, many have explored the use of the diet for reasons other than digestive problems. For example, in using the diet to treat their children's digestive problems, many parent of autistic children noticed an improvement in their child's developmental status.

This list serve was origionally designed for parents of autistic children who were implementing the diet to have a forum to discuss the diet and provide support for each other. Parents share their experiences, swap recipes, and answer each others questions on a daily basis. Not wanting to exclude any who would like to try the diet, the list serve is not limited to parents with autistic children, but all who would like help and support in implementing the diet.

This diet is fantastic. However, you need to learn a lot before implementing it. If this diet is done incorrectly, your child might not benefit from it. Please read the following resources before implementing the diet:

1. the book "Breaking the Vicious Cycle".
2. the following website www.breakingtheviciouscycle.com
3. www.scdiet.org
4. www.healingcrow.com

All my best,
Mimi
SCDietkids Co-Moderator

WHY SCD IS THE ANSWER FOR AUTISM?

This diet addresses many of the biological issues related to autism. The latest research on autism has revealed that it is associated with the following biological problems: carbohydrate malabsorption, intestinal pathogens, heavy metal toxicity, gluten sensitivity, immune dysfunction and leaky gut.
Here is how this diet is able to help the body to correct these dysfunctions.

Carbohydrate Malabsorption:

Only food that can be fully digested by the body is eaten; the only carbohydrates permitted on this diet are those having a chemical structure which can be easily and completely digested (monosaccharides).

Intestinal Pathogens:

Since only food that can be fully digested by the body is eaten, the problematic intestinal bugs are starved.

Detoxification:

Gut pathogens impair the detoxification process, overloading the bodily systems. Parents who are detoxifying their children report much greater progress after starting SCD.

Gluten:

SCD is completely gluten-free. Elaine Gottschall, MSc. found that if celiacs use this diet they will become symptom free after a year and can go back to a more varied diet. It is the intestinal pathogens that cause the gluten sensitivity.

Leaky Gut Syndrome:

SCD will also heal leaky gut syndrome. When you eliminate the intestinal bugs, the lining of the entire digestive system can heal completely, all the way from the stomach to the large intestine. The body's ability to absorb nutrients is repaired and the leaks are eliminated.

Immune System Problems:

The wrong diet promotes the overgrowth of bad bacteria and yeast. The by-products of their daily metabolic processes create toxic conditions that damage the cells lining the intestine and trigger an inflammatory response by the body's immune system. As the intestinal pathogens are starved out, the total load on the immune system will lessen considerably, allowing it to more quickly create a state of healthy balance in the child.

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On our website there is a parents testimonial section.Two months ago I included ALL the results of children on the spectrum that I knew about. www.geocities.com/recoverymaze