PecanBread.com - Treating Autism with the Specific Carbohydrate Diet

WHAT IS THE SPECIFIC CARBOHYDRATE DIET?

The seletion of food that are allowed on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet is based on the chemical structure of these foods. Carbohydrates are classified by their molecular structure.The allowed carbohydrates have a molecular structure that is small enough to be transported across the small intestinal surface into the bloodstream. These carbohydrates do not need to be broken down by various processes of the digestive organs such as the pancreas or the intestinal cells' surface enzymes.

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet is biologically correct because it is species appropriate.The allowed foods are those that early man ate before the agricultural revolution. The diet of early man is one of meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, nuts, low-sugar fruits, and certain oils. Starches, grains, pasta, legumes, and breads have only been consumed for a mere 10,000 years. Many people are not adapted to these types of foods yet.

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet was clinically tested for over 50 years by Dr Haas and biochemist Elaine Gottschall with great results.

The Specific Carbohydrate Diet was designed for patients with other intestinal diseases but has been "found" by some of us with autistic children, and we are also getting great results.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Removing starches and sugars results in a correction of dysbiosis, which then results in a decrease in intestinal inflammation and allows the gastro intestinal tract to heal.

Why SCD is better than GF/CF?

However it is important to treat the cause of the gluten and casein intolerance rather than just treat the symptoms.

GFCF means no gluten, no dairy. Just that, just excluding the most common culprits. SCD looks at things from a more scientific perspective and takes things a step further. SCD looks at the structure of the gut wall.

The gutwall is severely damaged. So why not try to repair the damage, instead of patching up and supplementing bits and pieces? And how many parents mention problems with corn, rice and soy?

To heal the gut you have to look at what the body is ABLE to digest. What is food made of, what needs to be digested, how and where. Biggest trouble lies in carbohydrates and the combination with pathogenic bacteria, yeast and parasites.The latest research confirms this conclusion. The research of Horvath (University of Maryland)and Buie(Harvard) found carbohydrate malabsorption in ASD children,while the work of Shaw reports gut microorganisms to be the culprit in ASD.

In a nutshell SCD is: remove ALL starch and sugar. That kills off the yeast/bacterial overgrowth. Malabsorption decreases. Heal with the SCD yogurt or probiotics. This repopulates the gut with the "good bugs". Digestion normalizes. So does behavior, cognitive development, language development, etc. It works.

Can you combine SCD with GF/CF?

What happened to those brave parents who gave their child goat milk yogurt? They were surprised by their child's dramatic improvement on the yogurt. It seems that the casein in goat yogurt is more digestigble and does not contain opioids .Yogurt is remarkably healing food. Unlike gluten that stays in the body for 8 months, casein stays in the body for less than 10 days days so trying yogurt is not risky . Now that SCD parents are networking with each other, more parents are getting brave and trying the goat yogurt. The decision as to whether to try the yogurt or not remains with the parents.

Can you get carbohydrates on this diet?

Can my child eat delicious food on this diet?

Is the SC Diet a healthy diet?

Their diet consisted of fruits ,vegetables, meat, seeds, nuts and eggs. All these foods are permitted on the SC Diet.Seeds are allowed after being 3 months on the diet.

Is there a bad initial reaction upon starting the diet?

Children just starting out on the SCD may have an unusual appetite. The yeast in their bodies is no longer being fed with carbohydrates and sugars so they'll be craving high carbohydrates foods initially. The initial reaction to the diet can be frightening - a sickly, cranky, tired child. GI problems can also worsen.

Where do I find a cookbook that is both SCD and GF/CF

The name of the book is:
SCD WITH TASTE AND TRADITION
www.digestivewellness.com
Tel/Fax :845 356 3504

There are dairy free recipes in this website.

Can I just give probiotics instead of doing SCD?

Isn't rice a super-food ?

1. Rice is a grain. It contains anti-nutrients that are part of any grain seed's system of preservation, which prevents sprouting until the conditions are right. Anti-nutrients in whole grains include irritating tannins, complex sugars which the body cannot break down, and enzyme inhibitors which affect digestion and put stress on the pancreas. A weak digestive system cannot break down complex sugars such as those in rice, nor can it utilize them. These unused carbohydrates become food and fuel for the intestinal pathogens, which proceed to take over, poisoning the intestinal tract and blood stream, as well as impairing brain and nervous system functioning.
2. Genetically engineered rice, which is fortified with iron, is now being produced. See http://www.biotech-info.net/rice_boost.html

What is the relationship between PST, Feingold, salicylates, and SCD?

Caroline writes: "Our son has always been very sensitive to the PST pathway type foods - apples, grapes, tomatoes, chocolate and especially oranges. About 8 months ago we cut his starch intake drastically (though not completely) and substituted fruit instead. We are not completely SCD yet (working towards that), but he is having very little starch. I was surprised to find that he was able to tolerate the fruit without problems. He is having apples, grapes, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and oranges maybe 2 or 3 times a day, and we have seen no red ears or cheeks. In a typical day he will have 1 apple, a small portion of grapes, 2 or 3 little oranges. I suspect that overall the load on his detoxification pathways have been reduced (less starch = less yeast = less toxic byproducts = less detoxification required) and so he is able to tolerate things which previously would have caused behavioral problems."

A damaged digestive system causes allergies and problems with the PST pathway. When the gut heals, these problems go away and the child is able to eat foods that he previously was unable to tolerate. A note of precaution: buying organic fruit is always the best option whenever possible as sprays have been known to cause severe problems.

I am confused about choosing the right diet for my child with ASD. Which diet should I use: GF/CF, Feingold, Ketogenic or SCD?

Both SCD and the Ketogenic diet control seizures. Which should I choose for maximum effectiveness?

Why is it important to do SCD while chelating?

SCD is also the ideal diet to do before attempting chelation, since SCD heals Leaky Gut Syndrome and Inflammatory Bowel Disease, which are counterproductive to the process. (These conditions are present in most ASD children.) Counterproductive because if present during chelation, a leaky gut would allow the toxic metals to reenter the blood stream and bodily systems, and an inflamed bowel's irritaiton level would only be worsened by the presence of these toxic metals.

Some parents choose not to chelate, and just follow the slow, steady, strengthening path of SCD, using Vitamin C for a more gentle detoxification instead. The decision whether to chelate or not chelate is one to be made by the parents.

During chelation detox, the now mobilized heavy metals can linger in the bowel for anywhere from 6 to 24 hours, or even more, before evacuation takes place. The bowel of a healthy person may not be prone to free radical damage, but the damaged bowel of the toxic patient is at the very least an area for added concern and monitoring. The use of Vitamin C will quicken the evacuation of the toxic heavy metals from the body.

Do Enzymes replace SCD?

"Enzymes can help be helpful in many situations. However, as far as a replacement for ANY diet, it depends entirely on the diet, the enzymes, the person, and the goal. And I don't think they can be considered as a 'replacement' for SCD. They do break down foods, but in this case, you probably don't want to count on that. It could undermine your efforts. As Sonya noted, they can be a helpful supplement for those who are having a harder time digesting even the legal foods on the SCD. For one thing, there isn't much information at all showing that enzymes plus adding in 'just a few illegals' is even effective, even though theoretically that may happen for some people. The gut needs to heal first, and the pathogens brought under control.

Here are a few more thoughts I had later:

• there may be other things in liquid milk besides the actual lactose that are problematic. So if you just take lactase with milk, the other 'stuff' may get through. In particular I am thinking of the casein protein which often may not be sufficiently digested, and which an injured intestine is not ready to cope with. Also, many commercial milks include preservatives, which enzymes do not affect and which may cause a negative reaction. Some of the improvement on SCD may be due to just eating a diet without all the processing chemicals in it. For those with autism and attention deficit conditions, this may be a significant factor. This would be the same with other foods.
• I personally have no idea, nor have I seen any research showing that enzymes can break down stuff like xanthum gum, guar gum, sucralose, and other such things that become pathogen food directly (it might be there, but I haven't seen it and it would take enzymes besides the commonly used ones at that and probably at doses above what the average product contains).

  (Editor�s note: Other people have written in discussions on the list about enzymes. They have reported that in general, enzymes only break down about 40% of a food.)

• you might be able to wolf down enough enzymes to break down all the food you eat but I don't have any idea what that would be...and if you find that you need to take $5 or more worth of enzymes to eat one muffin, it becomes highly questionable if that is the most practical course, even if you could afford it." -Karen.

I have a terribly picky eater, will I be able to do this diet?

I have the world's pickiest eater who has been doing the diet for over a year and is quite happy with her food choices. Sometimes kids are picky because they are self-limiting, sometimes they are picky for sensory reasons, sometimes they are picky for who knows what reason. My daughter was picky for all of the above reasons. She was previously self-limited to pasta and potatoes and refused all animal proteins and vegetables. At the time which we transitioned her to SCD we had eliminated all sweets from her diet in order to fight yeast (we should have been eliminating starches, but that's another matter) and, as such, she hadn't had anything that looked like a baked good for a really long time. Pulling out the SCD muffins sweetened with just a touch of honey immediately distracted her from her beloved potatoes and pasta.

To ease her into the diet, we told her that we were only going to do it for a short time (a couple weeks, or months, something like that) to see if it helped her poops and, if it didn't we'd go back to her old foods. Well, in three weeks time, she was producing trophy after trophy and, you know what, she never asked about her old foods. She has never complained about this diet because I think she feels the difference. I should also note that, with the absence of those starches she began eating animal protein with every meal as if, of course, she's always liked the stuff.

To get around her not eating vegetables, I realized that it was probably a sensory issue and that, maybe, she would drink her vegetables. We steamed a selection of greens then pureed them with water and salt and refridgerated. At first we required only that she drink a 1/4 glass of the stuff. She balked, she tantrumed and, I confess, we lied: We told her the doctor said she had to gulp it down just like she takes her vitamins. That seemed to have an impact on her and she took the stuff. Slowly we increased the amount and now she has a full glass with every meal and, actually, even requests it at times.

Many parents of picky eaters report that their children become much more adventurous after a time on SCD. As the gut heals, cravings for harmful foods should fade and sensory issues often (but not always) improve. In the case of my daughter, unfortunately, picky eating must also be somewhat genetic as her NT sister and father are almost as difficult as she is. Still, she is happy with her SCD foods. While she is somewhat repetitive with her choices, I know that they are healthy choices that are helping her gut to heal, so I am not very preoccupied with rotatations and variety as I was when she was GFCFEVERYTHINGELSEF. For most meals she has chicken, a walnut-pecan muffin, goat yogurt, and her veggie drink. Redundant, yes. Balanced and nutritious, I think so.

I don't think I can do this diet because my child is already high in copper and nuts are so high in copper. (or) I don't think I can do this diet because almonds are so high in phenols and my child is phenol sensetive.

While it may appear that nuts, especially almonds, are an indispensable part of the diet, many have done the diet without them. ElainesChildren listmembers have researched this issue extensively since many ASD kids have these problems and here is what we've learned: Most nuts do, in fact, have copper, but they also have zinc which balances the copper. The key is choosing nuts that balance in favor of zinc over copper. One list member found research indicating that peanuts and pecans are favorable choices for our high-copper kids in this regard. Another listmember also learned that walnuts and pecans are lower in phenols than almonds.

When I started this diet I didn't know any of this. All I knew was that my daughter had drug-addictive like behaviours for almond-flour products, and mushy stools shortly after eating almond flour products. Through trial and error, we learned that she could tolerate our homemade walnut-pecan flour just fine. It's a much stronger flavor than the almonds, so it is not quite as versatile. However, the flavor is delicious and her walnut-pecan muffins taste almost chocolaty. And the really good news is that we learned, eleven months into the diet, that she could tolerate limited amounts of almond flour products without a problem.

For those who can't do any nuts, there is still lots that can be enjoyed with meat, veggies and SCD-legal dairy. Jen Young's son Colin, who reportedly recovered from this diet alone, couldn't do any nuts for a while and ate, basically, meat, veggies and SCDgoat yogurt. So it can be done!

How about antifungals - can they replace SCD?

There are a number of problems with antifungals. For one thing, many intestinal pathogens are becoming resistant to antifungals. When you treat for one fungus, yeast, mold or bacteria and wipe it out, another kind of pathogen suddenly gets a lot food and flourishes.

The intestine is like a city - on average there are 4,000 different kinds of microorganisms in residence. We want to do our utmost to help the desirable citizens gain the upper hand and control the most space. Strengthening them by providing the right environment is our best approach and we can do this most effectively with SCD. Once we have accomplished this, these beneficial community-minded organisms will be able keep the balance on their own, unless they are subjected to trauma, like a course of anti-biotics.

If we use anti-fungals to wipe out entire neighborhoods of pathogens, but do not provide

• beneficial microorganisms to replace them, and
• the correct diet to support the continued presence of the beneficials

For another thing, anti-fungals are hard on the liver. DAN ("Defeat Autism Now") Dr. Jaquelyn McCandless describes these problems in her book "Children with Starving Brains". A phenomenon known as "die-off" that accompanies use of anti-fungals can cause quite a strain on the bodily systems and emotions.

In some stubborn cases, healing of the intestine is given a jump start when anti-fungals are used in conjunction with probiotics. The probiotics provide healthy intestinal bacteria to take over the empty space in the gut vacated by the victims of the anti-fungal. However, due to the harshness of anti-fungals, and the negative effects on the body caused by the "die-off" of microorganisms, it is preferable to proceed without them, and rely on the steady, reliable healing power of SCD. Following the diet will allow the body to heal itself over time. On the whole, the positive strengthening approach of SCD is less debilitating to the bodily systems than a course of anti-fungals.

Some parents have found that working with herbal anti-fungals with the guidance of a naturopath is much less traumatic to their child's system than the stronger pharmaceutical varieties. This can allow them to gain the upper hand against the pathogens a little more gently, if necessary. In either case, before using anti-fungals, it is important to have your child's intestinal flora tested to insure that the one you select will target her particular intestinal pathogens.

Also, it is not possible, nor is it desirable in some cases, to completely eradicate the pathogens. Candida yeast is a good example. It commonly achieves overgrowth conditions in the body, causing many uncomfortable symptoms - even killing people with severely weakened immune systems - and yet without it we would die. Most intestinal microorganisms become pathogenic only when the proper intestinal balance is upset for some reason and they are allowed to grow out of control. Even after a person has been healed, following the SCD diet will minimize any chance of that ever reoccuring, as there will be no food source available to support a pathological overgrowth.