Special Child, Special Diet

Autism and the miracle of a life
free of gluten and casein

When my son Noah was two years old, he taught himself the alphabet. At four, he could read. He was very verbal and exceptionally bright. I thought perhaps he was gifted. But although Noah excelled intellectually, I noticed his social skills seemed lacking. In preschool, he never played with the other children.

In kindergarten, Noah’s behavior disintegrated. He had uncontrollable meltdowns where he’d scream, throw things and become violent toward his classmates. He had severe sensory issues, limited social skills and poor eye contact. He suffered digestive problems and would eat only peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cookies, chips, pretzels, French fries, milk, yogurt and cheese.

Things didn’t improve in first grade. Noah continued to get into constant trouble for inappropriate behavior. Puzzled and distraught, I kept searching on line to discover why my son was different. I’d share articles with his teacher about the odd behavioral traits of gifted children. Some of it fit but most of it just didn’t make sense.

In the middle of the school year, a friend showed me a magazine article about a boy with Asperger syndrome, a high functioning form of autism. ”Read it,” she insisted. “This is Noah.” I read it … and cried. Suddenly, everything was falling into place.

Armed with the information from the magazine, I called a meeting at Noah’s school. When I brought up autism, everyone in attendance nodded their heads. It turns out they’d been discussing Noah’s behavior and were in agreement. It wasn’t long before testing at the California Regional Center officially nailed my son’s diagnosis: Noah was autistic.

Autism Spectrum Disorder
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), Autism Spectrum Disorder, or ASD, is a developmental behavioral disorder characterized by impairment in socialization and communication and by restricted, stereotypical patterns in behaviors, interests and activities. Children with ASD suffer from sensory hypersensitivity and have intense reactions to sound, sight, touch, taste and smell. They have difficulties with social integration and adjusting to new things and changes in their routines. They engage repeatedly in the same behaviors or thoughts, fixating on objects. For example, like most youngsters his age, Noah was obsessed with Thomas the Tank Engine and Disney movies. Yet, unlike most kids, he would talk about these topics non-stop and every conversation would revert back to them.