Dietary Strategies for Managing Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic disorder of the gastrointestinal system that affects 5.7% of the general population. It is more common and more severe in individuals with autism. A new review in the journal Gastroenterology & Motility looked at the science behind treatments for IBS. It found studies supporting the use of peppermint oil, specific probiotics, psyllium supplementation, dietary advice, and a low FODMAP diet as aids in improving IBS symptoms.
Sensory Processing Difficulties Related to Executive and Cognitive Dysfunction in Children with Autism
By comparing a group of children with autism (n = 40) to a group of neurotypical children (n = 40), Spanish researchers established that children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have more sensory processing difficulties than the comparison group of children. The ASD children’s sensory challenges negatively affected their executive and cognitive functioning, especially in the areas of inhibitory control, auditory sustained attention, and short-term verbal memory.
Register for Autism Research Institute’s Newest Webinar
So much has changed with the COVID-19 pandemic, and its been especially hard on our children, friends, and clients on the spectrum who thrive on routine and predictability. Many have learned to self-regulate through physical outlets that have been limited or may no longer be available.
Michigan Autism Organization Sets Lofty 10-Year Employment Goal
The Autism Alliance of Michigan (AAoM), a non-profit organization whose mission is to raise expectations and expand opportunities for people touched by autism across their lifespan, has just set an extraordinary goal of creating 101,000 jobs for adults on the spectrum over the next ten years.
Researchers Begin Mission to Lower Age of Autism Diagnosis for African American Children
Earlier this month, SafeMinds Shares covered a disturbing news story which reported that obtaining an autism diagnosis takes longer for African American Children. In order to make this startling fact a thing of the past, a research team out of Washington University in St. Louis, using a long-standing grant from the State of Missouri, is evaluating at-risk Black children at their Autism Clinical Center.
Lower Levels of Serotonin Transporters Found in Brains of Individuals with ASD
Scientists from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published a paper last month in Molecular Psychiatry which shows that people with autism have lower levels of a protein which regulates the amount of serotonin in the brain.
