# There is a cure for Autism...(mild) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [October 1, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066 "2008-10-01T20:26:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![torie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@torie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/1 "2008-10-01T20:26:12Z")
And Jenny McCarthy, who made a career of licking her armpit on television, discovered it before all the eminent scientists and researchers who have dedicated their lives and careers to fighting autism. Sure. Please, can someone shut her up now? [http://www.yahoo.com/s/963139](http://www.yahoo.com/s/963139) \<-------video There are great people in the scientific and medical community who really care (I know, crazy) about the children they treat. I am really tired of hearing this demonization and crazy conspiracy theories. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/2 "2008-10-01T20:33:58Z")
Jenny McCarthy should be put in jail for child endangerment. One actress with a cause versus the entire medical community, and somehow she is taken seriously as a voice in this debate. ---
**Author:** ![Palo\_Verde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/65b543/32.png) [@Palo\_Verde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palo_Verde)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/3 "2008-10-01T20:34:12Z")
Can you summarize what her brilliant thoery is? I don’t want to watch that video and give her more attention. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/4 "2008-10-01T20:35:45Z")
God, is it too much to ask to be notified when something is a video? I can’t run videos here at work. And I agree, maybe you could sum up? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/5 "2008-10-01T20:35:53Z")
> [@autz](#): > > Can you summarize what her brilliant thoery is? I don’t want to watch that video and give her more attention. Stop watching MTV, probably. ---
**Author:** ![Jayn\_Newell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jayn\_Newell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayn_Newell)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/6 "2008-10-01T20:37:26Z")
> [@autz](#): > > Can you summarize what her brilliant thoery is? I got as far as “Vaccines gave my son autism” (her first line) before shutting it down. It there’s anything else worth (ha!) hearing, I’d like to know too. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/7 "2008-10-01T20:39:17Z")
* * * > [@Anaamika](#): > > God, is it too much to ask to be notified when something is a video? I can’t run videos here at work. And I agree, maybe you could sum up? > [@](#): > > There is controversy surrounding Jenny’s claims that the diet and supplement plan is working. Some think Jenny is giving parents of autistic children “false hope”. [http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article\_212175887.shtml](http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_212175887.shtml) > [@](#): > > Jenny McCarthy is spreading the word about her hopes that a gluten free diet can reverse autism, or at least alleviate some of its symptoms. While any progress on this frustrating condition are welcome, it’s wise to remember that McCarthy and others who believe in this diet don’t have any good science backing up her claims. As countless parents now have learned, as soon as you set out to learn about autism, you run into frustrating unknowns. [http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/7083](http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/7083) [QUOTE=back in April] We believe what helped Evan recover was starting a gluten-free, casein-free diet, vitamin supplementation, detox of metals, and anti-fungals for yeast overgrowth that plagued his intestines. Once Evan’s neurological function was recovered through these medical treatments, speech therapy and applied behavior analysis helped him quickly learn the skills he could not learn while he was frozen in autism. After we implemented these therapies for one year, the state re-evaluated Evan for further services. They spent five minutes with Evan and said, “What happened? We’ve never seen a recovery like this.” [/QUOTE] [Jenny McCarthy: My son's recovery from autism - CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/02/mccarthy.autsimtreatment/index.html) Of course, there’s nothing new about the _claim_: > [@](#): > > Dietary Intervention may be that one piece of “the puzzle” which helps a child with ASD toward the road for recovery Assisting Parents & Individuals With the GFCF Diet **Since 1999** [http://www.gfcfdiet.com/](http://www.gfcfdiet.com/) Here’s a book from 2001: [Diet Intervention and Autism: Implementing the Gluten Free and Casein Free ... - Marilyn Le Breton - Google Books](http://books.google.com/books?id=wNkwxO_pkaMC&printsec=frontcover&dq=autism+gluten+free+casein+free&ei=S-HjSNHpHomUMtf93NcL&client=firefox-a&sig=ACfU3U27s3QjzgSUwS0XjkhyJ0Sj2yNJeA) And the classic Special Diets for Special Kids–from 1998: [Special Diets for Special Kids: Understanding and Implementing Special Diets ... - Lisa S. Lewis, Lisa Lewis - Google Books](http://books.google.com/books?id=WWbjDQHzDTcC&printsec=frontcover&dq=autism+gluten+free+casein+free&lr=&ei=guHjSKPVIpysMszD2NcL&client=firefox-a&sig=ACfU3U2MdMIDLIEs-iJppztAti5SGU89lw) ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/8 "2008-10-01T20:45:40Z")
Apparently she (and lover Jim Carrey) think that toxins in vaccines cause autism, and vitamins such as B-12 cure it. ---
**Author:** ![torie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@torie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/9 "2008-10-01T20:46:07Z")
Sorry. She cured her son’s autism by changing his diet, giving him vitamins and supplements, and detoxing the body of hard metals. She was quick to say the detoxification did not involve chelation. She then went on about how greed has compelled the medical community to lie to us about how safe vaccines are. Also, the medical community does not want to find or acknowledge cures for autism because then they would have to acknowledge that the vaccines caused the autism. She might as well spit in the face of all the people who have dedicated their lives and careers to researching autism, as I said above. But I guess that’s ok because they are part of the evil “establishment”. Oh, and because it’s too late to edit my OP, it’s not too much to ask to be warned when something is a video. I just forgot. It’s a video. ETA: And everything **GFactor** said. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/10 "2008-10-01T20:48:02Z")
> [@torie](#): > > Oh, and because it’s too late to edit my OP, it’s not too much to ask to be warned when something is a video. I just forgot. It’s a video. I added a warning for you. ---
**Author:** ![torie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@torie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/11 "2008-10-01T20:50:35Z")
> [@Gfactor](#): > > I added a warning for you. Thanks. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/12 "2008-10-01T20:51:20Z")
Hmm, how much profit does “the medical community” make on vaccines? ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/13 "2008-10-01T20:56:52Z")
Here’s an abstract from a recent study on gfcf diets and autism: > [@](#): > > This study tested the efficacy of a gluten-free and casein-free (GFCF) diet in treating autism using a randomized, double blind repeated measures crossover design. The sample included 15 children aged 2–16 years with autism spectrum disorder. Data on autistic symptoms and urinary peptide levels were collected in the subjects’ homes over the 12 weeks that they were on the diet. Group data indicated\*\* no statistically significant findings \*\*even though several parents reported improvement in their children (Emphasis added.) [http://www.springerlink.com/content/8575wx07436024k5/](http://www.springerlink.com/content/8575wx07436024k5/) and another: > [@](#): > > Research has shown of high rates of use of complementary and alternative therapies (CAM) for children with autism including gluten and/or casein exclusion diets. Current evidence for efficacy of these diets is poor. Large scale, good quality randomised controlled trials are needed. [Gluten- and casein-free diets for autistic spectrum disorder - PubMed](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18425890?ordinalpos=1&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DiscoveryPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstractPlus) ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/14 "2008-10-01T20:57:06Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Hmm, how much profit does “the medical community” make on vaccines? Enough to at least pay for the electricity in their spooky, cliff-top, perpetually engulfed in a lightning storm castle. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/15 "2008-10-01T20:58:38Z")
I’d still do her. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/16 "2008-10-01T20:58:38Z")
Jenny McCarthy starred in _The Stupids_. Don’t get me wrong, I get angry when people spout this bullshit, but in her case… need we say more? ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/17 "2008-10-01T21:02:51Z")
Yeah, your son “died for two minutes.” My great-uncle died of whooping cough when he was three-for good. It’s a damned good thing for Ms. McCarthy my great-grandmother’s dead. I don’t think she’d want to encounter her. ---
**Author:** ![lavenderviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/cdc98d/32.png) [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/18 "2008-10-01T21:06:23Z")
Here’s a text version of her kookery: > **[Jenny McCarthy: My son's recovery from autism - CNN.com](https://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/02/mccarthy.autsimtreatment/index.html?eref=rss_topstories)** > > In light of the recent Hannah Poling decision, in which the federal court conceded that vaccines could have contributed to her autism, we think the tide is finally turning in the direction of parents like us who have been shouting concerns from our... And here are some more stories on just how wacked out this chick is: > **[Sign in - Google Accounts](https://accounts.google.com/v3/signin/identifier?continue=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogin%3Fu%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fautismdiva.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F09%2Fjenny-mccarthy-and-problem-of-illusions.html&dsh=S688426451%3A1777563543027337&followup=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogger.com%2Fblogin%3Fu%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fautismdiva.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F09%2Fjenny-mccarthy-and-problem-of-illusions.html&passive=1209600&flowName=GlifWebSignIn&flowEntry=ServiceLogin&ifkv=AWa2Pauv8B1rD8W80DxgDaz4IWmSSTSW3J8mSeLsV0QRkvPlGQ-aTynim2wCIWrnwrceNXzAyUQt)** I love this part of her story: > [@](#): > > Evan is now 5 years old and what might surprise a lot of you is that we’ve never been contacted by a single member of the CDC, the American Academy of Pediatrics, or any other health authority to evaluate and understand how Evan recovered from autism. When Evan meets doctors and neurologists, to this day they tell us he was misdiagnosed – that he never had autism to begin with. It’s as if they are wired to believe that children can’t recover from autism. A normal person might actually stop and think, “Wow, maybe it’s not that every doctor I meet is terribly closed-minded. Maybe, just maybe, I was mistaken and misinformed about a topic that I have never received any actual formal education about.” But of course, celebrities are able to get away with being as deluded as they want to be. ---
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/19 "2008-10-01T21:14:20Z")
Many psychiatrists (or so my brother, a rather eminent child psychiatrist himself tells me) despair of the term _Autistic Spectrum_ as to many it implies that all those so diagnosed suffer from the same condition, varying only in the degree. In fact it is more likely that there are several causes which lead to autistic symptoms (he use the word _phenotype_ in his explanation, but I forget exactly the phrase he used :smack:). From this it would seem safe to assume that any treatment is likely to be effective in only a proportion of cases. ---
**Author:** ![spoike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/da6949/32.png) [@spoike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spoike)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2008, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066/20 "2008-10-01T21:28:43Z")
When my autistic, albeit high-functioning, son was just over a year old, we discovered he was allergic to cow’s milk, and subsequently to goat’s milk. Soon after he turned seven , it was determined he had (finally) grown out of it. For those six years, he consumed no milk, no casein, no sodium caseinate, no calcium caseinate, and no whey or whey products. Oddly, following a very rigid casein-free diet made absolutely no difference to his demeanour or to his autism in any way. None. Granted, perhaps that’s because we weren’t expecting to see any change, but I doubt it. Jenny McCarthy is giving false hope to millions of parents, and aside from being ignorant, that’s just really cruel. There is enough struggle and heartache associated with being a parent of a child with special needs, or, for that matter, the child him/herself without having to add this kind of ignorance to it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/there-is-a-cure-for-autism-mild/466066.md?page=2)