What connects candida, autism?

CAIRO Sept19 (SEE): What is the relation between Cnadida and Autism?

Dr Magdy Badran, Ped Immunologist answers this question:

1 in 160 children has an autism spectrum disorders in the world. It refers to a range of neuro-developmental disorders characterized by three classic features – impaired communication and language, poor social engagement and repetitive behaviors.

It begins in childhood and tend to persist into adolescence and adulthood. Based on epidemiological studies conducted over the past 50 years, the prevalence of ASD appears to be increasing globally.

There are probably many factors that make a child more likely to have an ASD, including environmental and genetic factors.

Researches emerging within the past two decades suggest that early life immune dysfunction is a viable risk factor contributing to the neurodevelopmental deficits observed in ASDs .

During gestation, prenatal insults including maternal infection and subsequent immunological activation may increase the risk of autism in the child. Similarly, the presence of maternally derived anti-brain autoantibodies found in  about 20% of mothers whose children are at risk for developing autism has defined an additional subphenotype of ASD. The postnatal environment, on the other hand, is characterized by related but distinct profiles of immune dysregulation, inflammation, and endogenous autoantibodies that all persist within the affected inpidual. Immune dysregulation is common in families with autism, especially those with autoimmunity whereby the body attacks its own healthy cells as in Rheumatoid Arthritis,  and celiac disease .

Gastrointestinal symptoms are common in patients with autism. Up to 90% of autistic children suffer from gut disorders including where intestines become permeable enough that their contents leak into the body  and inflammatory bowel disease.

Children with ASDs are at risk of having alimentary tract disorders mainly, they are at a greater risk of general gastrointestinal concerns, constipation, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. Gastrointestinal symptoms may overlap with ASD core symptoms through different mechanisms.

These mechanisms include multilevel pathways in the gut–brain axis contributing to alterations in behavior and cognition.

Shared pathogenetic factors and pathophysiological mechanisms possibly linking ASD and gastrointestinal disturbances, as shown by most recent studies, include intestinal inflammation with or without autoimmunity, immunoglobulin E-mediated and/or cell-mediated gastrointestinal food allergies as well as gluten-related disorders (celiac disease, wheat allergy, non-celiac gluten sensitivity), visceral hypersensitivity linked with functional abdominal pain, and gastroesophageal reflux.

Leaky gut is caused by an insult that occurs to the gut that damages it. A healthy gut lining has tight gap junctions, which only allow certain sized particles to pass through it. When the gut becomes damaged by antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and poor diet the gap junctions are widened and allow particles to pass through the gut lining and get into the blood stream. This causes an imbalance of many systems in the body.

Candida and Autism have many strong associations. Great success may occur when treating  autistic children through the use of candida treatments. Both conditions can be traced back to the impact of antibiotic use. A very strong link between the gut-brain axis/association exists. The health of the intestinal flora has been demonstrated to play a role in autism

Candida is known to promote inflammation in the body, and inflammation further promotes the growth of candida. Candida also promotes dysregulation of the immune system .Celiac Disease has a strong relationship to candida as the candida cell wall proteins that resemble gluten( wheat )  proteins .

Candida overgrowth releases toxins , it produces ethanol which can have an intoxicating effect.

Candida lives on sugars in the  gut.When Candida consumes sugars, one of the byproducts that it releases is a neurotoxin called acetaldehyde. This is just one of seventy-nine different toxins that Candida releases.  The other is ethanol gas which can have an intoxicating effect on your body. Acetaldehyde can impair brain function.It is very common for candida sufferers to experience “brain fog”, sometimes very severe, as well as fatigue.Acetaldehyde also has very damaging effects on the endocrine, immune and respiratory systems.Abnormalities of the cerebellum,are now believed to be associated with autism.

The cerebellum contributes to cognitive functions such as language, visual-spatial understanding, auditory processing, verbal memory, fine motor regulation, and executive function. Injury or disease in the cerebellum are associated with difficulties in abstract reasoning, working memory and spatial cognition, as well as language deficits and reduced verbal fluency, and  Autism can present all of these characteristics.

Inpiduals with autism are particularly vulnerable to food and seasonal allergies and the associated symptoms can exacerbate cognitive and behavioral challenges. Autistic children  are liable to have allergy to certain foods as wheat , cow milk , Soy, and  food additives . Their allergy  can cause symptoms such as diarrhea, constipation, irritability, headaches, decreased attention span, hyperactivity or pain.

Children with autism have a 350% increased likelihood to suffer from diarrhea and / or constipation. The gastrointestinal concerns typically do not resolve once the child affected by ASD reaches adulthood. Alterations in the composition of the fecal flora and metabolic products of the gut microbiome (the microbes that live in the digestive tract)  in patients with autism. The gut microbiota influences brain development and an abnormal gut microbiota is associated with several diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease  , ASD and mood disorders.

Here are some advice to show how to deal with children with autism:

Each child with autism is unique and, so, each autism intervention plan should be tailored to address specific needs.I

Many persons with autism have additional medical conditions such as sleep disturbance, seizures and gastrointestinal (GI) distress. Addressing these conditions can improve attention, learning and related behaviors.Avoidance of certain foods benefits the behavior of autistic children.

Early intensive behavioral intervention involves a child's entire family, working closely with a team of professionals. This can include parent training with the parent leading therapy sessions under the supervision of the therapist.

Other programs deliver therapy in a specialized center, classroom or preschool. Music interventions  improve speech output among inpiduals with autism in the areas of vocalization, verbalization, and vocabulary. Singing can be especially helpful for teaching autistic children to effectively express their emotions.