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5 Weight Loss Hacks To Shed That Winter Weight Gain

by Koru Nutrition | Jan 24, 2023 | Koru Nutrition Blog

Every year, weight loss is one of the top new year’s resolutions. But before you sign-up for that expensive gym membership, check out these 5 awesome weight loss hacks we’ve put together to help shed those winter lbs.

#1 DRINK LOTS OF WATER

Yeah, yeah – we all hear and know that we have to drink more water – but do we? And do we really know why drinking water is so important apart from everyone telling us to?

Our bodies are made up of 60-65% of water so we need water to help support our metabolism and all the various functions in the body. Water helps to metabolize fat as well as help you feel full. Often people mistake feeling hungry when, in fact, they are thirsty. So instead of grabbing a water bottle people will often grab food instead.

Research shows that drinking water before meals results in an average reduction of 75 calories per meal which can equate to a whopping 27,000 fewer calories per year. (WebMD). Ideally you want to minimize drinking during the meal as this can dilute your digestive juices and make it more taxing on your digestive system. Try our refreshing keto lemonade recipe loaded in electrolytes if you struggle to drink just plain water.

Just remember if you are thirsty, you are already 5% dehydrated and will be experiencing a 25-30% loss in energy! When fatigued this might leave you more inclined to look for something sweet to give you that energy burst, when really you need fluids. Mild dehydration can also cause your metabolism to slow down by 3%. So there are a number of reasons why drinking adequate amounts of water can help you feel and look your best.

Health Canada recommends that women should consume on average 2.7 liters per day and men 3.7 liters per day. But if you work out, go in a sauna, steam rooms, or in hot weather you may need more than this.

#2 INTERMITTENT FASTING

This has definitely been growing as a popular weight loss strategy and this is not surprising. There is no mess, no fancy recipes to follow, it helps to save money as you are missing meals and it has been proven to help successfully lose weight.

Intermittent fasting (IF) is not a diet but an eating pattern and involves restricting your eating window during the day. This can include a 4, 8, or 12 hour window to eat.

Intermittent fasting has been proven to help people lose weight for a number of reasons. Not only are you reducing calories by reducing the amount of opportunity to eat but, intermittent fasting has been shown to lower insulin levels and increase growth hormone levels, which assists with fat loss and muscle gain. It also increases the release of the fat burning hormone, norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and can increase your metabolic rate by 3.6–14% which means while you are sitting here reading this article you are burning more calories that what you would before.

People often experience less anxiety, depression, and feel happier than usual when doing IF. This might help people who struggle with emotional eating and over eating. For more information on intermittent fasting, go to our article.

#3 THERMOGENIC FOODS

Thermogenic foods are foods that can help increase metabolism and calorie burning. This is a process in which the body burns calories to utilize the foods you have just eaten. Each time you eat, the muscles in your gastrointestinal tract start working faster, your stomach starts to produce digestive juices and every nutrient requires a different amount of energy to be broken down and absorbed.

There are thermogenic foods and negative calorie foods – which means, that your body uses more energy to help digest the calories in food, resulting in a calorie deficit. Approximately 10% of calories are burned through diet-induced thermogenesis.

Scientists from University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust and the University of Warwick looked at the energy required to digest celery. Raw celery contains 53 calories, but it took 72 calories to digest the raw celery so it actually ran a calorie deficit.

Examples of thermogenic foods include: almonds, apples, berries, citrus fruits, cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower), cucumber, green leafy veggies, mushrooms, cinnamon, ginger, Turmeric, hot spices, coffee and hot peppers.

#4 GREEN TEA

Who knew that sipping on green tea can do wonders for your waistline! Research shows that habitual tea drinkers had an average of 19.6% less body fat, and had slimmer waists, than people who didn’t drink tea regularly. Most of these tea drinkers chose green tea (Journal of Obesity Research). Check out our delicious calming tea recipes.

The great thing about green tea is that it contains a flavonoid called EGCG, which helps burn fat and reduce diet-induced obesity and research shows that it also helps to keep the weight off afterwards (Obesity Research, June 2005). EGCG, can help inhibit an enzyme that breaks down the hormone norepinephrine (1). When this enzyme is inhibited, the amount of norepinephrine increases, promoting fat breakdown and weight loss (2).

Also, green tea contains L-theanine, a calming amino acid which can help decrease cortisol, a stress hormone linked with anxiety (12). Excess cortisol is responsible for that nice tire around our belly so managing cortisol can really help to slim down waistlines.

#5 HOT PEPPERS

Jalapenos contain a compound called capsaicin. Capsaicin can increase your body’s fat burning ability, which promotes weight loss. Jalapenos are found in salsa and research from Oxford University showed that salsa can stimulate the metabolism by 20-25%.

Salsa is a great alternative to ketchup for a number of reasons. Ketchup is heavily loaded in sugar. 2 tablespoons of Ketchup have 40 calories and 7.5 teaspoons of sugar, while 2 tablespoons of Salsa are less than 10 calories and 2 teaspoons of sugar. Add on the fat burning properties of the capsaicin in the salsa and you have a great weight loss condiment. Add salsa to your eggs, on burgers, as a dip or with your chicken.

TRY OUR FAT BURNING WEIGHT LOSS DRINK BELOW!

To get more bang for your buck try our weight loss virgin bloody mary which is loaded with fat burning properties. This is a great option when entertaining or out with friends, without feeling the pressure of drinking.

References

Top 4 Nutrition Strategies Aggression and Defiant Behaviors in Children

by Kylie James | Aug 7, 2022 | Koru Nutrition Blog

In this day in age, the prevalence of behavioral and mood problems in children have come an all-time high.

Numerous factors may contribute to a particular child’s struggles with anger, irritability, or aggression (behavior that can cause harm to oneself or another). One common trigger is frustration when a child cannot get what he or she wants, or is asked to do something that he or she might not feel like doing. For children, anger issues often accompany other neurological or mental health conditions including Autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and Tourette’s syndrome. Frequent angry outbursts and aggressive behaviors can interfere with family life, with a child’s ability to make friends, and may negatively impact school performance.

With aggressive and problematic behaviors and outbursts parents can become desperate and may look to physicians for medication to help control these. But by exploring other options such as nutrition, specific diets and supplementation first you may potentially help to avoid the need for medications and the adverse side effects that go along with this. This is not to imply that medications should be avoided as you need to do what’s best for your child, but it is important to explore all avenues and find out what works best.

Below, we review our top 4 nutrition strategies to explore in an attempt to significantly improve – or even resolve – your child’s aggressive or defiant behavior.

#1. Food Allergies, Food Intolerances, and Food Sensitivities

Food reactions, including allergies, intolerances, and sensitivities can be a contributory factor to aggressive and defiant behaviors. Although gluten and casein are two commonly discussed food-based triggers (especially with kids on the spectrum), an individual can be reactive to any food.

Blood work is one way to explore food allergies and sensitives, however, a food elimination diet is still considered the gold standard in determining a food reaction.

An important nutritional starting point for any child with Autism or ADD/ADHD is implementing a gluten and dairy-free diet. There must be 100% compliance with this approach as it only takes a microscopic amounts of gluten or casein to cause a reaction in sensitized individuals.

To reduce feelings of overwhelm some individuals opt to explore eliminating one of the food groups first and then the other. With removal of the dairy protein casein, you can start to see results in behaviors within 1-3 weeks (providing that casein is an issue), and with gluten changes may be seen within 1-3 months (if gluten is an issue). It is important to track behaviors before removal of any foods, during elimination, and after reintroduction (if reintroduction is attempted). Research shows that parents noticed 55% improvements in behavior in their children who are autistic with removing one of the food groups, and 69% improvement with removing both gluten and casein simultaneously.

Another way to help determine if your child has a food intolerance is to identify what your child is addicted to or constantly craves. Children tend to be addicted to the foods that they have food reactions to because it creates an opioid-like response in their brain. With this natural high that they receive with a food addiction a child may tend to have a high pain tolerance level (due to the opioid-like response in the brain dampening pain experiences), inattention and spacey behavior, as well as aggression (to self and others), poor eye contact, as well as mood changes such as anxiety, depression and irritability.

Working with a health professional like a naturopathic doctor or nutritionist can be beneficial to help navigate the identification of potential food allergens, food intolerances, or food sensitivities as well as to assist with the implementation and tracking required during a therapeutic food elimination diet.

#2 Reduce Sugar

Sugar is hidden almost everywhere, disguised under many other names, and can even be found in many savory foods. Ketchup, crackers, pasta sauces, deli meat, and even peanut butter frequently contain large amounts of added sugar, and this is just to name a few. Sugar is significantly linked with aggressive behaviors and can cause a rapid rise of adrenaline, hyperactivity, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and moodiness in children (1). In juvenile rehabilitation camps, when children were put on a low sugar diet, there was a whopping 44% drop in antisocial behaviour (2).

When you think of a daily standard western diet for children it can often begin with sugar-loaded cereals (often marketed as “healthy”) for breakfast; lunch meats, crackers, and treats in their school lunches; packaged after-school snacks like granola bars, fruit gummies, or cookies; packaged “kids foods” like chicken nuggets or macaroni and cheese for dinner; and then often ending the day with dessert. But, the majority of sugar is often consumed in sweetened beverages such as juice, pop, energy drinks, electrolyte drinks, and chocolate milk.

Not only does sugar consumption led to blood sugar imbalances that can result in negative behaviours, but it also impacts nutrient levels in the body. Sugar upsets many mineral relationships in the body including; causing chromium and copper deficiencies and interfering with absorption of calcium and magnesium, which are key minerals that help to calm the nervous system and reduce the stress and anxiety that may contribute to outbursts. (3)

Be aware of sugar intake in your food products and take the time to read labels. It is recommended that children should limit consumption to a maximum of 25 grams of added sugar per day, which is about the amount in a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios and 3 Tbsp of ketchup. It is recommended that children consume no more than 8 oz of sugar-sweetened beverages per week.

For better sugar options check out our article on the best sugars to use.

#3 Low-Phenol Diet

Low Phenol diets are particularly helpful for children that struggle with aggression, defiant behaviors, and mood instability such as irritability, frustration, anger, rage, sadness, anxiety, and inappropriate laughter. Low-phenol diets include removal of foods high in salicylates , glutamate and amines. It’s important to note that foods high in amines are correlated to defiant behaviors and foods high in glutamate have been linked to aggression and rage.

Foods high in amines that could be contributing to defiant behaviors include banana; yellow, aged, or blue cheese; chocolate/cocoa; fermented foods such as yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, tempeh, or soy sauce; bone broths; and meat or aged meat.

Foods high in glutamates that could be contributing to aggression and rage include foods that contain MSG or autolyzed yeast; soy sauce; parmesan cheese; marmite/vegemite; sauerkraut; bone broths, gelatin; and peas, corn and tomatoes.

The Failsafe diet is a diet the focuses on removal of these particular food groups as well as salicylates that can help support behavior stability and reduced symptoms of aggression, irritability and outbursts. For more information on this specific diet please refer to our article on The Low-Salycilate Diet.

#4 Supplementation

Deficiencies in certain nutrients might also be impacting mood and contributing to aggressive or defiant behaviors.

A Jim Adams study (2001) looked at supplementation in children on the spectrum to determine if, in fact, supplements help to address mood and behaviors. Specifically, parents were surveyed to identify how much children’s symptoms improved during treatment, and the following was identified:

With Magnesium supplementation there was a improvement noted in children’s behavior, Vitamin B6 (30%) but B6 with magnesium was (49%), Calcium 36%, Zinc 54%, Vitamin B12 72%, folic acid 45%, vitamin B3 45%, Vitamin A 44%, Vitamin C 46%, Omega 3 fatty acids 59%, digestive enzymes 62%, and melatonin 66%. (4)

The symptom improvements noted after supplementing for 3 months included not only improving hyperactivity, temper tantrums, social ability and eye contact but also improvements in expressive language, recreational language, play, cognition, and digestion. (4)

John Adams concluded that “The data from this study strongly suggests that oral vitamin/mineral supplementation is beneficial in improving the nutritional and metabolic status of children with autism, and in reducing their symptoms.”

Summary

Aggressive or defiant behaviors and frequent temper tantrums in children can be stressful and challenging, and there are a number of underlying reasons why this can be occurring. Often children on the spectrum can struggle with breakdowns in certain biochemical pathways leading to the need to be on a low-phenol diet which looks at eliminating foods high in salicylates, glutamates, and amines. High sugar intake and blood sugars imbalance can be a key place to start as well as exploring potential food reactions. Getting blood work to determine if there are nutrient deficiencies might be another avenue to take.

It is important to explore the underlying cause of the behaviors, which are often multifactorial, but assessing biochemistry and nutrition status is very valuable. Seeking out a Naturopathic doctor and/or nutritionist to explore testing options and therapeutic diets is crucial in knowing what direction to take and ensuring changes are made safely and effectively. If your family would benefit from support relating to aggressive or defiant behaviours, please reach out. We’re here to help!

References

Jones, T. W., et al. Enhanced Adrenomedullary Response and Increased Susceptibility to Neuroglygopenia: Mechanisms Underlying the Adverse Effect of Sugar Ingestion in Children. Journal of Pediatrics. Feb 1995;126:171-7.
Schoenthaler, S. The Los Angeles Probation Department Diet-Behavior Program: Am Empirical Analysis of Six Institutional Settings. Int J Biosocial Res , 1983 5(2):88-89.
Couzy, F., et al. “Nutritional Implications of the Interaction Minerals,” Progressive Food and Nutrition Science 17;1933:65-87
Adams, J. B., Audhya, T., McDonough-Means, S., Rubin, R. A., Quig, D., Geis, E., & Lee, W. (2011).

Autism & the Low-Salicylate Diet

by Kylie James | Aug 1, 2022 | Koru Nutrition Blog

Phenol is a type of organic compound that can be found in food or can be man-made from petroleum products and used as additives in food and personal care items. They are used commercially as preservatives and can be used to enhance flavours.

There are different types of phenols including salicylates, glutamates and amines. These compounds can cause problems for anyone who has gut issues such as “leaky gut syndrome”. They are also especially problematic for children because they are naturally more sensitive to chemicals due to their less developed nerve myelin sheaths (the protective coating that surrounds our nerves to enable smooth communication between nerves).

In this article we’ll discuss salicylates specifically including what they are and when you might need to implement a low-salicylate diet with your child.

What Are Salicylates?

Salicylates are a natural pesticide found in plants. You will be surprised to know that foods high in salicylates can be found in many healthy fruits, vegetables and nuts including berries, apples, grapes, tomatoes, almonds, avocado, spinach and honey.

Why Would You Need to Implement a Low-Salicylate Diet?

For people that have difficulty with processing salicylates in the body a low-salicylate diet is needed.

Salicylates must be broken down in the body by a process called sulfation which occurs in the liver. Our body also uses a particular enzyme called phenol-sulpho-transferase (also known as PST) to help break down salicylates. So, when one or both of these detoxification pathways are impacted, salicylates cannot be cleared from the body, resulting in various adverse effects.

For people that have difficulty with sulfation or lack this enzyme they need to reduce their intake of foods high in salicylates in order to help to relieve the burden on various biochemical processes and structures in the body that may be compensating for the reduced ability to detoxify these plant compounds.

If salicylates remain in the body, they can cause numerous problems such as inflammation, poor digestion and can negatively impact the nervous system. Consuming salicylates without the adequate capacity to detoxify them can create leaky gut, bacterial imbalances in the gut, difficulties with overall detoxification, hormonal imbalances, blood-brain-barrier dysfunction, and can interfere with neurotransmitters leading to various cognitive and behavioral problems

Symptoms Related To Difficulty Processing Salicylates

As reported by Julie Matthews, award-winning author of Nourishing Hope for Autism, the signs and symptoms that an individual has difficulty processing salicylates include:

Aggression
Cravings for high-salicylate foods
Dark circles under eyes
Defiant behaviour
Diarrhea
Difficulty falling asleep at night
Fatigue
Headaches
Hyperactivity
Impatience
Inappropriate laughter
Incontinence or bed wetting
Poor neuromuscular function
Red cheeks and/or ears
Respiratory issues
Self-injurious behaviour/head banging
Skin rashes
Sleep walking

In addition to observing symptom patterns, known sulfite reactions, as well as lab results completed by a naturopath doctor are other ways to confirm a problem with an individual’s ability to perform sulfation and process salicylates.

What is the Low Salicylate Diet?

There are actually 2 types of low salicylate diets: the Feingold diet and Failsafe diet. Both diets require the elimination of certain foods for 3-6 weeks and then systematic reintroduction to assess tolerance and whether that food is best avoided or if it is safe to begin including in the diet once again.

The Feingold Diet

The Feingold diet helps to address hyperactivity and avoids high salicylates. It includes a smaller list of foods to avoid and is easier to implement than the Failsafe diet. The Feingold diet requires a person to eliminate high salicylate foods for 4-6 weeks and then reintroduce the food back into the diet one by one and in small to medium amounts while tracking symptoms and potential reactions.

The Failsafe Diet

The Failsafe diet avoids salicylates as well as foods high in amines and glutamates. This diet is more comprehensive and accurate, but limits a lot more foods so is harder to implement. The Failsafe diet requires elimination of foods for at least 3 weeks and then adds in 6 salicylates every day for a week while tracking symptoms and potential reactions. After all the salicylate foods are introduced, amine containing foods are assessed next.

There are different ways health professionals will reintroduce foods back in based on an individual’s known body chemistry, their food addictions, their diet profile, and their behaviors. It can be overwhelming and somewhat intimidating when exploring a restrictive diet like this, so working with a clinician that is experienced with these diets may be the best approach to take. A qualified clinician can help you navigate the decision-making process about which therapeutic diet strategy is right for you, as well as assist with the implementation of a chosen dietary plan.

Benefits of the Low-Salicylate Diet

It can help dramatically improve behaviours
Can help improve many body systems such as neurological, digestion, detoxification, endocrine
Can help individuals with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) to reduce gut pain that has been caused by foods high in salicylates

Drawbacks of the Low-Salicylate Diet

It can be confusing and more difficult to identify an intolerance when salicylates, amine and glutamates are all issues.
It is restrictive.
Long term implementation of the diet can result in nutrient deficiencies since it involves the elimination of many fruits and vegetables.

Summary

A low-salicylate diet such as Feingold or Failsafe can be an effective way to help manage and reduce symptoms caused by faulty sulfation or lack the PST enzyme which makes it difficult for a person to break down foods high in salicylates, such as berries, grapes, apples and almonds.

It is important to understand an individual’s biochemistry, history, and dietary habits to know what the optimal therapeutic diet approach. Please reach out to a health professional experienced in these diets and with you or your child’s current symptoms in order to find the most suitable and effective.

Autism & the Low-Oxalate Diet

by Kylie James | Apr 20, 2021 | Koru Nutrition Blog

In practice, we are seeing more and more kids with high levels of oxalates in the body and the need to be put on a low oxalate diet. This presents often with kids on the spectrum, and is caused by a number of different factors. At Koru Nutrition , we want to help educate you on the basic principles of what oxalates are, and how they can impact our kids with autism.

What are Oxalates?

Oxalate (also called oxalic acid) is a naturally occurring substance found in abundance in plants and humans. The role of oxalates in plants is protective and it’s believed that it acts primarily as an insecticide. Oxalate is not a required nutrient for humans, in fact it is often labeled as an “anti-nutrient”, and too much can lead to kidney stones.

In the gut of a healthy person, oxalate binds with calcium and other minerals and is excreted in the stool before being absorbed. It follows that one of the problems with having too many oxalates is that you run the risk of poor absorption of minerals, in particular, calcium. This can be an issue for growing kids as it can impact quantity and quality of bone growth and density.

High Oxalate Foods Include:

It may be surprising that most high oxalate foods are foods that most of us consider to be healthy and good for us! And really, these are healthy foods for the average person. But, if someone has problems with processing oxalates and a build-up occurs in the body, then they can be faced with numerous challenges.

Some foods high in oxalates include:

Nuts, especially almonds and peanuts
Most beans
Beets
Figs
Rhubarb, Swiss chard, field greens and spinach
Amaranth and buckwheat
Soy
Sweet potatoes
Raspberries and blackberries
Cocoa and dark chocolate
Tea

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but can provide an idea that basic, everyday, healthy foods may be a problem for our kids with autism.

How can you tell if you, or your child, have high oxalates?

First, you need to determine if you or your child presents with signs of symptoms of high oxalates, which we’ve listed below. Look at the big picture. Does there appear to be consistency within the symptom list below? If so, then you may wish to consider having an organic acid test (OAT) run by a Naturopathic Doctor or other health professional that specializes in autism.

Symptoms of high oxalates in the body include:

Headaches, depression, anxiety, brain fog

Restlessness, moodiness
Pain (anywhere) – genital, joints, muscles, intestine, eyes
Cracking in joints
Low energy and fatigue
Weakness
Sleeping challenges
Burning feet
Respiratory infections and symptoms
Gas and bloating
Bedwetting and incontinence
Frequent urination
Urinary pain
Cloudy urine
Crystals in urine
Sandy stools
Black specs in stools
Burning in stool
Yeast overgrowth
Rashes
Consuming or craving a high oxalate diet
Fine or gross motor challenges
Poor growth in children
Blood sugar imbalances

Why Does My Child Have High Oxalates?

There are a number of reasons why certain kids (or adults) may have a build-up of oxalates in the body.

One reason is genetics: Some people are predisposed to high oxalates based on their DNA. So, a diet high in oxalates can contribute to a problem with high oxalates in the body for these individuals.

Another reason is Vitamin B6 deficiency: B6 is a cofactor for one of the enzymes in the body that helps reduce oxalates (and kidney stones). Additionally, the human body can produce its own oxalate during metabolism, and B6 helps decrease oxalate production.

The last reason we’ll discuss in this post is low levels of beneficial bacteria in the gut: The good bacteria in our gut can help break down oxalates, making it easier to excrete from the body. When the levels of good bacteria in the gut are low (which is frequently the case in kids with autism), higher amounts of oxalate can be absorbed from the digestive system into the body. If your child has been on multiple courses of antibiotics, this can also contribute to high oxalates, as antibiotics are indiscriminate and will not only kill the target bad bacteria, but also the good bacteria present in the gut. Antibiotics are known to disrupt the gut microbiome, but a specific bacteria called oxalobacter formigenes, which is a bacteria that specifically helps breakdown and get rid of excess oxalates, is particularly susceptible to antibiotics.

What Does Oxalates Have To Do With Autism?

Because oxalates in high amounts interfere with certain nutrients and metabolic pathways, it can cause:

inflammation;
leaky gut and yeast overgrowth (candida)
contribute to nutrient deficiencies with minerals, biotin and glutathione
can increase histamine (triggering allergic symptoms)
can contribute to mitochondrial damage (mitochondria are the batteries of our cell so mitochondrial damage contributes to fatigue and weakness)
seizures
faulty sulfation (sulfation is an important mode of detoxification in humans)
oxidative stress and high amounts of free radical damage (oxidative stress is a phenomenon where there is an imbalance in potentially damaging compounds in the body as compared to the protective compounds in the body or the body’s ability to detoxify)

All of the above are potential issues that children on the spectrum may experience.

So, implementing a low oxalate diet may address many underlying health issues that can be contributing to an autistic child’s symptoms and affecting their quality of life.

How The Low Oxalate Diet Works?

The low oxalate diet works by reducing oxalates coming into the body from an individual’s diet in order to reduce the total oxalate burden. Further, by reducing the oxalates consumed in the diet, it gives the body more time to release and excrete the stored oxalates in the body as well.

Additionally, implementing a low oxalate diet and incorporating a specific supplement program can help reduce oxalates being generated in the body, balance biochemistry which has been thrown out of whack by the high oxalate levels, and help manage overall symptoms.

How To Implement A Low Oxalate Diet

Warning: It is important to implement the low oxalate diet slowly.

Oxalates are often stored up in body tissues. So when you reduce the dietary intake of oxalates, allowing the body a chance to get rid of the stored oxalates, a process called “dumping” can occur. Dumping is when the body’s cells release stored oxalates, which can cause symptoms to get worse, usually occurring in cycles while a person is on a low oxalate diet. To avoid heavy dumping and manage symptom flare ups, it is important to go slow. In fact, done properly, it can take several weeks or months to fully implement the diet.

How Do I Avoid Heavy Oxalate Dumping?

To undertake a low oxalate diet in a way that avoids heavy dumping of stored oxalate, it is recommended to focus on consuming 40-60mg of oxalates in a 2000 calorie diet. In more practical terms, this will mean consuming mostly low oxalate foods with a few medium oxalate foods.

Specific food preparation techniques can help reduce oxalate content in foods. Specifically, boiling reduces oxalates in beans and vegetables by about 50% (not enough for high oxalate foods) and soaking grains, beans, nuts and seeds will reduce oxalates, but be sure to drain and rinse after soaking.

We’re here to help!

It can be overwhelming and stressful to undertake a specialized, therapeutic diet; especially if your child is a picky eater and already has a limited repertoire of foods that they will consume.

If you or your child would benefit from more support understanding the connection between oxalates and autism, or how to safely implement a low oxalate diet, our clinicians that specialize in autism are ready to help!

Autism and Nutrition: Where To Start?

by Kylie James | Apr 6, 2021 | Koru Nutrition Blog

It can be overwhelming and challenging having a child on the Autism Spectrum. As parents it can be hard to see your child struggle with communication and behaviour challenges, difficulties socially interacting with their peers, and/or the ability to concentrate and focus in school.

Meal times can be especially stressful if your child is picky and refuses to eat; sometimes limiting their foods to just a couple of different items. Then you go and see a health professional, and they may recommend you remove certain triggers, thereby restricting their food intake even more…aaarrgh!!

So, where do you start?

First, let’s backtrack a bit and explore what causes Autism…

What Causes Autism?

Autism is a neurological condition where body chemistry influences brain chemistry. Diet and nutrition are the building blocks that affect this biochemistry.

There is not one single cause of autism. In fact, there are quite a number of different reasons that your child may present with the symptoms or behaviours that they do.

Autistic people have a higher likelihood of having problems with detoxification in relation to environmental pollutants; artificial colourings, flavourings, and other additives in foods (which are so common in a North American diet); and/or a decreased ability to detoxify the body of these. This can be due to a compromised immune system from gut inflammation, food allergies and intolerances, invading gut pathogens, microflora imbalances, or digestive issues such as “leaky gut”. This could also be due to oxidative stress, or differences in certain chemical pathways in the body, such as methylation and sulfation.

The above potential variance in detoxification and metabolism in people with autism are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to innate biochemical differences that may be present. That is one reason why having a key focus on determining which underlying cause or causes (as often it can be more than one) there are for your child’s symptoms and behaviours.

So, where to begin?

Often, the first step is to determine underlying triggers, which may mean having blood work or other laboratory testing completed by a health professional that is specialized in autism.

Laboratory testing done by an autism specialist, such as an experienced Naturopathic Doctor, can provide valuable information including identifying nutrient deficiencies, food allergies and intolerances, gut issues, microbiome imbalances, immune problems and biological differences with certain biochemical pathways.

As Nutritionists we can then help create strategies for your day-to-day life, in a hands-on way, that assist in the implementation of recommendations made by your Naturopathic Doctor or Functional Medicine Practitioner after testing. We have experience collaborating with other specialists to support the overall treatment plan required. Of course, we’re happy to offer our food or nutrient specific expertise as well!

What happens after lab tests have identified underlying issue(s)?

There are many potential options that would be evaluated on an individual basis including:

Supplement recommendations, as nutrient deficiencies are common due to several factors including poor diets (from being picky eaters) and imbalanced digestive systems affecting the ability to break down and absorb food.
A specialized diet may be recommended for your child. Making dietary changes can promote systemic healing and help improve mood, learning and behaviour. We recognize that dietary changes in itself come with their own set of challenges.

Autism and Special Diets

Gluten and Dairy Free Diets

There is an abundance of diets that have been shown to help children with Autism. The most common and ideal starting point is going gluten and dairy free, as so many children on the spectrum are often sensitive to the proteins gluten and casein.

In fact, a AIR Survey of parent ratings on treatment success of implementing a gluten and dairy free diet with kids on the spectrum showed that 55% of children experienced improvements on a casein free diet (based on 6950 children), 55% experienced improvements on a wheat free diet (based on 4340 children), and 69% of children experienced improvements on the combined casein and gluten free diet (based on 3593 children). It was also found that children experienced improvements on a casein free diet within a month, and that it took 1-3 months of elimination to see improvements on a gluten free diet.

Implementing a gluten and dairy free diet can be challenging. But, working with an experienced Nutritionist to help guide you on your child’s journey through these changes can be very helpful.

Why are gluten and casein so harmful for children with autism?

As mentioned above many children have problems with gluten and casein due to food sensitivities (IgG, IgM, IgA) or food allergies (IgE). They may lack the DPP-IV enzyme (the enzymes that helps to breakdown gluten and casein in the body) or lack digestive abilities to break down the gluten and casein proteins and absorb them. Unfortunately, these proteins can create an opioid-like response in the brain, similar to a drug addiction. If your child craves breads and dairy it may be part of that opioid-like response, where their addiction is so strong they refuse to eat other food groups, resulting in being a very picky eater.

Gluten can create gastrointestinal inflammation and damage to the intestines resulting in “leaky gut” (or intestinal permeability, if you want to get fancy). Enzymes are diminished and nutrients are not absorbed properly leading to nutrient deficiencies which will affect mood, behaviour and cognition. This process leads to systemic inflammation, which taxes the immune system, and may result in autoimmune responses. Gluten issues and inflammation can cause depression, anxiety, and ADHD symptoms.

It is important to understand that if you implement a gluten-free, casein-free (GF, CF) diet that a child may experience a worsening of symptoms initially, due to the opioid-like withdrawal effect of removing these foods (proteins) from the diet, before they experience improvement.

Food Addictions & Autism

As mentioned above, one of the reasons why so many autistic people are picky eaters is because of food addiction. When the individual gets a “high” from a problematic food (which has shown to be similar to morphine), it can be so strong that they refuse to eat other foods and food groups. This is one reason why you may notice kids on the spectrum gravitating to food such as cheese and bread, but it could be anything.

Symptoms and signs of a food addiction include:

Addicted and crave certain foods to the point that they can have temper tantrums if they don’t get it
High pain tolerance
Inattention and spacey behaviour
Aggression (to self and others)
Stimming
Mood changes
Poor eye contact
Difficulty speaking
Anxiety, depression and irritability

Other Special Autism Diets

Although the GF,CF diet is a great starting point, there are many more diets that have been proven to be effective with improving day-to-day life and the health of kids on the spectrum. Based on laboratory test results you might be asked to explore one of the following diets or a combination of them including:

Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD), GAPS Diet, low FODMAP diet, low phenols diet, low oxalate diet, low salicylate diet, ketogenic diet, paleo diet, low carbohydrate diet, candida diet, Failsafe diet, Feingold diet, Body Ecology diet, or a diet to support methylation and sulfation.

Do special diets for autism really work?

It is important to understand the goal of the diet, how to begin, and then progress from there with implementation of the special diet to help ensure the effectiveness of it. And although it might seem intimidating and overwhelming, it can be worth it!

Based on surveys of parents with children on the spectrum that have implemented a special diet, they have reported the following improvements:

Gastrointestinal problems relieved
Diarrhea & constipation lessens/resolves
Improved language skills and learning
Greater focus and attention
Reduced hyperactivity
Improved eye contact
More appropriate behaviour
Aggressive behaviour and tantrums improve
Better sleeping
Easier toilet training
Skin rashes or eczema clear up
General health & happiness has improved

How to implement a special diet?

We highly recommend being supported by a qualified dietitian or nutritionist with specific experience addressing autism. It is likely they will work together with a Naturopathic Doctor to complete laboratory testing. Having someone to guide the foods to have and avoid in a way that is practical for your family is key. Having someone to turn to for recipes and ideas that are kid friendly, as well as strategies on how to introduce new foods, especially if your child is a picky eater is very important. Having a professional to work with will help take out the guesswork and stress off you to enable a successful outcome for your child.

Remember you don’t have to do it alone. We know how challenging and overwhelming dietary and lifestyle change can be. But, it’s worth it!

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