Medical Professionals in Support of Dietary Interventions for Autism
- by: Karyn Seroussi & Jaquelyn McCandless, MD
- recipient: The National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics
We the undersigned, as medical doctors, nurses and other health professionals, do not accept the conclusion by the NIH and the University of Rochester that special diets do not demonstrate behavioral improvement in children with autism (http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/index.cfm?id=2860). This conclusion appears to have been based solely upon one flawed and tiny study with an incorrect premise, and we believe that such an assumption is misleading and harmful.
Multiple national and international studies have raised support for dietary interventions for autism (a comprehensive list of abstracts is available at www.autismbiomed.com). If such studies are deemed to be insufficient, we request that further and more comprehensive studies be conducted in the United States. These studies must be larger, longer, and designed in part by medical practitioners and consultants who have had extensive experience with families using this intervention. Due to the pressing nature of this matter, we request that these studies be conducted expeditiously.
Until the publication of such studies, we the undersigned do also request that the United States medical authorities, specifically the National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics, consider our documentation of multiple case studies, clinical experience and the parental observations of thousands of patients to be sufficient evidence that special diets can be a useful treatment for some percentage of children with autism, and issue a public statement to that effect. We believe that the risk of harm from professionally-monitored restricted diets is far smaller than the risk of irreversible damage that may be caused by dismissing or, worse, discouraging this intervention.
We greatly appreciate your time and consideration of this matter, which we consider to be of great urgency.
Please note: This petition is intended to be signed by professional autism researchers and medical practitioners. We request that you please include your title in your signature, as well as a brief comment. For caregivers, please sign the related petition entitled "Parents and Caregivers in Support of Dietary Interventions for Autism" at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/autism-diet-support.
Multiple national and international studies have raised support for dietary interventions for autism (a comprehensive list of abstracts is available at www.autismbiomed.com). If such studies are deemed to be insufficient, we request that further and more comprehensive studies be conducted in the United States. These studies must be larger, longer, and designed in part by medical practitioners and consultants who have had extensive experience with families using this intervention. Due to the pressing nature of this matter, we request that these studies be conducted expeditiously.
Until the publication of such studies, we the undersigned do also request that the United States medical authorities, specifically the National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics, consider our documentation of multiple case studies, clinical experience and the parental observations of thousands of patients to be sufficient evidence that special diets can be a useful treatment for some percentage of children with autism, and issue a public statement to that effect. We believe that the risk of harm from professionally-monitored restricted diets is far smaller than the risk of irreversible damage that may be caused by dismissing or, worse, discouraging this intervention.
We greatly appreciate your time and consideration of this matter, which we consider to be of great urgency.
Please note: This petition is intended to be signed by professional autism researchers and medical practitioners. We request that you please include your title in your signature, as well as a brief comment. For caregivers, please sign the related petition entitled "Parents and Caregivers in Support of Dietary Interventions for Autism" at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/autism-diet-support.
We the undersigned, as medical doctors, nurses and other health professionals, do not accept the conclusion by the NIH and the University of Rochester that special diets do not demonstrate behavioral improvement in children with autism (http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/news/story/index.cfm?id=2860). This conclusion appears to have been based solely upon one flawed and tiny study with an incorrect premise, and we believe that such an assumption is misleading and harmful.
Multiple national and international studies have raised support for dietary interventions for autism (a comprehensive list of abstracts is available at www.autismbiomed.com). If such studies are deemed to be insufficient, we request that further and more comprehensive studies be conducted in the United States. These studies must be larger, longer, and designed in part by medical practitioners and consultants who have had extensive experience with families using this intervention. Due to the pressing nature of this matter, we request that these studies be conducted expeditiously.
Until the publication of such studies, we the undersigned do also request that the United States medical authorities, specifically the National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics, consider our documentation of multiple case studies, clinical experience and the parental observations of thousands of patients to be sufficient evidence that special diets can be a useful treatment for some percentage of children with autism, and issue a public statement to that effect. We believe that the risk of harm from professionally-monitored restricted diets is far smaller than the risk of irreversible damage that may be caused by dismissing or, worse, discouraging this intervention.
We greatly appreciate your time and consideration of this matter, which we consider to be of great urgency.
Sign PetitionSign PetitionMultiple national and international studies have raised support for dietary interventions for autism (a comprehensive list of abstracts is available at www.autismbiomed.com). If such studies are deemed to be insufficient, we request that further and more comprehensive studies be conducted in the United States. These studies must be larger, longer, and designed in part by medical practitioners and consultants who have had extensive experience with families using this intervention. Due to the pressing nature of this matter, we request that these studies be conducted expeditiously.
Until the publication of such studies, we the undersigned do also request that the United States medical authorities, specifically the National Institutes of Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics, consider our documentation of multiple case studies, clinical experience and the parental observations of thousands of patients to be sufficient evidence that special diets can be a useful treatment for some percentage of children with autism, and issue a public statement to that effect. We believe that the risk of harm from professionally-monitored restricted diets is far smaller than the risk of irreversible damage that may be caused by dismissing or, worse, discouraging this intervention.
We greatly appreciate your time and consideration of this matter, which we consider to be of great urgency.
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