Diet and nutrition

When food matters

For many years, parents have been reporting that their child
with autism reacts badly to certain foods. Often, these foods
are high in oxalates. Nutritionist Stella Chadwick sees this
issue in her clinic and says that once adjustments to the child’s
diet are made, problematic symptoms of ASD can improve
I became aware of the connection and terrible sleep issues. When we Fresh spinach:
between oxalates in food and tested him using a urine organic it may be
autism symptoms many years ago, acid test, we found that his oxalate a ‘healthy’
when I was working with a nine- levels in urine were off the charts. vegetable, but it
year-old boy. He had an autism We put him on a low oxalate diet has a high level
diagnosis and what seemed like a and gave him some supportive of oxalates
habit of poking himself in the eye. supplements and within a month all
He also had poor bladder control the symptoms reduced
dramatically. We also found that
his anxiety was much reduced. He
started being able to pay attention
in school and the entire trajectory
of his life changed. It was because
of that lovely young boy that I
dived into this subject and found a
prevalence of oxalate issues in
children with ASD.
What are oxalates?
Most of the time people talk about
oxalates in relation to them causing
kidney stones, but there is much
more to these naturally occurring
substances, which are found in a
wide variety of foods.
It was because Plants produce oxalates as part
of their defence against predators
of that lovely such as harmful bacteria, insects
young boy that I dived and animals.  oxalates, see the panel below on
Normally, oxalates help to
into this subject” support our metabolism, and our
bodies create them as well. But
they can be a problem if too many
accumulate in the body.They can
form sharp crystals that may cause
a lot of pain.
Oxalates also rob our bodies of
minerals, especially calcium,
magnesium, iron and potassium.
If oxalates build up too far in our
bodies they can lead to oxidative
damage, depletion of glutathione
and the ignition of the immune
system’s inflammatory cascade –
and that’s in addition to the
formation of those painful crystals.
Chronic constipation is another
common issue in those with high
oxalates, as the constant stream of
oxalates affects muscle tone in the
colon. For a full list of key
symptoms associated with high
key symptoms of excess oxalates.
Ordinarily, not much oxalate is
absorbed from the diet. However,
the level of absorption depends on
the condition of the gut and the
status of B vitamins, especially
vitamins B1 and B6. These
vitamins help process oxalates in
the body.
Peer-reviewed literature shows
that excess oxalate from foods may Stella Chadwick is the
not only cause prolonged founder of
diarrhoea or constipation, but can Brainstorm Health®
also be absorbed from the GI tract and an experienced
and become a risk to the sufferer. nutritional and
It may happen when the gut is
inflamed and when there is poor fat
biomedical consultant
who specialises in
digestion (steatorrhea), or when working with adults
there is a leaky gut. and young children
Excessive antibiotic use has on the autism
also been shown to contribute to spectrum. www.
the problem. Not only does it brainstormhealth.
potentially damage the gut, but it co.uk
also eliminates a specific bacterial
specie called oxalobacter
formigenes, which is very good at
breaking down oxalates in the gut.

Key symptoms of
excess oxalates
lF
 atigue
lB
 rain fog
lJ
 oint pain
lP
 ersistent headaches
lU
 rinary frequency
lC
 hronic constipation
lE
 ye pain
lG
 I pain
lG
 enital irritation
lA
 nxiety
lS
 leep issues
lB
 urning feet
PICTURE CREDIT

lH
 igh histamine that does
not improve with general
antihistamine interventions

34 Au t i s m | e y e I s s u e 3 6 2 0 2 0 www.autismeye.com www.autismeye.com Au t i s m | e y e I s s u e 3 6 2 0 2 0 35
 Hericor-MRL
Diet and nutrition

Enzyme Nutrition to Maintain

a Healthy Digestive System
Oxalate issues
Hericor-MRL promotes a healthy digestive system
by providing important enzyme groups:
are common
Enzymes that prevent oxidative stress:
in those with a
l Laccase compromised gut”
l Superoxide dismutase
Enzymes that prevent cellular growth: If you notice you are dumping
l Protease oxalates too quickly, potassium
bicarbonate can be really helpful.
l Glucose amylase A good multimineral supplement
Enzymes that promote detoxification: to replace some of the minerals
l Peroxidase that may be getting lost can also
be a good idea. It is best to avoid
l Cytochrome P-450 supplements containing glycine
For more information please contact:
l Cytochrome P-450 reductase and ascorbic acid, which can
Aneid UK Ltd
convert into oxalates in the body.
The constituents of Hericor-MRL have been found to Spires, Suite 8, Adelaide Street, I know it’s frustrating not to have
increase lipoxin A4 and neurogenic reserve in animal Luton, Bedfordshire, LU1 5BB, UK. dosing for supplements, but it is
studies as well as exhibiting prebiotic properties in in vitro Tel. + 44 (0)1582 485 209 important that you work with your
studies. Hericor - MRL should be taken one week prior email: info@aneiduk.com practitioner or medical doctor.
(and during) supplementation with an Omega-3 complex. www.speechnutrients.eu
Tests for oxalates
Oxalate release in our bodies seems
Aneid 2019 V1.indd 1 20/02/2019 19:58
to have its own cycle, a bit like the
Oxalates – worst offenders Oxalates in food sleep cycle. We each have our
and replacements It is impossible to avoid oxalates own rhythm of release that seems
completely, so it’s a question of to be consistent. So, for example, I
INSTEAD OF TRY
avoiding those foods that are really may release oxalates at 6pm and
MEDPAGE AFFORDABLE ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGIES Web order 10% off code Spinach Salad
Romaine lettuce 
Watercress, Rocket,
high, such as spinach, almonds, you may release it mostly at 6am.
potatoes, soya-based products, Testing therefore becomes
EPILEPSY - DEMENTIA - FALLS PREVENTION - SENSORY AE420 Lamb’s lettuce
carrots, beets and chocolate and slightly problematic. The best test
Mashed cauliflower  replacing them with suggestions in is to reduce the load and see if
Potatoes (includes White rice the panel on the left. things improve. Blood testing is
sweet potatoes) Turnips
One of the foods that is thought to be the most accurate,
Winter squash
MEMORY PROMPT SMART HEALTH MONITORING WATCH commonly promoted for gut but currently this is only available
Soy and cannellini/ Coconut 
Create and set Features include: GPS
healing is bone broth. However, it in a research setting. The most
haricot beans Black-eyed peas
memory prompting location to quickly find a
turns out that it contains a lot of reliable, commercially available
Coconut milk; Dairy milk
alarms using photos Almond milk glycine, which the body may test we have found in our practice
missing person (if tolerated)
with text, photo convert into oxalates. is the Organic Acid Test by Great
Raw pumpkin seeds,
slide shows,videos Plains Laboratories, which requires
Remote heart rate and sprouted 
or audio recordings
BP monitoring
Nuts
Flax seed crackers
Supplements that a first morning urine sample.
Watermelon seeds support oxalate release
Easy music and There are some supplements that Work with a plan
Daily activity tracking Cucumber (use in place of
video player with touch screen operation can bind to oxalates and help them Oxalate issues are common in
with step counting, Carrots, Celery, Beets
celery) 
Radishes leave the body easily. Calcium those with a compromised gut.
Create memory prompts with your sedentary monitoring
Winter squash citrate is one of the best Reducing the consumption of
Smartphone or use the easy touch screen Vanilla ice-cream made supplements to take with meals to oxalate-rich foods can significantly
menu’s Waterproof to IP67
with whole milk (if help bind to oxalates in food. reduce some symptoms
Chocolate
tolerated) or coconut milk  Magnesium citrate is also a associated with ASD. You should
Choice of time displays and screen colour Fall detection sensor with SOS alert White chocolate great oxalate binder, although its work with your practitioner to come
Source: https://sallyknorton.com/relief/#food-list adjusted binding capacity is a little weaker up with a food and supplement
CODE: MR3 PRICE £124.99 + VAT CODE: MMTBW2 PRICE £74.99 + VAT for British and European names than calcium citrate. plan that suits you.

REFERENCES

@MedPageLtd Konstantynowicz, J, Porowski, T, Zoch-Zwierz, W, Wasilewska, J, Kadziela-Olech, H, Kulak, W, Owens SC, Piotrowska-Jastrzebska J, and
1

www.easylinkuk.co.uk Kaczmarski, M (2012). ‘A potential pathogenic role of oxalate in autism.’ European Journal of Paediatric Neurology, 16(5), 485- 491.

01536 264 869 @MedPageltd Adams, J B, Johansen, L J, Powell, L D, Quig, D, & Rubin, R A (2011). ‘Gastrointestinal flora and gastrointestinal status in children with autism
2

– comparisons to typical children and correlation with autism severity.’ BMC Gastroenterology, 11(1), 22.
3
Chen, Chien-Liang, et al: ‘Neurotoxic effects of carambola in rats: the role of oxalate.’ Journal of the Formosan Medical Association 101.5
Medpage Limited T/A Easylink UK | 3 Melbourne House, Corby Gate Business Park, Corby. NN17 5JG | Company # 05468599
(2002): 337-341.

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