Autistic disorder, or autism, is a severe developmental disorder, which was first described around 1940, about three years after the introduction of the first major commercial antibiotics, the sulfa drugs. As antibiotic usage grows, so do rates of autism. Autistic disorder and autism are a disorder of the antibiotic era. This happens because antibiotics help the yeast Candida albicans grow in the intestinal tract. Candida albicans makes toxic chemicals which hurt the developing brain and experts suggest this may contribute to the occurrence of autism.

The yeast Candida albicans can be found inside of our intestinal tract, mouth and in the female genital tract. Sometimes this yeast overgrows and the doctor recognizes this overgrowth of yeast as a yeast infection of the female genital tract or in the mouth, where this infection is commonly called thrush.

Bacteria are also resident inside the intestinal tract, sharing space with the yeast. Antibiotics kill bacteria, not yeast. After the use of antibiotics the yeast grow to fill in the space left by the removal of the bacteria. Yeast make chemicals which kill bacteria, which enables the yeast to grow at a higher level, even after the antibiotics have been stopped.

Yeast make a number of chemical compounds which are then picked up and absorbed into the body. These compounds are quite toxic to the nervous system. These compounds include toxic alcohols and acetone, as well as the powerful nervous system poison hydrogen sulfide. Alcohols depress and slow the nervous system and acetone causes coma. These chemicals slow the brain down so that the brain no longer works correctly. These chemicals should be cleared by the liver so that these chemicals never reach the brain. However in some people, such as those with autism, these chemicals are apparently not cleared, reach the brain, and cause mental symptoms.

Slowing of the brain, especially in speech areas has been found in brains of children with autism. Alcohols are well known to disrupt brain development in autistic children.

There are also chemicals in the diet which slow the brain down. Barley malt, the raw material for making beer, contains twenty chemicals which slow the brain down. Vinegar also contains such chemicals.

The combination of chemicals from internal yeast and from food could partially account for the finding of the brain slowing in autistic children.

The important reason to look at yeast as a major contributor to autism causation is that yeast is easily and safely treatable.

The way to reverse this yeast problem is to take the anti-yeast drug nystatin. This drug is not absorbed and kills the yeast living in the intestinal tract. Then the yeast can no longer make the toxic chemical compounds. Second, the diet contains many foods which contain yeast compounds. Some of these yeast chemicals are toxic to bacteria and will clear space for the yeast to grow again. If these yeast chemicals are left in the diet, nystatin will not do much good because the yeast keeps growing back. To treat yeast these foods must be removed from the diet. Removal of these dietary yeast products enables nystatin to kill the yeast without the yeast growing back. Malt contains chains of sugar molecules which most likely inhibit the body's immune system. This inhibition makes it hard for the immune system to fight Candida. Malt must be removed to clear Candida.

Fortunately, because nystatin is not absorbed, nystatin causes no side effects except for a little nausea. Therefore there is no risk to this therapy.

The diet for Candida problems consists of removing fermented foods from the diet. The worst offenders are alcoholic beverages and non-alcoholic beer, vinegar, barley malt, chocolate, pickles, soy sauce and aged cheese. This diet is described in the books An Extraordinary Power to Heal and Feast Without Yeast. This is why adults with autism should avoid alcohol. Additionally, both adults and children with autism should avoid medicines and herbal tinctures with alcohol.

The great majority of children with autism who follow this anti-yeast therapy show improvement. Children who can speak always speak better and more. Children under two and a half who can talk a little can be brought back to normal or near normal. Behavior and sleep all improve. Children are calmer and easier to teach.

Where does the gluten free casein free diet fit in? This diet comes from research on schizophrenia, in which these gluten and casein protein fragments were found in the urine of schizophrenic patients. Similar urine profiles were later found in the urine of autistic children.

The role of opioids in autism is as follows. Milk and dairy contain a protein called casein and wheat contains a protein called gluten. Inside of both casein and gluten are structures which are difficult for the body to digest completely. The structures or peptides remaining after digestion of casein and gluten react at certain sites in the brain called opioid receptors. These sites are so named because these sites are where opiate drugs such as morphine act. The internal chemicals which react at the opioid receptors in the brain are called endorphins. These peptide structures from the diet have several names, one of which is "opioids".

In experimental studies, opiate drugs such as morphine have been found to bind to brain opioid receptors and this binding leads to decreased glucose (sugar) utilization and decreased metabolic rate. In other words structures which bind to opioid receptors in the brain slow the brain down. As already noted, the one finding that stands up in the brains of autistic children is that the brain is slowed down (metabolically less active) as shown by decreased blood flow, especially in speech areas.

Presumably these casein and gluten protein fragments also slow the brain down. This has led to the treatment of excluding casein and gluten from the diet of autistic children. There are many commercial products available to support such treatment.

How good is the gluten free casein free diet? The main studies show that children with autism do better in school. Some children with autism improve, some only modestly and some barely at all. The gluten free casein free diet is not an anti yeast diet. The gluten free casein free diet allows some major yeast offenders such as vinegar, pickles, chocolate, peanut butter and corn. Both peanuts and corn are often contaminated with mold. Chicken are fed much cottonseed and cottonseed is contaminated with mold.

So if a child with autism is taken off gluten and casein but is continued on vinegar and is put on more chicken, peanut butter and corn, what will happen? Whatever benefits there are from removing gluten and casein will be taken away by adding to the diet more mold in the form of chicken, peanut butter and corn. The intestinal yeast will still be there making toxic chemicals. The child with autism will show only minimal improvement and the improvement and behavior will fluctuate, depending on what the child has eaten.

This gluten free casein free diet is often recommended today as the main thing to do for autistic children. However, the gluten free/casein free diet is appropriate only after the anti-yeast diet has been started. The gluten free casein free diet allows eating of vinegar, pickles, and other foods containing toxic yeast chemicals which are quite toxic to the brains of autistic children. Except for elimination of malt, there is no overlap between foods eliminated on a gluten free/casein free diet and foods eliminated on Stage 1 of the anti-yeast diet (as described in An Extraordinary Power to Heal and Feast Without Yeast). Malt (which is actually a specially sprouted barley product) should be eliminated on a gluten free/ casein free diet and malt is the number 1 item to eliminate on an anti-yeast diet. However, too many other foods containing toxic chemicals can be left in on a gluten free/casein free diet, to use this diet as the only therapy.

What about high doses of vitamins and minerals? Vitamin B-6 neutralizes one of the yeast chemicals and this yeast chemical takes the place of magnesium at important sites in the body. The neutralization of this chemical may explain why vitamin B-6 and magnesium are sometimes helpful. However, it is much better to clear out the yeast, so that the chemical is no longer made rather than to try to neutralize it. There are many other yeast chemicals which are not affected by vitamin B-6 and magnesium.

Parents of children with austim who continue the high doses of vitamins and minerals and then try to add nystatin often find that nystatin is not helpful. It's suspected that one of the vitamins, perhaps vitamin B-6, binds to nystatin, making it ineffective. It's preferable for parents not to use the high doses of vitamins and minerals while giving nystatin.

Acidophilus helps yeast grow. Acidophilus clears out another bad microorganism, Clostridia, but acidophilus does nothing for yeast. Acidophilus makes an anti-bacterial chemical. Acidophilus should only be used short-term, not long-term.

Why can’t the body's immune system clear Candida? The Candida has many tricks to evade the body's immune system. The immune system then calls in the reinforcements. These immune cells attack the yeast and generate the signals for inflammation. Inflammation is a defense, like a wall to keep out the Candida. The Candida is still there, which means the inflammation remains.

In the intestine, this continued inflammation leads to Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. Sometimes these immune cells circulate and find yeast cells in other places. There is yeast on the skin. Again the yeast is evasive and the immune cells generate the signals for inflammation. The yeast is not cleared and the inflammation remains. This leads to skin problems from itching and eczema to psoriasis.

The Candida has also evolved to look like our own cells. Candida has the body's own connective tissue receptor on it, which it uses to anchor itself into our tissues. Sometimes the immune cells, as they attack the yeast, attack anything which looks like the yeast. What else looks like the yeast? Body cells which have the connective tissue receptor. This attacking of body cells leads to "autoimmune diseases" such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. In these diseases, the body's immune system appears to be attacking the body's own tissues. The immune cells are attacking the yeast and then attacking anything which looks like the yeast.

The yeast chemicals slow the brain down. The gut has its own brain to make sure all the food goes through the intestinal tract at the right rate. What will happen if yeast chemicals put the gut's brain to sleep. The result will be constipation, sometimes very severe. Diarrhea is the body's attempt to clear the yeast. The diarrhea can be present at the same time as the constipation, which is why they can alternate.

What happens if the yeast chemicals slow down the body's nerves and put them to sleep. Then the child can't feel anything or nothing feels right. The hardest parts of the nerves to numb up are the parts which carry pain. This is why light touch, instead of feeling pleasant, now feels painful. If the nerves are numb, sometimes pain feels better than nothing at all. This is why these children bang their heads. Even the pain feels better than numbness.

The lack of proper sensation in the mouth is a reason why these children can become picky eaters. Foods, especially new ones do not feel right to them. The picky eating improves with anti-yeast treatment.

Why do autistic children have such trouble sleeping? There are many chemicals which put their brains to sleep. But the brain does not want to go to sleep from these chemicals. How does the brain fight these chemicals? The brain stays awake. When the chemicals are removed, children sleep better.These chemicals also cause headaches and abdominal pain.

What about pregnancy after having an autistic child? Pregnancy may seem about the scariest thing imaginable after having an autistic child. If we understand that the yeast chemicals cause major disruptions in development, we can reduce the risk of autism by clearing these chemicals. How can this be done? A woman who wants to have another child should follow the anti-yeast diet and take nystatin for a few months before becoming pregnant. She should continue this program during pregnancy and while nursing. The child should not be given antibiotics. The child should not be given any foods which help yeast grow. This program will substantially reduce the risk of a second child with autism.

How does one avoid giving antibiotics to children with autism? Children who do not have yeast are much more resistant to infections. Back in the days before high tech, researchers asked much simpler questions. They asked whether Candida and tuberculosis like each other and if they grow better together. The answer was yes. Candida's capsule helps tuberculosis to grow. This kind of experiment has been done with other infectious microorganisms and yeast helps other bad microorganisms to grow. Candida helps the microorganisms at the back of the mouth to grow and to grow back after antibiotics. The Candida helping the bad microorganisms is why children get ear infection after ear infection.