CINCINNATI, May 5, 2009 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The strong
preference kids with autism have for certain foods places them at risk for
nutritional deficiencies because their diets lack sufficient variety, according
to research from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center at this year's
Pediatric Academic Societies meeting in Baltimore.
After presenting their findings on May 4, the researchers said screening
children for the amount of variety of food in their diets may be a good clinical
marker to predict which children might be at risk for nutrition problems. Kids
with low food variety scores who are at risk could then be referred to
dieticians or therapists to help them expand food choices and improve nutrition,
said Michelle Zimmer, M.D., lead investigator and a pediatrician in the division
of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's.
The study is one of two presented by Dr. Zimmer and colleagues this year at PAS
that deal with autism, the second one showing that the red blood cells of
children with autism have low levels of a fatty acid linked to cognitive
function. This finding, the researchers report, warrants further research into
how the low fatty acid levels may trigger biochemical changes in the brain
linked to autism.
The team found that levels of docosahexanoic acid and total omega-3 fatty acids
were significantly lower in the red blood cells of autistic children than in
normally developing children. Omega-3 fatty acids are nutritionally important
substances considered vital to the normal development of children.
Evidence of abnormal fatty acid metabolism in children with autism runs counter
to at least one previous study that suggested no difference between normally
developing and autistic children. The different results between studies may be
explained by the current research focusing on an older group of children, Dr.
Zimmer said.
"The fatty acid docosahexanoic is linked to other mental health issues, and this
raises questions about whether there are functional issues in neural cells
involving a deficiency of essential fatty acids," said Dr. Zimmer. "The main
point of the study is we cannot rule that fatty acids are part of the story of
what is going on with kids who have autism."
Dr. Zimmer said its possible older children with autism have had more time to
use up their bodies' stores of omega-3 fatty acids and are unable to replenish
those stores. The 21 children with autism in this study were between the ages of
3 and 18 years, as were the 20 age-matched normally developing children and 10
of their siblings who served as control subjects.
The research team is conducting a larger study with more children to verify its
PAS findings. Dr. Zimmer said another study is also under design to give
essential omega-3 fatty acids, such as docosahexanonic acid, to children with
autism to see what impact it has on brain chemistry and/or the disorder.
Increasing foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids in the diets of autistic children
has been suggested by some researchers as potentially beneficial, Dr. Zimmer
said. Although doing so would not have a negative impact on the children, until
studies are conducted it isn't known what affect, if any, it might have, she
added. Also, given the findings of the previous study on the lack of food
variety among kids with autism, augmenting their diets could be challenging.
Most of the 19 autistic children in the food study had much lower food variety
scores in their diets than typically developing children. A majority of the
children with autism also suffered from nutritional deficiencies. The
researchers concluded children with autism and low food variety scores are at
risk for mild and serious nutritional deficiencies.
Researchers participating in studies were from the division of Developmental and
Behavioral Pediatrics and division of Neurology at Cincinnati Children's.
Researchers from the department of Pathology at the University of Cincinnati
participated in the study on food variety.
The PAS meeting is the largest international meeting focused on research in
child health. It is sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the
American Pediatric Society, the Society for Pediatric Research, and the
Ambulatory Pediatric Association.
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center is one of America's top three
children's hospitals for general pediatrics and is highly ranked for its
expertise in digestive diseases, respiratory diseases, cancer, neonatal care,
heart care and neurosurgery, according to the annual ranking of best children's
hospitals by U.S. News & World Report. One of the three largest children's
hospitals in the U.S., Cincinnati Children's is affiliated with the University
of Cincinnati College of Medicine and is one of the top two recipients of
pediatric research grants from the National Institutes of Health. For its
achievements in transforming healthcare, Cincinnati Children's is one of six
U.S. hospitals since 2002 to be awarded the American Hospital
Association-McKesson Quest for Quality Prize (R) for leadership and innovation
in quality, safety and commitment to patient care. The hospital is a national
and international referral center for complex cases, so that children with the
most difficult-to-treat diseases and conditions receive the most advanced care
leading to better outcomes. Additional information can be found at
www.cincinnatichildrens.org.
SOURCE Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
URL: http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org
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