ASD supplements / diet

[ProcrastinatorsAnonymous]

My 6 year old son has a fairly recent ASD diagnosis. I've read a bit about diet / supplements that might help, but am overwhelmed by all the (often contradictory!) information. I'd really appreciate any simple advice about foods to try to include in his diet / supplements to add / any blood tests I should have done for him.

He currently has an OK but not great diet (some fruit and veg, but a bit limited and quite a lot of beige) and he takes a Vitabiotics Kids Muti Vitamin daily (the chewy Peppa Pig one). I'm not a great cook, he isn't a great at trying new foods, and this area is absolutely not my strength as a parent, so any tips I can easily implement to try to put us on the right track would be so helpful. Not aiming to do this perfectly, but what are the most important things to target?

Thank you!

The advice we got from a paed was a good quality multivitamin with iron. We used the Wellkid tablet-style ones. But any vitamin your son takes is better than one he doesn't.

We also give a probiotic because my DS4 can get hard stools - I don't know if it actually helps! We tried a magnesium supplement which some people say helps good quality sleep, but he had digestive side effects and I haven't found another one to try yet.

I would say that your son's diet is probably better than you think, even if it's restricted. If he's having some fruit and veg, some protein and carbs, you're both doing ok. Look to make food intake as balanced as you can over a week.

Thank you for responding - that's reassuring. I think his diet is not terrible across a week, but it could definitely have more variety week to week.

Out of interest, @BusMumsHoliday , did your paed recommend any blood tests? I'm wondering if it would be worth getting some private blood work done to find out if DS has low levels of anything before adding in anything beyond the standard multi vit.

Hi, I had my dd hair analysis done to check out mineral deficiencies for which she showed like most asd kids she is low zinc , magnesium and high in toxic metals like lead and aluminium.

So per that she is on 4 supplements to rid those toxins and up the Mg and Zn.

I also give her a probiotic for gut health as well as immunity. She generally hasnt got very ill in her life but i wanted to support that.

Furthermore, she takes a very strong DHA fish oil. Wiley's finest Summit DHA for brain and nervous system health and development.

This is really helpful - thanks! Was the hair analysis available via your GP, or did you access that privately somehow? And did you find someone who could advise you on how much of the various supplements to give? Thanks!

Hi, I had her hair tested privately, that following the Dr Wilson analysis of hair mineral analysis.

On the basis of results the supplement ratios are given.

Thank you! Was that through a website like https://www.hairanalysisuk.com/hair-analysis-test-uk ?

Yes indeed. You need somebody that understands Dr Eck and Dr Wilson's analysis

A lot of good advice on this thread. One thing we found really made a difference was Omega 3 supplements. Many ASD kids are deficient and it is essential for supporting the language development region of the brain . My DS showed marked improvements in his understanding of language after taking it for a couple of months.

May I ask which brand you use please?

Thank you! How did you know how much to give?

@Lostmum1906 we use Haliborange Omega 3 and Multi-vit gummies. Just look and taste like Haribo so very kid-friendly. I'm sure there's plenty of other good brands out there.

@MNHQ why on earth has my reply been hidden??

Yes MNHQ , please explain.