Controversial treatment statemenst
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Capella University *
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Course
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Health Science
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
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Uploaded by DrFly2880
Paraphrased statements
A fad is a therapy that is not backed by science and that rises and falls fairly quickly (Foxx &
Mulick, 2016).
If the ideology behind the therapy has a strong appeal, adherents will be hesitant to give it up. In
the field of developmental disabilities, tenacity allows professionals and parents to remain
committed to a therapy despite evidence that it is ineffective (Foxx & Mulick, 2016).
, a casein- and gluten-free diet may appeal to some parents because they seem simpler to
implement or because the more effective treatment is perceived as being "cold and controlling"
(Maurice, 1993, p. 63) (Foxx & Mulick, 2016).
The most effective treatments for developmental disabilities are pricy, difficult to administer, and
or never fully effective (Foxx & Mulick, 2016).
In order to encourage parents or others to seek out fad or contentious treatments, professionals
who are trained in scientific fields but not behavioral science frequently promote those
treatments (Foxx & Mulick, 2016).
Unexpectedly, some therapies are both dubious and contentious because either their claimed
theoretical justifications have been successfully refuted or because their claimed benefits have
been discovered to be ephemeral or nonexistent in evaluative and controlled research (Foxx &
Mulick, 2016).
Based on the theory that autistic people might not digest food proteins very well, particularly
casein and gluten, certain therapies were developed in the 1980s and 1990s. The first of these
were elimination diets (Elimination Diet, 2022).
Elimination diet proponents contend that dietary and digestive issues can lead to disruptions in
brain function, and that this therapy lessens these disruptions to lessen the symptoms of autism
(Elimination Diet, 2022).
Elimination diets can be used by autistic children and adults of any age, according to proponents
of this therapy (Elimination Diet, 2022).
Since autism was first identified, there has been a long history of unsuccessful treatments and
fads, according to Autism Treatment (ASAT), a non-profit organization of parents and
professionals dedicated to improving the education, treatment, and care of people with autism
(“Beware of False or Misleading Claims for Treating Autism,” 2014).
FDA Cracks Down on False Claims According to Gary Coody, R.Ph., FDA's National Health
Fraud Coordinator, the agency has issued warnings to several businesses that they may be subject
to legal action if they continue to make false or deceptive claims about goods and therapies that
purport to treat or cure autism. Some of these so-called therapies carry significant health risks
(“Beware of False or Misleading Claims for Treating Autism,” 2014)
Children with ASD who have food allergies, intolerances, or underlying gastrointestinal
conditions may benefit from a GFCF diet (Ly et al., 2017).
Diets for people with ASD are ineffective and therefore cannot be advised as a form of treatment
(Ly et al., 2017).
The concept behind the gluten-free diet is to examine the effects of eliminating all foods
containing gluten, which is a protein mixture found in wheat, oats, barley, or rye. As a result, all
products made with these cereals are eliminated from the diet and replaced with special gluten-
free versions of the popular foods. In some cases, the gluten-free diet is combined with a casein-
free diet (Ly et al., 2017).
results regarding the GFCF diet's impact on ASD are conflicting. Several studies indicate that
the GFCF diet has no impact on ASD (Ly et al., 2017).
According to the "opioid excess theory" or "leaky gut theory," ASD is thought to be caused by a
metabolic disorder in which opioid peptides produced by the metabolism of gluten and casein
pass through an abnormally high intestinal membrane (Ly et al., 2017).
One could argue that the effects of elimination diets might be explained by concurrent
adaptations in parental behavioral strategies and care because strict parental supervision is
required for the application of an elimination diet (Ly et al., 2017).
Since there are few therapies available to treat the core symptoms of ASD, many parents may
feel it is best to use any treatment option when looking for a cure for their child (Ly et al., 2017).
Utilizing a GFCF diet, however, may not be without risk (such as stigmatization, misuse of
resources for treatment, and nutritional deficiency) (Ly et al., 2017).
Therefore, it is the responsibility of health professionals and researchers to communicate with
caregivers and inform them about the costs and potential negative consequences of GFCF diets
for children with ASD until there is unambiguous evidence for those benefits (Ly et al., 2017).
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