Research library/Nutritional & Dietary

Category 8 of 12:

Nutritional & Dietary

Diet changes and supplements families try — with an honest look at which ones the evidence actually supports.

8 therapies · 2 groups · 2 reviews published

How we grade the evidence:

Strong — multiple trials or reviews, consistent resultsModerate — good evidence, generally acceptedEmerging — promising, still earlyLimited — well-studied and not shown to help, or too little study to knowControversial — significant debate among researchers, use cautionHarmful — documented risk of harm — not recommended

Elimination Diets

Removing specific foods based on a theory about how they affect behavior.

Limited evidence

Gluten-Free / Casein-Free (GFCF) Diet

The most rigorous, blinded food-challenge studies found no effect of the GFCF diet on autism symptoms.

Ages 2–18Read review →
Emerging evidence

Ketogenic Diet

High-fat, low-carbohydrate diet; primarily studied for seizure reduction, explored for ASD.

All agesComing soon
Limited evidence

Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD) / Low-Oxalate Diet

Various elimination diets targeting GI health and hypothesized metabolic factors.

All agesComing soon

Supplementation

Vitamins and supplements marketed for autism, with a wide range of actual evidence behind them.

Limited evidence

Vitamin B6 + Magnesium

High-dose B6 and Mg supplementation; one of the earliest studied biomedical interventions.

All agesComing soon
Limited evidence

Omega-3 Fatty Acids (Fish Oil)

DHA/EPA supplementation for social and behavioral outcomes.

All agesComing soon
Emerging evidence

Probiotics & Gut Microbiome Interventions

Probiotic supplements to modulate gut microbiota and impact behavior via gut-brain axis.

All agesComing soon
Emerging evidence

Vitamin D Supplementation

A small, mixed signal on repetitive behaviors — mainly relevant if your child is actually deficient.

ChildrenRead review →
Moderate evidence

Multivitamins / Vitamin D / Folate

Broad nutritional support addressing common deficiencies in autistic individuals.

All agesComing soon
Parents also look at:Family & Caregiver-BasedTechnology-AssistedComplementary & Alternative (CAM)