Can raw foods heal autism?
When their kids are diagnosed with a life-altering disease, most moms will do anything to make them better. The power of love propels moms (and other relatives, too) to research the illness and explore solutions. And when traditional medicine can’t help, we seek out alternative solutions to get our babies well.
For autism, many people have discovered the miraculous healing properties of a plant-based diet to help – and even in some documented cases – cure this disease that impacts thousands each year.
Since April is Autism Awareness Month, this Juice Therapist is spotlighting how juice therapy and raw foods can help this developmental disorder that impedes communication and interaction.
You might ask is juicing healthy? A juice cleanse can be the start and have an amazing impact on your child’s diagnosis.
Nutritionist Susan Levin’s son was diagnosed with autism in 2007, when he was just a toddler. Their amazing story of transformation is captured in her book “Unlocked: A Family Emerging from the Shadows of Autism.” The New York Post profiled this family, quoting Susan: “Hippocrates was right when he advised, let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”
Levin believes her son was healed through a combination of diet, plus a “social-relational program called the Son-Rise Program.” She’s now a family wellness coach for families of autistic children.
Other proponents agree that there’s a link between autism and gastrointestinal issues, which can lead to behavior swings. Author Maria Rickert Hong describes how a gluten- and dairy-free diet helped her two children get better, in her book “Almost Autism: Recovering from Sensory Processing Disorder.”
The holistic health site Fruit-Powered shares how a raw vegan lifestyle can heal autism, by increasing fresh raw living plant foods, and eliminating gluten, dairy, and casein.
“Many children on the autism spectrum have a strong reaction to the aflatoxin in peanuts, so it’s eliminated. Corn and chicken are contaminated with mold. Once parents know this, they are often willing to start making dietary adjustments,” according to Fruit-Powered.
“Studies in mainstream journals are now linking the autism epidemic in the United States to the standard American diet. Severe mineral deficiencies are the result of processed and refined foods that contain toxic ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup, which can play a huge role in how the body gets rid of toxic chemicals such as mercury and pesticides.”
Other experts recommend a high-fruit diet to enhance brain cells. In “How Not to Die,” Dr. Michael Gregor advises cruciferous vegetables for sulforaphane to improve brain development. Foods help and heal us by flooding our bodies with life-affirming nutrition.
Want to get some recipes for a juice cleanse but not sure where to start? Download your free copy of Evie’s Enlivening Juice List featuring my enlightened list of juicing essentials plus some of my favorite recipes.