Autism Treatment and Seasonal Allergies, Yeast, Regression

Once we transition from winter to spring, I often see children in my practice who suffer from regression. I can share why I think this is happening. As we pass through winter and move into spring, we see a bloom in foliage and flowers and we see an increase in pollen levels in the air. This is true for people all over the country and the world for that matter. Where I live, in Southern California, we often see a quick start of spring and many things are all blooming within a 2 - 3 week time period and we see a steep rise in pollen counts. I see many children with Autism who suffer from seasonal allergies and big sensitivities to pollen. So when allergies flare, we can see these children have problems with itchy eyes, runny nose, cough, etc. And I have seen children also regress because an overgrowth of yeast in their bodies. So why is this happening?

When spring begins, I typically see some children face an increase in yeast which results in specific behaviors that we often see with yeast overgrowth, inappropriate laughter, goofiness, silliness, giddiness, increased self-stimulatory behaviors and very high sensory needs. Children can begin exhibiting many types of odd behavior in spring resulting from this rise in yeast which is secondary to the issue with seasonal allergies. I believe that our immune system works to keep the yeast at bay, once our body is exposed to additional allergens like pollen, our immune system shifts to focus on that rather than the yeast. The yeast begins to thrive since the immune system is more focused on addressing the allergies. I have seen this pattern many times so I believe this to be happening, although determining whether this is the exact mechanism is difficult to analyze.

If you see regression in your child, and specifically as the seasons shift from winter to spring, there could be an underlying allergy and yeast connection. And you may see these changes during anytime the pollen counts get high in your region. If you do witness a regression that occurs with seasonal changes, you can explore blood testing, like with an IgE test to confirm or you can try over the counter medications to help. Non-drowsy Claritin or other variations can be helpful. But you also should realize that this may indicate an underlying problem with yeast. Other testing can be very useful such as an Organic Acid Test which looks at yeast markers. I use this test frequently to give me an indication of what type of a yeast problem we have and how prevalent it is. So if you are noticing regression in the springtime and seeing behavioral changes, you may be seeing indications of an underlying yeast problem as a result of the seasonal allergens.