Dietary and Micronutrient Treatments for Children with Neurodevelopment Disorders

Purpose of Review There is an increased use of dietary and nutritional treatments among families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and other neurodevelopmental disorders. With unclear and sometimes contradictory information regarding the effectiveness and safety of such treatments, this review critically reviews available research. Recent Findings This review identified treatments with promising and increasing levels of evidence including the few foods diet, PUFAs, probiotic treatments, and broad spectrum micronutrients; treatments with inconclusive or inconsistent findings such as gluten-free or additive-free diets, and those treatments with little evidence for effectiveness such as a sugar-free diet. Summary There is reasonably robust evidence for the use of some dietary and nutritional approaches such as reduction of food dyes and supplementing with essential fatty acids and broad spectrum micronutrients. Additionally, the literature reviewed provided theoretical mechanisms for these treatments. Many methodological challenges (such as sample size, length of intervention, and difficulties with researcher blinding) were reviewed, demonstrating the need for a well-designed, well-controlled replications studies to provide further guidance and reassurance to families and health professionals.