I was teaching pediatric nutrition at CSNN and one of my students shared an incredible story with our class about helping a girl with Autism.  It involved vitamin-infused popsicles. I asked him to share his story with you.

My name is Pedi Mirdamadi.  One of my clients is an 11 year old autistic girl.  Initially, what started off as an effort to help her lose weight has progressed into a loving bond and special relationship that I truly cherish.  Seeing this child on a regular basis allows me to see the effects of food on her behaviour.  Some days she is engaged with me the entire time and we can carry on a conversation.  Other days, she gets off track quite often.  I can see that what she eats is clearly affecting her behaviour; clear indications of food allergies and sensitivities.

I researched the underlying nutritional deficiencies associated with autism and realized that with some children, the majority of the autistic symptoms can subside with proper nutrition.  So I approached her parents and told them about my findings.  I told them how gluten, dairy, processed foods, and sugars needed to be eliminated from the diet and some supplements needed to be added.  Cod liver oil with Vitamin A, magnesium, probiotics, and B-vitamins are musts for autistic children.  Her parents were more than happy to give the new approach a try, however, they mentioned that their daughter would not take supplements in the form of pills.

Determined to help this child in any way, I brainstormed and came up with a way to get those supplements into her system.  Using almond milk and fruits, I made popsicles and infused all the supplements into them.  The idea worked very well as you couldn’t taste the supplements at all.

This little girl started having the popsicles and within 4-5 days, I noticed dramatic improvements in her behaviour.  She was able to maintain eye contact with me and hold a discussion, articulate her words much more clearly, did not have any random outbursts, and showed interest in exercise.  The results were as incredible as the look of joy that I saw in her parents’ eyes; a perfect reminder as to why I love what I do.

Pedi Mirdamadi has a Masters of Science in Kinesiology and worked in an obesity lab for two years.  He is the co-founder of The Optimal You, an online personal training and nutrition system.  He also works with individual clients. He is very passionate about what he does and is on a mission to spread his knowledgebase to as many people as possible.  To learn more about his work, please click here.

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Until next time,

Meredith

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