Taking a common supplement for 12 weeks found to reverse some autism and ADHD symptoms

Daily Mail​

18 hours ago

A daily probiotic made from healthy bacteria, the kind found in yogurt or sold in pill form, may help reduce hyperactivity in young children, a new study has found.
Researchers discovered that taking a supplement for just 12 weeks significantly eased impulsive behavior in kids diagnosed with autism or ADHD.
The study explained the probiotic used contains healthy bacteria known to boost the production of two key brain chemicals involved in calming movement and regulating attention.
Researchers conducted the trial on 80 children between ages five to sixteen, out of which 38 were diagnosed with ADHD and 42 with autism.
The study found out that the children who took the supplement every day showed improvements in hyperactivity scores than those who received a placebo, a fake treatment pill with no active ingredients.
Parents reported that children on the probiotic went from having 'elevated' symptoms to 'high average' range.
Children with autism who took probiotics reported greater physical comfort, including fewer aches, more energy, and reduced stomach issues, compared to baseline, with a large effect size.
However, sleep, executive function, and social communication remained largely unchanged across all groups.
A recent study found that taking a supplement for just 12 weeks significantly eased impulsive behavior in kids diagnosed with autism or ADHD
More than six million children in the US have been diagnosed with ADHD, and roughly one in 31 has autism, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
What causes autism is unknown. Research has pointed to growing pollution and chemical contamination in food and water may allow toxins to infiltrate the bloodstream of pregnant mothers and travel to the brain of the developing fetus, causing inflammation that impairs nerve signals that lead to autism.
Most children cannot be diagnosed until at least four years old and the current treatments include behavioral and speech therapies.
ADHD is a brain disorder that impacts attention, activity, and self-control, and usually emerges before age 12. The exact cause is also unknown.
In kids with autism or ADHD, dopamine levels are often low or imbalanced, and researchers from the Rovira i Virgili University in Spain believed this might drive some of the more disruptive symptoms like fidgeting or impulsivity.
They studied a supplement containing two kinds of bacteria, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Levilactobacillus brevis, both of which are found in various fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, and certain cheeses.
The bacterias are also known to promote the synthesis of dopamine and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), together they work to reduce anxiety and stress.
When looking at all the kids together, the probiotic did not seem to make a big difference. But when researchers observed those ages five to nine, the results were clearer and especially those with autism.
These kids became less hyper and impulsive, in fact, many improved enough to fall outside the clinical range for hyperactivity. Children with ADHD also improved, though the change was smaller.
Scientists used computer based attention-tests to check their attentive behavior and analyzed the form filled by parents on their kids' behavior in terms of hyperactivity and social responses.
They compared the scores from before and after the treatment and verified whether symptoms got better or worse.
Although in the current study researchers noticed that the supplement did not help with everything as it did not improve the attention, repetitive behaviors, sleep or thinking skills.
They found that the probiotic did not help all children equally.
The researchers point out that they did not study the gut bacteria, so it's unclear if the probiotic actually changed anything inside their digestive systems.
Also, they cautioned that the children in the trial came from relatively comfortable socioeconomic backgrounds, and results may not generalize to all children with autism or ADHD.
'They did not present severe behavioral, emotional, or sleep problems...which decreases the chances of significant improvement.,' said authors of the study.
Moreover, the study was short, only three months, so researchers did not test whether the probiotics actually altered gut bacteria, leaving questions about the mechanism of action unanswered
This is not the first study to show potential for probiotics in treating behavioral symptoms. A 2022 study tested a different blend of bacteria on children with autism.
After three months, the kids showed improved autism severity scores and reduced gut problems.
Researchers also found increased levels of helpful gut bacteria in their stool, suggesting that the probiotics may have altered the microbiome in ways that eased both digestive and behavioral symptoms.
These findings suggest that probiotics may improve both behavioral and digestive symptoms in children with autism by modulating gut microbiota.
A National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) summary noted that probiotics are under investigation for possible benefits in autism, ADHD, and other brain-related conditions.
But experts at NCCIH have warned that while early results are promising, more large-scale trials are needed to confirm both safety and effectiveness, especially for children.
'This study doesn't solve everything,' the authors concluded.