What is ASD? How can you deal with it?

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an incurable condition that affects social interaction, communication, interests and behaviors. Those who are dealing with this developmental disorder have a hard time communicating with other people and in some cases, they experience repetitive behaviors and narrow interests.

People can be diagnosed with ASD at any age and it will bring on social challenges that can make it difficult for an individual to function at school, work or home. According to the statistics released by the Centers for Disease Control, autism currently affects an estimated 1 in 59 children in the U.S.

Since ASD has many subtypes influenced by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, each individual diagnosed with autism has a different set of strengths and challenges.

They can be highly skilled or seriously challenged in problem solving, learning and thinking. Some may need significant support in their daily lives, while others do not require much help and in some cases are able to live entirely on their own.

Indicators of autism mostly appear in children between 2 or 3 years old and it can often be diagnosed as early as 18 month. There are many treatment options which include therapy and traditional medications. But if you have a child diagnosed with autism, it might be interesting for you to hear about a third option which is relatively new, not 100% backed up by science but still promising. Some parents of children with autism, have reported that cannabidiol (CBD) has been effective in some ways for their situation. CBD is derived from cannabis or hemp plant, but it does not have any psychoactive effect, meaning you can use it for its medical effects without experiencing a high.

A Short History of Cannabis and Autism Studies

In 2015, Harvard University and Boston Children’s Hospital published a baseline review of cannabis and autism studies. Although the results were promising enough, there was not any definitive fact supporting the cannabis’ ability to improve autistic children. The Harvard review noted that all the studies up to 2015 were all animal-based and do not indicate any translational impacts on human subjects. The review also recommended that it would be better to use cannabis treatment as a last resort after other conventional therapies.

Since 2015 and the publication of Harvard review, a number of studies have been conducted on the subject and the only therapeutic effects of CBD which was approved by the FDA was a CBD oil-based elixir as a treatment for two types of children epilepsy.

New Promising Studies on the effects of CBD on Autism

A study on the effects of CBD on Autism was published in Neurology journal in 2018. According to this trial which was done in Israel medical cannabis is an effective therapy for children on the autism spectrum. In this study, researchers treated autistic children with high concentrations of CBD. The result showed that the general conditions in 80% of the children were improved, something that children with conventional drug therapy never experience.

This study was led by Dr. Adi Aran, who treated 60 children with CBD oil for seven months. In his published paper it was mentioned that after the treatment period, parents were asked to answer assessment questionnaires to characterize their child’s condition. Questions were mainly about behavioral changes, anxiety level and ability to communicate.

Here is the report:

• 80% of parents reported a decrease in problematic behaviors, 60% noted a significant general improvement.
• Half of the participants experienced improvements in communication.
• 40% reported a decrease in anxiety

Dr. Aran -the first researcher who studied the effect of cannabis on autistic children- started his first project in 2017 to test 120 autistic children. Before this study, all the other researches were confined to animals. Dr. Aran says that since the report of his research has been published, many families from all over Israel have been volunteered to participate in the next study.

Word-of-Mouth Reports

As a parent with an autistic child, it is quite reasonable to be skeptical before using any kind of new pharmaceuticals or organic medicine which could affect your child in unpredictable ways. The general quality of your child’s life is something you are constantly thinking about. Since there are not enough scientific facts about the possible effects of CBD on the symptoms of your autistic child, adding a new medicine with unknowing and possible side effects may not seem so wise but you might be a little less suspicious in making a decision if you hear about the experience of real people dealing with the same situation.

Aside from scientific studies, there are numerous individual experiences published by health organizations and news websites over the last few years which can be exciting for any family dealing with an autistic child and is somehow disappointed at the conventional pharmaceuticals which have serious side effects including weight gain, hyperprolactinemia, sedation, adverse cognitive effects and tardive dyskinesia.

Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana for Autism (MAMMA) is one of those organizations working effortlessly to provide and publish testimonials from families who claim marijuana has helped their child’s symptoms. The main goal of MAMMA is to find a way for all children with autism to have legal access to medical marijuana under the care of a physician. Based on the testimonies on their website, CBD has helped controlling the symptoms of autism, including anxiety, self-injurious behaviors, sleep dysregulation and trouble with social communications. Even families living in states where medical marijuana is not legal have submitted anonymous testimonies and say they will continue to use marijuana illegally until legislation is passed in their states.

Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana for Autism which works in seven U.S. states (Arizona, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Iowa and Illinois) supports families who consider themselves “medical refugees” moving across states to find eligible base for using medical marijuana.

In another study conducted on 547 parents of children with ASD using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk which collected responses from theses participants, ranging in age from 18 to 81.

Among these 547 parents, 40.4% tried CBD oil to control the symptoms of their autistic children. From this 40%, around 43% of the respondents added drops of CBD oil to drinking water and about 32% put the drops directly into their children’s mouth.

But the most important part of this report is the indications of the benefits of CBD on different symptoms. 50% of the respondents had children with impulse control disorder (ICD) and a short attention span, 50% with hyperactivity, 45% with aggression or unusual mood changes, and 30% with sleep dysregulation.

After the treatment, a number of benefits were reported such as a significant change in moods (56%), less anxiety (53%), and  a noticeable decrease in stress (over45%) . Sleep dysregulation was affected by CBD in more than a third of the respondents and communication problems in around 30%.

Remedy Review asked these parents at the end of the survey about the general quality of life after starting treatment. Nearly 3 quarters reported a 72% better quality in their children’s life and also 93% claimed that they would recommend CBD to their families and friends for its health benefits.

How does CBD work with Autistic Children?

Cannabidiol (CBD) can reduce anxiety in everyone, not just those who are clinically considered sick. The first and most noticeable effect of CBD oil on autism is alleviating the behavioral symptoms such as anxiety, aggression, self-injurious behaviors and social interaction difficulties. The second one its effect on children with repetitive seizures. You may say since all the approved conventional medications already can do all these, what would be the use of switching to CBD oil. The main reason is the bonus of fewer side effects which we will take a look at below.

Most common side effects of CBD oil for autism

As most medications, CBD has its own potential side effects and health risks. If you are considering CBD oil to help with your child, it is seriously recommended to be aware of its possible side effects. Also let your child’s doctor know about the usage, dose and all the behavioral changes of your child at any time. Although CBD is considered a relatively safe and well-tolerated drug you would be better to know the possible side effects including nausea, vomiting, lightheadedness, drowsiness, low blood pressure, diarrhea, and dry mouth.

Just like any other medication always seek the advice of a physician to gather enough information about your special case.

You can also read:

1. CBD and Weight loss – Can CBD help you to lose weight?
2. Some Benefits of CBD Hemp Oil For Women

Source: https://kiahalchemy.com/2019/08/cbd-and-its-possible-effects-side-effects-on-autism/