Fads and Pseudoscience | Erica Grindinger

Fads and Pseudosciences

FADS

Fads are interventions that are NOT supported by scientific evidence.

Autism is one of the leading conditions to be plagued with the most fads, controversial, unsupported, disproven, and unvalidated treatments.

ANTI-VACCINE

Described as the most damaging medical hoax of the last 100 years. Pseudoscience paper published in 1998 by Andrew Wakefield linking autism to the MMR vaccine. This was not supported by scientific evidence. The paper was later retracted in 2010 when it was proven by the CDC (and other agencies) to have no creditable link between the two.

PESUDOSCIENCE

Pseudoscience are the beliefs, practices, and theories that are mistakenly regarded to be scientific and factual, when they have no scientific evidence or fact to support them.

Pseudosciences are sometimes mistaken for factual because of the scientific language used.

Gluten-Free

Casein-Free

A gluten-free/casein-free diet is also known as the GFCF diet.

Even when no allergy is confirmed, many parents of autistic children still choose to offer the GFCF diet. Believing the benefits will show changes in speech and behavior.

The effectiveness of a GFCF diet for individuals autism has not been supported by medical research. Studies have concluded there is a lack of scientific evidence to support this diet.

Vitamin Supplements

There is no scientific evidence suggesting that vitamin supplements can treat autism. Using supplements without supervision of a healthcare provider can be dangerous. Some supplements, such as vitamin A, can be toxic when taken in high doses for sustained periods of time.

Holding Therapy

Holding Therapy believes that autism is a disorder caused by a parent's failure to bond with the child.

In a holding therapy session, a caregiver physically restrains a child with autism in order to force eye contact and repair attachment.

There is no scientific evidence to suggest that holding therapy is effective.

Facilitated Communication

Facilitated Communication is a technique that involves a facilitator holding a communication partner's limb to help them type or point.

it is intended to help individuals who are unable to speak, write, or type on their own.

Research has shown that the facilitator is actually the source of the messages, rather than the person with a disability.