The Atopic March - updated: Leading to Autism and ADHD in some children?

 

I was thinking yesterday about the link between eczema (atopic dermatitis) and autism following a comment regarding a therapy I must have mentioned long ago (l-histidine with zinc). The therapy did work well for this child.

This then brought me back to one of my pet subjects, which is the minimization of the risk of future autism. I did write a section in my book on this subject, but it remains a work-in-progress. My elder son wants to avoid autism in his future children. If there are simple, safe, inexpensive steps that can be taken, that also provide broader health benefits then it would be crazy not to take them.

This brings me to the subject of the so-called atopic march. I have updated it to include its effects on the brain, increasing the risk of autism and ADHD and also suggest that in fact there may be slightly different atopic journeys, rather than a singular march with the same start and end points.

 

The atopic march

The traditional "atopic march" describes the progression from atopic dermatitis (eczema) in infancy to food allergies, asthma and allergic rhinitis later in childhood. While this framework has been useful for decades, it may be too simplistic.

Perhaps there is not one atopic march, but several.

Recent years have seen an explosion of research into the gut microbiome, immune development, mast cells and neurodevelopment. Numerous studies continue to investigate probiotics as a treatment for eczema, allergies and even autism. However, there is a recurring problem: many of these studies are performed in children who may already be too old to receive the maximum benefit.

The first few months of life appear to be a critical developmental window. During this period, the gut microbiome, immune system and brain are all developing simultaneously. Alterations during this time may have lifelong consequences.

One particularly intriguing study from Finland was originally designed to investigate eczema prevention. What makes this study especially interesting is that the intervention began before many people would even think about treating the microbiome. Mothers received the probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG during the final 2–4 weeks of pregnancy. After birth, the infants received the probiotic for only the first six months of life.

A possible link between early probiotic intervention and the risk of neuropsychiatric disorders later in childhood: a randomized trial

Remarkably, this relatively brief intervention, lasting just a few months around the time of birth, was followed by measurable differences many years later.

In other words, the researchers were not treating eczema, ADHD or autism. They were attempting to influence the earliest stages of microbiome development. This timing is important because the infant microbiome is initially seeded by microbes acquired from the mother during birth, breastfeeding and close maternal contact. By giving the probiotic to both mother and infant, the researchers may have been influencing the microbial ecosystem at the very moment it was being established.

Years later, when the children were followed into adolescence, the researchers found not only a reduction in eczema but also a surprising reduction in diagnoses of ADHD and Asperger syndrome. If the finding proves to be real, it would suggest that a six-month intervention during infancy may have influenced developmental trajectories more than a decade later. The study was small and requires replication, but the findings were striking. 

Group	Children	ADHD or Asperger syndrome by age 13	Percentage
Probiotic (LGG)	40	0	0%
Placebo	35	6	17%

One reason the Finnish study has not been easily replicated is the sheer difficulty of performing such research. To repeat the study properly, researchers would need to recruit women during pregnancy, administer the intervention before birth, continue treatment during infancy, and then follow the children for 10–15 years while carefully tracking neurodevelopmental outcomes. Such studies are expensive, logistically challenging and suffer from inevitable participant drop-out over time. Furthermore, because probiotics are inexpensive and cannot easily be patented, there is limited commercial incentive to fund a trial that may take more than a decade to produce results. As a consequence, many probiotic studies focus on older children and adults where results can be obtained within months rather than years, even though the greatest biological impact may occur during the earliest stages of development.

At the same time, other observations point in a similar direction:

• Early pet exposure reduces the risk of eczema.
• Children raised on farms have lower rates of allergic disease.
• Early probiotic use can reduce the risk of atopic dermatitis.
• Food allergies are increasingly viewed as part of the atopic march.
• Autism and ADHD are associated with higher rates of allergic disease in many studies.

The common denominator may be early-life immune and microbiome development.

The protective effects of pets and farm exposure are often discussed in the context of the hygiene hypothesis, although the modern interpretation is really a microbial exposure hypothesis. Children growing up around animals are exposed to a much greater diversity of microorganisms. Rather than overwhelming the immune system, these microbial exposures appear to help educate and calibrate it. Studies of children raised on traditional farms consistently show lower rates of eczema, asthma and allergic disease. The immune system evolved in a world rich in microbial exposures, and it may require those signals to develop normally.

This brings us to an important point. The infant microbiome does not arise spontaneously. Much of it originates from the mother. During birth, breastfeeding and close maternal contact, microbes are transferred from mother to child. These pioneer organisms help establish the infant gut microbiome and play a critical role in training the developing immune system. In many ways, the microbiome acts as one of the earliest teachers of the immune system, helping it learn the difference between harmless substances and genuine threats.

This process of immune calibration appears to occur very early in life. Once established, the microbiome becomes increasingly stable and resistant to change. This may explain why probiotics often show their greatest effects when administered during pregnancy or infancy, while studies in older children and adults frequently produce much smaller results. By the time many interventions are attempted, the window during which the microbiome is shaping immune development may already be closing.

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of the Finnish study is not the probiotic itself, but the timing. The intervention was completed by six months of age, yet the outcomes were measured at 13 years of age. This is precisely what one would expect if the microbiome plays a role in calibrating the developing immune system during a narrow critical window early in life.

Mast cells may also deserve greater attention. They play important roles in eczema, food allergies, asthma and anaphylaxis, but they are also found in the gut and nervous system. Some researchers have proposed that abnormal mast-cell activity could contribute to neurodevelopmental symptoms in susceptible individuals.

Another clue that early immune modulation may alter the trajectory of the atopic march comes from studies of ketotifen, an antihistamine and mast-cell stabilizer. In one notable study of infants with atopic dermatitis, children receiving ketotifen were significantly less likely to develop asthma during the follow-up period. The researchers also reported improvements in the severity of atopic dermatitis. These findings suggest that, at least in some children, modifying mast-cell activity and allergic inflammation early in life may alter the subsequent progression of allergic disease.

Prevention strategies for asthma — secondary prevention

If the classical atopic march can be interrupted before eczema progresses to asthma, it raises a broader question. Could other early interventions—such as probiotics, microbial exposure from pets and farm environments, or targeted immune modulation—also alter developmental trajectories extending beyond allergy and into neurodevelopment in susceptible children?

This raises an interesting possibility. For a subgroup of children, the atopic march may not end with asthma and hay fever. Instead, immune dysregulation, microbiome alterations and barrier dysfunction could also influence neurodevelopment, increasing the risk of ADHD or autism.

The proposed sequence might look something like this:

Microbiome disturbance / barrier dysfunction → Eczema → Food allergy → Mast-cell activation → ADHD / Autism susceptibility

or perhaps

Microbiome disturbance → Food allergy → Eczema → Neurodevelopmental effects

In other words, there may be multiple entry points and multiple destinations.

Importantly, this hypothesis does not suggest that eczema causes autism, nor that most children with eczema will develop autism. Rather, it suggests that some children may share an underlying biological pathway affecting the skin, gut, immune system and brain.

If this hypothesis contains even a grain of truth, it has profound implications. It would mean that interventions aimed at modifying the microbiome or immune system may be most effective during infancy, before symptoms of autism or ADHD are apparent. By the time a child is diagnosed at age 3, 5 or 10, the critical developmental window may already have passed.

The irony is that we continue to perform large numbers of probiotic studies in older children and adults, where effects are often modest. The greatest opportunity may lie much earlier, during the period when the microbiome and immune system are still being assembled.

The challenge for researchers is to identify which children belong to this subgroup before the window of opportunity closes.

The classical atopic march has evolved over time. Perhaps the next evolution will be to recognize that, in some children, the journey extends beyond allergies and into neurodevelopment.

  

Conclusion

 In the Finnish study, the intervention was actually in both the mother and the infant:

• Mothers took Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG during the final 2–4 weeks of pregnancy.
• After birth, the infants received the probiotic until 6 months of age.

It would be very easy to implement this.

Dog and farm animal exposure (pregnant mother and later the baby) might be more difficult for some, but easy for others.

NAC during pregnancy is another simple one. It was also show very effective in reducing miscarriages and increasing the “take-home baby rate.”

We also saw Prof Ramaekers using folinic acid during pregnancy where future parents test positive for folate receptor antibodies. This requires the future parents taking the FRAT test.

In older children and adults probiotics can have a benefit, but the dramatic effect only occurs when given prior to the immune system being (mis)calibrated. In the older age-group it appears that you need something more potent – FMT works in some cases. 

The Finnish study only refers to level 1 autism (then called Asperger's syndrome).

I imagine if you could repeat this study and also include all the common issues like

• Dyslexia
• Dyscalculia
• Developmental language disorder
• Dyspraxia (developmental coordination disorder)
• Learning disabilities generally
• Level 2 and 3 autism

you would see some shocking results. 

You would not have 0% incidence of each disorder in the probiotic group, but I bet you would see a substantial reduction.

Autism regression around aged 9-18 years old – is it catatonia?

 

From the title of today’s post you can see that this is one for parents of older children and indeed some adults. I should add that personally I am not a fan of observational diagnoses like catatonia, because I am interested in the biological cause of the unwanted behaviors, as a means to find effective therapy. Catatonia is a very broad term, but in current psychiatry that is what we have.

I was recently contacted by a mother whose adolescent son had regressed severely and she wanted to know what she had done wrong. She had not done anything wrong of course. Now she has to figure out what triggered the changes and how to reverse them. Catatonia is one possibility and it has not been covered in this blog.

The word catatonic drifted into casual English. Today, people use it informally to describe anyone who is completely unresponsive, frozen, or motionless.

As a medical term a diagnosis of catatonia is typically confirmed when an individual displays three or more of the following features:

Stupor & Mutism. Profound unresponsiveness to the outside world, along with a lack of, or severely reduced, speech.

Catalepsy & Waxy Flexibility. The tendency to passively hold bizarre, fixed postures against gravity or to maintain a position exactly as it is set by someone else.

Negativism. An active or passive resistance to instructions or movement.

Posturing. The spontaneous holding of unnatural, active postures for long periods.

Stereotypy & Mannerisms. Repetitive, non-goal-directed movements (such as rocking or pacing) or odd caricatures of normal actions.

Excitement/Agitation. Frenzied or purposeless motor activity that does not seem influenced by external stimuli.

Echolalia & Echopraxia. The involuntary mimicking of someone else's speech or movements.

 

Catatonia often occurs in people with schizophrenia, bipolar, or major depressive disorders. It can also be triggered by autoimmune diseases, brain injuries, or even severe infections. About 10% of people with autism will develop symptoms of catatonia. It can affect any level of autism.

Puberty can be the trigger for catatonia, but it can also develop much later in adulthood. 

Diagnosing catatonia looks different depending on the patient's age. For instance children are much more likely to present with refusal to eat or drink and mutism, which caregivers sometimes mistake for stubbornness or behavioral issues.

Autism-related catatonia can manifest differently than it does in non-autistic populations. It is often characterized by a distinct pattern of gradual, late regression rather than a sudden, acute physical freeze.

The "Late Regression" Timeline

While autism is usually diagnosed in early childhood, catatonia typically hits during adolescence or early adulthood.

The Early Warn Signs (Ages 10–14) Before full-blown catatonia develops, young teens with autism often exhibit a gradual increase in obsessive-compulsive routines, extreme physical slowness, or brief episodes of "freezing".

Full Onset (Ages 15–19) Full-syndrome catatonia typically solidifies during the peak of pubertal development. It is rare to see the full syndrome in autistic children under the age of 15.

Unique symptoms in autistic individuals

Because symptoms overlap with common autistic traits, catatonia can be difficult to recognize.

Loss of Function (Severe Regression). A sudden or progressive inability to complete daily activities they previously mastered (e.g., getting dressed, bathing, or using utensils).

Severe "Freezing" and Stuckness. Getting physically stuck mid-motion—such as freezing in a doorway or holding a cup halfway to their mouth for minutes.

The "Shutdown" Phenomenon. Severe passivity where the individual stops talking (mutism), avoids all eye contact, and refuses to eat or drink.

Hyperactive and Self-Injurious Behaviors. Rather than just freezing, autistic individuals frequently display hyperactive catatonia, which includes repetitive, automatic, and severe self-injury (like severe head-banging) that is unrelated to communicative distress.

Fluctuation Symptoms are notoriously variable—an individual may seem heavily affected or locked in place in the morning but move relatively normally by evening.

 

Why does it happen?

In autism, catatonia is frequently triggered by extreme environmental stress, major life transitions (like leaving school), trauma, severe anxiety, or co-occurring mood disorders.

 

Biological drivers

While psychological and environmental stress (such as extreme anxiety, bullying, or major routine changes) frequently act as the spark, catatonia is ultimately a neurological breakdown. The primary biological triggers, chemical imbalances, and genetic factors that cause the brain to enter a catatonic state include:

1.     Neurotransmitter imbalances

The most widely accepted biological explanation for catatonia is a sudden, severe imbalance of chemical messengers in the brain circuits that control movement and behavior:

·        GABA Deficit: GABA is the brain's primary calming/inhibitory neurotransmitter. In catatonia, there can be a sudden drop in GABA-A receptor activity. Because the brain loses its ability to regulate or slow down signals, motor pathways lock up. This explains why benzodiazepines (which increase the sensitivity to a given amount of GABA) can often rapidly reverse the condition.

·        Glutamate Overdrive: Glutamate is an excitatory chemical. A spike in glutamatergic activity, specifically involving NMDA receptors, can overstimulate the brain's motor networks, forcing the body into fixed, rigid postures.

·        Dopamine Drop: A sudden drop in dopamine activity—specifically at D2 receptors—paralyzes the brain’s reward and movement centers. This mimics the chemical state seen in Parkinson's disease, creating severe physical slowness or total immobility.

 

2.     Neuroimmune and autoimmune triggers

The immune system can directly attack the brain, causing acute neuroinflammation that triggers catatonia.

·        Autoimmune Encephalitis: Conditions like anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis occur when the body mistakenly produces autoantibodies that attack NMDA receptors in the brain. Catatonia is a primary symptom in up to 70% of these cases.

·        Systemic Infections: In medically vulnerable or autistic individuals, severe underlying infections (like a urinary tract infection, pneumonia, or a severe viral illness) can trigger a massive cytokine response. This inflammation breaches the blood-brain barrier, disrupting motor circuits and inducing catatonic behavior.

 

3.     Structural brain differences

Neuroimaging studies show that catatonia often stems from communication failures within specific brain loops (the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuits) which govern motor planning.In autistic individuals with catatonia, MRI scans frequently reveal abnormally small cerebellar structures. Because the cerebellum is responsible for fine-tuning motor actions and smooth coordination, these structural differences make the motor loop highly vulnerable to completely breaking down under stress.

4.     Genetic susceptibility

Catatonia can have a hereditary link. Genetic studies on families with a vulnerability to periodic catatonia have identified specific genetic alterations. Interestingly, susceptibility regions on chromosomes 15 and 22 are heavily implicated in both autism and catatonia, suggesting a shared genetic architecture that primes certain individuals for the condition.

5.     Medication effects & withdrawal

Abrupt biological shifts caused by pharmaceutical substances can paralyze the motor system:

·        Dopamine Blockers: Exposure to strong antipsychotic medications can sometimes block dopamine receptors so aggressively that it induces catatonia .

·        Sedative Withdrawal: Suddenly stopping medications that calm the central nervous system (such as benzodiazepines or barbiturates) causes a rebound biological shock, stripping away the brain’s chemical brakes and inducing a catatonic freeze. Always taper the dosage.

  

Mainstream therapy for catatonia 

The treatment goal is to resolve any physical freezing first, then address the underlying psychiatric or medical cause.

Clinicians use a strict, stepped protocol ranging from medications to medical procedures. The first-line medication is Lorazepam (Ativan), a benzodiazepine. Lorazepam increases GABA-A activity, restoring the brain's missing chemical brakes. Intravenous Lorazepam is given to confirm the diagnosis if symptoms improve rapidly.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is the definitive treatment for severe cases. ECT is deployed if a patient shows no improvement after intensive Lorazepam trials. ECT is performed safely in a hospital setting under general anesthesia and muscle relaxants.

Maintenance Therapy: Long-term, periodic ECT may be required for individuals with chronic conditions.

Second-line options include glutamate antagonists like Amantadine or Memantine, if first-line choices fail. Alternative GABA agents like Zolpidem (Ambien) are sometimes utilized to break treatment-resistant freezing. Medications to Avoid: Traditional dopamine-blocking antipsychotics (like haloperidol) are generally not useful. Antipsychotics can worsen the motor paralysis or trigger Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome.

 

Peter’s thought’s on mainstream therapy

The 30+% of level 3 autism who respond to bumetanide would have an extreme negative (paradoxical) reaction to Lorazepam (Ativan). They would get very aggressive and “go nuts.”

In most countries ECT is highly regulated. It clearly is effective for some people, but it looks a rather crude therapy to me.

The mainstream therapies look very “thin” to me. I think much more should be possible.  

I think the term catatonia is much too vague and you need to know why these changes have occurred, then you can figure out a therapy.

PANS can trigger the symptoms of catatonia. In many counties PANS is still not recognized as a diagnosis. PANS (Pediatric Acute-onset Neuropsychiatric Syndrome) would not respond to a benzodiazepine drug like Lorazepam, but would instead require immunotherapy, which is completely different.

As usual we come back to getting an observational like catatonia, autism or trendy new ones like ARFID (picky eating) is just the first step in the process. Then you need to find out why? What biological or behavioral factors are driving these symptoms. Then you can figure out how to treat them, or indeed choose not to treat them, if you are so inclined.

  

Could it be OCD rather than catatonia?

One reason catatonia can be difficult to recognize in autism is that several of its symptoms overlap with severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In fact, some studies have found that obsessive-compulsive symptoms are very common in autistic individuals who later develop catatonia.

Parents often report that their child begins:

• Writing the same words repeatedly
• Talking about the same topics over and over
• Performing increasingly rigid rituals
• Becoming distressed when routines are interrupted
• Withdrawing socially

These symptoms may point to OCD, catatonia, or a combination of both.

The key distinction is that OCD is driven by obsessions and compulsions, whereas catatonia is characterized by a loss of initiative and a decline in function. An autistic teenager with OCD may be extremely active in performing rituals, while a teenager with catatonia may become progressively slower, less spontaneous, and increasingly "stuck."

Questions that may help distinguish the two include:

• Does the person become anxious if prevented from performing the behavior?
• Are they physically slower than before?
• Do they need prompting to start everyday activities?
• Have they lost skills they previously mastered?
• Are they spending long periods inactive or frozen?

The two conditions can coexist. In some cases, severe OCD may precede the development of catatonia.

Investigations

When a child, teenager, or adult with autism experiences a significant regression after years of relative stability, it is worth looking beyond the autism diagnosis itself.

One investigation I would seriously consider is an EEG (electroencephalogram). Epilepsy or "just" abnormal electrical activity in the brain can sometimes present as:

• Regression
• Social withdrawal
• Changes in communication
• Cognitive decline
• Repetitive behaviors
• Episodes of staring or unresponsiveness

Several studies have reported higher rates of epilepsy among autistic individuals who develop catatonic symptoms.

An EEG may not identify the cause of the regression, but it is a relatively straightforward way to investigate an important and potentially treatable neurological contributor.

Other investigations may include:

• Sleep assessment
• Review of medications
• Assessment for OCD and anxiety disorders
• Evaluation for depression
• Screening for autoimmune or inflammatory conditions where clinically indicated

The important point is that autism itself is not usually a progressive condition. When someone loses skills after years of stability, it is worth asking what has changed and whether there is a treatable condition contributing to the decline.

 

DEE-SWAS (Night Terrors, Sleep EEG Abnormalities etc.) masquerading as Regressive Autism

  

 

One of the key points in understanding "autism" is that it is not a single biological condition. It is just a behavioral diagnosis based on observed developmental patterns involving language, social communication, repetitive behaviors and sensory differences.

That means very different biological conditions can produce children/adults who all outwardly appear some version of “autistic.”

A striking example of this was recently shared with me by one of our readers.

 

A Child Diagnosed with "autism"

The parents noted severe developmental regression accompanied by unusual sleep disturbances and night terrors. Over time they also observed something very interesting, that changes in valproic acid (VPA) dosing appeared to significantly affect symptoms.

Their neurologist had performed EEGs which reportedly showed abnormalities and yet despite this, no further major investigations were ordered:

• no epilepsy-protocol MRI
• no prolonged 24-hour EEG
• and no comprehensive workup for epileptic encephalopathy.

Meanwhile, the family pursued extensive genetic testing searching for answers.

This is unfortunately an increasingly familiar story in developmental medicine, a child receives a behavioral autism diagnosis, and the diagnostic process effectively stops there.

 

Seeking a second opinion

The family eventually attended a specialized pediatric neurology clinic at a major children’s hospital.

The difference was immediate.

After reviewing EEGs, videos before regression, videos after regression and recordings of the child’s sleep terrors, the specialists concluded that the child fit the modern framework of:

DEE-SWAS
(Developmental and Epileptic Encephalopathy with Spike-and-Wave Activation in Sleep)

The older terms for overlapping conditions include:

• ESES (Electrical Status Epilepticus in Sleep)
• CSWS (Continuous Spike-Wave During Sleep)
• Landau-Kleffner syndrome

The clinic immediately ordered:

• epilepsy-protocol MRI
• prolonged 24-hour EEG
• metabolic investigations
• ophthalmologic evaluation
• orthopedic assessment

Most strikingly, they reportedly stated that this looked like:

“DEE-SWAS masquerading as autism.”

 

What Is DEE-SWAS?

DEE-SWAS is increasingly understood as a disorder of abnormal brain network synchronization during sleep.

The key issue is not simply seizures. Some children have obvious seizures, others do not.

In many children, pathological spike-wave activity during deep non-REM sleep may interfere with:

• language development
• memory consolidation
• emotional regulation
• cognition
• attention
• and developmental plasticity itself.

Some primarily present with:

• regression
• loss of speech
• autistic behaviors
• sensory abnormalities
• emotional dysregulation
• fluctuating cognition
• sleep disturbance
• night terrors.

In many cases, the child outwardly appears to have classic regressive autism.

 

Why night terrors matter

Night terrors are usually benign in ordinary children.

However, in the context of

• developmental regression
• abnormal EEGs
• fluctuating cognition
• or epileptiform activity

they become much more significant.

DEE-SWAS specifically affects deep slow-wave sleep — the same sleep stage associated with night terrors and abnormal arousal phenomena.

This does not mean every child with night terrors has epileptic encephalopathy.

But regression plus unusual sleep phenomena should raise suspicion that a prolonged sleep EEG may be warranted.

 

Treating the EEG to treat the child

One of the most interesting concepts in modern DEE-SWAS research is:

“Treating the EEG to treat the patient.”

The concern is that the abnormal sleep spike-wave activity itself may drive the developmental deterioration.

Treatments used include:

• valproic acid
• clobazam
• clonazepam
• steroids
• ketogenic diet
• acetazolamide (Diamox)
• ethosuximide
• and in some cases surgery.

Ethosuximide is particularly interesting because it is a T-type calcium channel blocker that affects thalamocortical spike-wave synchronization.

The thalamus appears to play a major role in generating these pathological sleep oscillations.

Ketogenic therapies and ketone esters are also fascinating because they may:

• stabilize neuronal metabolism
• reduce hyperexcitability
• alter glutamate/GABA balance
• and improve network stability during sleep.

 

For more information on treatment:

Treatment of Developmental/Epileptic Encephalopathy With Spike-Wave Activation in Sleep

Is DEE-SWAS Rare?

Officially, yes. But many experts suspect it is significantly under-recognized.

Why? Because many children with:

• regression
• autism
• language loss
• or sleep problems

never receive a prolonged sleep EEG monitoring.

A short daytime EEG may miss much of the pathology.

This is especially important because some children may improve substantially when the abnormal sleep-related epileptiform activity is treated.

DEE-SWAS is likely a spectrum from mild to severe. The underlying cause varies, but often is thought to be an anomaly in an ion channel (calcium, sodium, potassium).  

Autism is just a behavioral phenotype

Cases like this reinforce an increasingly important idea.

“Autism” represents a common behavioral phenotype arising from many different biological mechanisms.

For one child:

• synaptic dysfunction may dominate.

For another:

• mitochondrial dysfunction.

For another:

• immune dysregulation.

And for another:

• sleep-activated epileptiform encephalopathy.

The behavioral presentation may look similar, while the biology underneath is profoundly different. The treatment will also be different, although there are surprising overlaps.

 

Conclusion

DEE-SWAS is not just a case of a bad night’s sleep.

The concern is months or years of abnormal electrical activity repeatedly disrupting the brain during one of its most critical developmental states.

In DEE-SWAS the brain spends large portions of deep sleep in a pathological synchronized firing mode instead of normal developmental processing.

Over time this may interfere with language acquisition, cognition, emotional regulation and developmental plasticity itself, potentially leading to developmental regression and a child who outwardly appears to have regressive autism.

This post is not suggesting that most regressive autism is actually DEE-SWAS, but some clearly is.

However, children with:

• clear regression
• fluctuating abilities
• sleep deterioration
• night terrors
• language loss
• episodic worsening
• or unusual EEG findings

deserve more extensive neurological investigation than they often receive.

The father who contacted me persisted despite initial dismissal and eventually reached a centre experienced in developmental epileptic encephalopathies.

That persistence may prove extremely important for their child’s future outcome.

New insights into myelination reviewed through the What, When and Where autism framework

 

A new paper was recently published by researchers at the City University of New York (CUNY) may have implications far beyond myelin disorders such as multiple sclerosis. The study demonstrated that glucose is not merely a fuel source for the developing brain, but also acts as a developmental signal controlling myelin formation.

We know that myelination can be delayed, or just impaired, in many types of autism.

Modern imaging increasingly suggests that some neurodevelopmental disorders involve altered developmental timing of white matter maturation, rather than structural defects.

That fits very well with:

• delayed milestones
• asynchronous development
• regression windows
• partial catch-up trajectories

 

The technology available includes:

Conventional MRI — shows gross white matter and myelination patterns; useful for detecting delayed myelination, hypomyelination, or structural white matter abnormalities.

Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) — advanced MRI technique measuring white matter connectivity and tract integrity indirectly through water diffusion.

Advanced myelin imaging (MTI, Myelin Water Imaging, MRS) — more specialized scans that estimate myelin content or metabolic function related to myelin and brain energy use.

 

Researchers Discover a New Link Between Brain Sugar Levels and Myelin Development

https://www.gc.cuny.edu/news/researchers-discover-new-link-between-brain-sugar-levels-and-myelin-development

 

Oligodendrocytes make myelin, and you need a lot of them.

An oligodendrocyte progenitor cell (OPC) is an immature brain cell that can divide and later mature into an oligodendrocyte, the cell responsible for producing myelin around nerve fibers.

The paper showed that high local glucose levels stimulated oligodendrocyte progenitor cells to divide and increase their numbers rather than mature immediately into myelin-producing cells.

While lower glucose states and alternative fuels such as ketone bodies supported maturation into myelin-producing oligodendrocytes. Importantly, when glucose-derived acetyl-CoA production was impaired, oligodendrocytes were still able to mature and eventually produce myelin by switching to ketone-derived metabolic pathways.

In essence:

·        Glucose was especially important for expanding the number of OPCs.

·        Ketones can support later oligodendrocyte maturation and myelin production when glucose pathways were impaired.

·        Ketones cannot replace glucose

·        Ketones can augment a glucose deficient brain

 

While the study focused on myelination, it may also provide a useful framework for thinking about autism and neurodevelopmental disorders.

One conceptual model I use to understand autism is what I call the “3W framework”, or the What When and Where of autism:

• What dysfunction?
• Where in the brain?
• When during development?

This new research fits remarkably well within this framework.

 

WHAT dysfunction?

Autism is unlikely to represent one single biological abnormality. Two autistic individuals may share behavioral features while having very different underlying neurobiology.

Potential dysfunctions may include:

• Synaptic dysfunction
• Mitochondrial abnormalities
• Redox dysregulation
• Neuroinflammation
• ER stress
• Myelination abnormalities
• Developmental timing abnormalities
• Excitation/inhibition imbalance

This new paper introduces another important candidate dysfunction -
metabolic regulation of oligodendrocyte development and myelination.

The important insight is that metabolism itself appears to regulate developmental state transitions.

The study showed that glucose-derived acetyl-CoA regulates histone acetylation and developmental gene expression in OPCs. In other words, metabolism is not simply supplying energy to the brain. It is helping instruct cells when to proliferate and when to mature.

This is a major conceptual shift.

In autism research, metabolism has traditionally been viewed mainly through the lens of energy deficiency or mitochondrial dysfunction. However, this paper supports a newer idea emerging across neuroscience:

Metabolism may act as a developmental signaling system.

This may help explain why some autistic individuals show:

• Delayed rather than absent development
• Uneven cognitive profiles
• Fluctuating developmental trajectories
• Temporary regressions
• Later partial catch-up

These patterns are difficult to explain using static “brain damage” models but fit more naturally with dysregulated developmental timing.

 

WHERE in the brain?

The same dysfunction can produce very different outcomes depending on where it occurs.

Abnormal myelination in:

• Frontal regions may affect executive function and social cognition
• Temporal regions may affect language processing
• Cerebellar circuits may affect sensory prediction and motor timing
• White matter tracts may affect long-range synchronization and processing speed
• Brainstem regions may affect autonomic regulation and arousal

This may explain why autism presents so heterogeneously.

Importantly, systemic treatments are too blunt. Most interventions affect the entire brain simultaneously. A therapy that improves one network may destabilize another.

This may partly explain why:

• Some individuals improve dramatically with metabolic interventions
• Others show little effect
• Some worsen paradoxically

The “Where” dimension is likely critically important but remains difficult to target clinically.

WHEN during development?

This may be the most important insight of all.

The developing brain is not static. Different developmental stages require different metabolic and signaling environments.

The paper demonstrated that:

• High glucose states supported OPC proliferation
• Alternative metabolic fuels supported oligodendrocyte maturation and myelin synthesis

This implies that metabolic requirements change across developmental stages.

That concept may have profound implications for autism.

Many developmental disorders show:

• Delayed milestones
• Asynchronous development
• Developmental plateaus
• Regression windows
• Later partial catch-up

The traditional assumption has often been that cells or circuits are permanently defective.

However, this paper suggests that some neurodevelopmental disorders may involve delayed or dysregulated developmental transitions rather than irreversible failure.

The study is particularly interesting because the mice initially showed reduced myelination but later partially compensated through alternative metabolic pathways involving ketone-derived acetyl-CoA.

This resembles the developmental trajectories seen in many neurodevelopmental disorders, where:

• Development is delayed rather than absent
• Skills may emerge late
• Periods of apparent stagnation may later resolve
• Regression may sometimes reflect failure of compensation during periods of rising developmental demand

This may help explain why some therapies only appear effective during certain developmental windows.

A treatment beneficial during one phase of development may be ineffective or even counterproductive during another.

 

Implications for autism therapies

This paper does not prove that autism is a myelination disorder, nor does it prove that ketogenic therapies are effective for autism.

However, it strengthens several emerging ideas:

• Metabolism may regulate developmental timing
• Myelination may be metabolically sensitive
• Alternative fuels such as ketones may support some developmental processes
• Neurodevelopmental disorders may involve impaired metabolic flexibility
• Therapeutic timing may matter enormously

The future of autism therapy may eventually require understanding:

• What dysfunction is present
• Where it is occurring in the brain
• When during development intervention is most effective

The era of searching for a single universal autism treatment may eventually give way to developmentally timed, biologically targeted interventions tailored to specific neurobiological profiles.

This new myelination research may represent an important step toward that future.

Note that this paper from CUNY does not mention autism, it is just about the myelination process.

 

The use of ketones in autism

A small number of people with autism appear to respond very well to ketone ester supplements. These products are still relatively niche, expensive, and can be difficult to obtain outside the United States. One of the best known examples is KetoneAid KE4.

Ketone esters can produce a substantial and measurable increase in blood levels of the ketone beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), often sustained for several hours. This differs significantly from many cheaper “ketone” products, particularly ketone salts, which typically produce much smaller and shorter-lived increases in BHB.

Why some autistic individuals respond positively to ketones remains unclear, but several mechanisms are plausible:

• Alternative brain energy supply
• Improved mitochondrial efficiency
• Reduced glucose dependence
• Changes in redox balance
• Effects on neuronal excitability
• Altered inflammation and signaling pathways
• Possible support for myelination and oligodendrocyte function

The new study showed that oligodendrocyte lineage cells can switch from glucose-derived acetyl-CoA to ketone-derived acetyl-CoA during later stages of myelin formation. This suggests ketones may play a more important developmental and signaling role in the brain than previously appreciated.

Importantly, ketones do not replace glucose entirely. The study demonstrated that glucose signaling remained necessary for oligodendrocyte progenitor cell (OPC) proliferation during early developmental stages, while ketones could support later maturation and myelin synthesis under some conditions.

This may help explain why ketones appear beneficial in some neurological and developmental conditions involving:

• impaired glucose utilization
• mitochondrial dysfunction
• epilepsy
• white matter abnormalities
• metabolic inflexibility

However, responses in autism are highly variable. Some individuals show improvements in:

• alertness
• cognition
• endurance
• behavior
• seizures
• language attempts

while others show little benefit or even worsening.

This variability likely reflects the biological heterogeneity of autism itself. Different individuals may have different underlying dysfunctions involving metabolism, redox balance, mitochondrial function, neuroinflammation, myelination, or neuronal signaling.

At present there is still very little formal clinical research on ketone esters in autism, and most evidence remains anecdotal or exploratory. Nevertheless, the growing understanding of brain metabolism and developmental myelination suggests this may become an increasingly important research area in the future.