Hot peppers, coffee, gluten and autism, good or bad?

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Peppers are an antioxidant. On the other hand, they are a gastrointestinal irritant, and studies have shown a correlation (not the same as causation) between gastrointestinal disturbances and autistic symptoms in children.

Coffee, sugar and gluten have also been linked to gastrointestinal disturbances. I do not eat much gluten, or sugar, but I'm a coffee and pepper addict. I dearly love my hot food and cook lots of Malaysian and Chinese food that is very spicy. It definitely causes stomach pains sometimes, as does coffee.

For what it's worth, I hate bread and sugar. Maybe I should be hating coffee and hot peppers too.

I really like my coffee and spicy food. Unfortunately, I sometimes forget to take both in moderation. Drinking anything beyond 8-12oz of good coffee a day, and not in the morning seriously messes with my mood and sleep cycle. I am not good at watching myself.

I have never had trouble with too spicy, as in too much capsicum. Except that one sandwich I got at the sandwich/wing/bar place down the street from my dorm. It was the special and they used their "OMG" sauce gratuitously. A significant portion of that sauce is habenero. Couldn't finish it in two separate sittings, burned going down, burned going out, and went through pretty fast.

edit: I don't like too much added sugar in my food, just gives me a high and crash. And they add way too much wheat gluten to the "healthy" breads you find.

gluten, coffee, sugar i have no problem with. i can't eat any food that is spicy enough to cause any digestive issues because it burns my mouth too much. i do have food allergies and i lack some enzymes so i can't digest legumes, cruciferous vegetables, or dairy properly.

I have trouble buying that a gluten free diet reduces autism symptoms in children. We are told all ASDs are neurological problems, and while I do see a mind/body connection in most things, anything that aggravates ASD is likely to be more neurological in nature.

I personally think there is a confounding variable with gastrointestinal disturbances and ASD symptoms.

Well, if you are sensitive or allergic to anything edible (or sometimes, even something not edible!), it can interfere with mentation. The thing is, what you're sensitive to, or even if you're sensitive to anything, is going to vary from person to person.

Could it be that autistic people get stressed easily because of various factors such as sensory issues and lack of interpersonal skills and that stress causes gastrointestinal problems, hence the correlation? Stress is one of the known causes of gastrointestinal problems. It's just an idea that I came up with. And of course there is a possibility that the correlation could be due to something more physiological rather than mental. You never know. And other possibilities.

I love coffee (withoug sugar) and spicy food, too. Coffee doesn't affect my mood or sleep and so I can have as much of it as I like at any time of day. I'm trying to control the amount of chilli in my food. I heard a long-term excessive consumption of very spicy hot food could lead to damage to the wall of the stomach, and that could in turn lead to stomach cancer in some cases. Not that spicy food causes cancer directly. I neve thought about gluten. I must have been consuming a lot of it.

I pretty much never have digestive issues ever. I also love coffee and spicy food. I drink coffee with like..cheeseburgers, a combo most people can't handle.

This. This I have cut down me coffee consumption to about two or three cups a day. I used to love finding the cheapest greasy spoon, and downing coffee and chain smoking with friends at all hours of the night...now it's green tea and chewing gum at home...

I have Celiac's Disease and Dyspraxia/Dyslexia/ADHD, gluten makes my neurological function plummet severely, increases sensory problems, and meltdown potential. I also have food allergies and they do not trigger this extended response. If you suspect Celiacs or even gluten intolerance please see a doctor and get diagnosed properly, this is a hard life to live and eliminating gluten comes with its own hardships since you've knocked out most foods on your store shelf you need to know how to eat to stay healthy.

Celiacs is rare-ish (same amount of the population diagnosed as AS/ASD), but gluten intolerance and sensitivity (which do not do the permanent intestinal damage) cause many of the same symptoms. Here is some information and doctors are slow understanding this so look around if you're quickly dismissed or the doctor doesn't know much on the topic http://www.celiac.org/index.php?option= ... &Itemid=12 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten_sensitivity

Gluten I can tolerate.

Histamine on the other hand....... I stick to a low histamine diet as much as possible. I eat anything with high histamine and its the end. I cant focus, I'm nervous, I'm anxious, I can't think what I want to say next, and I get butterflys in my tummy veryyyyyyy easily.

Low Histamine Diet, you should give it a shot.

I also love coffee but I drink it without sugar. I used to be an emotional eater and eat lots and lots of sweet things which resulted in sugar crashes.
I tried to figure out why I was eating so much sweets it turns out any time I was feeling upset or anxious I would start looking for something sweet to eat. About an hour later I would be knocked out on the couch or in bed.

So I decided to drastically reduce my sugar intake. And not buy any sweets at all because I am not able to moderate my intake.

Due to severe sleep problems I was suffering I also decided to reduce coffee to only a few before 13.00 pm. After I only tea or water until about 22.00. Since coffee and tea are also diuretics and my sleep was also disturbed by frequent urination.

I also try to drink more water. Mostly just boiled water to stay hydrated. I do not like cold water so drinking hot water was the best option for me. I am pretty much lactose intolerant so I have to drink milk and milk product with moderacy. I mostly drink goat milk when I really have a craving.

I love spicy foods and don't think that is something I would give up fast.