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Camel milk against autism - A preliminary report

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Abstract

The described trial substantiated the observation of physicians and parents, that after consuming pasteurised camel milk on a regular basis, a positive effect on impairments of various nature and proportions appeared to be apparent amongst a group of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) symptoms or related neurological pathogenesis. Fourteen days after the consumption of 500 ml of pasteurised camel milk, the probands exhibited regular bowel movements and five of eight probands developed a normal sleep pattern. The overall observation revealed also a decreased hyperactivity, increased alertness, better social interaction and many parents observed a newly expressed effort of their children to obey instructions. However, there was no difference in the level of P-casomorphin-7 excretion in the urine of probands and controls using a non-commercial ELISA kit. The reason for this unexpected result is explained.

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... Al-Ayadhi and Elamin (2013) evaluated the effect of camel milk consumption on oxidative stress in autistic children and showed that camel milk reduces the oxidative stress and improves the behavior of autistic children. Wernery et al (2012) reported similar results in autistic children after the use of camel milk as they displayed better social skills and had a reduction in hyperactivity and increased vigilance, plus sustained regular bowel movements. Mostafa et al (2021) concluded that a short course of camel milk consumption for two weeks neither significantly decreased the severity of autism nor increased serum anti-inflammatory vasoactive intestinal peptide levels. ...
... Al-Ayadhi and Elamin's (2013) study on the impact of camel milk on oxidative stress in autistic children provided conclusive evidence that milk has a significant role in improving the behaviour of autistic children by decreasing oxidative stress. Wernery et al. (2012) found similar benefits for autistic children after giving them camel milk, including improved social functioning, reduced hyperactivity, increased alertness, and regular bowel routines. ...
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For over five thousand years, people in Asia and Africa have known about the health benefits of camel milk. Thus, it is used not only as a food source, but also as a medicine. The similarities between camel milk and human milk have been scientifically proven. Camel milk is unique among ruminant milk in that it is high in vitamins C and E, and low in sugar and cholesterol but contains a wide variety of beneficial minerals (including sodium, potassium, iron, copper, zinc, and magnesium), apart from being rich in several nutrients, including monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, serum albumin, lactoferrin, immunoglobulins, lysozyme and the hormone insulin. Because of these components, many medical professionals now recommend camel milk as a treatment for various human ailments. It has been demonstrated to be effective in treating gastrointestinal issues, Type 1 diabetes, and food allergies. As an added bonus, camel milk has been utilized to cure autism, as well as lower cholesterol, prevent psoriasis, heal inflammation, aid tuberculosis patients, strengthen the human immune system, and impede the spread of cancer cells. Those who have problems digesting lactose may still be able to tolerate it. On the other side, camel milk can also help bring down an excessively high count of bilirubin, globulin, and granulocytes. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate, hemoglobin concentration, and leukocyte count were not affected by drinking camel milk. The proteins in camel milk have an adequate ratio of critical amino acids. Immunoglobulins, which fight disease, are contained inside, and their small size allows antigens to penetrate and boosts the immune system's efficacy. This article examined the therapeutic benefits of camel milk, which are more applicable to the creation of a value-added product.
... Camel milk has a different casein protein distribution than cow milk, with a lower proportion of A1 β-casein. is casein breaks down into its peptide components, including BCM-7, an active opioid that may seep through a person's "leaky gut" and reach the brain, potentially impairing social interaction in ASD patients [40,41]. ...
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Camel milk is better tolerated than the milk of other ruminants, potentially expanding its consumer appeal. It also contains essential vitamins, minerals, and immunoglobulins, providing the milk with antioxidant, antibacterial, and antiviral properties. These properties may reduce oxidative stress in camel milk consumers, ameliorating many conditions, including those of the CNS, such as autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). We performed a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in which camel milk administration (boiled or raw) was examined as an ASD treatment intervention. The primary endpoint was participants’ total autism scores, determined using the Childhood Autistic Responsiveness Scale (CARS). A comparison of the responsiveness in these ASD intervention groups yielded a mean difference (MD) of 1.99 (0.89, 3.08) in those consuming boiled camel milk, MD = 2.77 (1.92, 3.61) in raw camel milk consumers, and MD = −1.02 (−0.10, 2.13) in cow milk consumers. Heterogeneity was notably low among the examined studies. Treatment of ASD with raw and boiled camel milk resulted in significantly lower CARS scores than the placebo. Our findings support the development of larger, more populated RCTs to establish camel milk’s overall potential as a therapeutic intervention for CNS disorders.
... Wernery in 2012 tested the effect of consuming 500 mL pasteurized CM for eight weeks on eight children with ASD. They documented a positive effect on behavioral and pathophysiological disorders (Wernery et al., 2012). ...
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Camel milk has been used as part of the human diet since ancient times. This chapter tries to elaborate the different aspects of nutraceutical functional properties of camel milk, focusing on the nutritional composition, presence of bioactive zoochemicals and peptides, antioxidant nutrients (vitamin C), and health rendering properties of this unique milk. Recent research has identified camel milk as a prophylactic and therapeutic functional food due to its noticeable content of essential macronutrients, namely bioactive functional proteins and peptides, along with its considerable content of essential micronutrients. Indeed, the presence of this unique mixture has shown to be promising contributors to the management and prevention of chronic diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, liver and kidney, metabolic syndrome, inflammatory bowel diseases in adults, and autism. In vivo, in vitro, and epidemiological and experimental studies were reviewed, and molecular mechanisms were highlighted for better understanding of the health-promoting, disease-preventing potential of camel milk.
... Camel's milk which was consumed by a 4 years old girl for 40 days, a 15 years old child of for 30 days and some adults at the age of 21 years for two weeks resulted in positive results about the symptoms of autism (Shabo et al., 2005;Yagil, 2013). Another study found that parents reported improvement in many autism symptoms in their children after ingestion of camel's milk, such as getting better sleep, improving their perception of the place, improving visual and language communication, and improving their digestive symptoms (Wernery et al., 2012;Al-Ayadhi and Elamin, 2013). In a study of 60 cases of autism at the age of 2-12 years, the effect of eating 500 ml of bovine's milk twice daily was compared with the same amount of camel's milk for two weeks (Zibaee, 2015). ...
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Camel’s milk is one of the most useful types of milk. Camel’s milk is a white liquid, made up of a combination of emulsified fatty globules mixed with aqueous liquid. Several investigations have shown that camel’s milk is able to treat many diseases even chronic diseases. It also proved that it contains a group of natural elements and compounds that have the special therapeutic ability in internal diseases. This work is aim to highlight and review the chemical composition of camel’s milk and its therapeutic benefits, such as diabetes, diarrhea, food allergies, autism, cancer, chronic hepatitis, and cardiovascular diseases.
... The use of camel's milk as therapeutic agent in liver impaired patients was early reported in the Hadith of the prophet 'Mohamed', in the 'Kanon' book of Ibn Sina and by Abu-Bakr Al-Razi (El-Badry, 2007). Camel's milk has been used in different regions in the world to treat number of diseases such as dropsy, jaundice, tuberculosis and asthma (Agrawal et al., 2007) and recently for treatment of autism (Wernery et al., 2012) and cancer (Cock, 2014). Moreover, the diabetics drinking camel's milk is a widely spread phenomenon, as it was found that relatively large concentrations of insulin are present in camel's milk (Singh, 2001) that does not form coagulum in acidic environment (Wangoh, 1993), so it will pass rapidly through the stomach and remains available for absorption in intestine. ...
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Key words ABSTRACT: Camel's Milk; bacteria; isolation; identification; immunological parameters; insulin level. The aim of the present study was to investigate the correlation between the isolated bacteria from camel's milk with special milk constituents that have immunogenic and therapeutic importance to human consumers. Milk samples were obtained from 90 she-camels from 3 Egyptian Governorates. The result showed that coagulase negative staphylococci (CNS) were the most frequently isolated bacteria either as a single isolate (20%) or as mixed infections (27.8%). Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) was isolated either as single (3.33%) and mixed infection (27.8%). Escherichia coli (E. coli), Yersinia enterocolotica (Y. enterocolotica), Proteus vulgaris and environmental streptococci were also isolated in single and/or mixed forms. Total protein, albumin and globulin levels were not significantly affected by different isolates. Nitric oxide (NO) and lysozyme were significantly stimulated by presence of S. aureus, CNS and E. coli. Insulin level was significantly reduced by S. aureus and CNS. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) was not significantly affected, while glutathione peroxidase (GPx) level was significantly stimulated by S. aureus and CNS infection. Control camel's whey samples without phytohemagglutinin (PHA) had the higher stimulant effect on lymphocytes proliferation as compared with control samples with PHA. Conclusively, the isolated bacteria not only constitute health hazards for consumers but also they made changes in the bioactive ingredients of camel's milk that may deteriorate the therapeutic and immunogenic benefits of camel's milk. So, there is a great need for strict hygienic measures during the production and handling of camel's milk.
... Beta-casomorphins has long been considered as a risk factor for autism (Woodford, 2011). It has been demonstrated that camel milk showed a therapeutic effect in the Autism disease Wernery et al, 2012;Yagil, 2013;Al-Ayadhi and Elamin, 2013), because camel milk does not contain beta-casomorphins leading to the autism symptoms when drinking cow milk. Kappeler et al (1998) discovered the amino acid sequence differences of camel casein. ...
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Camel milk is still the most important nutritional source for pastoralists in many countries in the world, especially in rural areas in Asia and Africa, because it contains almost all essential nutrients which are required under arid climate. However, camel milk like any other human consumable milk consists of major components, like water, fats, proteins, carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins and various soluble ingredients. But what distinguishes the camel milk significantly from other milk types is the presence of numerous minor components which have special bioactive properties. These are present at significant concentrations and are extreme important and beneficial for human diet and health. Numerous scientific papers and statements point out the high concentrations of bioactive substances in camel milk, e.g. lactoferrin, serum albumin, lysozyme, mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins B, C and E, manganese, iron, calcium and potassium, different types of immunoglobulin’s, as well as the hormone insulin and IGF-1. Regarding the importance of camel milk and the related health benefits of the bioactive ingredients, it must be consumed raw, fresh and free of pathogens. Therefore camel milk should be provided freshly after a good and clean machine milking. Key words: Camel milk, bioactive substances, milk composition, human health.
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