Substitute for Casein Protein in Cow’s Milk of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54536/ajfst.v5i2.7762Keywords:
Casein Protein Cow’s Milk, Plant-Based Substitutes, Substitute Cow’s MilksAbstract
Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are frequently affected by gastrointestinal disturbances, selective eating behaviors, and sensitivity to cow’s milk casein, increasing the demand for nutritionally appropriate milk substitutes in casein-free dietary management. This review aimed to look at the possible substitute to cow milk with focus given to nutritional composition, digestibility, allergenicity, environmental sustainability, and particularly to children living with ASD. To meet the objectives, a review of 39 studies published between 2003 and 2025 was conducted by searching Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and ScienceDirect using specific keywords.The findings identified several alternative animal milks, including human, goat, camel, and sheep milk, as well as diverse plant-based milk categories such as cereal-based (oat, rice, corn and spelt milks), legume-based (soy, peanut, lupine and pea milks), nut-based (almond, coconut, hazelnut, pistachio, walnut and cashew milks), seed-based (sesame, flax, hemp and sunflower milks) and pseudo-cereal based (quinoa, teff, amaranth and buckwheat milks). Soy and pea-based milks were found to provide comparatively higher protein content. Nutritional deficiencies may be mitigated through calcium-rich foods such as sesame, almonds, beans, lentils, chickpeas, and tofu; vitamin D sources including fatty parts of fish, egg yolk, mushrooms, and sun exposure; and vitamin B12 sources such as purple laver, seaweeds, fermented foods, wheatgrass, and fenugreek juice and also the raw plant-based diet. Simultaneously, food-processing techniques including cooking, fermentation, sprouting, and hydrolysis were also identified as beneficial for improving nutrient bioavailability and digestibility. Taste acceptability among children with ASD may be enhanced through natural flavoring agents such as honey, jaggery, stevia, cinnamon, and sweet fruits. Careful dietary planning with professional supervision, alongside further research on more substitute milk sources and their acceptability, is recommended.
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