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Nutritional Approaches in Autism and Related Disorders

A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutrition and Neuro Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 February 2026 | Viewed by 1420

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Psychology Department, Santa Barbara City College, Santa Barbara, CA 93109, USA
Interests: nutritional impact on health, current focus on autism; visual system; neuroeconomics; justice, equity, and inclusion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nutrition plays a pivotal role in neurodevelopment and overall outcomes in autism spectrum disorder and related neurodevelopmental conditions. This Special Issue of Nutrients presents recent advances in the understanding of how nutritional status, vitamin deficiencies and availability, dietary patterns, and specific nutrients influence the diagnosis and treatment of these increasingly prevalent disorders. Contributors address the complex interplay between genetic, metabolic, and environmental factors in shaping neurodevelopment and highlight emerging evidence linking nutrition to behavioral outcomes, cognitive function, and symptom modulation. The Special Issues explores diagnostic challenges, including nutritional deficiencies and gastrointestinal comorbidities, and evaluates the efficacy and safety of dietary interventions and supplementation strategies. By fostering interdisciplinary dialog among clinicians, researchers, and nutrition experts, this Special Issue underscores the importance of personalized, evidence-based nutritional approaches in optimizing care and improving quality of life for autistic individuals and those with other neurodevelopmental disorders.

Dr. George Ayoub
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • autism
  • folate
  • leucovorin
  • folate receptor autoantibody
  • cerebral folate deficiency
  • oxidative stress
  • neurodevelopment
  • microbiome
  • vitamin B9
  • social communication
  • maternal immune activation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

31 pages, 1203 KB  
Review
Vitamins, Vascular Health and Disease
by George Ayoub
Nutrients 2025, 17(18), 2955; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu17182955 - 15 Sep 2025
Viewed by 1338
Abstract
Vascular health relies on the proper function of endothelial cells, which regulate vascular tone, blood fluidity, and barrier integrity. Endothelial dysfunction, often aggravated by inadequate vitamin absorption, contributes to a spectrum of clinical disorders, including cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral artery disease, age-related [...] Read more.
Vascular health relies on the proper function of endothelial cells, which regulate vascular tone, blood fluidity, and barrier integrity. Endothelial dysfunction, often aggravated by inadequate vitamin absorption, contributes to a spectrum of clinical disorders, including cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, peripheral artery disease, age-related macular degeneration, lymphedema, and chronic venous insufficiency. B-group vitamins (especially folate, or vitamin B9), along with vitamins B12, B6, C, D, and E, are essential in maintaining endothelial function, supporting DNA synthesis, regulating methylation, enhancing cellular repair, mitigating oxidative stress and inflammatory signaling, and curtailing vascular damage. Folate is noted for its central function in one-carbon metabolism and in converting homocysteine to methionine, thereby reducing vascular toxicity. We cover natural dietary sources of folate, synthetic folic acid, and the biologically active forms 5-methyl-(6S)-tetrahydrofolate (L-5-MTHF, L-methylfolate) and 5-formyl-(6S)-tetrahydrofolate (levoleucovorin). Therapeutic strategies to address vascular health and prevent hyperhomocysteinemia in order to preclude follow-on disorders include targeted vitamin supplementation, dietary improvements to ensure a sufficient intake of bioavailable nutrient forms, and, in certain clinical contexts, the use of active L-methylfolate or levoleucovorin (a drug product) to bypass metabolic conversion issues. These evidence-based interventions aim to restore endothelial homeostasis, slow disease progression, and improve patient outcomes across a variety of disorders linked to poor vascular health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutritional Approaches in Autism and Related Disorders)
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