Most autistic children struggle with communication and social skills. Though the causes are not completely understood there are indications of associations like women taking folate supplements during pre-conception and during gestation showed a lesser chance of having an offspring with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Such studies have encouraged new research in evaluating supplementing folate as a possible therapy for ASD.

For the body to absorb dietary folate, it must be converted to folinic acid. However, earlier studies found an increased amount of folate receptor autoantibodies in children with ASD. By itself, folinic acid should generate a response in children with ASD.

A team headed by Dr. Richard Frye from the Arkansas Children’s Hospital Research Institute, conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, 12-week clinical trial to find out whether folinic acid supplementation ameliorated symptoms of autism. 48 children aged 3-14 years were registered for the study. Weight was used as a measure to calculate the doses, the maximum dose being 50 mg per day. Every child was evaluated personally at the beginning of the study and after 12 weeks. Their parents had to answer questionnaires at both times. The results were published in Molecular Psychiatry.

 They observed that the day-to-day social and verbal communication skills improved considerably in children who had taken the folinic acid, without any marked adverse events. Moreover, they discovered that the patients’ response to the folinic acid treatment could be estimated with the presence of the folate receptor alpha autoantibody biomarker.

Since antipsychotic drugs are currently the only approved medication for autism, this study brings in new hope for children with autism. However, greater, multi-center trials are required to validate these initial findings and to establish the duration for which folinic supplementation is essential.