Enjoy Life Foods Provides Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders a Variety of Delicious Options

SCHILLER PARK, Ill.--(EON:Enhanced Online News)--Thousands of parents report dramatic improvements in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) as a result of following a gluten-free casein-free (GFCF) diet.

“And soon we'll be introducing more delicious new products that will give those on a GFCF diet even more choices.”

Thanks to Chicago-based Enjoy Life Foods, parents can easily find delicious GFCF foods at their local grocery store. Enjoy Life Foods is the country's leading allergy-friendly, gluten- and casein-free food company.

“We're dedicated to providing gluten-free, allergen friendly foods that most everyone can enjoy,” says Scott Mandell, Co-Founder, President and CEO of Enjoy Life Foods. “Our more than 20 delicious GFCF products are available at natural food and grocery stores throughout the United States and Canada,” he said. “And soon we'll be introducing more delicious new products that will give those on a GFCF diet even more choices.”

Enjoy Life currently offers cookies, snack bars, granola, trail mixes, chocolate chips and bagels that are gluten-free, casein-free and free of the eight most common allergens*. Product information, recipes and helpful resources can be found at www.enjoylifefoods.com.

With ASD, food allergy and Celiac Disease diagnoses on the rise, these products can't arrive on the shelf soon enough. Earlier this year, the Center for Disease Control's Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring (ADDM) Network found that one in every 150 children in the United States has an ASD, which is higher than previously thought.

According to the Autism Society of America, autism is the fastest growing developmental disability in the U.S. with a 10-17 percent annual growth, affecting 1.5 million Americans and their families. Additionally, 12 million Americans have at least one food allergy, another 30 million have food intolerances, and one in 133 have Celiac Disease.

“Changing their diet to include gluten-free and casein-free foods like Enjoy Life Foods' products can help autistic children to live more normal lives while still enjoying the foods they like,” says Lisa Lewis, Ph.D. and President of the Autism Network for Dietary Intervention (ANDI). “It is our hope that more companies make great tasting GFCF options available to the marketplace,” she adds.

Dietary intervention for the treatment of autism has gained significant attention following the publication of Louder than Words-A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism by Jenny McCarthy, comedian, actress and mother of a four-year-old son with ASDs. McCarthy is an outspoken advocate for the GFCF diet as an approach to managing the symptoms of autism. Parents looking for more information on the GFCF diet can visit www.autismndi.com, www.talkaboutcuringautism.org or www.gfcfdiet.com.

About Enjoy Life Foods

Enjoy Life Natural Brands, LLC (d/b/a Enjoy Life Foods, LLC (ELF)) was founded in 2001 with the mission of making great-tasting allergy-friendly foods that most everyone can eat freely. The company launched the Enjoy Life brand in 2002 with a broad product line that is gluten-free and free of the eight most common allergens*. All Enjoy Life products are also casein free. Today, ELF offers 21 different Enjoy Life products that are sold in natural food and grocery stores throughout the United States and Canada. Recently Enjoy Life Foods was named to the 2007 Inc. 500 list of the fastest growing privately held businesses in the U.S. For more information, visit www.enjoylifenb.com.

*The eight most common allergens are wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish or shellfish, which account for 90 percent of all allergic reactions in the United States.

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