Paul Shattock

Who is Paul Shattock?

Paul Shattock is an autism researcher who was formerly director of the Autism Research Unit at the University of Sunderland. He is well known for his controversial research into dietary therapy and autism, having claimed that autistic children may have a "leaky gut" which allows certain peptides to enter the bloodstream, and has produced evidence that they excrete unusually high levels thereof. As a result of this speculation, he has promoted the use of a gluten-free, casein-free diet to ameliorate the symptoms of autism, a theory he developed along with Kalle Reichelt. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1998. In addition, he has claimed that a protein found in milk may play a role in the etiology of autism. He is also the president-elect of the World Autism Organization.

In 2002, Shattock conducted a survey and claimed that this survey had identified a unique subset of autistic children who may be uniquely susceptible to the MMR vaccine. These children were identified by the fact that they tended to suffer from bowel problems, had an abnormal gait and were friendlier than other autistic children.