Autism Therapy: folate

There is no good evidence to support the use of pharmacological treatments or supplements in people with Fragile X Syndrome in general or those with a diagnosis of Fragile X Syndrome and autism.

This article reviews the research on drug therapy for the treatment of symptoms of Fragile X Syndrome. Most of the studies that they reviewed were very small and therefore it was hard for the studies to see an effect from the drug if such an effect did exist. Most of the studies were also poorly designed. The authors noted that a poorly designed folic acid study showed promise that folic acid supplements (10 mg/day) may raise the IQ of young children with Fragile X syndrome. One small study showed found methylphenidate to be helpful for children with Fragile X syndrome, but the study was short and poorly designed.