When my family first began exploring a more functional approach to health, books became an important part of helping me understand the connections between the brain, gut, immune system, nutrition, environment, and overall health.
Years later, as an Integrative & Functional Nutrition Practitioner and Autism Functional Intervention Coach, I still find myself recommending many of these books to families who want to better understand the why behind a whole-body approach.
Here are a few of my favorites.
The Personalized Autism Nutrition Plan — Julie Matthews
Nutrition can be one of the most powerful places for families to begin, but there is no single diet that is right for every child.
In The Personalized Autism Nutrition Plan, Julie Matthews explores how food, digestion, nutrient needs, inflammation, and individual biochemistry can influence children with autism. I especially appreciate the book’s personalized approach—helping parents understand how to make thoughtful dietary changes based on their child’s individual needs rather than simply following a one-size-fits-all autism diet.
It’s a practical resource for parents who want to better understand the role nutrition can play in supporting their child’s overall health.
An Epidemic of Absence — Moises Velasquez-Manoff
This book explores the relationship between our immune systems, the microbes we encounter, and the dramatic rise in allergies, autoimmune conditions, and other immune-related health concerns.
It’s a fascinating read for anyone interested in understanding how changes in our modern environment may be influencing immune health.
The Folate Fix — Dr. Richard E. Frye
Folate is much more complex than simply taking folic acid or methylfolate.
The Folate Fix explores folate metabolism, folate receptor autoantibodies, cerebral folate deficiency, and the growing research surrounding folate and neurodevelopmental conditions, including autism.
For parents who have heard about the FRAT test, folate receptor antibodies, or leucovorin and want to understand the science behind them, this is an excellent resource.
The Disease Delusion — Dr. Jeffrey Bland
Dr. Jeffrey Bland is considered one of the pioneers of functional medicine.
Rather than looking at health conditions as isolated diagnoses, this book explores the idea of looking upstream at the underlying systems and imbalances that may contribute to chronic health concerns.
It provides a great introduction to the philosophy behind functional medicine and why two people with the same diagnosis may need very different approaches.
Detoxification and Healing — Dr. Sidney MacDonald Baker
This one is especially meaningful to me.
Dr. Sidney Baker was one of the early physicians to approach complex chronic illness and autism through the lens of biochemistry, nutrition, environmental exposures, gut health, and each person’s individual needs.
Detoxification and Healing explores how the body’s ability to process and eliminate substances can influence health and why supporting the body’s natural systems can be an important piece of a broader functional approach.
Why I Recommend Reading Beyond the Diagnosis
One of the biggest shifts that functional medicine brought to my own thinking was learning to ask a different question.
Instead of only asking “What is the diagnosis?”, we can also ask:
“What might be contributing to this person’s symptoms, and what systems of the body may need support?”
That can lead us to explore areas such as gut health, nutrition, immune function, sleep, nutrient status, environmental exposures, genetics, and other factors that may be different for every individual.
Books certainly can’t replace individualized medical care, but they can help parents become more informed, ask better questions, and better understand the many pieces that may contribute to their child’s overall health.
Want to Keep Learning?
I’ve put together a larger collection of books I recommend on autism and neurodevelopment, gut health, nutrition, detoxification, immune health, folate and methylation, functional medicine, and more.