A Canadian doctor has been stripped of his medical licence after conning families out of thousands of dollars for bogus autism cures.
Charlatan Jason Klop charged $15,000 for fecal transplants which involved taking bacteria from the poop of healthy patients and transferring them to autistic children as young as two.
He claimed the treatment – carried out either with pills or enemas – caused ‘dramatic improvements’ in autism symptoms and offered them at clinics in Mexico, Hungary, and Panama.
Klop admitted that his business violated multiple Health Canada rules as well as those standards set by the College of Naturopathic Physicians and will pay a meager $7,500 fine.
Klop has made claims that he has seen ‘dramatic improvements’ in the autism symptoms of children he’s treated with fecal microbiota transplants at clinics in Mexico, Hungary, and Panama
Fecal transplants which involved taking bacteria from the poop of healthy patients and transferring them to patients (Vancouver Island Health Authority
A notice by the College of Naturopathic Physicians of British Columbia said Klop was removed from the institution on Wednesday. He will have the right to apply for reinstatement in five years.
As well as admitting to promoting and selling fecal transplants that are not approved for autism, he admitted making ‘unverifiable statements’ in his advertising.
He has claimed to have seen ‘dramatic improvements’ in autism symptoms of young children he has treated at his clinics in Mexico, Hungary, and Panama, for a measly $15,000.
Klop also claimed to have met donor screening requirements from the Food and Drug Administration and American Gastroenterology Association. But it was later revealed that his lab had no protocols for screening donors or analyzing product, and disposed of fecal waste with household garbage.
Court documents reveal that he had ‘treated’ at least 60 children in this way.
Fecal transplants are only approved in Canada and the US for the treatment of C.diff – a nasty and recurrent stomach infection.
It is being studied for the treatment of a wide range of conditions including irritable bowel syndrome, liver disease, and diabetes. So far, a benefit has been shown in children with autism in a study of 18 kids who received a ‘transplant’ in enema or pill form over about two months.
The treatment improved symptoms. But the study had major caveats, not least of which the small sample size. The study format also allowed recipients to know whether they were getting a treatment or a placebo, meaning the results could have been tainted by the placebo effect.
The ability for fecal transplants to help treat autism symptoms has not been clinically proven in a sufficient investigation
Shaina Cahill, the spokesperson for Klop’s business Novel Biome, acknowledged the disciplinary agreement in an email to CBC.
‘He has not practiced as a naturopathic doctor for several years and has fully transitioned into a role solely focused on the manufacturing of fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) products as a contract manufacturer,’ she said of Klop.
Autism Spectrum Disorder encompasses a wide array of disorders marked by social impairment, sensory sensitivies, communication challenges, and difficulty adapting to change.
There is no cure for ASD, so experts also recommend behavioral and educational therapy to help people, especially children.
Researchers believe autism is the result of a combination of certain genetic factors that make one more susceptible as well as well as environmental factors such as low birth weight and having older parents.
Famously, the controversial link between austism and certain vaccines has been completely debunked, the study that reported it retracted, and the author disgraced.
But that has not stopped some parents from making the egregious allegation.
The murkiness surrounding autism’s cause and how to cure it has also led to parents trying dangerous ‘treatments’. These include feeding a child Miracle Mineral Solution, a highly toxic bleach-like chemical, chemical castration, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.
Parents of children with ASD have better resources than ever to help their kids thrive in the form of different types of psycho and occupational therapy.
At the same time, caring for a child with severe autism can take a toll on the whole family, and many bad actors can exploit that exhaustion, frustration, and lingering hope in order to reap some profit.