On Monday, a new published report revealed that contrary to the popular belief, mostly of Jenny McCarthy and other parents, there is no concrete evidence backing the speculation that autistic children have more digestive problems than healthy ones, or that special diets can help improve the condition.

As per the paper published, while digestive pains can affect children's behavior and require immediate medical treatment, digestive issues are not more common or frequent in children who suffer from autism.

The idea that autistic children often suffer from a condition known as "leaky gut" or "autistic entercolitis" was first put forward in a 1998 paper. Now, the paper has been discredited, and the new report has said that there is no evidence that something called autistic entercolitis even exists.

While calling for more scientific research into the matter, the report says that as of now, there are no reasons to believe that special autism diets work.

Presently, about 1 autistic child in 5 is on one form or another of a diet.

Details of the report have been published in the January issue of Pediatrics.