Naturopath loses licence after selling and promoting fecal transplants for autistic kids

A Fraser Valley naturopath who charged families thousands of dollars to give their autistic children pills and enemas made from human feces has agreed to give up his licence, after more than four years of investigations and legal battles.

Jason Klop has claimed "dramatic improvements" in the autism symptoms of children as young as two that he's treated with fecal microbiota transplants at clinics in Mexico, Hungary, Australia and Panama, at a cost of about $15,000 US.

Klop has now admitted that his business violated multiple standards and regulations of his profession, according to a public notice posted online by the College of Naturopathic Physicians of B.C.

It says Klop has signed a consent order agreeing to the cancellation of his registration, effective Wednesday, and will pay a $7,500 fine.

Under the terms of the consent order, Klop has admitted to promoting and selling fecal microbiota transplants (FMT) for autistic patients in defiance of Health Canada rules and the scope of practice for B.C. naturopaths. The notice says he continued to do this work even after being warned he was breaking the rules. 

He's also admitted to making "unverifiable statements" in his advertising, and allowing Canadians to have intermittent access to his website, despite promising they would have none.

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.

His licence cancellation isn't permanent, and he'll have the right to apply for reinstatement in five years.

FMT treatments involve taking bacteria and other microbes from the poop of a healthy person and transferring them to a patient either anally or orally, with the goal of restoring a normal environment inside the gut.

Although it is currently the subject of research for a wide array of potential uses, FMT is only approved in Canada and the U.S. for the treatment of recurrent C. difficile infection.

Doctors and scientists have warned that any other use of this emerging therapy is experimental and carries serious risk of infection, while people with autism have denounced Klop's procedure as an unproven treatment that puts vulnerable children in danger.

News that Klop's licence has been cancelled was greeted with cheers from advocates for autistic children.

Melissa Eaton, a North Carolina mother of an autistic child who infiltrates private Facebook groups to track potentially dangerous treatments, is responsible for bringing Klop's business to the public's attention.