Ian Jordan said that using tinted glasses could provide life-changing results for with the condition

An optician has been struck off for claiming that he could treat people with autism by using coloured filters.

Ian Jordan was found to have shown disregard for his professional colleagues and had displayed inflated confidence in his own abilities by the General Optical Council.

Jordan said he believed that many people on the autistic spectrum had some form of prosopagnosia, or face-blindness, a cognitive disorder of face perception rather than a problem with their eyes. The optician works in Ayr but has seen people from across the world.

He said he had delivered positive treatment to around 5,500 people and said that giving people glasses with tinted lenses could deliver life-changing results.

"The differences in people are life-changing,” Jordan told the BBC. “We see people on a daily basis with all sorts of major problems."

Experts have said that although the lenses can be used to treat conditions such as migraines and reading difficulties, making grand claims about them brings the profession into disrepute.

The council said removing Jordan from its register of dispensing opticians was the only sanction suitable to protect patients.

The determination said he had shown disregard for the scope of his practice and the potential risks to patients. It also said there had been repeated and persistent departures from professional standards.

Charlene Tait, director of autism practice and research at Scottish Autism, said research had shown that there is no cure for autism.

“All scientific evidence and credible research compiled to date indicates there is no cure for autism," she said. "That is why we put our focus on promoting further understanding and acceptance of the condition across society and supporting autistic people enhance their quality of life and access as many as opportunities as possible.”