Autism Bio-Med

Sustainable Shawnee To Hear Speaker On Coal Burning

2009-02-26T15:13:00.000-08:00

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Rosemary Crawford with the Oklahoma City-based Center for Energy Matters will address the Sustainable Shawnee’s monthly meeting tonight (Thursday) at 7 p.m. at the University Baptist Church on Kickapoo.

Crawford will discuss the consequences of Shady Point II, a proposed coal-burning power plant in eastern Oklahoma and Arkansas, and health issues associated with the burning coal for energy in our state. The Shady Point plant is 25 miles from Sallisaw and Shawnee is in geographic reach of pollution.

Currently, AES is officially seeking permits to build a 630-megawatt, coal-burning power plant, which would be the second coal plant in Panama, OK.

Coal is considered to be the dirtiest burning of all fossil fuels because of its chemical composition. The plant presents a threat to the health of senior citizens, children and unborn children, wildlife, air and water quality and future economic development projects.

“My concern about the coal plant is the inhaled particulates directly relating to exacerbation of asthma and chronic lung disease,” said Dr. John P. Weddle, lifelong Sallisaw resident.

“I have concerns about ground water contamination from mercury and arsenic by fly ash, and its deposition in the local landfills and dedicated landfills,” said Dr. Weddle, an emergency room physician based in Fort Smith. Dr. Weddle said there is a definite tie between mercury and other neurologic development defects.

The Oklahoma Dept. of Environmental Quality announced in January 2009 that some of the highest levels of mercury in freshwater fish in the nation are found in southeastern Oklahoma lakes. A final report is expected in May. which will result in DEQ-issued fish consumption advisories on specific lakes as well as the probable source.

About 75 percent of mercury in fish comes from manmade sources like coal-fired power plants, incinerators, mining and smelting. 99 percent of mercury exposure comes from consuming commercial and locally-caught fish. Coal-fired power plants in the state are located in the eastern and southeastern part of the state in Panama, Hugo, Oologah, Fort Gibson and Choteau.

Many sportsmen’s groups, including the National Wildlife Federation, blame mercury contamination to reduced hatching success and impaired growth and development in fish.

Increased mercury levels affect reproduction, growth and behavior in small mammals such as river otters and mink.

“Already mercury levels in fish are at such high levels that anglers are warned by their respective state’s wildlife agencies about consumption,” Huston said.

Mercury and autism are linked, according to a University of Texas Health Science Center study last year, which showed “a statistically significant link between pounds of industrial release of mercury and increased autism rates” within a 30-mile distance.

“We have to wonder if living near AES Shady Point had something to do with our child’s autism,” said Jeff Edwards, an attorney who lived in Poteau before moving to Muldrow. He now lives in Roland, 10 miles from Fort Smith.

“I don’t see how you can dump fly ash in those mines without continuing to pollute. I don’t see anything positive out of another coal-burning power plant here.”

Coal-fired plants emit arsenic, mercury, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, and volatile organic compounds among other harmful chemicals.

According to AES’s permit application, Shady Point II annually will emit more than 40 tons of nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds and more than 100 tons of carbon monoxide.

For more information about the meeting contact Rosemary Crawford at 405.206.3979 or Shawna Turner at 405.290.8706.

Anti-Coal Plant Meeting to be Held

2009-01-26T13:54:00.001-08:00

Anti-coal plant meeting to be held
01.26.09

The Center for Energy Matters (CEM) will host an educational and public health meeting at 7 p.m. Friday at the Sallisaw Civic Center.

Harlan Hentges from CEM said the public meeting is designed to educate residents on the consequences of Shady Point II, a proposed coal-burning power plant in eastern Oklahoma and Arkansas. The plant is 25 miles south of Sallisaw and Sallisaw is close enough that particulate matter from the new plant may drift into the area, Hentges said.

AES is seeking permits to build a 630-megawatt, coal-burning power plant, which would be the second coal plant in Panama.

Hentges said coal is considered to be the dirtiest burning of all fossil fuels because of its chemical composition.

“The plant presents a threat to the health of senior citizens, children and unborn children, wildlife, air and water quality and future economic development projects,” he said. “The plant produces methylmercury, which slowly degrades the human body, crosses the placenta and the blood brain barrier, studies have shown. It is secreted in breast milk and disrupts biological processes critical for normal brain development.”

Dr. John P. Weddle, a lifelong Sallisaw resident, said, “My concern about the coal plant is the inhaled particulates directly relating to exacerbation of asthma and chronic lung disease.”

Weddle likens it to a grass fire in the local area, when he sees an increase in the number of asthma patients.

“If you have a lot of particulates in the air – a non-stop fine emission of fine particulates – that triggers these lung conditions.

“I have concerns about ground water contamination from mercury and arsenic by fly ash, and its deposition in the local landfills and dedicated landfills,” Weddle, an emergency room physician based in Fort Smith, Ark., said.

Weddle said there is a definite tie between mercury and other neurological development defects.

Robert Huston, a long-time Fort Smith outdoor television host, said he is concerned about the impact on wildlife if the Shady Point expansion is approved.

“Whatever winds up in fish, wildlife and livestock, usually winds up in people,” Huston said.

He noted many sportsmen’s groups, including the National Wildlife Federation, blame mercury contamination to reduced hatching success and impaired growth and development in fish. Increased mercury levels affect reproduction, growth and behavior in small mammals such as river otters and mink.

In fish-eating birds like starlings, mallard ducks, red-tailed hawks and loons, mercury contamination can result in weight loss, difficulty in flying, reduced hatching success, and reduced clutch size.

“Already mercury levels in fish are at such high levels that anglers are warned by their respective state’s wildlife agencies about consumption,” Huston said.

Mercury and autism are linked, according to a University of Texas Health Science Center study last year, which showed “a statistically significant link between pounds of industrial release of mercury and increased autism rates” within a 30-mile distance.

Jeff Edwards, an attorney who lived in Poteau before moving to Roland, said, “We have to wonder if living near AES Shady Point had something to do with our child’s autism.”

At the time, Edwards’ wife was pregnant with the couple’s first child, and their Poteau house was supplied with well water. His second child, who is autistic, was born while in Muldrow, which is within 30 miles of the Shady Point plant.

Edwards is active in Developmental Wings Inc., an organization that provides services for autistic children.

“For me the biggest problems are air quality and water quality. When I practiced law in Poteau, I used to get calls from residents concerned about water pollution in the rural areas where the ground water was polluted by the coal mines,” Edwards said. “I don’t see how you can dump fly ash in those mines without continuing to pollute. I don’t see anything positive out of another coal-burning power plant here.”

CEM, located in Edmond, is a newly formed nonprofit research and education center, created to promote sound energy decisions and to improve quality of life in Oklahoma, Hentges said.

He stated, “We want the city, county and state leaders to know the consequences of their decisions. The decision to burn more Wyoming coal in Oklahoma will impact Panama, Shady Point, Sallisaw, Poteau, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, and Tulsa.”

Hentges said the goal is for residents who will bear the consequences of the facility to know all the facts and the costs of this second coal-burning power plant in Panama. He said coal-fired plants emit arsenic, mercury, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, and volatile organic compounds among other harmful chemicals.

CEM is part of a coalition made up of Audubon Arkansas, Clean Air Arkansas, Sequoyah County Clean Air Coalition, Sierra Club/Oklahoma chapter and Public Citizen of Texas. They are working on this project known as “Two is Too Many: Stop AES Shady Point II.”

For more information about the meeting contact Hentges at (405) 340-6554.
© sequoyahcountytimes.com 2009

Autism: triggered by infections & toxins, not genes

2009-01-22T10:33:00.000-08:00

By Pamela Weintraub on January 18, 2009 in Emerging Diseases

This now in from the U.C. Davis M.I.N.D. Institute:

A study by researchers at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute has found that the seven- to eight-fold increase in the number children born in California with autism since 1990 cannot be explained by either changes in how the condition is diagnosed or counted - and the trend shows no sign of abating.

Published in the January 2009 issue of the journal Epidemiology, results from the study also suggest that research should shift from genetics to the host of chemicals and infectious microbes in the environment that are likely at the root of changes in the neurodevelopment of California's children.

"It's time to start looking for the environmental culprits responsible for the remarkable increase in the rate of autism in California," said UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute researcher Irva Hertz-Picciotto, a professor of environmental and occupational health and epidemiology and an internationally respected autism researcher.

Hertz-Picciotto said that many researchers, state officials and advocacy organizations have viewed the rise in autism's incidence in California with skepticism.

The incidence of autism by age six in California has increased from fewer than nine in 10,000 for children born in 1990 to more than 44 in 10,000 for children born in 2000. Some have argued that this change could have been due to migration into California of families with autistic children, inclusion of children with milder forms of autism in the counting and earlier ages of diagnosis as consequences of improved surveillance or greater awareness.

Hertz-Picciotto and her co-author, Lora Delwiche of the UC Davis Department of Public Health Sciences, initiated the study to address these beliefs, analyzing data collected by the state of California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) from 1990 to 2006, as well as the United States Census Bureau and state of California Department of Public Health Office of Vital Records, which compiles and maintains birth statistics.

...
Hertz-Picciotto said that the study is a clarion call to researchers and policy makers who have focused attention and money on understanding the genetic components of autism. She said that the rise in cases of autism in California cannot be attributed to the state's increasingly diverse population because the disorder affects ethnic groups at fairly similar rates.

...
"We're looking at the possible effects of metals, pesticides and infectious agents on neurodevelopment," Hertz-Picciotto said.

The study gives credence to the suggestion, voiced more loudly in recent years, that the burgeoning epidemic of Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections may be driving part of the autism increase.

Study shows California's autism increase not due to better counting, diagnosis

2009-01-22T10:28:00.000-08:00

Public release date: 8-Jan-2009
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Contact: Phyllis Brown
phyllis.brown@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu
916-734-9023
University of California - Davis - Health System

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — A study by researchers at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute has found that the seven- to eight-fold increase in the number children born in California with autism since 1990 cannot be explained by either changes in how the condition is diagnosed or counted — and the trend shows no sign of abating.

Published in the January 2009 issue of the journal Epidemiology, results from the study also suggest that research should shift from genetics to the host of chemicals and infectious microbes in the environment that are likely at the root of changes in the neurodevelopment of California's children.

"It's time to start looking for the environmental culprits responsible for the remarkable increase in the rate of autism in California," said UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute researcher Irva Hertz-Picciotto, a professor of environmental and occupational health and epidemiology and an internationally respected autism researcher.

Hertz-Picciotto said that many researchers, state officials and advocacy organizations have viewed the rise in autism's incidence in California with skepticism.

The incidence of autism by age six in California has increased from fewer than nine in 10,000 for children born in 1990 to more than 44 in 10,000 for children born in 2000. Some have argued that this change could have been due to migration into California of families with autistic children, inclusion of children with milder forms of autism in the counting and earlier ages of diagnosis as consequences of improved surveillance or greater awareness.

Hertz-Picciotto and her co-author, Lora Delwiche of the UC Davis Department of Public Health Sciences, initiated the study to address these beliefs, analyzing data collected by the state of California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) from 1990 to 2006, as well as the United States Census Bureau and state of California Department of Public Health Office of Vital Records, which compiles and maintains birth statistics.

Hertz-Picciotto and Delwiche correlated the number of cases of autism reported between 1990 and 2006 with birth records and excluded children not born in California. They used Census Bureau data to calculate the rate of incidence in the population over time and examined the age at diagnosis of all children ages two to 10 years old.

The methodology eliminated migration as a potential cause of the increase in the number of autism cases. It also revealed that no more than 56 percent of the estimated 600-to-700 percent increase, that is, less than one-tenth of the increased number of reported autism cases, could be attributed to the inclusion of milder cases of autism. Only 24 percent of the increase could be attributed to earlier age at diagnosis.

"These are fairly small percentages compared to the size of the increase that we've seen in the state," Hertz-Picciotto said.

Hertz-Picciotto said that the study is a clarion call to researchers and policy makers who have focused attention and money on understanding the genetic components of autism. She said that the rise in cases of autism in California cannot be attributed to the state's increasingly diverse population because the disorder affects ethnic groups at fairly similar rates.

"Right now, about 10 to 20 times more research dollars are spent on studies of the genetic causes of autism than on environmental ones. We need to even out the funding," Hertz-Picciotto said.

The study results are also a harbinger of things to come for public-health officials, who should prepare to offer services to the increasing number of children diagnosed with autism in the last decade who are now entering their late teen years, Hertz-Picciotto said.

"These children are now moving toward adulthood, and a sizeable percentage of them have not developed the life skills that would allow them to live independently," she said.

The question for the state of California, Hertz-Picciotto said, will become: 'What happens to them when their parents cannot take care of them?'

"These questions are not going to go away and they are only going to loom larger in the future. Until we know the causes and can eliminate them, we as a society need to provide those treatments and interventions that do seem to help these children adapt. We as scientists need to improve available therapies and create new ones," Hertz-Picciotto said.

Hertz-Picciotto and her colleagues at the M.I.N.D Institute are currently conducting two large studies aimed at discovering the causes of autism. Hertz-Picciotto is the principal investigator on the CHARGE (Childhood Autism Risk from Genetics and the Environment) and MARBLES (Markers of Autism Risk in Babies-Learning Early Signs) studies.

CHARGE is the largest epidemiologic study of reliably confirmed cases of autism to date, and the first major investigation of environmental factors and gene-environment interactions in the disorder. MARBLES is a prospective investigation that follows women who already have had one child with autism, beginning early in or even before a subsequent pregnancy, to search for early markers that predict autism in the younger sibling.

"We're looking at the possible effects of metals, pesticides and infectious agents on neurodevelopment," Hertz-Picciotto said. "If we're going to stop the rise in autism in California, we need to keep these studies going and expand them to the extent possible."

###

The study was funded by grants from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and by the M.I.N.D. Institute.

In 1998, dedicated families concerned about autism helped found the UC Davis M.I.N.D. (Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders) Institute. Their vision? Experts from every discipline related to the brain working together toward a common goal: curing neurodevelopmental disorders. Since that time, collaborative research teams at the M.I.N.D. Institute have turned that initial inspiration into significant contributions to the science of autism, fragile X syndrome, Tourette's syndrome, learning disabilities and other neurodevelopmental disorders that can limit a child's lifelong potential.

Eimiile Hart to start Rural Bio Med Outreach

2008-06-30T17:55:00.000-07:00

Rural Outreach Expands to Oklahoma
ARI Program Reaches Rural Areas in the "Sooner" state

My name is Eimile Hart and I'm from Norman, Oklahoma.

I am thrilled and honored to be a Rural Outreach Consultant for ARI. I look forward to the challenge and the rewards of helping others learn that Autism is Treatable and that our children can in fact get better.

There is such a need in our state of Oklahoma to inform families, doctors, and educators of the hope of biomedical interventions and healing for our children, especially in rural areas. I am planning my first outreach event in Chickasha, OK in mid-July.

About Eimilie:
I am married with four children: Gillian 7, Liam 5, Aidan and Sean 4 - Aidan and Sean are our twin boys with autism. They were diagnosed with mild/moderate autism at 2½, and we immediately intervened after coming across ARI's website. We continue using biomedical interventions under the supervision of our doctor to heal our boys. We are also doing numerous therapies including intensive ABA, Speech, OT, hippotherapy, video-modeling, and floor-time as well. Since starting interventions two years ago, Aidan and Sean are doing fantastic! They are very social - they have great speech, and they are starting conversation. They now have wonderful pretend play, they love to share, and they are starting to bond with each other the way brothers should - I am so amazed by them every day.

FDA issues precautionary note on silver fillings

2008-06-15T08:16:00.001-07:00

FDA issues precautionary note on silver fillings

Jun 12, 11:37 PM (ET)

By LAURAN NEERGAARD

WASHINGTON (AP) - Silver dental fillings contain mercury, and the government for the first time is warning that they may pose a safety concern for pregnant women and young children. The Food and Drug Administration posted the precaution on its Web site earlier this month, to settle a lawsuit - making the move a victory for anti-mercury activists.

The warning is not aimed at the general population, only at two groups already urged to limit mercury from another source - seafood - because too much can harm a developing brain.

The fillings, formally known as dental amalgams, "contain mercury, which may have neurotoxic effects on the nervous systems of developing children and fetuses," reads the FDA Web posting.

That doesn't mean it truly harms, and the FDA advises against removing existing fillings.

The agency still is studying whether the small amount of mercury vapor released by chewing and brushing is enough to cause neurologic disorders or other problems in youngsters. There have been only a handful of rigorous studies comparing children given either amalgam fillings or tooth-colored resin composite fillings that are mercury-free - and those studies haven't detected any brain problems.

Nor has that research settled the long-simmering scientific controversy. Two years ago, the FDA's own independent scientific advisers said that while amalgam fillings were safe for most people, more research was needed about potential effects on fetuses and children under 6.

And this spring, the FDA put dentists on notice that it is considering additional controls, including whether to require warnings that would advise consumers of the mercury in amalgams before they have a cavity filled, or perhaps even restrict use in small children and certain other patients. It is accepting public comments until July 28.

"It's an open question what we will do," FDA Deputy Commissioner Randall Lutter told The Associated Press. But, "what this says is there's a clear intent on our part on labeling for sensitive subpopulations."

Expect a final ruling by July 28, 2009, a date set by that legal settlement.

"It's a watershed moment," said Michael Bender of the Mercury Policy Project, who with other advocacy groups had sued the FDA in hopes of forcing restrictions on amalgams.

"This court settlement signals the death knell for mercury fillings," added Charles Brown, an attorney for Consumers for Dental Choice.

Not so fast, say dentists who point to medically crucial reasons to use amalgams - and worry that people who can't afford more expensive alternatives might avoid dental care.

"We don't want these choices taken away based on junk science. We don't want them taken away based on misguided fears," said Dr. Edmond Hewlett, a dental professor at the University of California , Los Angeles , and an American Dental Association adviser.

Amalgam fillings are about 50 percent mercury, joined with silver, copper and tin. The hardened mixture makes the mercury less absorbable by the body than the kind found in fish, said Hewlett, who chose an amalgam filling for his own 7-year-old son.

Used since the 1800s, amalgams' popularity already is dropping. They account for about 30 percent of U.S. fillings, still millions of people a year.

They're cheaper than alternatives - roughly $100 for an amalgam filling versus $150 or more for a composite, Hewlett estimates - and they're known as particularly durable. Hewlett said two conditions that demand amalgams: Spots on back teeth that dentists can't keep dry long enough for a composite filling to bond, and in people who forcefully grind their teeth.

Science operates on "a precautionary principle," said Dr. Karl Kieburtz, a University of Rochester neurologist who co-chaired the 2006 FDA advisory committee and praised the new warning.

"For 99 percent-plus of people, there probably isn't harm. But if there is a group of people who might be at risk, they should at least have the knowledge that may be so," he said.

Several other countries limit amalgams, either as a precaution in pregnant women and small children or because of environmental concern. Dental workers make amalgam fillings by mixing liquid mercury with powdered ingredients, requiring special safety steps and filters to limit waste seeping back into the environment.

Autism Risk Linked To Distance From Power Plants, Other Mercury-releasing Sources

2008-04-26T18:40:00.000-07:00

Web address:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/
080424120953.htm

Autism Risk Linked To Distance From Power Plants, Other Mercury-releasing Sources

enlarge

Is the risk of autism greater for children who live closer to the pollution source? (Credit: iStockphoto/Marcin Pawinski)

ScienceDaily (Apr. 25, 2008) — How do mercury emissions affect pregnant mothers, the unborn and toddlers? Do the level of emissions impact autism rates? Does it matter whether a mercury-emitting source is 10 miles away from families versus 20 miles? Is the risk of autism greater for children who live closer to the pollution source?

A newly published study of Texas school district data and industrial mercury-release data, conducted by researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, indeed shows a statistically significant link between pounds of industrial release of mercury and increased autism rates. It also shows—for the first time in scientific literature—a statistically significant association between autism risk and distance from the mercury source.

“This is not a definitive study, but just one more that furthers the association between environmental mercury and autism,” said lead author Raymond F. Palmer, Ph.D., associate professor of family and community medicine at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio. The article is in the journal Health & Place.

Dr. Palmer, Stephen Blanchard, Ph.D., of Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio and Robert Wood of the UT Health Science Center found that community autism prevalence is reduced by 1 percent to 2 percent with each 10 miles of distance from the pollution source.

“This study was not designed to understand which individuals in the population are at risk due to mercury exposure,” Dr. Palmer said. “However, it does suggest generally that there is greater autism risk closer to the polluting source.”

The study should encourage further investigations designed to determine the multiple routes of mercury exposure. “The effects of persistent, low-dose exposure to mercury pollution, in addition to fish consumption, deserve attention,” Dr. Palmer said. “Ultimately, we will want to know who in the general population is at greatest risk based on genetic susceptibilities such as subtle deficits in the ability to detoxify heavy metals.”

The new study findings are consistent with a host of other studies that confirm higher amounts of mercury in plants, animals and humans the closer they are to the pollution source. The price on children may be the highest.

“We suspect low-dose exposures to various environmental toxicants, including mercury, that occur during critical windows of neural development among genetically susceptible children may increase the risk for developmental disorders such as autism,” the authors wrote.

Study highlights

Mercury-release data examined were from 39 coal-fired power plants and 56 industrial facilities in Texas.
Autism rates examined were from 1,040 Texas school districts.
For every 1,000 pounds of mercury released by all industrial sources in Texas into the environment in 1998, there was a corresponding 2.6 percent increase in autism rates in the Texas school districts in 2002.
For every 1,000 pounds of mercury released by Texas power plants in 1998, there was a corresponding 3.7 percent increase in autism rates in Texas school districts in 2002.
Autism prevalence diminished 1 percent to 2 percent for every 10 miles from the source.
Mercury exposure through fish consumption is well documented, but very little is known about exposure routes through air and ground water.
There is evidence that children and other developing organisms are more susceptible to neurobiological effects of mercury.

Implications

“We need to be concerned about global mercury emissions since a substantial proportion of mercury releases are spread around the world by long-range air and ocean currents,” Dr. Palmer said. “Steps for controlling and eliminating mercury pollution on a worldwide basis may be advantageous. This entails greener, non-mercury-polluting technologies.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated environmental mercury releases at 158 million tons annually nationwide in the late 1990s, the time period studied by the Texas team. Most exposures were said to come from coal-fired utility plants (33 percent of exposures), municipal/medical waste incinerators (29 percent) and commercial/industrial boilers (18 percent). Cement plants also release mercury.

With the enactment of clean air legislation and other measures, mercury deposition into the environment is decreasing slightly.

Limitations

Dr. Palmer and his colleagues pointed out the study did not reflect the true community prevalence rates of autism because children younger than school age are not counted in the Texas Education Agency data system. The 1:500 autism rates in the study are lower than the 1:150 autism rates in recent reports of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Furthermore, the authors note that distance was not calculated from individual homes to the pollution source but from central points in school districts that varied widely in area.

Data sources

Data for environmentally released mercury were from the United States Environmental Protection Agency Toxics Release Inventory. Data for releases by coal-fired power plants came from the same inventory and from the Texas Commission for Environmental Quality. Data for school district autism came from the Texas Education Agency.

Journal reference: Palmer, R.F., et al., Proximity to point sources of environmental mercury release as a predictor of autism prevalence. Health & Place (2008), doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2008.02.001.

Adapted from materials provided by University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.

Anne Dachel - NY Times Saga

2008-04-18T12:57:00.000-07:00

When I first compared the original April 11 AP story, "Gov't Seeks Help With Vaccine Questions," http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gQkR4fS0l1M7ouxFGOr6WtrJpkPQD8VVVRTO0

with the version that the NEW YORK TIMES put out on April 13, titled, "Vaccine Safety Panel to Include the Public in Setting Priorities," I was stunned by their selective omission of any of the really glaring statements on vaccine damage. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/13/washington/13vaccine.html?_r=2&ref=us&oref=slogin&oref=slogin The intent was obvious: soften the evidence that points to vaccines as the cause of autism.

Then someone sent me the Spectrum piece about RFK Jr's efforts to get the TIMES to legitimately report on the evidence out there. I saw immediately that it backed up everything I felt about how the TIMES covers autism. What really got my attention in the Spectrum story was the mention that Dr. Boyd Haley, an outstanding authority on mercury toxicity, was at the meeting with the TIMES editors and that he came with a stack of scientific material to support his claims. The Spectrum article said,

Despite Kennedy's information, and the phonebook-sized stack of articles that Dr. Boyd Haley had perched on his lap ready to share, the editors quickly shut down any discussion of thimerosal's dangers; one person near the door sighed and rolled his eyes. The meeting progressed for 30 minutes, Kennedy offering DNA, animal, genetic, epidemiological and biology studies, and being met repeatedly with the statement, "The CDC says the vaccines are safe."

Case closed.

The facts don't seem to matter at the TIMES. The damage being done to a generation of children isn't their concern either. Supporting the make-believe science coming out of the CDC is all they care about.

I asked Dr. Haley about the accuracy of the account of the TIMES meeting with Robert Kennedy. This is what he wrote back and is allowing me to share:

Robert Kennedy asked me to accompany him to the Times and the description in this article is very close to how I remember the meeting. The writers were not at all interested in the published science. I would make a comment about thimerosal toxicity . . . and they would look surprised---but they never asked for any of the stack of reports to verify what I said. Afterwards, one of the writers, a young man, whose name I don't remember, followed me out the door and downstairs seemed interested and asked some detailed questions, but later wrote an article and did not mention any of the published science about the toxicity of thimerosal. I lost a lot of respect for the New York Times that day and felt quite sorry for Robert Kennedy who was just asking for a logical look at the autism/vaccine issue. The Times did the opposite and wrote totally supporting the CDC line that their experts had eliminated vaccines as being involved.

Boyd Haley

And here is what I wrote about the NYTIMES and autism. I sent it separately to six email addresses at the Times. I included one to NYT reporter Gardiner Harris, long known for biased coverage on autism, since I mention him specifically. Maybe the NYT doesn't care about their reputation for junk autism coverage. They should. This is a disgrace for any newspaper, especially one with the credentials of the NYT. We're talking about children as victims in a health care disaster. The New York Times has failed our children and we aren't going to forget it.

AUTISM COVERAGE AT THE NYT: SINS OF OMISSION

BY ANNE DACHEL

Govt. Reaches Out To Vaccine Critics

2008-04-15T06:55:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON -- The government began an unprecedented effort Friday to give vaccine critics a say in shaping how the nation researches safety questions surrounding immunizations.

The meeting, the first in a planned series, came amid new controversy about vaccines and autism -- and a fledgling theory that vaccinations might worsen a rare condition called mitochondrial dysfunction that in turn triggers certain forms of autism.

Federal health officials said the work, being planned for two years, wasn't in response to that controversy, and encompasses many more questions than autism -- from rare side effects of the new shingles vaccine to how to predict who's at risk for encephalopathy sometimes triggered by other inoculations.

To read more, please click here.

Will a 9 year old change the vaccine debate?

2008-04-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

April 12, 2008, 4:39 pm
Will a 9-Year-Old Change the Vaccine Debate?

Hannah Poling (W.A.Harewood/Associated Press)

There’s no question that the case of 9-year-old Hannah Poling of Athens, Ga., has fueled the controversy about childhood vaccines. But what’s less clear is whether it will help unlock the mysteries of autism.

Hannah was 19 months old and developing normally until 2000, when she received five shots against nine infectious diseases. She became sick and later was given a diagnosis of autism.
Late last year government lawyers agreed to compensate the Poling family on the theory that vaccines may have aggravated an underlying disorder affecting her mitochondria, the energy centers of cells. (To read more about the decision, click here.) Vaccine critics say the Hannah Poling settlement shows the government has finally conceded that vaccines cause autism. But government officials say Hannah’s case involved a rare medical condition, and there is still no evidence of a link between vaccines and autism.

Hannah’s father, Dr. Jon S. Poling, a practicing neurologist in Athens and clinical assistant professor at the Medical College of Georgia, says the case has shifted the autism debate forever and points to a promising new area of research.

Writing in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday, Dr. Poling says there is compelling evidence that mitochondrial disorders, like the one his daughter has, are strongly associated with autism.

To understand Hannah’s case, it is important to understand mitochondria, which act like batteries in our cells to produce energy critical for normal function…. Emerging evidence suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction may not be rare at all among children with autism. In the only population-based study of its kind, Portuguese researchers confirmed that at least 7.2 percent, and perhaps as many as 20 percent, of autistic children exhibit mitochondrial dysfunction. While we do not yet know a precise U.S. rate, 7.2 percent to 20 percent of children does not qualify as “rare.” In fact, mitochondrial dysfunction may be the most common medical condition associated with autism.

Dr. Poling urges the Institute of Medicine and public health officials to pursue research into mitochondrial conditions, which he describes as a “breakthrough in the science of autism.'’ He writes: National public health leaders, including those at CDC, must now recognize the paradigm shift caused by this biological marker with regard to their current position of dispelling a vaccine-autism link. In light of the Hannah Poling concession, science must determine more precisely how large the mitochondrial autism subpopulation is: 1 percent, 7.2 percent, 20 percent?

To be sure, many health experts do not agree with Dr. Poling’s conclusions. The case has “added nothing to the discussions of what causes or doesn’t cause autism,” said Dr. Edwin Trevathan, director of the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

On Friday, many of the main players involved in this debate — including Hannah’s mother and her grandparents, prominent vaccine skeptics and some of the government’s top vaccine researchers — took part in the federal government’s first-ever public meeting to discuss a government-wide research agenda to explore the safety of vaccines.

To read Dr. Poling’s complete essay, click here. Last month, Dr. Paul A. Offit, chief of the infectious diseases division of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, explained his view that the Hannah Poling case has been mischaracterized by vaccine critics. To read the piece, click here. Hannah Poling’s parents wrote this response to Dr. Offit’s report. Last month, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote this profile of Hannah and her parents.

Tulsa World - It's Time

2008-04-07T17:51:00.001-07:00

It's time:

Insurance should provide coverage for autism

Apr 07, 2008 (Tulsa World - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX)

Seven years ago Indiana passed a law requiring insurance companies to provide coverage for autism. Since then 17 states have passed similar legislation.
Last week, Arizona joined the list. Louisiana, Mississippi and Connecticut have bills under consideration. So does Oklahoma. Several weeks ago, "Nick's Law," named for 10-year-old Nick Rohde, an autistic child from Edmond, passed in the Senate. Now supporters are trying to get the bill out of a House committee. This is not an inconsequential matter.

The bio-neurological disorder occurs in one in 150 births and affects up to 1.5 million Americans. The cost of life-long care can be reduced by two-thirds with early diagnosis and intervention. In a decade the annual national care costs will be up to $200 billion.

The bill did not make it on the agenda of the House Economic Development Committee meeting Thursday. But parents of children affected by autism who had showed up to support "Nick's Law" did not leave and instead hung around to answer questions from lawmakers during breaks in the meeting and afterward.

Fortunately Nick's Law is appended to another bill set to come up

in the Economic Development Committee. Let's hope it can be heard and that committee members will have the courage to vote for it.

For the families of children with autism, the bio-neurological disorder is as real as heart disease, more prevalent than childhood cancer and often difficult to treat. Obtaining insurance coverage for psychological and neurological disorders has never been an easy sell in Oklahoma.

It took years for lawmakers to recognize that mental health treatment deserved coverage parity with other illnesses.

Our insurance industry is not heavily mandated. According to the Tulsa Autism Foundation the insurance industry's own policy group reports that autism insurance coverage would increase costs by less than 1 percent.

Mandates affecting the state insurance industry must be scrutinized carefully with an eye toward fairness. Why should autism be excluded? Lawmakers should seriously consider authorizing coverage for this devastating disorder, the fastest-growing developmental disability in the nation

Autism Yesterday Premier - Press Release

2008-04-06T14:22:00.000-07:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Biomedical Intervention Group of OKC/Edmond

Contact Information - Bigofokc@yahoo.com

405-488-7609, 405-306-9184, 405-204-1713

IS AUTISM TREATABLE AND EVEN REVERSIBLE?

Join the Biomedical Intervention Group of Oklahoma City/Edmond and Aaron’s Bridge (www.aaronsbridge.org) for the world wide premiere of the documentary, “Autism Yesterday”. Oklahoma City will premiere this documentary along with over 100 other venues across the world simultaneously on Thursday, April 17^th, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. The Oklahoma premiere will be shown at the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Library Downtown Location, 300 Park Avenue, Oklahoma City, 73102 (on the corner of Hudson and Park Avenue). The event will be in 46^th Star Auditorium located on the 4^th floor of the library. Admission is free and garage parking is available South of library at the cost of $3.00 for 2 hour parking.

The documentary was created by Generation Rescue (www.generationrescue.org) and follows the lives of five families on their journey to heal their children from a disorder that had been previously deemed a life long condition. In the film you will see the progress and recovery of the children using biomedical treatment as only families living through it can tell. A parent/doctor panel discussion will follow the film. The featured doctor will be Neurodevelopmental Pediatrician, Dr. D.L. Gheen of Edmond. The parent panel will consist of experienced parents who are successfully treating their children with biomedical treatments.

David Kirby, best selling author of ‘Evidence of Harm” reviews the film and writes, “In each story, we see clear before-and-after evidence of a child’s heartbreaking descent into the silent, baffling world of autism, and then their steady, sometimes miraculous progress back towards health, happiness, communication and, yes, recovery. The film, in elegant detail, shows us exactly how far these kids have come. A trailer may be viewed at http://www.autismyesterday.com/trailer.html.

The primary goal of this event is to present hope. Many families are not given hope and are told that “autism is not treatable”. Biomedical Intervention Group of OKC/Edmond and Aaron’s Bridge were founded by local parents that have witnessed their children become healthier with consistent biomedical treatment supervised by well-trained physicians. Their belief is based on new research that autism is a medical condition and that over time “autistic” symptoms can be reduced and sometimes alleviated with consistent biomedical treatment. Currently, Oklahoma has a shortage of physicians specializing in the biomedical treatment of this neurobiological disorder. The hope is that additional Oklahoma medical professionals will become specialized to treat more Oklahoma children with autism spectrum disorders. Currently, more children are diagnosed with autism than all types of childhood cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined (Centers for Disease Control, 2007).

Rubicon School 2008 Annual Conference on Autism & PDD

2008-04-06T11:13:00.001-07:00

The Rubicon School and Learning Center

2008 Annual Conference

Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disabilities

The University of Central Oklahoma

Nigh University Center

Edmond, Oklahoma

April 21, 2008 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Click Here for more information

AAP Recognises World Autism Day

2008-04-06T11:07:00.000-07:00

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS RECOGNIZES WORLD AUTISM DAY

For release: APRIL 1, 2008

AAP media contacts: Susan Stevens Martin Debbie Linchesky
847-434-7131 847-434-7084
ssmartin@aap.org dlinchesky@aap.org

CHICAGO – The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) supports World Autism Day (April 2) as a way to bring together groups that are committed to finding the causes of, and successful treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorders, which now affect an estimated 1 in 150 children in the United States. Thousands of children, parents and families are coping with what can be a devastating diagnosis with lifelong consequences.

Pediatricians care for children with autism and their families every day. They are passionate advocates on behalf of these families and recognize that autism is a significant challenge to the health of the nation’s children. Pediatricians emphasize that early diagnosis is critical. The AAP promotes regular screening for autism at the appropriate well-child visits, as well as treatments tailored to meet the needs of an individual child. In 2007, the AAP published the Autism Toolkit, which includes clinical guidance to help pediatricians identify and manage children with autism, to refer them to therapeutic services, and to provide parents with information and resources. The AAP also offers a host of resources for parents on its Web site, www.aap.org.

“We know many parents are searching for answers,” said AAP President Renee R. Jenkins, MD, FAAP. “The AAP has supported research into the causes of autism and will continue to do so.” Pediatrics, the Academy’s peer-reviewed, scientific journal, has included dozens of studies on the associated factors, management and impact of Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The AAP recognizes the best way to address the needs of children with autism and children overall is through a partnership among pediatricians, parents and researchers. The AAP has met with leaders of advocacy groups, such as Autism Speaks and the Autism Society of America, which include parents of children with autism. Most recently, the AAP met with representatives of Defeat Autism Now! (a program of the Autism Research Institute) in an effort to facilitate communication between pediatricians, parents and researchers about the diagnosis and treatment of children with autism. All advocates for these children agree that further research is needed regarding causes as well as safe and effective treatment.

“We are pleased the AAP reached out recently to Defeat Autism Now! in order to better understand the treatments and interventions that we have found beneficial to children with autism,” said Stan Kurtz, executive council member of Defeat Autism Now! “We are full of hope that this is the beginning of a thoughtful partnership that will further explore factors that might cause or contribute to autism, as well as examine safe and effective treatment approaches for families coping with this condition.”

“Autism is a challenge for pediatricians, their patients and families. By working together, we stand the best chance of helping these children to realize their full potential,” Dr. Jenkins said. “The Academy is committed to working with researchers and treatment groups like Defeat Autism Now! to get closer to finding answers to the multiple causes of autism and determining effective therapies.”

For more information about autism, visit www.aap.org.

The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.

The Autism Research Institute (ARI) is a non-profit organization established in 1967 that fosters scientific research on autism triggers as well as diagnostic, treatment, and prevention methods. Through its Defeat Autism Now! program, ARI provides research-based information to parents, clinicians, and researchers worldwide, through its Web site (autism.com), call center, parent groups, conferences, science-based publications, and think tanks. (Press Contact: Autism Research Institute; email: lisa@autism.com)

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS RECOGNIZES WORLD AUTISM DAY

2008-04-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

For immediate release: April 1, 2008

CHICAGO - The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) supports World Autism Day (April 2) as a way to bring together groups that are committed to finding the causes of, and successful treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorders, which now affect an estimated 1 in 150 children in the United States. Thousands of children, parents and families are coping with what can be a devastating diagnosis with lifelong consequences.

Pediatricians care for children with autism and their families every day. They are passionate advocates on behalf of these families and recognize that autism is a significant challenge to the health of the nation's children. Pediatricians emphasize that early diagnosis is critical. The AAP promotes regular screening for autism at the appropriate well-child visits, as well as treatments tailored to meet the needs of an individual child. In 2007, the AAP published the Autism Toolkit, which includes clinical guidance to help pediatricians identify and manage children with autism, to refer them to therapeutic services, and to provide parents with information and resources. The AAP also offers a host of resources for parents on its Web site, Autism Health Topics Page.

"We know many parents are searching for answers," said AAP President Renee R. Jenkins, MD, FAAP. "The AAP has supported research into the causes of autism and will continue to do so." Pediatrics, the Academy's peer-reviewed, scientific journal, has included dozens of studies on the associated factors, management and impact of Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The AAP recognizes the best way to address the needs of children with autism and children overall is through a partnership among pediatricians, parents and researchers. The AAP has met with leaders of advocacy groups, such as Autism Speaks and the Autism Society of America, which include parents of children with autism. Most recently, the AAP met with representatives of Defeat Autism Now! (a program of the Autism Research Institute) in an effort to facilitate communication between pediatricians, parents and researchers about the diagnosis and treatment of children with autism. All advocates for these children agree that further research is needed regarding causes as well as safe and effective treatment.

"We are pleased the AAP reached out recently to Defeat Autism Now! in order to better understand the treatments and interventions that we have found beneficial to children with autism," said Stan Kurtz, executive council member of Defeat Autism Now! "We are full of hope that this is the beginning of a thoughtful partnership that will further explore factors that might cause or contribute to autism, as well as examine safe and effective treatment approaches for families coping with this condition."

For more information about autism, visit www.aap.org.

# # #

The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 60,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.

The Autism Research Institute (ARI) is a non-profit organization established in 1967 that fosters scientific research on autism triggers as well as diagnostic, treatment, and prevention methods. Through its Defeat Autism Now! program, ARI provides research-based information to parents, clinicians, and researchers worldwide, through its Web site (autism.com), call center, parent groups, conferences, science-based publications, and think tanks.

Dr. Bryan Jepson to Speak in OKC March 29th

2008-03-27T19:52:00.001-07:00

The Oklahoman / NewsOK's annual "Strong and Healthy Oklahoma - A Total Health Event" will be Saturday March 29th from 9am to 3pm at the Coca-Cola Bricktown Events Center in OKC. The event is free. The featured speaker will be Dr. Bryan Jepson from Thoughtful House http://www.thoughtfulhouse.org/ in Austin, Texas. He will lecture about children's health crisis, including autism, at 10am, 12:00pm and 2:00pm. Dr. Jepson is a DAN!, Defeat Autism Now physician, who has written a book titled, “Changing the Course in Autism”.

The Next Big Autism Bomb - David Kirby

2008-03-27T09:31:00.000-07:00

David Kirby

The Next Big Autism Bomb: Are 1 in 50 Kids Potentially At Risk?

Posted March 26, 2008 | 09:30 PM (EST)

On Tuesday, March 11, a conference call was held between vaccine safety officials at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, several leading experts in vaccine safety research, and executives from America's Health Insurance Plans, (the HMO trade association) to discuss childhood mitochondrial dysfunction and its potential link to autism and vaccines.

It was a sobering event for all concerned, and it could soon become known as the Conference Call heard 'round the world.

The teleconference was scheduled by a little known CDC agency called the Clinical Immunization Safety Assessment (CISA) Network, a consortium of six research centers working on "immunization-associated health risks," in conjunction with the CDC's Immunization Safety Office and the health insurance lobby -- whose companies cover some 200 million Americans.

The hot topic of the day was mitochondria - the little powerhouses within each cell that convert food and oxygen into energy for use by the body. Recent news events have implicated mitochondria in at least one case of regressive autism, following normal development.

To read more click here.

Bio-Med Intervention Success Story

2008-03-26T13:13:00.001-07:00

Autism recovery stories: Amanda's journey

"Responsible hope."

Sara DiFucci didn't start using "biomedical" interventions because she thought they would cure her daughter Amanda's autism spectrum disorder. Her motivation was simply "to treat the metabolic train wreck inside her body."

But "it just so happened that as I (used alternative interventions) my child began to lose her 'autistic symptoms,'" DiFucci wrote. "Many just disappeared such as the toe walking, hitting herself in the head and eczema."

Biomedical therapies used to treat physical symptoms related to autism can be costly and often produce discouraging results. In addition to 46 hours a week of traditional intervention (including occupational and speech therapy, school programming and ABA) Amanda underwent at least 22 different alternative or "biomedical" treatments.

But while many of the treatments didn't work, three of them--trans-dermal chelation, melatonin and hyperbaric oxygen therapy-- did.

Here's Amanda's story in Sara's words:

(If you have an autism recovery story, email me at jdeardorff@tribune.com. I welcome stories of all lengths. To read previous stories, click here.)

"I've been married for 13 years and have two beautiful children. Jake is my six year old neuro-typical son. Amanda is nine. She was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, PDD-NOS, in April, 2002, just two months shy of her 4th birthday.

Looking back at her 4th birthday party it was like having a party without the child. Amanda had no desire to participate. She sat on the couch and watched TV. while the other children were playing on the jump bouncer, getting their faces painted and watching the clown make balloon animals.

Amanda said nothing during her party but protested with temper tantrums when we sang happy birthday and again when we tried to gently encourage her to open her presents. The party went on while Amanda watched the same Disney Sing-A-Long video for the millionth time in a row.

It still pains me to think of that time in her life when she avoided interaction with others at all costs and the amount of stress she was under on a daily basis was unfathomable.

Our story is like many other families with minor changes in the details. We had a typical developing baby who met all the major milestones on or well ahead of schedule. She became sick shortly after her 15 month round of vaccines and was hospitalized for dehydration.

At that point, the regression into her new world began. My easygoing, happy toddler began to change and was always in fight or flight mode. Yelling and crying all the time. She hardly slept and was very irritable. There was very little joy in her life.

Family members began making subtle hints that they thought something was wrong just after her 2nd birthday but we were in complete denial and their questioning fell on deaf ears. (Why doesn’t she answer when you call her name? Why does she line up her toys like that? Why doesn’t she play with the other kids?).

Her descent into autism was a slow process and we passed off the odd behaviors she developed such as repeatedly hitting her head, lining up her toys, crying all the time, obsession with certain videos and toys and toe walking as part of Amanda's unique developing personality. We thought as she matured she would grow out of these behaviors.

My mother was a pediatric nurse for the last 40 years at a very large hospital and she too began to voice concern that there was "a change" in Amanda but she didn’t have any idea what was happening. In her 40 years of nursing she only saw one case of autism and that child’s autism presented differently.

About a year later we became concerned that Amanda’s language wasn’t developing appropriately. She appeared to be lagging further and further behind her peers. She wasn't "growing out of it." She had the ability to label but at three years old she could not answer simple questions or follow simple one-step directions so we went to the pediatrician for advice and he said “nothing was wrong."

We began to question some new physical signs such as developing chronic constipation and the severe eczema that Amanda would scratch until she bled. We were told these weren't things out of the ordinary. I went back to the same doctor nine months later and again voiced concerns that her behaviors appeared to be getting worse and more odd behaviors developed.

Many sensory issues began to emerge (aversion to loud noises, tags in clothing, not wanting to touch sand or finger paint). I told him I was beginning to be concerned for her safety too because she would often wander away. I once found her outside in the backyard by herself at 3 a.m. and we had to place combination pad locks on the doors because she was able to manipulate every other type of lock we tried. Again, our concerns were brushed off as "normal."

I decided to seek out help on my own and made an appointment with a developmental pediatrician who gave us the dark news. I felt like my whole world ended. When I asked the pediatrician "where to go for help" she didn’t have any resources for me except for a book about hyperlexia. It was a very lonely feeling.

I began making arrangements for traditional therapies such as speech and occupational therapy but I wanted answers as to why my child descended into this new world of hers. Upon researching the Internet, I learned of DAN! (Defeat Autism Now) and made an appointment to do some diagnostic testing even though I did not believe Amanda had any physical problems aside from constipation and eczema.

She was the kid who NEVER got sick. I would pride myself that I was doing such a good job of keeping her healthy so that she never caught a cold. Little did I know that my daughter was very sick and I learned from initial laboratory tests that my child had auto-immune issues.

In addition to an overload of heavy metals (especially lead, mercury and aluminum), food allergies, oxidative stress, disordered amino acids, demyelination, abnormal EEG, reduced glutathione, leaky gut and improper food absorption.

We have tried a large assortment of biomedical interventions. Some worked really well and some did nothing. One thing that makes our story unique is that when Amanda turned six we moved across country due to my husband’s job. We stopped all traditional therapies and had every intention of starting them back up again when we got settled.

At the same time we began a new method of chelation, TD-DMPS (trans-dermal). We tried chelation (oral DMSA) in the past but Amanda had some trouble with overgrowth of yeast in her gut which created additional constipation so we had to stop.

Eight weeks into trying the new chelating agent, TD-DMPS Amanda became potty trained virtually overnight. Over the next few months Amanda’s teachers were noticing a boom in expressive language; she was becoming more sociable and willingly joining the group.

The temper tantrums decreased, many of her sensory issues diminished. We saw more improvement in Amanda in those six months without using traditional intervention than we did in the prior two year and we were able to tease out what intervention was making the difference.

During this time Amanda did attend school, however, did not have any additional therapies as she did previously. Biomedical intervention became our main focus. Chelation was working! Six months later we began adding speech therapy and ABA back into Amanda’s regimen of therapies and she no longer required private occupational therapy.

Next to chelation, the intervention I would place second is the use of melatonin. Amanda was the type of child who seemed to lack any need for sleep. She was one of those kids that had trouble falling asleep and would wake in the middle of the night many times at 2-3am and would be up until the following night. The lack of sleep was the most trying time for me as a mother. When she began using melatonin I felt as though we hit the jackpot.

"Melatonin is considered by some to be an antioxidant vitamin. It’s a vitamin only to those who cannot make enough of it in their own bodies, and this group appears to include a majority of autistic spectrum individuals.”

The third treatment that helped Amanda the most is mild hyperbaric oxygen therapy also known as mHBOT. From the TACA website:

"HBOT is a safe, effective way to get more oxygen into the body at the cellular level by using pressurized air chambers.
"According to the Laws of Physics, an increase in atmospheric pressure allows for more gas to be dissolved into any given liquid. Oxygen exists as a gas at room temperature, and the human body is made up almost entirely of water. The chambers used at the Hyperbaric Therapy Center use filtered ambient air with an additional oxygen concentrator to safely administer oxygen to the body with many therapeutic benefits. By allowing more oxygen to penetrate otherwise oxygen deficient areas, relief for many common ailments can be sought, because mHBOT enables the body to carry out oxygen dependent processes by dissolving oxygen directly into the blood, plasma and cerebrospinal fluids.”
We didn’t see any big 'wow!' changes with Amanda that some parents report. For Amanda, she was experiencing slow but consistent gains using biomedical treatment, however, when we added mHBOT the gains began to come much quicker especially in the areas of speech and language. She was able to hold longer conversations, inquisitive about the meanings of new words, processing issues began to disappear.

We currently do 1.5 hours dives 2-3 times per week. We have a chamber in our home. This was by far the most costly biomedical intervention we have incurred.

I did not view using biomedical intervention as the tool to “treat” Amanda’s autism. I was treating the metabolic train wreck inside her body. It just so happened as I did this my child began to lose her “autistic” symptoms. Many just disappeared such as the toe walking, hitting herself in the head and eczema.

No one would suspect the living nightmare Amanda was once held captive by. Today, the average eye would not be able to make an autism connection. Last year, the school system called in an outside psychologist to develop a behavioral intervention plan because Amanda can still become stressed in certain situations. The psychologist said that while observing the classroom she was not the child he would have picked out from the crowd as the one who had autism.

Today Amanda is the happiest we have ever seen her. Her health is being restored. She attends a mainstream 3rd grade class at Conley Elementary School in Huntley. She is very bright academically (A/B student). She can appear awkward in certain social situations but she has friends and children genuinely like her.

I don’t consider Amanda "fully" recovered, however, I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. My child is gong to be o.k. She’s going to overcome autism. No amount of biomedical intervention will teach Amanda the social skills and non-verbal communication skills she still lacks. We continue to use traditional therapies to address those issues.

There wasn't an organization like TACA available to help mentor/guide me through the maze of information. I was overwhelmed with all the information. I had no plan as to where to start, what was most important to do first, how to obtain services, or how to advocate for my child.

There wasn’t a journey guide such as the one TACA has today that helps parents survive the first year upon diagnosis. I had to sort most things out on my own and many times I would find conflicting information and have to try to determine on my own what was right.

Treating a child with autism is an enormous task and I found solitude in other parents who had children with autism that were able to give me answers. I just wish I found a way to connect with these families early on. TACA does just this.

We offer families hope, support and assistance in speeding up the cycle time from diagnosis to getting a parent/caregiver the appropriate information that will lead to effective treatment and support. TACA strengthens community.

Biomedical intervention is not guaranteed to work nor is it easy to implement, however, the payoff can be enormous. What helped my child may not help another, however, one will never know unless they try. Treating autism is a marathon not a sprint and it takes times so don’t give up if the first few interventions don’t help your child.

Find an experienced parent to help – they often know more than the doctor. Never give up. Autism is treatable and recovery does happen."

Special Diets and Autism

2008-03-26T13:09:00.001-07:00

"Leaky gut autism theory doubted", was the headline from BBC News on March 17 2008. The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail also reported that researchers have found no evidence to support the 'leaky gut theory'. They say that this theory proposes that vaccines such as MMR damage the intestine causing digestive problems, leading to the production of peptides "which can damage the brain and possibly cause autism".

This well conducted study used reliable analysis techniques to compare autistic children across a broad range of intelligences to age-matched control children. Despite the newspaper headlines and coverage, the study did not look at the effects of the MMR jab and autism. Instead, it tested and compared the urine of autistic boys with the urine of boys without autism. The researchers conclude that there were no differences between the levels of peptides in the groups and say they have effectively disproved the 'leaky gut theory'. However, further research is needed to establish whether a casein and gluten-free diet has other effects on autism.

The researchers call for more studies into special diet as a treatment for autism, but they do not suggest that their research has any implication for the discredited MMR vaccine/autism theory.

Where did the story come from?

Dr Hilary Cass from the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children and colleagues from around England and Scotland carried out the research. The authors acknowledge the support of the research and development fund of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh and the Chief Scientist Office in Scotland. Competing interests were declared. The study was published in Archives of Disease in Childhood, a peer-reviewed medical journal.

What kind of scientific study was this?

This was a case control study that compared 65 boys with autism, aged between five and 11 years, with 158 control boys of a similar age.

The researchers say that, for a number of years, it has been thought that the urine of children with autism contains opioid peptides that originate from outside the body. Opioid peptides are chemical compounds that are so called because they resemble morphine. They can be produced by the body and through the digestion of foods such as grain and milk. Grains such as wheat, rye, barley and oats contain the protein gluten, that produces opioid peptides in the gut, while milk produces another variety, casein.

One theory for the development of autism is the 'leaky gut theory': the idea that children with autism become sensitive to gluten. The gluten is thought to inflame the small bowel. The resulting damage allows opioid peptides from food to be absorbed into the blood and then enter the urine. Before the opioid peptides in the blood are excreted they are assumed to cross into the brain and result in the symptoms of autism. Previous research has proposed that excluding casein and gluten (milk and grains) from the diet might help children with autism by reducing the amount of circulating opioid peptides.

The theory proposes that opioid peptides found in urine reflect a disturbance in the integrity of the gut epithelium (i.e. a leaky gut). Proponents of the theory hope that the peptides can act as a diagnostic marker for autism and predict that a diet excluding gluten and casein could help to treat children with autistic symptoms.

This study aimed to determine the occurrence of the peptides in the urine of children who have autism and those who do not. The researchers recruited 65 boys from two hospitals specialising in autistic spectrum disorders in London. For the control group, 202 non-autistic boys of similar age were recruited from mainstream infant and primary schools in the same area. A questionnaire was given to the parents of the controls to 'screen out' children with possible neurological or psychiatric difficulties. Forty of the controls were excluded from the study as their parents did not complete the questionnaire, or the boys' results were abnormal or borderline.

Urine samples were collected from all the children and analysed using equipment that separates the chemical in a liquid (HPLC). Other equipment was used to identify small and fragile biological molecules, such as the opioid peptides (MALDI-TOF MS).

What were the results of the study?

The researchers say that their study finds no evidence of opioid peptides in the urine of boys with autism or similar disorders.

After adjusting for the amount of creatinine in the urine, which is a measure of kidney function, the researchers found no significant differences in the urinary profiles (shown by HPLC) between groups of boys with or without autism. In those cases where HPLC showed peaks in the locations at which opioid peptides might be expected to be found, further testing by mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF) showed that these peaks did not represent opioid peptides.

What interpretations did the researchers draw from these results?

The researchers say that "given the lack of evidence for any opioid peptiduria in children with autism it can neither serve as a biomedical marker for autism, nor be employed to predict or monitor response to a casein and gluten exclusion diet".

The researchers say that these findings effectively disprove the 'leaky gut theory', which predicts that these proteins should be found in the urine of autistic children. They suggest that healthcare professionals and parents should stop testing children with autism for urinary opioid peptides, and note that commercial laboratories around the world still widely advertise these tests on the internet.

What does the NHS Knowledge Service make of this study?

This study has a number of strengths. The researchers used accepted and applied definitions of autism and selected children across a broad range of intelligence. The urine testing appears to have been conducted reliably and the researchers further analysed the peptide peaks found by chromatography (HPLC) with advanced mass spectroscopy techniques (MALDI-TOF). They acknowledge some limitations, however, including:

- The autistic children were selected from tertiary or specialist centres. This may mean that they had more severe autism than that commonly found in the community.
- It was not possible to match the autistic children with low IQ to control children with the same level of IQ. Strictly speaking, this means that the groups were not balanced at the start of the study. However, as no significant differences were found in the peptide levels between any of the groups that were examined, it is unlikely that a link would have been found between peptide levels and IQ either.

The researchers say that there is no evidence that opioid peptides can leak through the gut and cause autism in children. However, further research is needed to establish whether a casein and gluten-free diet has other effects on autism.

The researchers do not comment on any implications of their study with regard to the MMR vaccine. Immunisation is topical and attracts the reader's attention, but well-designed research into other theories of how autism is caused is needed.

Links to the headlines

Leaky gut autism theory doubted. BBC News, March 18 2008
Study finds no link between MMR jab and autism. Daily Mail, March 18 2008
MMR vaccine 'does not cause autism'. The Daily Telegraph, March 18 2008

Links to the science

Absence of urinary opioid peptides in children with Autism.
Cass H, Gringras P, March J, et al.
Arch Dis Child. Published Online First: 12 March 2008.

This news comes from NHS Choices