New addition

Our new addition.

Photo

I have not posted in a long time.  Here is the "Buzz" with his sister at the end of a bike ride.  Buzz has come a long way.  In the fall he will be in regular pre-school.  When he was first diagnosed with Autism, you had to wonder if we would ever be at this place.  Thanks to hard work by Candace and the "Buzz" we are getting there!

Vaccines - Research please

We have fallen in love with vaccines.  We vaccinate for everything now.  Why have a childhood disease when you can vaccinate?  Is there research to prove the effectiveness of vaccines?  Is there research on the side effects?

I like to study history to look for patterns that repeat themselves or have a potential to repeat.  One of the great medical breakthroughs was the development of antibiotics.  One of the first was Penicillin.  Antibiotics saved lives.  Over time many different kinds of antibiotics were developed.  Again these drugs saved lives.  Then some alarming things started happening.  People started get infections that antibiotics could not knock out.  What was happening?  The bacteria that were causing the infections were turning into "super bugs" that were immune to the antibiotics.  It is similar to cockroaches.  Many different pesticides have been used to eliminate cockroaches.  Over time the species become immune to the pesticide so a new one has to be developed.  For all of the work to eliminate cockroaches, they seem to be doing very well thank you.

So where am I going with this?  The use of vaccines seems to be ever increasing.  What do all of these vaccines do to the immune system?  Are we over stimulating the immune system?  The intent of vaccines is to trick the body into thinking that it is being invaded by the flu or some other virus when it really is not.  By tricking the body, the body ramps up the immune system to attack the invasion.  Once the body has trained itself for the invasion, if the real invasion occurs, the body is ready to go.

The human body's immune system is complicated to say the least.  In a healthy person, it is very robust and can handle most invasions.  What happens when all of these fake invasions occur?  Does it over sensitize the immune system so that it gets too aggressive, causing various auto-immune problems?  Has there been any research about effect of the vaccine on the immune system?

To further complicate the issue is the make-up of the vaccines.  Thimerosal a derivative of Mercury is used in some vaccines.  I assume it is used as a preservative.  Just the same when injected with a vaccine that contains Thimerosal that Thimerosal is going into the body.  Mercury is toxic to the body.  Almost everyone has heard the term Mad Hatter referring to people who used to use Mercury as part of the process of making hats.  For some people Thimerosal is not a major issue because their body is able to remove it.  There are some people whose body is not good at removing toxins.  In those cases Thimerosal and other toxins tend to build up in the tissues.  What is the effect of these toxins floating around in the body?  Do these toxins do something to the brain that causes autism?

I guess I should stop here and give the disclaimer.  I am not a doctor.  I do not have any formal training in the medical field.  I have taken my fair share of biology.  Because I am not a doctor, I do not think it is appropriate for me to say with any level of certainty that vaccines caused Preston to get Autism.  I believe it is a combination of many things that caused Preston to get Autism, vaccines being one of the culprits.

What I am really trying to say is that it is time for research to be done on vaccines.  Are they effective?  Are there side effects?  Is there a limit on the number a person should get in a period of time?

Here is a link to an interview of congressman Bill Posey.  It is related to this subject.

I am bothered that state legislatures are mandating vaccinations for school aged students.  I know the information they are getting is saying that for the good of public health this needs to be done.  Is there research to prove that vaccinating at the rate we do in the United States makes sense?

We have many colleges and universities that are outstanding research institutions.  It is time to use our resources to determine if vaccines are truly safe.

Feel free to comment.  I know this topic is controversial.  I encourage all sides of this topic to present their views, but please be professional - do not make it personal.  Let's learn from each other.  Let's work together to find answers.

Research - or lack there of

I taught math for twelve years before moving into administration.  I have been a public school administrator for almost ten years.  As a former math teacher and an administrator, I review research on a regular basis.  Educational research is used extensively as a means to improve the educational experience.

When Preston was diagnosed with Autism the first thing my wife did (the old chemistry teacher) was get on the internet and start reading anything and everything related to autism.  I did not spend near as much time reading as she did.  We would talk about what she read - and I kept hearing about various theories, but a lack of research to prove or disprove the theories.

In science classes the concept of proving something scientifically better known as the scientific method is taught extensively.  The steps are pretty simple.   Develop a theory.  Develop an experiment to prove the theory.  Conduct the experiment. Finally, review the data from experiment to determine if the theory is true or false.

It seems to me that there is a lack of good solid research on Autism.  Here is a list of theories.  I have yet to find definitive research that either proves or disproves any of them.

• Nutritional issues
• Gluten
• Dairy
• Organic vs non-organic
• GMO's (Genetically Modified Organisms)
• Preservatives
• Additives
• Pesticides
• Vaccines
• Genetics

Here is my overall theory - it is not supported by research.  I am not a doctor.  I do not have a medical background.  What I do have is a background in making observations and using the observations to make determinations.  I really feel that autism is a symptom.  It is the brains response to adverse conditions in the chemistry of the body.  If the body is unable to dump toxins and other by-products, over time those compounds build up in the body to the point that the brain reacts in a negative manner.  Autism is a symptom that something is not working right in the body.  The problem is once that damage is done, it appears difficult to reverse the injury to the brain.  Hence the need for intervention as early as possible.  We have done that with Preston and we have seen good results.  Candace has used all of scientific ability to attack the problem head-on.  There was no accepting there was nothing we could do.

To this day we are not convinced that there are not still various toxins in Preston that his body can not get rid off for whatever reason.  With the use of supplements, B-12 shots, and probiotics we hope we are giving Preston's body a chance to clear out the toxins that are adversely effecting his brain.  We have reworked what he consumes in a hope that his body will be better able to dump toxins.

So what I really am trying to say is that it is time we stop guessing why autism occurs, but rather we need to study correlations between the having Autism and consuming some of the various products listed above,

The number people with the autism diagnosis is ever increasing.  The number of people with Autistic characteristics is increasing every year. I would like to see research that looks at why the numbers are increasing.  Before the autism rate increases any more, maybe it is time research all aspects and try to determine what really causes it.  Determining the cause is the first step in developing a cure.

Nutrition

When Preston or as we call him "Buzzy" was diagnosed with Autism, one of the first changes made was to eliminate gluten and dairy products from his diet.  The only true way to do that is to eliminate those products from the house.  For all of us, the was major change in our eating habits.  Until you make such a change you do not realize how many things gluten and diary are in.  Here is a short list of items that we no longer can eat:

• Pizza - contains gluten and diary (we have found ways to make a gluten and dairy free pizza, but it is not the same)
• Mac and Cheese - a favorite of all kids - contains gluten and diary
• Milk
• Cheese
• Pasta
• Breakfast cereals - contains gluten and in some cases dairy products
• Bread

We have learned to substitute.  For pasta we have found pastas made out of rice or other non-gluten products.  I have actually found these pastas to be very good and not taste any different.  We use Rice and Almond milk instead of real milk.  Additionally we have gone as organic as we can and we purchase our meet in bulk from local farmers that grass feed the beef and do not use any hormones or other drugs.  We also try to avoid GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) containing products.

What has been the end result?  We are all eating healthier.  Candace and I have lost weight.  We have lost weight but we have not been starving ourselves.  Eating healthier seems to make a different in weight.  I am at a weight now that I have not seen in over twenty years.  

In the case of Preston, if by some accident he consumes something with gluten, we see a change within a day if not sooner.  He tends to be more spacey and not able to focus as well.

Why does the change in diet make a difference? I am not sure of all of the biology and/or chemistry involved, but in general terms in has been theorized that when the body of most people process gluten and dairy, there are not really any issues, the body dumps the bi-products and that is that.  In the Autistic child (and maybe ADD, ADHD children) it seems the body is not eliminating the bi-products and those bi-products are finding their way into the bloodstream.  Once in the bloodstream they cause havoc with the brain.  One of the bi-products of gluten is a compound that is similar to various opiates.  Because the body does not get rid of the product, it gets into the blood stream and acts like a drug.  At first there probably is not much of issue, but over time there is a long term effect on the brain.  That long term effect in some cases I believe is Autism.  As stated in a previous post, I really feel that autism is a symptom.  A child just does not become autistic - something has to be happening that is causing the brain to react in that way.  I really think that autism is a reaction to adverse environmental conditions.  My wife has researched environmental issues extensively.  Since she reads my blogs, I will leave it to her to comment on any of this to add clarification.

As I have said in early posts, I feel it is time that extensive research needs to be done that studies the relationship between nutrition and autism.  There are too many people have seen positive results from gluten free dairy free diets to not have a comprehensive study.

Again as always - feel free to comment.  Let's learn from each other.  What nutritional changes have you made? What behavioral changes have you observed after you have made the nutritional changes?

What is going on?

I have been in education for over twenty years.  As a math teacher and now and administrator I have had many experiences with students with special needs.  I have had dealing with students that have Autism spectrum disorders.  Even with those experiences, it is just not the same until you have a child of your own who has Autism.  As an educator I have seen an increase in the number of students who are "on the spectrum."  At first I thought it was a matter of better diagnosis.  In other words I believed that the percentage of students with Autism really has not changed, it is just the number of students who are actually diagnosed had increased.

After experiencing Autism first hand I have decided that I was woefully misinformed about Autism.  The increase in Autism I do not believe can be completely attributed to better diagnosis.  I really believe there is a lot more going on.  Here are some links to articles about the increase in the number of people diagnosed with Autism.

USA Today Article
Fox News
CNN
CDC

Why has there been an increase?  I really believe that it is time to comprehensively study why we are seeing these increases.  It is time to collect data and use technology to statistically analyze the data and try to determine at a minimum some sort of correlation.  I know that correlation is not the same as causation.  Being an old math teacher, I have an understanding of statistics.  I am just saying it is time to stop guessing and start researching.  Find correlation and then try to extend that to causation.

What could be the reasons that we are seeing an increase of autism?  Here are some areas I would like to see studied:

• Gluten
• Dairy
• GMO's
• Vaccines
• Toxins

Why is it that Autism seems to effect males more than females?  Is there a genetic component that we do not understand?

It is time to stop guessing.  We have some of the finest colleges and universities in the world.  The predominance of Autism in our children is almost at an epidemic rate.  At what point do we focus our efforts on not so much how to fix it as much as how to prevent it?

In working with Preston, I have come to believe that Autism is the brain reaction to something chemical not being right in the body.  One thought is that the body of Autistic children is not eliminating toxins as efficiently as people that do not have toxins.  Am I correct?  I do not know.  I do not have the research to back up my theory.

What do I know?  We keep Buzzy gluten and diary free.  When we screw up and let him consume something that was one or the other or both, we see behavioral difference sin him.  That tells me that his body is unable to eliminate some of the bi-products of gluten and dairy.

An interesting side note to this - our household has been gluten and diary free from close to 18 months.  Now I admit that I cheat, especially at work - but still in the last 18 months I have lost close to 30 pounds.  I have not been working out.  I have not been cutting back on the amount I eat.  What I do eat is so much more nutritious than what I used to do before.  We try to buy exclusively organic.  We purchased our beef in bulk from a local farmer who raises the cow on grass only.  We rarely go out to eat.  We used to eat a lot of pizza - we do not do that anymore.  Bottom line as a family we are eating better, and from a health standpoint, I have to say I feel better.  I now weigh under 200 lbs.  I can say I have weighed under 200 pounds in over 20 years.

In closing, as an educator I worry about the number of students that are being diagnosed with Autism.  The resources that are going to need to be available for these students is going tax the public school systems to the max.  I believe it is time to figure out why kids are becoming autistic and fix the root cause.  If we do not do that, the long term cost to public school alone is astronomical.

As always I encourage you leave any comments you  have.

Where we are

When you hear you child has Autism - you look at all of the dreams you have and you ask what is possible and what is not.  When you here that there really is not much you can do about the situation - it give you a sick feeling in your stomach.  When you look at you child and you know that someone special is in there but you just can not get to it - you almost go crazy.

The autism diagnosis is not the end, it is the start.  The earlier you start the better.  We have had success with Preston because we started earlier.  As frustrating as it was to get an diagnosis of Autism and hear a doctor say there really is no hope - bless his heart he did make the diagnosis.  Because of the diagnosis we could focus our efforts.  I should say my wife could focus her efforts.  It became her mission in life to prove that doctor wrong, and she has come a long way to doing it.

Today I watched Preston play with his two year old and ten year old sister.  They were playing in the sandbox.  He was chasing his sisters, they were chasing him.  He talks in complete sentences.  He communicates his needs to us.  He is playing pretend with his ten year old sister.  Eighteen months ago we did not know if we would ever see this kind of behavior - but it has happened.

I wish I could give you a formula to our success. We have done everything we can.  Candace has used the Internet as a means of collecting as much research as she can.  Based on that research she has tried many different interventions.  Which ones have been the trick - I am not sure.  What I do know is that the combination is working.

If you child has autism - start reading anything and everything you can about the subject!

If as you read this you have questions - feel free to leave a comment.  I will try to answer it as best as I can.  It is important for parents of autistic children to build a network and learn from each other.  I know that my wife has networked with many other parents using the Internet.  For her it has been a lifeline for saving Buzzy.

I thank God everyday for giving me a wife with the intelligence and the perseverance that she has.  Because of her Buzzy is getting better.  We are not done - we will never be done.

In the future I am going to try to blog about the following:

• Nutrition as it relates to Buzzy and Autism
• Vaccines - are we over vaccinating?
• Supplements
• Research

Each of those topics are going to take a lot of time to write up so I make no promises as to when I make those posts!

I look forward to any comments you have.