April is Autism Month

[PLFXpert 0]

In this week's People magazine there is an article about an autistic boy and how beneficial his visits to the zoo were.

Though I do not have any relatives with autism, most people around here know how much I love animals, so I know quite a bit about how they benefit children; particularly those with autism. And I had a neighbor who was a single-mom with sole custody of her autistic son (who would often run in our house if we didn't lock the front door) for two years. I woke up one morning to him jumping on our bed. He never said anything, except when he'd point at our cat and say "cat".

I thought of ACMESkydiver and others when I read the article, though, today.

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[peckerhead 0]

Quote

Jaye-

Did you catch the article in Discover magazine last month? It discussed viewing autism as a whole body disease rather than just a brain issue, because so many autistic kids also have digestive and other issues. Apparently, the current thinking is that autism isn't a disease of the brain, it's a disease that affects the brain, along with a lot of other systems. The article was fascinating. If you didn't see it, the website has the article: http://discovermagazine.com/2007/apr/autism-it2019s-not-just-in-the-head

I am sure you did not mean to be insensitive but Autism is not a disease.

My son is considered a high functioning Autistic or Asbergers and he is perfectly healthy. He will live as long as anyone. He does not have any diseases.

My son is light years ahead of his peers when it comes to math, science, video games and computers. But he is way behind in other areas mostly dealing with social interaction. During recess he will sit on the playground by himself, he does not like sports, and does not have any friends.

It breaks my heart but we are actually very lucky because he does not have any of the behavior problems associated with Autism. He is polite and soft spoken, and he is affectionate and interacts well with adults. He is truly the sweetest kid you could ever meet. Most people that meet him on a casual basis do not even know there is something different about him.

But, you are right about food alergies. We had tests done and we found he was sensitive to certain types of food mostly casien and gluten. (dairy and wheat)
About two years ago we changed his diet and immediately saw improvement in several areas.

Certain types of food alergies will make some people "space out" and affect their ability to stay focused and pay attention. Diet and physical activity have been very helpful in our situation.

[Nightingale 0]

I was saying that the theory in the article was that autism was a disease that affected the whole body. That was the author's take on it, not mine.

"“Like cancer, autism is a very complex disease,” says Craig Newschaffer, chairman of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Drexel University School of Public Health,"

[peckerhead 0]

OK!

Well, in that case Craig Newschaffer is a fucktard.

Autism is not a disease

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

Jaye-

Did you catch the article in Discover magazine last month? It discussed viewing autism as a whole body disease rather than just a brain issue, because so many autistic kids also have digestive and other issues. Apparently, the current thinking is that autism isn't a disease of the brain, it's a disease that affects the brain, along with a lot of other systems. The article was fascinating. If you didn't see it, the website has the article: http://discovermagazine.com/2007/apr/autism-it2019s-not-just-in-the-head

That theory isn't new, actually. The media spins it as 'new' because they hadn't reported on it yet.

I absolutely subscribe to that thought process. Our boys are prime examples of how Autism affects the gut, the brain, and the rest of the immune system simultaneously.

I'm glad that way of thinking is being brought into the public and mainstreamed. We all need to know exactly what is going on, how it effects each of us as parents/friends/family members of Autistics, and how it will effect us as a society living with a massive population of Autistic people that are growing up.

I kind of think of it as 'Generation A'. A population with the bulk of it's total born (by my very rough estimate) from 1990-2006[and counting; we are still going up in incidence rate astronomically]. It will change the landscape of our economy, our political thinking, and our views of our own acceptance just as every other generation has before and will in the future.

-Unless we can find a cure.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

In this week's People magazine there is an article about an autistic boy and how beneficial his visits to the zoo were.

Though I do not have any relatives with autism, most people around here know how much I love animals, so I know quite a bit about how they benefit children; particularly those with autism. And I had a neighbor who was a single-mom with sole custody of her autistic son (who would often run in our house if we didn't lock the front door) for two years. I woke up one morning to him jumping on our bed. He never said anything, except when he'd point at our cat and say "cat".

I thought of ACMESkydiver and others when I read the article, though, today.

Ahh...thanky.

My sons like animals, but in different ways...they both like horses. Joey like to look at the horse and run his hands over its sides and neck to feel the horse's hair. He leans over when on a horse to see it's hooves touch the ground.

Derick likes the view and the rocking motion on the horse.
Neither one likes it when doggies try to 'play' and jump on them. They both LOVE to walk up to a dog laying down, though. Then they'll pat it and rub the dog's side and legs and feet...

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

The first time I saw the video it was hard because it was the first time seeing from the outside other people going through the same things that we deal with.

The one gal has a boy as severe as our twins, and it does hurt to see the recognition...

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[gonzalesna 0]

Same here... should I feel bad about that one?

Some people refrain from beating a dead horse. Personally, I find a myriad of entertainment value when beating it until it becomes a horse-smoothie.

[Nightingale 0]

Still searching for a dog?

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Yes and no. We are looking in a new direction.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

I was reading an article about the increased rate of meth abuse and the increased rate of autism having a possible link. Meth is hardcore and does lots of damage to the brain. Imagine a woman partying it up not realizing she is pregnant. Sometimes it takes a month or 2 for a female to even realize she is, so in all that time think how much damage she can do to a developing fetus. I would think the first month or two is pretty important to brain development in a fetus. (am I right?). I found it no coincidence that a friend of friend that does abuse meth had a beautiful little girl, and unfortunately they found out she is autistic.

Whatever article you read is outrageous and ridiculous. I'm very offended by that suggestion. 1 in 100 mothers is taking meth then?! That is completely asinine. meth users might produce children with Autistic tendencies, but to say that the incidence rate of 1 in 94 boys is due to Meth addicted mothers is absolutely idiotic. NONE of the moms of Autistics I know (and I dare say I know a few more than most people) were on meth. I'm interested in what publication would produce such STAGGERINGLY idiotic crap?

That's as stupid as saying that mental retardation is linked to shaken babies. NO KIDDING shaking a baby can cause mental retardation, but for the love of all things holy that's not how the majority of people with mental retardation became that way.

LORD that's all mothers of Autistics need. For some genius to spread some BS saying that we're all crack whores or meth junkies and we CAUSED our kids' Autism.

Because your 'friend of a friend' abused meth and damaged her baby in utero because of her illegal using doesn't give you evidence to generalize that to the rest of us. Your 'friend of a friend' is a moron.

Damn I am pissed off. I swear to XXX I need to get some coffee after reading that...but of course, if you can't come up with a source for that article, then I don't feel the need to worry that it actually exists. This is the internet, after all...

Quote

I had a roommate when I lived in FL that had a baby and somehow I picked up something was not quite right. For some reason, I was the only one he connected to. He would follow me around, just loved me so much, practically ignored his mom. Crazy stuff to go through when you are only 18 years old! But eventually the mom found out what was wrong and he went through therapy. But before that, I was the one that taught the child to talk, count, walk, since he really only would listen to me. I think I got some points on the karma board for that. :)

Attachments are very real for Autistics. Very good of you as a child yourself to help the little boy. Few teenagers would have bothered. I'm sure that mom is very thankful that you took time with him.





...and don't believe everything you read.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Nightingale 0]

Quote

Whatever article you read is outrageous and ridiculous. I'm very offended by that suggestion. 1 in 100 mothers is taking meth then?! That is completely asinine. meth users might produce children with Autistic tendencies, but to say that the incidence rate of 1 in 94 boys is due to Meth addicted mothers is absolutely idiotic. NONE of the moms of Autistics I know (and I dare say I know a few more than most people) were on meth. I'm interested in what publication would produce such STAGGERINGLY idiotic crap?
...
Damn I am pissed off. I swear to XXX I need to get some coffee after reading that...but of course, if you can't come up with a source for that article, then I don't feel the need to worry that it actually exists. This is the internet, after all...

I just spent about half an hour digging through the internet and lexisnexis, and I couldn't find a single article linking autism and meth. One found a faint link between autism and maternal smoking (which was refuted by a half-dozen other articles), but nothing about meth, alcohol or anything like that. I'm not saying that such an article doesn't exist, just that I couldn't find it.

[PLFXpert 0]

Quote

Yes and no. We are looking in a new direction.

You know, I was thinking...in response to how your sons react to dogs...

Have you considered adopting an older dog? That's what I wanted (b/c puppies are always wanted, and I wanted a mellow, older doggie in need of a good home to spend his/her last years) but when we saw Cruz (that wasn't his name then, but he was only 8 mo old and no-one really called him anything, so we changed it to represent a new life for the now, spoiled mut!
I still LOVE older dogs. And they tend to lay still a lot more, and often you'll see one whose card reads "good with children" and likely they'll lay still and let your kids pet them as they like to.
Of course, if your "new direction" is a horse. Well, I support that, too!!!--especially an old or injured race horse that needs a home. Horses, like dolphins, seem to have the highest success rates with autisitic children.

Whatever you decide, I'm just glad you're considering. I believe in my heart it's a win-win situation for you, the kids, and the "new edition".

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Nightingale 0]

Apparently they are even training "autism monkeys" now.

[swedishcelt 0]

Autism can be caused by many different things. While it may that a couple of babies developed it as one of the possible effects of meth. use, it is obviously not a common reason for autism just like you said, as meth. use is not common.

A lot of pretty recent cases I know of and am close to were caused (proven actually by the amount of mercury found in the newborn hair and the serial number of the vaccines used) by baby vaccines. But, those are not the only reasons babies develop autism or aspergers. There have been many, many possible links or ideas why... They just don't have enough research to say what causes it or why. That is why it is so important to support the research behind finding out more. These babies are soooo incredibly special.

[PLFXpert 0]

I haven't heard of/read about that!

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[Nightingale 0]

Quote

A lot of pretty recent cases I know of and am close to were caused (proven actually by the amount of mercury found in the newborn hair and the serial number of the vaccines used) by baby vaccines.

According to the CDC:"Today, with the exception of some Influenza (flu) vaccines, none of the vaccines used in the U.S. to protect preschool children against 12 infectious diseases contain thimerosal as a preservative."

There is no way to prove that the mercury came from the vaccines, unless you know for sure the vaccines contained thimerosol, rather than some other environmental source, and also no way to prove that the mercury was the actual cause of the autism based on your limited data. All you know is that the kids have both autism and mercury. A correlation does not necessarily equal a causation.

The the heavy metal toxicity theories usually hold that lower levels of mercury should be found in the hair of autistic children, because the theory states that autistic children have the same mercury exposure as everyone else, but have trouble getting rid of the mercury in their bodies. It remains inside them instead of being excreted into the hair.



"Children who develop autism may do so because they have problems processing the toxic metal mercury, researchers have suggested.

US researchers looked at mercury levels in the baby hair of children who later developed autism, a developmental disability that affects how a person communicates and interacts with other people.

They were found to have far lower levels of mercury than children who did not have the condition, according to New Scientist magazine."

-Medical News Today "Mercury levels and autism link"

[swedishcelt 0]

I knew you were going to catch that, that's why I edited it to include the rest of what I meant. What I said was incomplete, this particular batch of vaccines were pulled from shelves and some were given before they were all completely pulled. These babies received some of those shots.

[Nightingale 0]

But if a good number of babies who were given those shots did not develop autism, you still haven't proved the vaccines were the cause. If most children who received that batch of vaccines developed autism, you might have a strong case. Knowing the results of just a few cases doesn't provide enough data to prove causation.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

But if a good number of babies who were given those shots did not develop autism, you still haven't proved the vaccines were the cause. If most children who received that batch of vaccines developed autism, you might have a strong case. Knowing the results of just a few cases doesn't provide enough data to prove causation.

Correct, but I think people are oversimplifying the issue here...

Those that subscribe to the belief that thimersol-laden childhood vaccinations cause Autism are, by the vast majority, in agreement that it is not simply the only factor. Here is the idea:

Genetic predisposition; which includes one or both parents' families having a history of auto-immune disorders, including things such as diabetes, cancers, and allergies. (my family line is riddled with cancer and diabetes. Joe's is full of allergy and diabetes).

-I'll mention that there is some evidence that perhaps an ethnic predisposition may exist. It seems that when one parent is very pale-skinned and blonde or red hair with a background of family auto-immune disorder (ok, that's me to a 'T'), and the other parent is of Mediterranean decent (as my husband is), there is a higher incidence of Autism...but moving on:

These children have a genetic predisposition to diseases of the auto-immune system, and then are given vaccines which introduce deadly viruses, as well as the most toxic element the planet has ever seen (mercury) into this genetically weakened, undeveloped, infant body.

Somehow, males are more susceptible to this 'system crash' than females, giving us a 4:1 ratio of Autistic boys to girls.

Why then can a family have an Autistic child and a non-Autistic child? That's what I think of as factor 'X'. It is becoming rarer and rarer, sadly, that a family has multiple children (multiple sons, to be precise), but only one on the spectrum.

The vaccine, many believe, is 'the straw that broke the camel's back'. Research that is NOT readily available to the public suggests that certain entities, that I will not name in this forum, knew of the danger to children with such predispositions and did nothing for fear of economic consequences that would be catastrophic for those certain entities.

That is why parents of Autistics are ticked, and that is why we must get to the bottom of all of this...frankly I am SO incredibly past the blame-game. I could care less HOW it happened. It is time to stop it from happening ever again, and cure those that suffer.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Quote

Have you considered adopting an older dog?

Yep, we gave that a shot, but it didn't work out.

We're looking at getting a puppy perhaps in October from a breeder in Indiana that we'll be able to raise around the boys. That way he/she will be used to the twins' unusual behavior as they begin maturing.

We're also looking into hippotherapy (horseback riding!!) through the boys' therapy center.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[Armour666 0]

neither of our boy have had Vacanations we felt untill they were school age, traveling. Both are Autistic our oldest Aspergers and our youngest mush more severs (almost 4 still dosnt speak)

Justing our oldest had his shots just before school started for him when he was 5

SO this one time at band camp.....

"Of all the things I've lost I miss my mind the most."

[PLFXpert 0]

Quote

We're looking at getting a puppy perhaps in October from a breeder in Indiana that we'll be able to raise around the boys. That way he/she will be used to the twins' unusual behavior as they begin maturing.

We're also looking into hippotherapy (horseback riding!!) through the boys' therapy center.

Awesome!

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.