Dr. Wakefield controversy

Some very disturbing information came out today.  There have been accusations that Dr. Wakefield falsified his data in his ground breaking 1998 paper.  I have to admit that I am more confused than ever about what to believe.  As I was reading articles on both sides of this issue, I was reminded of the story of Dr. Semmelweis.  

Dr. Semmelweis was a Hungarian physician practicing in Vienna who proved a link between doctors not washing their hands after performing autopsies and then assisting with births and mothers dying soon after childbirth.  At this time facilities that used midwives to perform childbirth had about a 2% rate of “childbed fever” (a disease that caused women who had just given birth to die unexpectedly).  Hospitals had a 10-20 times greater rate.  Mothers would refuse medical attention by doctors in the hospital because of fear of dying from childbed fever. 

Through vigorous observation and data collection, Dr. Semmelweis concluded that if physicians would simply wash their hands before assisting with childbirth, the rates of childbed fever went down to almost zero.  What he did not realize was that he discovered germ theory.  He didn't have all the answers, but he definitively showed through empirical data that when doctors washed their hands before treating expectant mothers, the rates of childbed fever were nearly eradicated.   

In his time, Dr. Semmelweis was vilified and mocked by his peers because of hospital politics.  Just a few years after his death, Louis Pasteur and Joseph Lister published research explaining how germs caused diseases.  Even though Dr. Semmelweis had successfully prevented disease, because he could not explain why his methods worked, he was discounted. 

We should learn from history.  NO ONE knows what causes autism.  At this time, we shouldn’t be throwing out any theories as to what causes Autism or what treatments could be helpful.  It is an uncomfortable and confusing place to be.  Especially for most doctors practicing western medicine who feel they should have all the answers.  It is so sad to see politics and money get in the way of pure science.

It should be very concerning that a physician (Wakefield) who seems to be trying to unravel the mystery of autism is so vocally attacked by the media.  Are they making him a straw man to beat up and distract from the real issue?  The real issue is that rates of autism are skyrocketing and no one knows why. 

Inevitably, these same journalists tout the theory that autism is a genetic disorder.  Most governmental research dollars are given to scientists studying the genetics of autism.  I believe this is a fool’s errand.  It is a good way to get grant money and to continue your research, but I don’t think it is going to yield any real help for families.  Multiple genes have already been implicated for causing autism.  If Autism were a purely genetic disorder, then the numbers of cases wouldn’t be going up exponentially.  There MUST be some environmental factors at work.  That is the only way that we could see rates increase so dramatically.

We should learn from history that when things are not easily explained, caution and safety should be paramount.  How many hundreds or thousands of women died in those hospitals in Vienna wanting to do what they thought was best for their children by giving birth in a hospital?  How many million more children have to be diagnosed with autism before we get serious and do the necessary studies to find the real cause?  It seems as though journalists, politicians, and doctors can remain detached and only purport “scientific” treatments until they are personally affected by autism.  Then they start to look into alternatives and find treatments that work for their child.  Because when it is your child, you do what ever you can to make them better.

The best physicians and scientists listen to their patients.  They do not dismiss their concerns saying that it is all just a coincidence.  Wake up America and listen to the parents of children that cannot speak for themselves.  If we do not learn from history we are bound to repeat it.  

Heribert Watzke: The brain in your gut | Video on TED.com

Those of us in the Autism world have known about the "second brain" for a while now. Glad to see that others are starting to jump on the bandwagon.

Some reasons NOT to wear earphones

I have been educating my clients to avoid wearing earphones due to the problems they can cause with hearing.  This TED talk points out some other pitfalls of earphones and constantly listening to recorded sound which have interesting implications.  Please take the time to watch this very short video.  It is jam-packed with some helpful tips to save your hearing and help your overall health.

Newsletter - Visual Supports

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Psychiatric disorders linked to the immune system.

This is some ground breaking new research which links an immune response to psychiatric disorders.  This is very encouraging, and it goes along with my feeling that we are very antiquated with diagnosing neuropsychologic disorders by behavioral means.  There are a few cutting edge scientists that are looking to more precise diagnostic imaging and treatments.  I am very encouraged that this kind of investigation is going on.  I believe this will lead to some very important treatments soon.

The article can be found here:

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=10947928

Parent Survival Guide to Biomedical Interventions

Thank you so much Autism One for making this invaluable information available free on the web.  It is because of organizations like this and DAN! that I have learned so much about the medial issues that go along with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

You can find this video at Autism One's website: CLICK HERE

Clapping for development

I stumbled across this very interesting article.  It states that hand clapping songs and singing improve handwriting and spelling.  Why?  I believe this is a testament to whole brain development and balancing the use of both sides of the brain.  When I see children who have sensory processing problems, they tend to have difficulty singing or moving their body to music.  This is because the balance between the more artistic part of the brain (right hemisphere) and the logical, rote side of the brain (left hemisphere) is off.  When I see children in Early Intervention, one of the first tasks I have them do is reach for objects and have them cross midline.  The sense of midline is usually weak or absent when sensory processing difficulties or developmental delays are present.

When a child's brain is developing, they need a lot of movement to develop their visual and vestibular systems.  These systems will come into play when the child has to go to school.  Handwriting is a skill that shows a breakdown between the vestibular and visual system.  How many kids out there have handwriting problems?  A LOT!!!  How many of our children watch television before the age of two - A LOT!!!  Watching tv or working on a computer at such an early stage of brain development has been proven to be detrimental to development.  The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that children under two get NO television.

We do not know why this happens (there are many theories out there), but for some reason some children do not process sensory information in a typical way.  When this happens, the right side of the brain which should be in charge of sensory processing, emotions, and the present moment shuts down.  Then the child starts to process information from primarily the left hemisphere.  This is where slower, logical, facts, and the past and future reside.  I see two and three year olds who know their alphabet and can count to 10.  This is a red flag for me.  This shows me that they have flipped into processing information in an atypical way.  These children also tend to have other sensory issues, poor eye contact, and emotional outbursts.

Whole brain development is so important.  Take a cue from your grandmother's generation, and think about how they were raised:  playing outside, card and board games, helping with housework, gardening, walking the dog.  We have a very fast paced society, and we need to slow down.  Our brains can't handle it.  Take a breath, and smell the roses.

Click here for full artilce

A new way to diagnose neurological disorders!

Aditi Shankardass: A second opinion on learning disorders | Video on TED.com

Vaccine Safety

     This is one of the most sane and non-inflammatory discussions about vaccines and their safety.  I know it is a long discussion, but well worth your time.

     I had been questioning my belief that ingesting some of the ingredients (such as aluminum) of vaccines is different than injecting them directly into the blood stream.  I some how intrinsically believed this was true, but never had any scientific proof.  This physician explained exactly why this is true.

     I was also interested to hear him talk about the difference from vaccine-induced immunity and the immunity you get from actually having a disease.

It was also interesting to hear him state that doctors observed that after a bout of flu like symptoms, when children recovered, they seemed to have developmental jumps.  Very interesting.

     I think we would all be a lot healthier if we just took a step back and injected some common sense in to this discussion.  If you as a new mother or father do not feel comfortable about your newly born child having a bunch of medical procedures, then you should have the right to object.  You should also have the right to be FULLY informed before any "routine" medications are given to you or your child.  Every person is unique, and we have intuition for a reason.  If something doesn't feel right to you, you (still) have the right to refuse.

 

     I am really uneasy about the government getting involved in saying what vaccines I HAVE to have in order to work or for any children to go to school.     

     This discussion also touches on the flawed idea of "heard immunity" being applied to vaccines.  I strongly encourage you to watch the entire 11-part discussion on YouTube if you want to be more fully informed about vaccine science. 

Expert Pediatrician Discusses Vaccines - YouTube Playlist

Laterality of the brain

Website

Great information on the importance of having one side of the brain dominant for proper development.  This page also contains great information about treatment of laterallity.  

Plasticity of the brain

Michael Merzenich

Great TED talk about the changeability of the brain.

A little dry, but you get the point.

Brain video

Jill Bolte Taylor

I have observed that a lot of the children I've worked with are always talking about what happened in the past, or what is about to happen in the future.  They have a hard time being in the present moment.  This shows a dominance of the left side of the brain.  This is not unusual because the right side of the brain is where sensory and emotions are processed.  

As a baby, your right hemisphere should be the dominant hemisphere.   All your experiences are either emotional or sensory.  For some reason, this development becomes disordered.  The brain has a hard time making sense of this emotional and sensory information.  Because of this, the left side of the brain takes over.

The left side is the rational, logical, math and science side of the brain.  It is also the side of the brain that has to do with past and future and sence of time.  This may be why we see children with sensory processing issues reading early or they can recite their alphabet at 2 years old.  These skills should come later, but because the sensory system is stressed out, it must discount the emotional and sensory information it is getting which is disorganized and move on to tasks which the child can more easily master.  

Using the Sensory Learning Program, we are making children more conscious of what is going on right NOW.  They are better able to take in the sensory information and process that information.  They are better able to see the whole picture.  No longer do they need to break experiences down in to their component parts.  (Spin wheels of the toy car rather than use the car on the road and drive.)