Vitamin C therapy may counter some of the toxic effects of high levels of vitamin A that may follow an infection.
This case study describes a boy with autism who had severe pain in the right hip, fatigue, skin rash, and sore gums after being sick with a fever, cold and cough. These bone symptoms appeared three months after the cold was over. The authors suggest that the viral cold increased the level of vitamin A in the blood to toxic levels. The high levels of vitamin A could then have caused low levels of vitamin C. They describe this idea as being counter to the theory that children with autism have low levels of vitamin A.
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And the hits just keep on comin'
Jan 25, 2007 by AnonymousMy trip to Denver is now behind me and I can happily report that everything went well while I was away. The only casualty was one lost shoe, which I found roughly five minutes after returning home. It was behind the treadmill, which leads me to an amusing story about my husband and how after nine years of marriage, I still don't know him as well as I thought I did.
When Jonathan was diagnosed with diabetes last July, he saw his doctor who recommended a diet and exercise regimen. Jonathan faithfully stuck to the diet and has lost over seventy pounds as a result, which is great. For my part, I decided that we should move the treadmill back into the house (which is as difficult as jogging three miles on the machine) so that he could do the exercise part. Unfortunately the treadmill has been used as a clothes hanger since then. Until Saturday, Jonathan decided, while I was away and couldn't be there to keep the kids out of his way, that he would use the treadmill. I cannot fathom what drove him to it. I simply don't understand what came over him. "Okay, well, that's great," is what I said to him, while on the inside I thought "????!!." He complained that Thomas was putting his cars on the belt and watching them scoot off the end of the machine while Jonathan was trying to use it. I'm not sure what he expected Thomas to do when tempted with a little car converyor belt, but there it is. Somehow, Thomas' left shoe got wedged behind the treadmill after Jonathan used it and it delayed their arrival at the airport to pick me up on Sunday night. As I said, I found it promptly after returning home and all was right with the world.
Until Monday morning, when Hayley was peeling up linoleum tiles in the kitchen with very little effort, exposing the concrete slab underneath. "Okay! That's it!" I declared and put in a call to our favorite flooring installer. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, our carpeting has been a germ virus and bacteria farm ever since we brought Sophie (our Springer Spaniel) home five years ago. Neighborhood high school biology students wanted samples of it to put on slides in class. It got uglier as the years (and kids) wore on so replacing the flooring in the kitchen and living area has always been something we wanted to do. The trouble with the tiles in the kitchen finally lit a fire and I made inquiries.
Today, two nice young men spent nine hours in our home getting rid of the old and installing the new. Initially I would say that Thomas likes it, because when he walks now, the echo off the wood liminate and vaulted ceilings really gives his voice that extra "oomph" he's been looking for. Jonathan and I really enjoyed the squealing contests between Thomas and Hayley this afternoon. Also their little bare feet make a lot more noise slappign on the floor now.
We will see how Thomas does with it. I read a book of memories not long ago in which the autistic son would not put up with any environmental changes of any kind. His mother bought a new comforter for her bed and drew him pictures and really prepared her son for the change. The comforter had been on the bed for about two hours before the young boy removed it from his mother's bed and attempted to deposit it in a neighbor's recycling bin. Luckily, there is no way that Thomas could remove the flooring. Instead, he will probably make known his dislike of the situation in much more subtle ways. Unfortunately, I have no idea how he did in school today because his teacher sent home another little boy's artwork and daily report in Thomas' backpack. (A very understandable lapse . . . I could never handle her job on my best days.) The filthy old carpet was being cut up and removed as I walked Thomas out to the bus, so the change had already begun by the time he left. Also, he did go to bed better tonight than he did last night, but still not great. We're still dealing with these bedtime problems, but as long as we keep making changes, we'll have to expect difficult behavior to some degree. I really hope that we can get everything ironed out by the time we leave for our cruise.
Another fun thing . . . my doctor believes I am having anxiety problems. I see him on Saturday.
And the hits just keep on comin'.