Healing Thresholds Autism Therapy Topic Feed

Nigerian Reporter Discusses Various Therapies for Autism Being Used in Her Country

scottie — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Teaser:

Ruth Olurounbi, a reporter in Nigeria, provides a broad overview of autism and autism therapies currently being used.

Body:

Ruth Olurounbi, a reporter in Nigeria, provides a broad overview of autism and autism therapies currently being used. She explains symptoms and diagnostic tools. Olurounbi discusses a number of treatments that have proved successful including “auditory training, discrete trial training, vitamin therapy, anti-yeast therapy, facilitated communication, music therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and sensory integration.” For the sake of categorization, she divides these therapies into three major groupings: behavioral and communiation, biomedical and dietary, and complementary.

Original Article:

Is Autism Treatable?

Complementary Alternative Medicine for Children with Autism: A Physician Survey

scottie — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Title	Complementary Alternative Medicine for Children with Autism: A Physician Survey
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Golnik AE, Ireland M
Journal Title	Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Year of Publication	2009
Volume	39
Issue	7
Pages	996-1005
URL for Abstract	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19280328
Teaser	Some physicians may recommend complementary alternative medicine (CAM) therapies for children with autism.
Full Text	Some physicians may recommend complementary alternative medicine (CAM) therapies for children with autism. A survey was offered to 3,100 pediatricians and family medicine practitioners, and about 1 out of 5 responded to the survey (539 physicians). The survey showed that 49% of the doctors encouraged multi-vitamin therapy for children with autism. And 19 to 25% of them encouraged essential fatty acids (EFAs), melatonin, and probiotics as therapy for autism. Physicians discouraged parents from using some therapies. Therapies that were discouraged include chelation (61%), anti-infection treatments (57%), and secretin (43%). Many of the doctors (76%) also urged immunizations according to the recommended schedule. The authors said that doctors may want to ask families about therapies that families might be using, even if the parents do not bring up the topic.

Commentary: Potential Neurobiologic Mechanisms through which Metabolic Disorders Could Relate to Autism

scottie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:54:26 +0000

Title	Commentary: Potential Neurobiologic Mechanisms through which Metabolic Disorders Could Relate to Autism
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Johnston MV
Journal Title	Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Year of Publication	2000
Volume	30
Issue	5
Pages	471-473
URL for Abstract	http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ617985&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ617985
Teaser	Scientists are beginning to understand how some gene defects and metabolic problems can lead to autism symptoms.
Full Text	Scientists are beginning to understand how some gene defects and metabolic problems can lead to autism symptoms. Metabolic problems are defects in specific proteins or enzymes that make energy from food in the body. The author describes how these defects may cause brain problems in two ways. One way of causing problems is by changing specific steps of normal functions as the brain does its job every moment of every day. The second way of causing problems is by changing brain development, causing lifelong changes in how the brain works. The first type of problem may be quickly fixed with a metabolic therapy such as diet or vitamin therapy. The second type of problem may be difficult to correct if the stage of development has already passed and the brain is mature.

Metabolic Approaches to the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders

scottie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:11:06 +0000

Title	Metabolic Approaches to the Treatment of Autism Spectrum Disorders
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Page T
Journal Title	Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Year of Publication	2000
Volume	30
Issue	5
Pages	463-469
URL for Abstract	http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ617984&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ617984
Teaser	Diet and vitamin therapy may help people who have metabolic problems and autism symptoms.
Full Text	Diet and vitamin therapy may help people who have metabolic problems and autism symptoms. Metabolism is the way your body breaks down foods to make energy. Some people with autism have metabolic problems or disorders. They may lack certain proteins or enzymes that are important parts of the metabolism machinery. This article discussed some examples of metabolic syndromes such as phenylketonuria, histidinemia, and adenylosuccinate lyase deficiency. Diet therapy can be very helpful for people with metabolic syndromes, and a specific diet may be tailored to the specific metabolic problem. Vitamin therapy, including pyroxidine (vitamin B6) therapy, may also be helpful for some metabolic disorders.

Is Your Child with Autism Getting Enough "Brain Food"?

scottie — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:39:55 +0000

Teaser:

Dr. Kate Rheaume-Bleau, a doctor of naturopathic medicine in Canada, has written about the importance of "brain food" for all children, and most recently those with autism and other learning

Body:

Dr. Kate Rheaume-Bleau, a doctor of naturopathic medicine in Canada, has written about the importance of "brain food" for all children, and most recently those with autism and other learning disorders. She calls the brain the "hungriest organ" in the body and stresses that breakfast along with essential fatty acids, like omega-3, are important for learning and concentration. She is finding that kids who do not get enough protein and iron in their foods may have problems with distraction and hyperactivity (ADHD). Dr. Rheaume-Bleau thinks that the most important supplements are found in the foods we eat, but that sometimes, vitamin supplements may be necessary.

Original Article:

original article

The Role of Vitamins and Minerals in Psychiatry

scottie — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:26:03 +0000

Title	The Role of Vitamins and Minerals in Psychiatry
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Cornish S, Mehl_Madrona L
Journal Title	Integrative Medicine Insights
Year of Publication	2008
Volume	3
Pages	33-42
URL for Abstract	http://www.la-press.com/the-role-of-vitamins-and-minerals-in-psychiatry-a1113
Full Text	Vitamin B6 and magnesium therapy may help some children with autism. In one older study, 42% of children with autism had low levels of vitamin B6. These results prompted doctors to try vitamin B6 therapy for patients with autism. Parents of some children with autism reported improvements in behavior with vitamin B6 treatment alone. Some children also showed improvement after combined treatment with vitamin B6 and magnesium. A recent large study (Rimland and Edelson) of 5,780 autistic children and adults reported clinical improvement in 47% of the patients who received combined vitamin B6 and magnesium therapy.

Methyl-B12 May Be a Good Vitamin for Children with Autism

scottie — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:48:00 +0000

Teaser:

Dr. Jon Ahrendsen at the Wright Medical Center in Iowa has begun using Methyl-B12 as a supplement for children with autism.

Body:

Dr. Jon Ahrendsen at the Wright Medical Center in Iowa has begun using Methyl-B12 as a supplement for children with autism. He learned about this vitamin therapy from Jodie Harker, parent of a patient with autism. She had heard about a New Jersey physician, Dr. James Neubrander, who is considered the "father" of Methyl-B12. Neubrander discovered that this vitamin may help with a defect of an enzyme that children with autism might have. Ahrendsen has used Methyl-B12 injections in 6-8 weeks trials and his patients' autism symptoms have improved. Harker says, "We were, and continue to be, amazed at the results and steady progress Chance is making. The Methyl-B12 treatment brought our son back."

Original Article:

original article

Treatment Controversies in Autism

scottie — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:42:56 +0000

Title	Treatment Controversies in Autism
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Schreibman L
Journal Title	Zero to Three
Year of Publication	2008
Volume	March
Pages	38-45
URL for Abstract	http://www.zerotothree.org/site/DocServer/ZTT28-4_mar_08.pdf?docID=7246
Full Text	Research suggests that behavioral autism therapies (discrete trial training and naturalistic strategies) may be most helpful for children with autism. This review article describes autism therapies and the research behind the therapies. The author calls on parents to avoid sensory integration therapy, diet therapy, and vitamin therapy. She notes that applied behavior analysis (ABA therapy) can improve autism symptoms and some children can make large gains with early ABA intervention. Above all, the therapy should be tailored to the child and the family. She calls for more research and careful thinking in order to find new treatments and test whether or not new treatments work.

Bone Pain, Growth Failure, and Skin Rash After an Upper Respiratory Illness in a Boy with Autism: Possible Associations with Altered Retinoid Metabolism

scottie — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 20:18:30 +0000

Title	Bone Pain, Growth Failure, and Skin Rash After an Upper Respiratory Illness in a Boy with Autism: Possible Associations with Altered Retinoid Metabolism
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Mawson AR
Journal Title	Clinical Pediatrics
Year of Publication	2009
Volume	48
Issue	1
Pages	21-25
URL for Abstract	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18566348?ordinalpos=7&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_DefaultReportPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Full Text	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.

Scientifically Unsupported Therapies in the Treatment of Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

scottie — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:36:25 +0000

Title	Scientifically Unsupported Therapies in the Treatment of Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Publication Type	Journal Article
Authors	Schechtman MA
Journal Title	Pediatric Annals
Year of Publication	2007
Volume	36
Issue	8
Pages	497-505
URL for Abstract	http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17849608&ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum
Full Text	Many parents use scientifically unproven therapies to help their children with autism. This article reviews a few therapies that are used to treat autism (vitamins, sensory integration therapy, facilitated communication, auditory integration therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, and others). The author states that while some treatments can improve autism in many children, the above therapies have not been proven to work in research studies. Vitamin therapy includes vitamins A, C, B6-magnesium complex, folic acid, and B12. Sensory integration therapy is designed to help children learn to process the input from their senses. Facilitated communication involves having a person guide the child with autism as he or she talks through a computer.