JB Handley, golden boy of Generation Rescue recently spoke to another newspaper. I thought the reporter did a very good job of showing both sides of the issue (Kirby, Olmsted take note).
I did however, have to read the article a few times until it sunk in. These were the passages that confused me.
Jamie’s moods progress fluidly from joy to concentration to panic. He has full run of his parents’ sprawling home, a hypoallergenic realm with wool carpets, insulation made from blue jeans and HEPA filters to clean the air.
One afternoon this summer, Jamie dragged his father by the finger to a mattress in the middle of the basement floor and, holding onto both of his hands, began jumping up and down, lofting higher and higher with each leap. The game was an autistic obsession. The blond boy sprang up again and again, never tiring, his face frozen in an expression of total joy.
Jamie eventually moved from the mattress to his train set, another obsession, and later to the table, where he covered reams of paper with spiraling circles, using his teeth to uncap each pen in the box until all the lids and pens lay on the floor where he cast them aside. All the while, he didn’t speak a word.
Three months later, Jamie had learned to point at things he wanted and to wave goodbye. He still screamed shrilly, ran back and forth, and didn’t speak in front of a reporter. His parents have augmented the biomedical regimen with other treatments—speech and occupational therapy and applied behavioral analysis, an intensive program that teaches autistic children to mimic “normal” behaviors, like waving goodbye.
So what am I confused about? Well, Jamie sounds exactly like my child. She does all the things Jamie is listed as doing above. In fact, in terms of her progress, she sounds ‘further along’ than Jamie. She has a few words now and the beginnings of a sentence or two although of course, like Jamie she has setbacks and meltdowns.
In fact the only appreciable difference between them as far as I can tell is that JB and Lisa chelate Jamie and we don’t chelate our daughter.
As I say, I’m totally confused. I thought chelation was supposed to ‘cure’ or ‘reverse’ autism? I was expecting to read about a Son-Rise style reversal where Jamie is verbal, engages constantly with the reporter etc. What I’m reading here is the normal progression of an autistic child. Now, granted I don’t know the exact program that Jamie is on but I know he must’ve been on it for a few months now. I’m also aware that he’s on TD DMPS. Read into that what you will.
I don’t mind admitting I’m a bit shocked by this. I was curious as to what a ‘recovered’ autistic child would be like and now it seems I have my answer – they’re just like an autistic child but without the sometimes painful comorbidities. If the Handley’s have removed those painful comorbidities then they’re to be congratulated. I am, however, at a loss to explain their statement that:
evidence that their cure is working can be seen in Jamie’s behavior
Cure for what? Mercury poisoning? Possibly. Autism? I really don’t think so. I didn’t before but I’m even less convinced after reading this.
Left Brain Right Brain 
Jamie sounds very like Zoe, who sounds very like your daughter. Zoe has some words now, even occasionally uses complete sentences and has simple, short two-way conversations, she says hello and goodbye, covers her mouth when she coughs (a new skill, that one), is generally progressing and learning new behaviors all the time.
Not only has she never been exposed to thimerisol (Australia hasn’t had it in vaccines for years, since before she was born), she’s never had any sort of biomedical intervention, other than cutting out certain food additives that we’ve observed to be bad for her (I have a few food sensitivities, so I’m not surprised she does) and cutting out chocolate completely (she appears to be allergic to it, just like her two uncles), and giving her glyconutrients that her grandmother provides (Nanna’s best friend sells them, and they may not help, but they can’t possibly hurt), iron supplements, and a multi-vitamin.
So, uhm, what is it that chelation is supposed to do again to “cure” my child?
Mercury poisoning is only part of the problem. My own daughter’s poisoning is rapidly being fixed, as her levels have finally dipped down to near normal.
Her real problem is her leaky gut issues (a VERY common problem in regressive autism). When her gut is doing well, we see cognitive gains, calmer demeanor, less stimming and a much better attention span. When her gut flares up and the diarrhea returns…she goes back to square one. It’s frustrating.
Some children…SOME children (not all) seem to recover merely by removing the mercury. SOME children seem to come back with Methyl-B12 shots. Some recover from the Specific Carb Diet, while others make amazing gains with Speech, OT and ABA therapies.
My daughter receives all of the above…and finally, for the first time since she regressed at 14 months of age, her mineral profiles are near normal. No longer high in copper, no longer deficient in Zinc and her other minerals are also doing well. Her final hurdle, we believe, is to completely heal her gut and to finish her detox.
Will she NOT be autistic anymore? I can’t predict that. But she’ll be much improved, if not still on the spectrum, and capable of more independence. She’ll be able to speak. She’ll be able to feed herself. She’ll be able to use the toilet on her own.
But if we did NOTHNIG with our severely ill child? She’d sit in the corner and stim all day long…crave little human contact and fill every diaper with horrible yellow, liquid stools. She’d be sensitive to bright lights and loud noises…and find human touch physically painful. And she’d melt down in tantrums every few hours. THAT was the horror we witnessed when she regressed after her vaccines.
Biomedical treatments have dramatically improved her life, and will continue to do so.
We recently posted a story of a Pasadena, CA woman who “recovered” her son from Autism using chelation, the SCD diet, mineral supplementation and behavioral therapies. He no longer has the diagnosis of autism. I’d invite you to watch the clips.
The woman’s name is Julia Berle and her son’s name is Baxter.
http://www.autismmedia.org/media11.html
Scroll toward the bottom ofthe page.
Peace,
Erik
Bonni, I’m happy that Australia hasn’t had thimerosal in vaccines for years…that’s wonderful. But what about dental amalgams? Have you any mercury in your mouth? If you have more than a few, you could have inhaled as much as 15 or 20 micrograms of mercury vapor every day (maybe more). The cumulative exposure can damage a fetus in utero.
Please see the IAOMT’s website:
http://www.iaomt.org/
Erik
I notice something of a change in tone from you Erik. Its most welcome. Thank you.
I don’t know how old your little girl is and I’m trying to refrain from making any more mention of mine but, again, they sound very similar. You’re right that gastric issues are well known in autism – they always have been. But they do not define autism, they are comorbidities.
I’ll say the same as I always do – if your daughter was mercury poisoned then I’m glad she’s feeling better. However, none of the symptoms you list as occuring after her vaccines could be used to diagnose autism.
I ask you in all seriousness: aren’t you even _prepared_ to admit that GR are wrong? That autism is _not_ mercury poisoning….that mercury poisoning is mercury poisoning and that autism is autism?
18 mos. ago, my son didn’t point, didn’t have a word, didn’t sleep. Today, he has tons of verbal & nonverbal communication, his sleeping is much better, he’s using the toilet. I owe it all to…time. Time, caring teachers for his half-days at our public school’s preschool program, and 2 1/2 hours of formal ST/week. We moved to a different state this summer and (gasp!) took the summer off from formal therapies, period. Are we too laid back? Maybe. But he progressed measurably this summer without being told how to do so. Should we do more? Could he be “Further ahead?” I don’t know. But he’s a wonderful, happy, sweet kid who loves and is loved and learns at his own pace & we’re OK with that. Glossy ads & websites with doomsday language can make it tough to hold your own: I actually went out on the web one day many moons ago to see if I could find a local chelationist to talk to, but found Autism Diva instead. Somebody was looking out for us that day!! Instead of feeling like a bad parent for my “inaction,” I ran straight into Bainian Acceptance Therapy. 🙂
Kevin, I truly believe from all I’ve seen and all the doctors and researchers that I’ve interviewed…that ethyl mercury, if not the sole trigger…was the first of two major triggers that caused my daughter’s condition… that was diagnosed as PDD=NOS…and that we CALL “autism.”
So basically, I believe that mercury poisoning eliminated my daughter’s ability to form an appropriate immune response to her vaccines (especially the live virus vaccines…such as MMR)
Measle virus can and DOES cause autoimmune issues and gut inflammation in children who are immune compromised. I haven’t biopsied my daughter’s gut tissue to check for the virus…but all her symptoms in her gut are consistent with children who WERE biopsied and found to have measles virus growing where it shouldn’t be.
If you don’t want to call my 7-year-old’s condition, autism, I really wouldn’t care. I happen to call it regressive autism. I’m just doing everything I can to make sure it’s not permanent. She wasn’t always like this, and I intend to give her back what her vaccine injury took from her.
Her brain is still young enough to put back on track…and let it develop more in the way her genes “intended.”
Erik
Erik,
I don’t understand your logic. If Australia doesn’t use thimerosal, it must be from another source such as dental amalgam? Isn’t part of the argument that the form used in vaccines is more damaging to the developing brain and that regression occurs at or around the time children are vaccinated? So how is it that in some countries the rate of diagnoses is similar to the states yet it is caused by different sources of mercury. So by that logic we won’t see a decline in the US as long as there is mercury somewhere in the environment or mouths of the parents. JB and Lisa are preparing for their next child by cheating ….sorry, Chelating themselves so that they are mercury free before conception. OK, I guess that makes sense for Lisa but how much mercury can a single sperm cell bring along for the ride? Wouldn’t that slow the little guy down and keep him out of the running altogether? Sorry for all of the questions but I know you have given this a lot of thought. Can you also explain how this leaky gut thing is caused by mercury and why it’s bad? TIA
Kev,
Jamie is still autistic because he hasn’t been cheated….Damn! there I go again, Chelated for the required 18 months. Haven’t you been reading? Try to keep up man 😉
Clone, a father’s mercury burden is much less important to the fetus than that of the mother.
Some children are born already with autistic traits. If you look at their mothers, they’ll likely have a mouth full of metal…were Rh negative and had to get the Rhogam shots…flu shot and whatever else… The baby can get a lot of mercury from the mother.
Some kids are toxic before they’re born. Thimerosal is merely the biggest factor in the majority of cases in this epidemic.
I’m reading that as: All autism is really mercury poisoning. You just need to look hard enough to find some source be it the amalgams, the mother’s vaccines, or Rhogam. All of those moms must feel horribly guilty about having their cavities repaired and making those babies autistic. I guess it helps if they blame the ADA and the evil dentists.
So if thimerosal isn’t a necessary part of the equation, why all the fuss about vaccines? I’m sure the trial lawyers will be relieved to hear that.
Oh I do love reading your blog Kev!
I do not believe that the fillings I have in my mouth caused my son’s autism. His sister is not autistic and I had the same amount of fillings whilst carrying her.
I believe it is generic and those who cannot see this, do not want to see it.
You are allowed to be less than perfect and it is not a crime if you unwittingly pass something on through your genes.
I carry no guilt. All I carry is pride that I will fight for what my child wants and needs and god help anyone who gets in my way!
I posted to illustrate the fact that my daughter is “recovering” without complicated and potentially dangerous biomedical interventions, not to become a springboard for the Mercury is the Devil Cult to use my child as a reason to tell me that I must have mercury fillings! Geeze Louise!
Our family on both sides is full of peculiar, eccentric, and autistic people, going back for several generations, to an era prior to amalgam fillings, prior to thimerosal vaccines.
I’m actually quite incensed at the moment. I’m now expected to discuss my oral health to show that my child is not mercury poisoned?!
Kev,
Thanks for the link to this story. Like you, I found it refreshingly balanced.
I think we all need to be careful when we try to compare our children to others on the spectrum. One of the reasons we call it a “spectrum” is the wide diversity in clinical manifestations and level of functioning. The article’s writer can only give us a snapshot in time. Only someone who saw the child before the Handleys began their intervention can tell the level of progress.
Without getting into the basic causation question (I think we all know where each of us stands on that issue), and without getting into specifics of the methods my wife and I use with my son, I can say that we have seen a steady and relatively rapid progress using a biomedical approach. That progress has been confirmed by our son’s teachers, as well as our friends and relatives. But it is a gradual process, and maximum improvement in the course of only a year is unlikely.
If, after the passage of time, further improvement in the Handley’s son is no more than would be expected through their non-biomedical interventions, then you might have something to talk about.
Well, I will discuss MY oral health… i have NO fillings, bar one I had just after Alex’s birth, which is composite. No mercury that way. I’ve been vegetarian for 16 years, so he wasnt exposed to mercury via fish consumption. He had his vaccinations but his autism was present from birth and IMHO pre birth… he was always autistic. I’m at a loss to understand how exactly he was ‘mercury poisoned’.
I find the whole thing difficult to understand. Part of me understands that many autistics may need an alternative vax schedule- Alex hasnt had his 4 year old ones yet and he is 7- and I do feel that his 15 month ones were fairly disasterous but they didnt make him autistic.
B xxx
I’m at a loss to understand how exactly he was ‘mercury poisoned’.
Well, apparently, mercury is in water and, in some cases, the very AIR, and it’s absorbed into the body via osmosis.
That’s as near as I can figure, anyway. *roll eyes*
My child is steadily improving, and there’s been significant improvement in the last nine months to a year (her teachers have all commented on it, as have pretty much all of her therapists and several family members). I attribute this to a combination of persistent therapy (occupational, speech, etc.) and simple maturation.
I’m damned certain she’s not improving because she’s magically excreting some substance that managed to leech into her body via unseen means…
But, hey, if a child being chelated shows improvement, it MUST be due to the chelation. Whereas, my child, who is NOT being chelated, is improving because of some other means. Or something.
To quote a movie I love, “It doesn’t make sense, that’s why you’ve got to believe it. If it made sense, it wouldn’t be a religion!”
Nicola, four times as many boys are autistic than girls. Testosterone, it has been learned, serves to help trap mercury in the body…make it less soluble.
It generally takes a greater environmental insult (more mercury) to injure a girl. Estrogen may actually have a protective quality.
And Clone, while thimerosal is not necessarily a cause for all children with autism, I AM saying that it is the BIGGEST environmental factor responsible for today’s epidemic.
And Elisabeth, instead of asking “how” it’s possible your child could have become mercury poisoned…why don’t you eliminate all doubt and test him for fecal and hair metals? if he isn’t an excretor, the levels may not show very high at all until you challenge the system with a chelator. Then the levels, if they go up, are indicative of a child who couldn’t excrete heavy metals. My daughter’s hair levels were pretty low until we started chelating…then the mercury and lead levels went through the roof! She was holding onto the stuff, before.
The toxicologist said she had enough heavy metals in her to injure an adult. Now, who do I listen to? A doctor armed with test results, or some skeptical parents on the internet?
Erik,
Please provide any scientific evidence to support your statement ” Testosterone, it has been learned, serves to help trap mercury in the body…make it less soluble”
Even the flimsy Geier Medical Hypotheses article doesn’t suggest that, as far as I can tell. If testosterone trapped mercury in some way, those with more testosterone would be protected from the damaging effects of mercury. What you are describing is the way a chelation agent is supposed to work. A complex between testosterone and mercury would mean both become biologically inactive.
Mercury is an element (read – not man-made) and though there may be more circulating in the environment today, it has always been a part of the earth’s environment and all life forms have mechanisms to excrete it and other undesirable elements. As far as I know, testosterone is not one of these mechanisms in any life form and neither is hair. Certain organic sulfur proteins are a part of the mechanisms used to excrete toxins but they are present in much higher ratios than the toxins they sequester. Very high doses of substances that do deplete things like metallothionein and glutathione, generally leave the body bound to these proteins and the proteins are replaced. There is no evidence to suggest an impairment in de novo glutathione synthesis in persons with autism. It’s possible that some children with autism present with slightly lower levels of glutathione but you would need tremendous quantities of mercury to cause measurable depletion.
Estrogen is neuro-protective but that also doesn’t support a role for mercury. Mercury is toxic to astocytes and glial cells and there are no less of either in post mortem autistic brain tissue.
And Erik, I hear what YOU are saying, your needle has been stuck for so long we all hear it, over, and over, and over………
Hmmmmm…
“Please see the IAOMT’s website:
http://www.iaomt.org/”
Nah, rather not.
Unofficial organisation known to be “quacks”.
Mercury lovers are the quacks, my friend.
“Mercury lovers are the quacks, my friend.”
Who’s a mercury lover here???? I’m not!
But I’m definitely not as bloody deluded as you are about the whole frigging issue.
You really are sad.
That’s kind of a braod statement Erik. can I try?
I think Cadillac lovers are all con artists.
Who are these mercury lovers? Anyone who isn’t convinced that mercury causes autism? Name one mercury lover other than the quacks who profit by selling chelation drops.
I love mercury. I put a pinch in stew for flavor.
Seriously, though…
I’ve never thought for one second the issue was whether mercury was toxic if you got enough of it. I thought it was whether mercury (or more specificially, thimerosal) played a role in autism. Flippant statements like “mercury lover” don’t add a lick to the discussion.
…And Elisabeth, instead of asking “how†it’s possible your child could have become mercury poisoned…why don’t you eliminate all doubt and test him for fecal and hair metals?…
I suppose its a reasonable (ish) question…
One… I dont trust the clinics that diagnose ‘heavy metal toxicity’. Not a jot. I can guess though, that if I had Al tested at a mainstream clinic his results would be fine, at a chelation place, he would test toxic. Hell, i’d probably test toxic!! Doesnt tell me a darn thing…p,lus what you seem to be saying is that even if he tested low, no probs, I should probably still chelate anyway? so what good would testing do, exactly????
Two… actually I cant afford it. LOL… I earn 100 pounds a week which just about pays the rent… there’s no way I could even think about paying for the test, let alone a fluid costing more than a weeks wages per bottle, even if I was gold dust! Sorry, but some people with autistic kids aren’t actually rolling, y’know??
and no… I’m sure you arent rolling either, but… I have the equivalent of $10 a week after all the bills are paid for any kind of extra. Could I afford ‘buttarcream’ on $10 a week? No? I didnt think so.
You want to pay for it? I think Buttar’s lotion is harmless because it doesnt actually get into the body, so if you were willing to pay… (lmao)
Three, and this is the biggie… Al is developing just fine. His latest results show that he is developing at a rate 2 x as fast as his neurotypical peers in many areas, and 4x as fast as his SEN peers. He is already in an SEN class with children a minimum of two years older than him, and there is talk of some integration in the nearish future. This with a child who was dxed at 3 with severe autism, who, I was told, would probably never speak, and who was considered at 5 to have considerable learning difficulties alongside his autism.
Interesting that his development never ‘took off’ until i learned to accept and value him for exactly who he was, and go with his autism rather than searching for ‘the cure’
and four… I know perfectly well that autism has genetic roots. there are far too many similarities between Al and myself to assume otherwise. Alex was never mercury poisoned. He is exactly as his genes dictate… and thats just fine with me.
Erik wrote:
“four times as many boys are autistic than girls. Testosterone, it has been learned, serves to help trap mercury in the body…make it less soluble.
It generally takes a greater environmental insult (more mercury) to injure a girl.”
The only way this could be true, Erik, would be if the historical statistics on mercury poisoning from environmental pollution showed that four times as many males (out of the total number exposed to mercury) were injured in all such incidents. That didn’t happen.
“:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/11/AR2005101101781.html
I thought this was interesting.
trying to make the interesting page into a link
I know perfectly well that autism has genetic roots.
As I’ve said, our family on both sides is full of “peculiar” people, some diagnosed with forms of autism, some not but fitting the profiles. This has been going on for generations, since long before the advent of thimerisol vaccines and amalgam fillings (one cousin of my husband’s who has an Aspie son did some family history work and found that every single generation has at least one person who is politely referred to as “a little odd” but who fit the profile for ASD).
It’s also known that austistic children are more common in families with a history of musical talent, mathematical talent, and giftedness (which we have on both sides).
I do realize that nothing I say will convert any of the “true believers”, but perhaps someone wandering around the net looking for information my stumble on this page someday (that’s how I discovered Kev’s blog). Perhaps the discussion of genetics, family history, etc. will be of use to them.
Kev Wrote:
“I don’t know how old your little girl is and I’m trying to refrain from making any more mention of mine but, again, they sound very similar”.
Kev then wrote:
“I ask you in all seriousness: aren’t you even prepared to admit that GR are wrong? That autism is not mercury poisoning….that mercury poisoning is mercury poisoning and that autism is autism”?
Your daughter’s condition is similar to Erik’s daughter(according to your own words), but you’re fairly sure that your daughter is autistic, and that Erik’s daughter is mercury poisoned?
???
This video explains why more boys than girls.
http://www.autismmedia.org/media/haley3a.wmv
http://www.autismmedia.org/media2.html
Kev wrote:
“JB Handley, golden boy of Generation Rescue recently spoke to another newspaper. I thought the reporter did a very good job of showing both sides of the issue (Kirby, Olmsted take note).”
Golden Boy???
You and Diva/Camille are the ones that always start with the name calling and then you’re the first ones to cry foul when the name calling comes full circle right back in your face!
No more name calling by me … Not anymore!
Your daughter’s condition is similar to Erik’s daughter(according to your own words), but you’re fairly sure that your daughter is autistic, and that Erik’s daughter is mercury poisoned?
I can’t answer for Kev, but I’d say that they’re both autistic. Presumably, both have gotten that diagnosis, as well.
The symptoms of mercury poisoning are pretty strikingly different from the signs and comorbidities of autism.
Thanks Bonni !
I was asking Kev, if his daughter is similar to Erik’s, then how can he differentiate, between autism, and mercury toxicity ?????
My daughter is also similar to Erik’s and to Kev’s.
How can you tell between mercury poisoning and autism?
Simple. The symptoms are VERY DIFFERENT.
Kevin if you consider the phrase ‘golden boy’ an insulting name then I applaud you for your ability to take offence at just about anything. Prehaps I should make more allowances for US/UK phraseology.
As I’ve said elsewhere – the symptoms of mercury poisoning and autism (as oppose to some comorbidities of autism) are totally different. Thats not to say that some autistics cannot be mercury poisoned, merely that the two things are not interchangable.
As for my child. I know she’s not mercury poisoned. As I’ve also said before, I’m not prepared to discuss her publicly anymore so its entirely up to you to take my word for it or not.
Anyone who want’s to call me a “golden girl” is welcome too, unless they are referring to the sitcom in which the “Golden Girls” were all old and gray headed.
Kevin C. the name you called me might get you arrested in some locales, it’s certainly vile and disgusting. I have never ever ever ever (ad infinitum) called any female a B****h or any male the basic equivalent of that, the other “B” word. I have never told anyone to “F” off or that they were full of any stinky waste material.
I *have* said that certain actions “stink on ice”.
I might say that Buttar smelled like td dmps, but that’s might be true and is scarcely in the same league as calling him a Son of a Whatsit or a Bleeping-Bleep-Bleeper.
I reserve the right to mock gross stupidity. Those who are grossly stupid will be offended by hearing that I think they are grossly stupid, for sure. But the mocking is not primarily directed to them, it’s not sent to them by email. If they read my blog they might read what I think of them.
That’s the breaks.
Further, I haven’t taken any steps to try to abuse people by calling them at their home. Or putting their phone number or address out on the internet or tell other people to call them, or any other kind of harassment.
I won’t be constrained from pointing out criminal behavior in public figures. I won’t be constrained from pointing out that people are being suckered by criminals or by the merely deluded but well intentioned.
I think JB fits the “Golden Boy” profile perfectly, even better that Blaxill. He has “strawberry blond” curls!
How can anyone talk about Hugh Fudenberg without slipping in some kind of comment about what he’s like?
Still, even if I were to say that he was kind of hmmm, getting ancient, it’s not in the same category as calling him a “low life drug user” or something.
There’s a whole litany of stuff that people could say about David Kirby – but they don’t.
Which is good.
Shows the level of sensitivity and ethics on the side opposing the “dead-parrot” hypothesis.
Kev, thanks for the link to the latest from JB Handley.
Without attacking the Handley’s or their son, I have to say that Jamie Handley doesn’t sound very “recovered” to me. I have no doubt that his parents are happy with his progress, but isn’t it a pretty long stretch to say that he has “recovered” – improved, to be sure, but “recovered”?
Frankly, Jamie Handley’s condition would be completely irrelevant if it weren’t for the fact that his father (JB) is using his progress as proof positive that TD-DMPS (ala Rashid Buttar) is the “cure” for autism and that mercury is the cause of autism. If Jamie’s progress is no better than can be expected from neurological maturation, then these claims fail to hold water.
I find Erik’s comment that autism isn’t just mercury poisoning to be both hopeful and confusing – especially in light of his later post which seems to implicate mercury from amalgam dental restorations. I guess if it isn’t mercury (ethyl mercury) in vaccines, it’s mercury (metallic) in amalgam resotorations or it’s mercury (methyl mercury) in fish or it’s mercury (inorganic) from deep sea vents and volcanoes.
Since mercury is found in every body of water, every plant and animal tissue and in the air we breathe, I guess there will never be a way to convince Erik that someone “got” autism without mercury exposure.
Prometheus.
Please, anyone, feel free to call me “Golden Boy” as it would put me in the category of Bill Holden and Bob Redford — not bad a’tall ;~]
I have the same concern as clone3g, especially when I hear people say that, if their children do not “recover” from autism, they will put them in an institution. It bothers me considerably that they are not trying to think of, and work toward, alternatives. This kind of thinking is a throwback to the bad old days.
Most kids who have autism do not end up institutionalized – the large majority live at home.
Most of them can speak and have no mental retardation. Only a small percentage have “severe behavior” problems or serious medical issues.
I know this because the California DDS told me so:
Click to access Sept05_Quarterly.pdf
That’s right, the same numbers people like David Kirby and Rick Rollens and Lyn Redwood tout as “making their case” about autism and its causes also tell me that most kids with autism aren’t doing THAT badly after all.
OK, I added some of the spaces.
——
Commentary: FurtherCommentary on the Debate Regarding Increase in Autism in California I havefollowed withinterest theexchanges between Blaxill, Baskin,and Spitzer(JADD2002),Croen et al.(JADD2002), and Croen and Grether (JADD 2003)regarding the suggestion of Croen et al.
thatthe purported dramatic increase in autism in California is a function of changing diagnostic practices withrespect to mental retardation( MR).These authors would bewise toturntheir attention to what appear to be changing diagnostic practices with respect tochildren who are not mentally retarded, especially among school-agechildren.TheCalifornia Departmentof Developmental Services (April 2003)reports tha tthe proportionof “higher functioningâ€children amongthe autism population has substantially increased andison therise,with a steady declineinthe proportion of persons with autism who also have MR. The California statisticsare basedsolely onthe populationservedby thestate’sregional centers, whichcoordinateservices for personswith developmental disabilities. Tomany clinicians,it
appear s that moreandmore children who, in
thepast, would
neve rhavebeen referred totheregional
centers–for example, bright but anxious and slightl y sociallyinept kidswith average or betterIQs and
childrenwho, inthepast, hadbeenor wouldhave beendiagnosedas ADHD, OCD, ODD, anxiety
disorder, learning disabilities, psychotic, andso forth—are nowbeing diagnosed with high-functioningautism and/orAspergersyndrome
andreferred tothe regional centersfor services. Ifchildren withthese other diagnoses“reallyâ€hadbeen autistic all along, thenthey arenot contributing any“real â€increase to autism. If the yare not “reallyâ€autistic, they have been so diagnosed atatime whenthereis
heightened vigilance for possible signs of thedisorder onthe part of parents, teachers, and clinicians, but limited availabilityof assessors withthe knowledgeof autism anddiagnostic skillsnecessarytointerpret thesesignsaccurately.As well, indiagnosing“autistic featuresâ€in children with normal intelligence, some clinicians arei nclined to givea
diagnosis of autism disorder, rather than a diagnosis of Aspergeror PDD-NOS,because itwill qualifythe childformore servicesin California than these othe r DSM-IV developmental
disorders.The M.I.N.D. Institute in
Californiaclaims that misdiagnosis or changing diagnosti cpractice s cannot account for the increase inautism, citingthe
findingintheir epidemiological pilot studythat about 88%
of theparentsof theirsampleof
351regionalcenter
children,previously diagnosed asautistic,had responded
tothe Autistic Diagnostic Interview inawaythat
supported theirchild’s diagnosisof autism. However, theresponse ratefor
voluntary participation in thes tudy was only about
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There isno way of evaluating whether concern about
revisiting
apreviously given diagnosis
(e.g., for fear of losingregional center eligibility)
wasamong thes electionfactors
accounting forthe
80% refusal to participateor
whether
acceptance of apreviouslygiven diagnosis hadcoloredtheperceptions
and reportingof at least someofthe parents who h adagreed to participate. TheCalifornia Department of Developmental Services speculates thatone reasonfor
thehigher proportionof caseswith autism
without mental retardation may be “the possible recognition of a new phenotypes(s) of autism.â€Isit the emergenceonthe sceneofanew“phenotypeâ€or merelychanging
diagnosis of children previously given
other diagnoses or even
never diagnosedat all?The CaliforniaDepartment ofDevelopmental Serviceshas
nowestablished best practice
guidelinesfors creeningfor, and diagnosisand
assessment of, autism( CaliforniaDepartment ofDevelopmental Services, 2002). TheAutisticSpectrumDisorder Learning Collaborative Project in California is workingtoward
developing uniform assessment practices throughout thestateinkeeping withthese
bestpractices guidelines. Meanwhile, itappears
thattheautism
diagnosisisbeingstretched toinclude an
ever-widening rangeof clinical
presentations, not just among children with limited cognitive resources, but among childrenwith
normal or above average intelligence
aswell (seeGillberg, 1999). Rita S. Eagle, Ph.D. Harbor Regional Center Torrance, California
It is my understanding that autism is an issue of heavy metal toxicity. SInce our children were exposed to such high levels of mercury, most of them are considered “mercury poisoned”. I think it is absolutely possible that some on the spectrum who were never exposed to thimerosal or who do not have dental amalgams have “other” toxicity issues, and maybe that will all come to light soon. Apparently, some researchers believe that the inability to detoxify and higher intelligence levels may lie on the same genetic marker. My father-in-law appears to be an Aspie (he’s a judge), so I know he was not exposed to excessive levels of thimerosal. He also seems to have gut issues.
No, Karen… autism is NOT an issue of “heavy metal toxicity”. If you read through the postings on this blog will see that the general consesus is that it is NOT. Especially the posts that compare autism with “Pink Disease”.
If you have evidence to support your understanding this is from a reliable source (not the Geiers and not anything published in “Medical Hypothesis”)… then please present it.
Kevin,
It seems you are confused. Let me try to help you out a little bit.
1) As far as I know, J.B. Handley has never said that his son was “recovered”. I believe that he is treating him biomedically (including chelation) and he has seen significant improvements but he is not recovered. I’m confused as to why you are confused by this article.
2) In order for you to compare your daughter’s progression with J.B.’s son’s progression, wouldn’t you have to have a baseline analysis of their original abilities, etc? You make the comment that “In fact the only appreciable difference between them as far as I can tell is that JB and Lisa chelate Jamie and we don’t chelate our daughter”. Really? This gives the false assumption that you have a clue about J.B.’s son’s original condition or his progression. You obviously don’t. Again, I’m confused as to why you are confused…
-Sue
Kev wrote:
“The word ‘recovered’ is frequently bandied about by JB and his cronies to describe their kids”.
-If JB Handley (specifically) has frequently bandied about the word “recovered” to describe his child as you allege, it should be easy for you to show me one example. I have never seen it. I have seen “recovering”, “improving”, but not “recovered”. The quote that you reference is a “dream” of his. His hope for the future, not the reality of the present.
Kev wrote:
” No Sue, I said ‘as far as I can tell’. In other words based on the article and various other things he’s said”.
-So as far as I can tell, you have no idea what progress or lack of progress JB Handley’s son has made. So then why would you feel compelled to comment one way or the other about his progress.
-Sue
_””Our message for parents is very simple: autism is reversible,” said J.B. Handley, one of the organization’s founding parents and father of a son diagnosed with autism. “I see every day with my own eyes how my son Jamie is recovering”_
Oh wait, I can’t use ‘recovering’ can I? Except I can.But what the hell, I’ll use ‘recovered’ anyway:
_”Buttar told Congress last May that 22 of 31 patients with autistic disorders whom he treated with DMPS had recovered. One such child is the 2-year-old son of J.B. Handley, a founder of Generation Rescue.”_
Or
_”Nothing speaks louder than recovered kids”_
All picked from GR promo literature. How about:
_”There’s a high flying testimonial by JB Handley, father of a boy who didn’t appear cured on the video Autism Diva saw:
“I believe that Dr. Buttar will go down as the defining figure in the battle to cure autism,”…”Many DAN! doctors are switching 100 percent to TD-DMPS, seeing amazing results, and watching mercury pour out of kids they thought had been fully chelated. His presentations have sparked a treatment revolution. Within a year you will quite literally see hundreds of fully recovered kids”_
From AutismDivas site,
_”So as far as I can tell, you have no idea what progress or lack of progress JB Handley’s son has made. So then why would you feel compelled to comment one way or the other about his progress.”_
Wrong again Sue. I have some idea as the newspaper article describes some striking detail and JB himself makes the odd comment now and again. Certainly more than enough to see that chelation has been blown up into something it really isn’t.
Kev –
So again, you were unable to show me where JB has claimed that HIS SON was “recovered”. Wasn’t that why you were so “confused” by this article?
The one quote that I could possibly give you on the “recovered” front was this one by Buttar:
“Buttar told Congress last May that 22 of 31 patients with autistic disorders whom he treated with DMPS had recovered. One such child is the 2-year-old son of JB Handley, a founder of Generation Rescue.”
— I would like to see the comment in full context. Does Buttar mean that he has gone from a diagnosis of autism to possibly a lesser diagnosis of Asperger’s, SID, etc? I can’t tell from the quote. Maybe you are right. Maybe he is trying to sell more thigh cream?? Obviously, I doubt it, but you never know. Certainly, he wouldn’t be the only doctor to talk in extremes. God knows my kids pediatrician told me that diet intervention was ridiculous. People who did it were grasping at straws, etc. We went to an allergist, endocrinologist and an GI doctor with my son… No help. Thankfully, I tried GF/CF and minimal supplements and imagine that — my son is completely normal now. Maybe it was a coincidence…
Hey clown, oops I mean Clone…
Apparently you didn’t even read the article in question. You wrote:
“He says he saw improvements with diet and various other supplements, no mention of those things in the recent article?”.
— Really, I saw a mention of it. Let me point it out to you:
“Mielke prescribed a liquid chelation agent and recommended a wheat-and dairy-free diet. She also offered advice on choosing the right supplements”.
What’s up with the Sue-’em comment? Care to elaborate. Not sure that I understand.
-Sue
No, I wasn’t unable – as you yourself noted. If you wish to read the context then go find it. I normally provide linked sources but for such a pedantic non-event as this I simply couldn’t be bothered.
Fact is Sue, when you offer your kids up for public consumption like some sort of advertorial for your position, then they’re going to get discussed. Its plain you don’t like that. Take it up with JB.
Kev –
So you couldn’t find the initial quote from Buttar or it didn’t quite fit in to your argument? That’s cool.
Why would I take it up with JB? I’m thrilled that he has the balls, the motivation and the desire to help other families in their struggles. It’s about time this started coming out. God bless him. It seems that YOU are the one who has a problem with what JB is doing, not me. You also have every right to disagree with what he says or offer your own opinions. Just don’t be surprised when people disagree with you. Like it or not, we’re in this together.
-Sue
_”Kev – So you couldn’t find the initial quote from Buttar or it didn’t quite fit in to your argument? That’s cool.”_
No, I can both find it and, as you say yourself, it fits your criteria – I simply couldn’t be bothered wading through Google again to find it. Go look for yoursef.
_”Why would I take it up with JB? I’m thrilled that he has the balls, the motivation and the desire to help other families in their struggles. It’s about time this started coming out. God bless him. It seems that YOU are the one who has a problem with what JB is doing, not me. You also have every right to disagree with what he says or offer your own opinions. Just don’t be surprised when people disagree with you. Like it or not, we’re in this together.”_
Disagreement I can cope with – believe me. Its easy to knock holes all through JB’s arguments. What I have an issue with is the serious lack of both funding and repsect JB’s extremist position engenders.
His supporters have referred to people who don’t believe his arguments as akin to terrorists, child abusers and suicide bombers. Whats your opinion on that sort of behaviour Sue? As one who obviously believes people are free to choose whats your take on a group that says that its their way or you’re a child abuser?
JB may or may not have balls. What he lacks however, is an intellectual or scientific basis for his beliefs. If your happy to go ahead with that then be my guest, its not my place to stop anyone doing what they believe is right. As you say though – I’m free to openly discuss and challenge the appalling lack of science that underpins JB’s beliefs, the hostility and aggression that accompnies his position and the setting back of actual knowledge about autism his beliefs engender.
1) Come on, Kev. After doing the google search that you suggested above, I was shocked that you could even attempt to use that Buttar quote as backup for your point. That’s truly lame. Come on. You can do better than that.
2) You write:
“What I have an issue with is the serious lack of both funding and respect JB’s extremist position engenders”.
— We agree. Take it up with your government (I’ll take it up with mine) and maybe we can get some more funding. It’s hard to get funding when the people responsible for funding studies like these are scared to death of what they might find.
3) As far as supporters making derogatory comments, etc. No, I don’t agree with that… but I certainly understand how different personalities handle situations and with something as important as this, things often get out of control. Having said that, if you are being honest, I would hope that you would agree that there is that sort of behavior on both sides of the fence.
4) JB lacks intellectual or scientific basis for his beliefs?? What? Really? That’s news to me. The science is growing everyday. You’ll get there soon.
I’ll see you over at your Mercury Militia post. That DTP vaccine is a nightmare, huh?
– Sue
_That DTP vaccine is a nightmare, huh?_
It was not a nightmare, but it was not recommended for children with a history of seizures (like my oldest). That was one of the main reasons it was replaced by the DTaP years ago. See page 80 of http://www.cdc.gov/nip/publications/pink/pert.pdf (it says “Local reactions such as redness, swelling, and pain at the injection site occurred following up to half of doses of whole-cell DTP vaccines. Fever, and other mild systemic events were also common. More severe systemic reactions, such as convulsions and hypotonic-hyporesponsive episodes occurred less frequently (one case to 1,750 doses administered). Acute encephalopathy occurred even more rarely (0–10.5 cases per million doses administered). Experts disagreed on whether whole-cell pertussis vaccine caused lasting brain damage, but agreed that if the vaccine caused such damage it did so only rarely. Concerns about safety led to the development of more purified (acellular) pertussis vaccines that are associated with a lower frequency of adverse reactions.”)
What science are you refering to? Because all the science that has come out shows that the small bit of thimerosal that used to be in the vaccines is not in any way a factor in autism (http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/504_iom.html , http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/reprint/114/3/793 ).
The most recent studies still indicate that autism has a genetic factor. If you go to http://www.pubmed.gov and use only the word “autism” in the search window a several of the papers, letters, reviews and editorials on the first page have to do with genetics (I’ll just put the titles, you should be able to follow how to get the abstracts… and to get the actual papers you need to go to a college or some municipal libraries):
1) Support for the Homeobox Transcription Factor Gene ENGRAILED 2 as an Autism Spectrum Disorder Susceptibility Locus.
2)Regulation of RNA splicing by the methylation-dependent transcriptional repressor methyl-CpG binding protein 2.
3)PET and SPECT Exploration of Central Monoaminergic Transporters for the Development of New Drugs and Treatments in Brain Disorders
4)Autism and epilepsy: Cause, consequence, comorbidity, or coincidence?
5)Foundations for self and other: a study in autism.
6)The effects of graduated exposure, modeling, and contingent social attention on tolerance to skin care products with two children with autism
7)Trend study of autistic spectrum disorders at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health.
8)Positron emission tomography methods with potential for increased understanding of mental retardation and developmental disabilities
9)Long-Term Effects of Risperidone in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Placebo Discontinuation Study
10)ADHD, asperger syndrome, and high-functioning autism.
11)Dopaminergic Contribution to the Regulation of Emotional Perception
12)Genotype-Phenotype correlations of 39 patients with cornelia de Lange syndrome: the Dutch experience.
13)Vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella in children.
14)Combined vitamin B6-magnesium treatment in autism spectrum disorder
15)The relationship between restrictive and repetitive behaviors in individuals with autism and obsessive compulsive symptoms in parents
16)Fetal testosterone and empathy
17)MeCP2 dysfunction in humans and mice
18)The Human Secretin Gene in Children With Autistic Spectrum Disorder: Screening for Polymorphisms and Mutations
19)A patient with autism and severe depression: medical and ethical challenges for an adolescent medicine unit.
20)Genetics of autism (don’t get excited, it is a letter of comment on another paper)
HN-
Please see my post in the other blog… you are confused…
-Sue
I believe it is you who are confused.
You have finally recognized that the DTaP has replaced DTP… but are crediting the Geiers. Huh?
So now they are taking credit for recommendations that occured several years before their first anti-vaccine paper?