Practitioners suggest the extent of the nutritional problem in these observations:
1. Zinc deficiency exists in 90% of autistic children predisposing to hypothyroidism, poor digestion, and low immune function
2. Copper excess exists in 85%, suppressing the thyroid. Avoid zinc picolinate in this case as it will increase copper levels.
3. Manganese deficiency exists in 20%. Finding these three together indicates a sick child with physical and behavioral problems.
4. Calcium and magnesium deficiencies are common, with 75% of Americans lacking Mg
5. Omega 3 fatty acid imbalance exists in nearly 100%
6. Fiber deficiency exists in nearly 100%
7. Antioxidant deficiency exists in nearly 100% of Down’s and autistics. “Clear evidence of higher oxidative stress and damage in treatment-naïve autistics than in controls” – Dr. Wm. Walsh, Email 7/24/06. This oxidative stress, particularly from burn injuries, may release excessive histamine. This increases the production of the enzyme xanthine oxidase, which generates hydrogen peroxide and superoxide, two potent free radicals that cause additional tissue damage. The seriousness of this is seen in the report that this lowers nitric oxide in the blood, reducing oxygen to the brain by 62%! This can only be offset by a very high intake of carefully selected antioxidants as recommended herein.
8. “Massive deficiency of DHEA in the autistics (factor of three)” – ditto.
9. Shaw recently reported 17-19% have low cholesterol (GPL- Cholesterol, RMC 12/07/07.
- pages 5-6
It has been observed that those children whose autism appears at or around the time of birth may have a problem with casein and show diarrhea, eczema, and ear infection from an early age. These have 10 times normal IAG and high peptides; whereas those who show regression into autism at about two years of age following MMR and introduction to a wheat-based diet, have particular difficulties with gluten. These would likely not have high IAG, but do have high peptides. Both gluten and casein may need to be removed, but this may give priority in beginning the program. Wheat gluten is 43% glutamate, the milk casein is 23% glutamate, and gelatin protein is 12% glutamate. Soymilk has a high content of glutamate, and additional glutamate is often added in form of hydrolyzed vegetable protein. Glutamate is an excitotoxin under many circumstances. - page 115
A recent study (Arnold GL, Hyman SL, Mooney RA, Kirby RS. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. August 2003; 33(4): 449-454), found that 58% of children with autism who consumed a regular diet, had at least one essential amino acid deficiency, and this group was most likely to be deficient in valine, leucine, phenylalanine (that produces tyrosine, dopamine, and adrenal hormones), or lysine. Sixty percent of children with autism on a restricted diet had at least one amino acid deficiency, and this group was most likely to be deficient in valine, isoleucine, leucine, phenylalanine, or lysine. These were slightly more likely to be deficient in tryptophan, the amino acid that is a necessary element in the production of serotonin and in prevention of subclinical Pellagra. Isoleucine, leucine, and tyrosine (that produces dopamine and adrenal hormones) were reported as being the most frequently observed deficiencies. Only 1 of 24 children in the control group had an essential amino acid deficiency. - page 6
The form of B6 supplemented may be important, as it was found that the amount of activated B6 (pyridoxal-5-phosphate) was low in 42% of autistics. - page 15
So, why not supplement totally safe vitamin B6, magnesium, and zinc, with iron and copper (if needed), and other nutrients instead of using liver-toxic Risperdal™? An interesting observation: the blink rate varies with the amount of dopamine; less dopamine means fewer blinks! The average number of blinks is 15-30 per minute. Do the test when not focused on anything. Supplement tyrosine and vitamin B6 with less than 20 blinks. - page 62
Additionally, tests show a marked difference in how autistic children metabolize these nutrients. After giving 500 mg of vitamin B6 orally to healthy children, the nutrient reached its maximum level in 2-hours and returned to base level in 8-hours. Thus, the half-life was about 4-hours. In the autistic child, these figures are 5-hours and 15-hours! In other words, the enzyme, aminotransferase, reaches maximum activity in 2-hours in healthy children, but in the autistic child it took 2.5 times as long! This clearly shows why a higher dose of vitamin B6 is required in autistic children. - page 134
People in Asia have been treating Candida using just one teaspoon of sea salt to 1/2 glass of water plus some citric acid and/or vitamin C. It reverses Candida in many cases. Taking pure lemon juice without sugar is also alkalizing and will not make Candida worse. Please, make every effort to balance and support the immune system as outlined herein! - page 58
Use of Alka-Seltzer Gold™, bentonite clay, and charcoal is said to reduce the impact of this die-off. - page 67
Just the elimination of Candida has been found to cure a third of all eczema, irritable bowel, some asthma, joint pains, and virtually all psoriasis. - page 75
Sugar also kills the bacteria that control Candida. Further, a serving of cake and ice cream or a large bottle of sugary, soft drink will reduce the immune function by 50% for up to five hours—make that all day for those who indulge their sweet tooth several times a day. Remember, sugar promotes Candida, with its multiple problems (yeast grows 200 times faster), and sugar can actually make the child drunk and giggly! In fact, 50 years ago, Dr. Sandler proved that sugar causes polio and other viral infections due to this loss of immune function. (Diet Prevents Polio, by Benjamin P. Sandler, M.D., and published in 1951 by The Lee Foundation for Nutritional Research, Milwaukee, WI). Is it any wonder that our kids harbor several chronic viral infections? Our goal is to strengthen the body and weaken the infectious agent. Eliminating simple sugars and starches with a high glycemic rating does this most effectively. Sugar and starch in excess are deadly poison to these beautiful children. You wouldn’t give them arsenic would you? - page 157
In addition to diagnosis by the above symptoms, on arising, obtain a glass of water and spit a mouthful of spit (quite a lot) in the water. Observe it for a while. If the sputum begins to grow “legs” or if it settles to the bottom, you likely have Candida. Do not take lightly indications of Candid overgrowth, but set up an effective anti-Candida program as suggested elsewhere in this paper. (Note: Good Housekeeping and Heloise have determined that regular vinegar kills molds at 90% and bacteria at 99.9% efficiency.) - pages 157-158
Caprylic Acid is a naturally occurring fatty acid. It is readily absorbed in the intestines. Standard dosage is 1,000 to 2,000 mgs with meals, and it is totally lethal to Candida. It is available over the counter and appears to be equal to Nystatin™ in effectiveness. - page 159
Candida supposedly resides and proliferates far down the gastrointestinal tract, but when lacking HCl production in the stomach, they will move up into the small intestine. - page 160
Another powerful anti-fungal is iodine (in higher doses, it seems to be anti-viral also), but it is much weaker and milder than chloride as an anti-fungal - 161
One will likely never be free of Candida until five things are occur: 1) eliminate mercury and other toxins interfering with energy pathways, 2) eliminate excess systemic alkalinity—these individuals exhibit a sodium-potassium ratio of less then 2.3:1, indicative of adrenal burnout, induced hyper-alkalinity, and an impaired immune system, 3) restore deficient HCl and bile secretions—these shortages lead to an excessively alkaline gut, to poor digestion of proteins, to poor assimilation of most minerals and vitamins, and to poor digestion of fats that creates fatty acid imbalances leading to amino acid imbalances, and 4) restore biochemical energy production (mitochondrial function)—the energy pathways require optimal amounts of copper, iron, manganese, potassium, magnesium, carnitine, alpha lipoic acid, NADH, and CoQ10, (see the Section “Healing the Leaky Gut”), 5) Correct carbohydrate intolerances—stress causes a rapid depletion of zinc and of the bio-unavailability of copper resulting in a severe derangement of glucose metabolism. Poor absorption of carbohydrates in the intestines creates fermentation by gut organisms. This, as well as sugar in the diet, actually makes children drunk, and some have the smell of alcohol on their breath. This causes hypoglycemia, insulin resistance, and a proliferation of yeast in the gut. - page 169
The brain is the most cholesterol-rich organ of the body. Myelin is largely cholesterol. Pregnant women with low cholesterol readings are twice as likely to have premature births, or to have babies with small heads (brains). Great Plains Laboratory reports dangerously low cholesterol in 17.5% of autistics studied. NIH concluded earlier that people with total serum cholesterol below 160 mg/dl had a death rate 10-20% higher than those with 160-190 mg/dl. Specifically, they died of cancer (lung and bladder cancer, primarily), respiratory and digestive disease, suicide and trauma, and hemorrhagic stroke. They suffered depression, anxiety, bipolar and Parkinson’s disease, and tuberculosis, and men with LDL levels below 160 mg/dl had significantly lower numbers of white blood cells of all types. Thus, LDL protects against infections, and also against deadly toxins such as that produced by staphylococcus.
Shaw studying autism and Tierney studying the rare genetic condition SLOS found that particularly those with total serum cholesterol below 100 mg/dl additionally displayed autistic symptoms such as sleep disturbances (lethargy and excess sleeping), inability to talk or walk, antisocial tendencies, increased rates of infection, skin rashes, self-hurtful behavior, low-muscle tone, tactile defensiveness, poor growth rate, and various behavioral problems. Low cholesterol values are associated with manganese deficiencies, celiac disease, hyperthyroidism, liver disease, malabsorption, and malnutrition. These conditions all significantly improved, even some adults spoke for the first time, all within days of taking a cholesterol supplement!
The lack of adequate cholesterol was found to be from a lack of production in the liver. So much for the drive to have everyone use a statin drug to reduce production by 40%! Ensure that your child’s total serum cholesterol is above 160 mg/dl, and that LDL is 150-160 mg/dl, that is, his total serum reading should be around 200! This is best done with foods (eggs and red meat) where possible, but a supplement may be necessary (New Beginnings Nutritionals Sonic Cholesterol). A child with IgE allergy to eggs should eat them only on advice of his doctor. These foods help to ensure that both protein and cholesterol are adequate. - page 7
Most autistic children have delayed allergic reactions to some foods (show high IgG), and/or immediate, strong reactions to foods, inhaled pollens, or mold (high IgE). These allergic reactions disrupt normal immune balance and alter interleukin-2 levels exacerbating their symptoms. - page 77
Use these methods also to stop severe allergic reactions. The average asthmatic, for example, over-breathes 3-5 times the recommended amount, sometimes more. If you think someone’s having an allergic reaction, and you don’t have those bicarbonate buffers, try half a teaspoon or a teaspoon of baking soda in a half-glass of water. Sometimes, that will stop a reaction within 10 to 15 minutes. Three commercial, bicarbonate products AlkaAid™, Alka-Seltzer Gold™, and AlkaLime™ can be used. This is very effective, not only in stopping reactions, but if you take it before you eat a food to which you are sensitive, you can sometimes prevent a reaction. - page 102
In another report, of 23 autistic children who had serum ferritin measured, 12 were iron deficient. Iron deficiency is a frequent factor in restless leg syndrome. - page 8
So, serum iron is not the best measure of iron sufficiency. Blood tests for hemoglobin and serum ferritin levels that are checked for transferrin saturation percentages are more useful, but the results of these tests are confounded in states of prolonged inflammation or disease such as autism, for autism is a state of chronic brain inflammation (Dr. Marcel Just, John Hopkins). - page 8
A strong desire to chew ice is a sure sign of iron deficiency anemia. - page 201
In addition to phenol in foods, there is another toxic content to some foods that may play heavily in Autism. It is malonic acid or malonate found in alfalfa sprouts, apricots, all kinds of beans, broccoli, butternut squash peel, carrots, chaparral (dry), chocolate, ginger root skin, grape jam (commercial), dark green zucchini, kombo (seaweed), limes, mangos, onions (purple), oranges, papaya (Mexican), parsnips, passion fruit, persimmons (Fuji, regular), radish (daikon), red skin of peanuts, Tamari soy sauce, tomatoes, turnips, rutabagas, and wheat grass. This acid is highly toxic if not excreted properly. Some of the things affected read like a list of autistic symptoms:
The body detoxifies unwelcome substances by methylation. This is costly to the body’s resources, requiring large amounts of vitamins B6, B12, folic acid, methionine, betaine, glycine, taurine, cysteine, lecithin, and vitamin C.
Pages 265-266
The most common deficiencies of poor diet and malabsorption are fatty acids, the minerals iodine, zinc, selenium, magnesium, and calcium, and the vitamins A, B6, C, D, K, and E. There are various reasons, for example, acid foods make selenium insoluble, so babies regularly fed fruit juices are liable to malabsorption of selenium. - page 14
Pre-treat for a few days prior to cod-liver oil (and continue):
Use vitamin E
200-400 IU/day and vitamin C 250-1000 mg bid (twice daily).
Use Cod
(Salmon) Liver Oil according to vitamin A content:
Less than 2
years of age--850 IU vitamin A
2-5
years--2500 IU vitamin A
5-10
years--3750 IU vitamin A
Older--5000
IU vitamin A
Minimize A-Palmitate (It blocks a Retinol G-Protein Signaling Protein). Try
to keep total supplementation with preformed vitamin A (Carotene sources do
not count towards this maximum) not greater than double the amount provided
with the CLO over the long term to stay well below potential toxic doses of
vitamin A.
- page 229
My personal opinion is that Dr. Megson and Dr. McGinnis are recommending far too little cod-liver oil. Vitamin A in amounts up to 20,000 units (about 4 teaspoons) has been used with no evidence of toxicity in adults. This amount is needed for its EPA input as well. Dr. Robert Atkins, MD, recommends up to 50,000 IU (adults) at the beginning of any infection, reducing to 10,000 IU once symptoms have subsided. Three teaspoons of cod-liver oil approximates 6 oz of oily fish. The marker to reduce the amount is the clearing of the “Chicken-skin” bumps on shoulders, elbows, thighs, and calves. - page 229
One of the more recent studies on Type I diabetes was published in 2001 in the Lancet. This particular report concerned a 31-year prospective study of over 10,000 children born in 1966 in northern Finland. The parents were advised to give the children 2,000 IU of vitamin D per day. A year later, the researchers followed up with the families to determine which children had been given the vitamin D), which had not, and if any of them had signs of rickets (caused by severe vitamin D deficiency). The children who were regularly given the supplement during their first year had approximately 80% less type I diabetes diagnosed over the next 31 years! In sharp contrast, those children who showed signs of rickets at age one had 300% more type I diabetes diagnosed over the next 31 years. A study from Italy confirms the lack of vitamin D in newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes. Moreover, it is thought that vitamin D3 supplementation, in particular its activated form, 1,-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25-(OH)2D3], may act as an immunomodulator facilitating the shift from a Th2 to a Th1 immune response, according to scientists writing in the journal, Hormone and Metabolic Research. - page 34
There is also a condition growing quite common: children with unrecognized, subclinical rickets. If your child has a sweaty head when asleep, coupled with sensitive scalp that makes it a struggle to comb the hair, and when walking, the child keeps calling, “Mommy, pick me up”, the child needs two teaspoons of cod-liver oil each day to avoid full-blown rickets. Fish oil and flax oil can inhibit the action of the staphylococcal, membrane-damaging toxins also. Rickets may also present a bulging forehead and a sunken chest. Get the kid in sun! He needs the vitamin D, and the sun will convert trans vitamin A (palmitate) to the cis form. -page 234