Antibiotics and Antifungal Medication Could be Linked to Autism
Researchers at UNC School of Medicine have discovered a potential environmental cause of autism – prescription drugs that interfere with a critical process in DNA called topoisomerases. Ordinarily, DNA is wound tightly in packages to ensure efficient storage and must be unwound during cell division and gene expression. Topoisomerases make the unwinding possible that […]
Viral infection disrupts neural development in offspring, increasing risk of autism
Researchers with the UC Davis Center for Neuroscience and Department of Neurology have found that activating a mother’s immune system during her pregnancy disrupts the development of neural cells in the brain of her offspring and damages the cells’ ability to transmit signals and communicate with one another. The finding suggests how maternal viral infection might […]
Autoimmune Conditions Increase Chances of Having a Child with Autism
Parents, particularly mothers with MS or thyroid conditions, and many practitioners have suspected a link between autoimmune conditions and autism for many years. A new study published in Molecular Psychology is proving them right. There are over 100 autoimmune disorders including Crohn’s disease, lupus. psoriasis, Graves’ disease, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis. 2,700 mothers of children […]
Helping Children with Autism Understand Emotional Cues
One of the diagnostic criteria for autism is social impairment. This is often evidenced by the child’s inability to pick up on emotional cues or perhaps not understanding that what is being said by another person does not match that person’s facial expression as well as not demonstrating joint attention. Research reported in the Journal […]
Bowel Nosodes Help Children with Gut Issues
If you have a child with autism you know that often times they struggle with their bowels and this can be for a variety of reasons. Intestinal bacteria, leaky gut, allergies and food intolerances. In fact, research demonstrates a close correlation between gut microflora and various aspects of health, such as nutritional status, behavior, […]
Exposure to high pollution levels during pregnancy may increase risk of having child with autism
Women in the U.S. exposed to high levels of air pollution while pregnant were up to twice as likely to have a child with autism as women who lived in areas with low pollution, according to a new study from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). It is the first large national study to examine […]
The Numbers Behind the Autism Tsunami
Could My Baby Have Autism?
We have heard it a number of times for a number of conditions – early diagnosis is key. This is also true for autism where early intervention with treatments and therapies can have promising and long lasting results. But do you know the signs that babies 6-12 months old exhibit that can be red […]
Probiotics Help Children with Autism
Gastrointestinal issues are experienced by the majority of children and adults with autism. According to the CDC, children with autism are 3.5 times more likely to suffer from chronic diarrhea or constipation than typically developing peers. Other symptoms include vomiting/reflux, abdominal pain, gas and foul-smelling stools. In my practice, we look at ways […]
Autism Continues to Rise
Last year the dramatic rise in the number of children with autism made national headlines – the number released by the CDC was 1 in 88 children born today will be diagnosed with autism. But are those the real numbers or are they much higher? What the CDC did not make evident was that […]