Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder have normal mercury levels according to new research
October 21, 2009
Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder likely have normal mercury levels, at least that is what the below research indicates. Parents, teachers, and caregivers should read the below article about this new study.
Exposure to high levels of mercury can cause brain damage, and many have tried to establish a link between mercury and the development of autism and other persistent developmental disorders in toddlers and preschoolers.
New research, however, has revealed that young children who test normal for mental and social development tend to have equivalent or higher levels of mercury in the bodies than do children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome or another developmental disorder.
Analyses of blood samples drawn from 452 children between the ages of 2 years and 5 years reported in the online version of the journal Environmental Health Perspectives showed that “blood mercury levels had similar means and overall distributions across diagnostic groups. The geometric mean for typically developing children, 0.28 mcg/L, was significantly higher than for autism/autism spectrum disorder (0.19 mcg/L) or developmentally delayed (0.17 mcg/L) children; after adjustment for demographic factors and mercury sources and application of weights, the geometric means for autism/autism spectrum disorder, developmentally delayed and typically developing children were 0.26, 0.16, and 0.24 mcg/L, respectively,”
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School at Finan will work with autistic children
October 17, 2009
CUMBERLAND — A new educational center for autistic children is expected to draw clients from the tri-state area when it opens next month on the campus of the Jefferson School at the Finan Center.
Sheppard Pratt Health System plans a mid-November opening for the center, which will provide services for up to 30 children, said Bonnie Fetzer, principal of Jefferson School, which is operated by Sheppard Pratt.
“Our community is not unlike other communities across the state and nation,” said Fetzer, referring to a recent study indicating that autism is on the rise.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that one in 100 8-year-old children in the U.S. has been diagnosed with autism. Previously, the government’s estimate was 1 in 150.
“There’s greater awareness of it, and children are being diagnosed at an earlier age,” Fetzer said. “The real concern is that there’s definitely an increase, and we need to respond to that.”
Last year in Allegany County, 51 children enrolled in the public school system had been diagnosed with autism, according to figures provided by the Maryland State Department of Education. Statewide, more than 7,500 school children were autistic, 2008 figures showed.
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Autism at-home therapy and early detection research project
October 11, 2009
A tale of two sons
The Mackintoshes were told not to worry about their older boy’s development — until he was diagnosed as autistic. A new research project targeting early detection and at-home therapy has made all the difference to their second child’s progress. Doug Fischer explains.
OTTAWA — When Jennifer Mackintosh looks back at family videos, sometimes her heart breaks.
“At first I see a little boy who was smiling, who was perfectly happy to cuddle up, who was looking right at us,” she says quietly, her hands clasped on the kitchen table.
“Then time goes by and you see that little boy gradually withdrawing into himself, looking more unhappy, sometimes looking a little confused.”
And as she watches those videos, Jennifer says, she finds herself wishing she knew then about her oldest boy what she knows today.
Jennifer and her husband, David, have two young sons, Alex, five, and Nathan, two. Both boys are autistic.
That in itself is not so unusual. When one child is autistic, chances are about one in 20 that a younger sibling will be diagnosed with autism or a related condition, known under the catch-all term autism spectrum disorders. What makes the Mackintoshes somewhat unique is the striking difference in the way their sons have responded to therapy — in large part, they believe, because Nathan was so much younger when they realized he was autistic.
“We caught Nathan before he could start that retreat into himself,” Jennifer says. “I’m convinced it made a big difference.”
Despite their suspicions that there was something wrong with Alex when he wasn’t talking at one and was only babbling at 18 months, doctors told the Mackintoshes he would outgrow the problem. It wasn’t until Alex was two-and-a-half that they got a diagnosis of autism. And even then there was nowhere for them to turn for help.
You can read the rest of the article here.
You can also make extra money to help pay for treatment and training by telling people about this helpful resource. You earn $26.30 for each book sold, so start making money by clicking Autism Symptoms Affiliates