Addressing Autism

Call us crazy, but parents who care will try anything if there is even a glimmer of hope [4 Promising Autism Treatments, From Vitamin B12 to Alzheimer's Drug Namenda, usnews.com]. Biomedical works. My wife and I watch a young boy with autism. He has come a long way in just two years. He couldn't talk at first, and now he is a little chatter box. All I can tell you is that the more one-on-one treatment, the better for these children. He is very bright and special. We love him very much; he brings nothing but joy to us. The more love and attention the better he responds. He has good days and bad days but the more structured and uniform, the better.

Comment by John Holzer of FL

The only research validated treatment for autism to date treats behavioral and learning characteristics. That treatment is based on the techniques of applied behavior analysis (ABA). Some states have passed insurance laws mandating coverage for ABA treatment. It will be great when these treatments with biomedical promise are subjected to double blind studies or at least enjoy a vast body of case study and single subject design studies that would lead one to conclude that they are effective. Until then, parents shouldn't waste their money on treatments that purport a cure when they have not been adequately tested.

Comment by Rhonda of SC

Maybe this is for the naysayers out there who claim that autism treatments are not worth the time, effort, and money because they haven't had adequate testing. Obviously, you people have never had a child with autism. My son was diagnosed at 24 months with PDD-NOS. He spoke only a few words, made little eye contact, and spent his days alone playing with any toy having wheels. When he was diagnosed, our first move was to put him on the gluten/casein-free diet, read a lot on the topic in the way of the DAN Protocol and biomedical interventions in general, and a whole lot of positive thinking and praying. He spoke his first pseudo-sentence within the first week. He said he wanted to go for a walk. We were amazed. We kept going on, trying different biomedical treatments. Some worked, some didn't. We added many hours of ABA therapy. One year later, he was re-evaluated by the same institution and was found to no longer fall on the autism spectrum. It wasn't magic; we healed his body. He is a beautiful, loving 3.5 year old and does extremely well in his typical preschool class.

Comment by Dana Kennedy of OR

My son showed signs at 17 months of language delays. He made no eye contact and since birth, couldn't be touched or held without acting like we were killing him. I started him on a gluten-free, casein-free diet and some supplements. Therapy and a GFCF diet are slowly but surely healing my son. Stories like ours are now numbering in the thousands, yet they say diet and supplements don't work? Oh please. No it doesn't work for all kids on the spectrum, but everyone should at least try it for their AS diagnosed kid. And therapy works wonders in combination because the diet clears the brain so it can learn. My dietary restricted kid eats a diet 100 times more nutritious than my child with no restrictions. There isn't a fruit, vegetable or meat he doesn't devour. He even gets sweets, cakes, cookies, hotdogs, all made with safe ingredients. When he gets a milk or wheat product he becomes hyper, unruly, and self-destructive. I know what works for us, and I hope people start to accept that AS disorders have medical roots that include the brain and its connection to the digestive system. Only when the medical field accepts that toxins in vaccines and in our environment are affecting neuro-sensitive youngsters like my son, will the cause and cure for autism finally be discovered.

Comment by Stacy of NJ