Have any of you heard about this? I am looking into it for my son...You can read more on this by going to generationrescue.org.
Very informative.
The New York Times had a article out yesterday on this subject. One of the main side effects is liver damage. Alot of insurances don't cover it either. It comes down to a point of which would you rather put up with, the autistic behaviours or being on a waiting list for a liver transplant.
Tammy
You might not like everything this website has to say, but at the bottom it lists physicians who have disciplinary actions against them. It's something I would want to know if I were looking into this:
http://www.chelationwatch.org/
Also, here's a narrative by a former chelation proponent:
http://www.autism-watch.org/about/bio2.shtml
[quote]Leading proponents were recommending that the chelating agents be given every three hours around the clock for up to four weeks, an obvious source of stress for already overstressed parents. In addition, many of these chelation “experts” predicted dire consequences if a dose is missed or even given an hour late. My paper simply outlined the then-current information about mercury poisoning and chelation therapy for mercury, using articles from peer-reviewed journals. Among other things, it debunked the dosing ideas I had encountered at the conference. [/quote]
There was a thread started on the exact same web address (other than it was .com instead of .org) Newbie Needs Feedback
I stand by what I said on the other thread I DONT BUY INTO ANY OF THESE MIRACLE CURES AND QUICK FIXES THAT CLAIM TO CURE AUTISM OR REVERSE THE EFFECTS! THEY PREY ON PEOPLE LIKE US WHO WOULD GIVE THEIR OWN LIFE TO HELP THEIR AUTISTIC CHILD. THEY COST A SMALL FORTUNE AND CAN ACTUALLY CAUSE SEVERE DAMAGE TO YOUR CHILD! LOOK AT VITAMIN C-- THE FOUND TOO MUCH CAN CAUSE KIDNEY STONES! Of course this is just my opinion.
ANYONE thinking of trying this I STRONGLY URGE YOU to THOUROUGHLY INVESTIGATE this, talk with the doctor and make sure if you do try it your child is monitored.
ALSO.... I HAVE HEARD WHERE PRODUCTS ARE BEING SOLD ON THE INTERNET FOR HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS AND CONTAIN NOTHING BUT WATER AND FRAGRANCE OR VITAMINS. THERES NO TELLING WHAT SOMEONE MIGHT PUT IN THE PRODUCT THATS BEING SOLD OVER THE INTERNET!
BE CAREFUL YOU SAY YOU WOULD DO ANYTHING TO HELP YOUR CHILD THAN MAKE SURE YOU ARE INVESTIGATING TO BE SURE IT IS SAFE FOR YOUR CHILD!
I know a few people who are doing chelation with their children. Definitely do it under a physician's guidance, you will need to see a DAN physician, and your child will need regular lab testing during the procedure. The book "Children with Starving Brains" is a good resource for information on chelation, it gives all the details on the process. You will have to do a lot of things before you can chelate. You have to "heal the gut" first by starting the GFCF diet, doing yeast detoxification, taking nutritional supplements, etc. It is a lengthy process.
I noticed in your signature that your child is 17, the best results from chelation are achieved (supposedly) in very young children, under the age of 5. But some say benefits can be seen in older children and adults too.
The usual medication used for chelation is DMSA, and ALA is added after a certain period of time, it is given by mouth several times a day for about 3 days, and then about 11 days off, and then it is given again. The chelation process takes anywhere from 6 months to 2 years, and in older children it may be longer than that.
I would not undertake chelation except with a physician who has a lot of experience in doing it, and that has been recommended to me personally be many parents as being trustworthy. Unfortunately, all DAN practitioners are not created equal, all you have to do to become one, is go to a one day conference and sign your name on a list. I have heard the best things about DAN physicians who also have children with autism, they seem to be the most knowledgable and reliable. I would run fast and far from anyone who promises you a cure.
I have a friend who is a physician, as is her husband, and they have a 5yo son with autism who they have been chelating for about 2 years now. She says that they have not seen any dramatic improvement in their son, but they continue to do the chelation, because in the lab tests they do there are still a lot of metals coming out of him. I personally have not talked to anyone who has done chelation who has seen a really big change in their child. I have read stories on the internet, and in books where parents claim to have seen miraculous changes.
In my own personal opinion, the risk of the chelation, does not equal the benefits that I have witnessed. But of course everyone needs to make their own informed decisions. Do LOTS of research. The website you cited has a lot of good links, and I would also check out the Yahoo groups that are devoted to chelation.
Carly i can feel your pain. I am the mother of a recently diagnosed son with asd. He is my world and I am devastated. But I intend to make sure he leads a normal and happy life. I would never do anything to harm him and am cautious though I dont rule out, chelation therapy. All i can suggest to you is that you read as much as you can. Visit a toxicologist, phone one, email one and ask them what the procedure is for a hair analysis. This is probably your best first pont of action.
No you shouldnt believe everything you read on the internet. However, I dont believe that there is a political WILL to find the cause of autism. Lets face it, if it turns out that mercury and toxins in the environment are causing autism, how readily do you think the industrial fat cats and pharma companies are going to admit this??? THEY ARE NOT. Do they want to find the answer?
Autism is merely a term for a spectrum of of observed behaviours. Its like the colour wheel, it goes from white to black with infinite variations in between.
Use your gut instinct and dont listen to those who really want to persuade you one way or another. Everybody has a MOTIVE in this emotive issue. I dont know if you have ever visited the vaccine sites (antivaccine sites) but they have trolls who lurk waiting for someone to "shoot down" when they get too adamant in their position. The autism debate has caused a lot of evangelism and its on both sides.
You are your childs mom. If you want to make some progress with your son, I am afraid it is almost totally up to you. I learned that real quick. Its like taking your car to the mechanic and having to tell him whats wrong, before he can fix it. Something terribly wrong is going on in society. I do NOT believe that better screening is causing the numbers of autism to rise. I believe it really is rising. My own doctor had 50 cases in 2000. Now he has 250 cases. What is wrong with that picture????????
Just remember, everyone has their own personal views and instincts. some have an axe to grind as well. And yes, some are out to make money. But sure, you know this already. Just research all you can and do it quickly. You dont have time to wait.
This is a link to a U.K. web site i found last month. The owner of the web site is vehemently opposed to chelation but has garnered a lot of pro chelators. If you read through this blog, you might find something of interest.
http://www.kevinleitch.co.uk/wp/?p=226 If the link dosent work just google blogs and autism. You will find it.
Hope that helps and keep the faith. I am on your side.
sorry, posted this in the wrong room oh well.The site www.chelationwatch.org is primarily concerned with the use of EDTA in IV form to remove plaque build-up in the arteries and not other methods of chelation used to reduce overload of toxic heavy metals (for which there is over 60 years of peer-reviewed success). It is only very recently that the bits concerning autism have been added to this site. The controversy in using chelation for a treatment of autism is less about the medical nuts-and-bolts than it is about the appropriateness of recognizing autism as a direct result of metal toxicity (primarily thimerosal).
When we began investigating chelation for my boy 6 years ago, I was unable to find reports of adverse events associated with DMSA of the caliber that some critics now claim, notably liver toxicity. Of course if people are using chelation on individuals who do not need it, problems of varying severity are likely to result. I am of the opinion that any medical procedure needs to be appropriate for the patient and done under a competant and experienced drs' care.
My boy tested high in lead (26.4) and we underwent a round of chelation following standard lead protocol (not the DAN! protocol). After the duist had settled and rebound occured we had removed about 4 points of lead out of him. During the tsting process we requested testing for other metals as well, but they came back too low to score (including mercury).
With round 5 we added ALA to the mix after much reading and hours of conversations online and real time with other parents. It was during this round that my began using expressive verbal language for the first time. We do not use the Diet, he has received no intensive ABA, and there have been no other interventions used at the same time that could claim responsibility for this most miraculous occurance.
In round 9 (last March) I was pondering why we had seen no mercury coming out of him and discussed this with a PhD from CA. He asked what test was used for mercury and I couldn't answer him. My assumption was mercury was mercury and the lab would know. After I contacted the people at the lab (not one of the mail-order ones, but Qwest used through my local hospital) I came to find out that they were testing for elemental mercury, which a person might be exposed to through an industrial source, or perhaps an old style thermometer. What I needed to have tested was organic mercury. When we had the tset run with round 9 we suddenly got a hit for mercury (not extremely high, certainly not as high as the lead had been when we started, but still high enough it scared the hgell out of my doctor and by itself would warrant further treatment).
I do not believe that chelation will "cure" my son. I can say with out any equivovation that removing the lead, mercury, cadmium, nickel and arsenic which testing has shown coming out of him has allowed him to operate at a higher level of functioning and in a more connected manner to the rest of us. I will take a HFA child over a LFA any day.
Chelation was fully covered by my HMO (less my co-pays). I did not have to resort to using the "pay-for-play labs or drs., many of whom I agree are opportunists. I DO NOT SUGGEST ANYONE UNDERTAKE THIS WITHOUT HAVING A COMPETANT AND EXPERIENCED DR. No medical proceedure is risk-free. Talk to your dr. Have your child tested.