Please use the links below to find current peer reviewed studies...

July 2011 Article by Dr. William Shaw on Cholesterol (Scroll down to bottom of page)

http://autismfile.com/media/andrew-wakefield-speaks-to-parliament-on-autism/

IMPORTANT - New Study Linking Thimerosal-Containing Hepatitis B Vaccine & Autism‏

Published...pdf Download(226.5 KB)Published...pdf Download(141.4 KB) http://www.iciautism.com/portals/

Important - New Study on Brain Autopsy Samples from Harvard University Medical School‏

Dear Everyone,

 Please find attached to this email the new brain autopsy study saved as Brain Region-Specific Changes in Oxidative Stress in ASDs1.pdf in Adobe Acrobat Format. This new study, "Brain Region-Specific Changes in Oxidative Stress and Neurotrophin Levels in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)" by researchers from Harvard University Medical School was published in the peer-reviewed journal of Cerebellum. These investigators described [emphasis added], "Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by social and language deficits, stereotypic behavior, and abnormalities in motor functions. The particular set of behavioral impairments expressed in any given individual is variable across the spectrum. These behavioral abnormalities are consistent with our current understanding of the neuropathology of ASD which suggests abnormalities in the amygdala, temporal and frontal cortexes, hippocampus, and cerebellum. However, regions unrelated to these behavioral deficits appear largely intact." Further, these investigators reported [emphasis added], "Both genetic predisposition and environmental toxins and toxicants...including mercury [2, 3]...have been implicated in the etiology of autism" and "...the impact of these environmental triggers is associated with increases in oxidative stress, and is further exacerbated when combined with genetic susceptibility." Subsequently, these investigators stated [emphasis added], "We have previously reported increased levels of 3-nitrotyrosine (3-NT), a marker of oxidative stress, in ASD cerebella.We have also shown that this increase was associated with an elevation in neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) levels. The objectives of the current study were to determine whether the increase in oxidative stress in ASD is brain region-specific, to identify the specific brain regions affected by oxidative stress, and to compare brain region-specific NT-3 expression between ASD and control cases. The levels of 3-NTand NT-3 were measured with specific ELISAs in individual brain regions of two autistic and age- and post-mortem interval (PMI)–matched control donors. In the control brain, the levels of 3-NT were uniformly low in all brain regions examined ranging from 1.6 to 12.0 pmol/g. On the other hand, there was a great variation in 3-NT levels between individual brain regions of the autistic brains ranging from 1.7 to 281.2 pmol/g. The particular brain regions with the increased 3-NT...are associated with the speech processing, sensory and motor coordination, emotional and social behavior, and memory...These preliminary results reveal, for the first time, brain region-specific changes in oxidative stress marker 3-NT and neurotrophin-3 levels in ASD." Sincerely, Mark & David Geier

Brain Reg...pdf Download(135.2 KB) at website http://mercury-freedrugs.org/

The following article by Anne Dachel, Media Editor for  "Age of Autism"

The father of a student of mine told me about this PBS documentary from 2002. It would be good to remind the experts of their record with autism. A. A ‘Medical Nightmare’—Refrigerator Mothers By Anne Dache l http://www.ageofautism.com/  http://www.njn.net/television/specials/decodingautism/about/watchonline/index.html
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6350283653640651956#
 
How could doctors have gotten it SO WRONG FOR SO LONG? Recently I heard about a PBS Point of View program called Refrigerator Mothers, produced in 2002. The segments I found showed how autism was viewed going back to the 1950s, when cold, unaffectionate mothers were blamed for causing autism. Most interesting was the commentary by the filmmaker, J.J. Hanley, the mother of an autistic son. She recounted that in 1996, when her son was three years old, she was also told by his doctor that she caused him to be autistic. ...“Refrigerator Mothers is a portrait of seven women who represent thousands like them who during the 1950s, 60s, and early 70s, were blamed by the medical establishment and by society at large for causing the autism in their children. It’s about the role of the expert in society and the often unequal relationship between the medical professional, the psychological professional, and the people they treat.” ...Black mother Dorothy Groomer: "I asked …if Steven had autism and it was more than one doctor. At that time it was a team of them over at the University of Illinois. And they said, no. It may be an emotional disturbance, but it was not autism. We did not fit the mold. We did not fit the classic mold for autism—which is white, upper middle class, and very, very bright.” ...Dorothy Groomer continued: “It was really not a negotiable issue. According to my doctors, my son could not be autistic. I was not white and it was assumed that I was not educated. Therefore, he was labeled emotionally disturbed. Here your child has a disability that you recognize and they said no, you can't be that. You can't even be a refrigerator mother. The irony of it all." ...After viewing these parts, all I can say is that I’m sick and tired of doctors never being right about autism. We’ve suffered through decades of false claims. Autism isn’t a puzzling curiosity they can guess at. It’s human suffering on an unbelievable scale. They told us that emotionally cold mothers made their children autistic. This was followed by endless theories on the possible cause: older fathers, older mothers, autism genes, and TV watching. Doctors should be embarrassed about their record with autism. It’s on a parallel with TV commercials showing us a busy doctor and announcing that more doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette. -- Anne Dachel is Media Editor of Age of Autism.

Autism: a Unique Type of Mercury Poisoning

http://whale.to/a/autism7.html

Many thanks to Mary Webster of ACHAMP for providing the following IDEA statistics

National stats - http://www.fightingautism.org/idea/autism.php

State rankings - http://www.fightingautism.org/idea/autism-state-rankings.php

These are 2006 numbers. 2007 data hasn't been released yet.

If you're looking for data from previous years, you'll find it at www.ideadata.org

Child counts -  https://www.ideadata.org/PartBChildCount.asp

THE PHYSICIAN'S DESK REFERENCE (PDR) and VACCINES The Physician's Desk Reference is commonly referred to as "the Doctor's Bible." The PDR is a compilation of drug manufacturers' information for prescription and over the counter drugs, critical to doctors for safe prescribing. The information commonly emphasizes warnings, contraindications and the known adverse reactions related to specific pharmaceuticals. The Physician's Desk Reference lists these causes of death associated with vaccines: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS); anaphylactic shock resulting from an allergic reaction to vaccine components; encephalitis (inflammation of the brain); thrombocytopenia (hemorrhaging to death) and "death" (cause unknown). The Physician's Desk Reference lists these known adverse reactions resulting from vaccination. Manufacturers state that widespread use of vaccines can reveal adverse reactions not noted in clinical trials.

Abscess: A localized collection of pus anywhere in the body surrounded and walled off by damaged and inflamed tissues, usually caused by a local bacterial infection which the body has failed to overcome.

 Agammaglobulinemia: A total deficiency of the plasma protein gamma globulin.

Anaphylaxis: An abnormal reaction to a particular antigen in which histamine is released from tissues and causes either local or systemic symptoms.

Anaphylactic Shock: An extremely serious, generalized allergic reaction in which the widespread release of histamine causes swelling, constriction of the bronchioles, heart failure, circulatory collapse and sometimes death.

Angioedema: An allergic condition producing transient or persistent swelling of areas of the skin accompanied by itching and usually produced by allergies to food, drugs, substances or other allergens.

Apnea: Temporary cessation of breathing from any cause. Common in newborns, it is related to crib death/ SIDS.

Arrhythmia: Irregularity or loss of rhythm of the heartbeat. Aseptic Meningitis: A non-purulent form of meningitis usually caused by viral infection.

Arthralgia: Pain in the joints without swelling or any other sign of arthritis.

Arthritis: Inflammatory disease affecting the muscular walls of the arteries due to connective tissue disease or infection such as syphilis.

Atrophy: The wasting away of a normally developed organ or tissue due to the degeneration of cells.

Bell's Palsy: Paralysis of the facial nerve causing weakness of the muscles of one side of the face and an inability to close the eye.

Conjunctivitis: Inflammation of the delicate mucus membrane that covers the front of the eye and lines the inside of the eyelids, causing a pus-containing or watery discharge usually caused by viral or bacterial infection.

Convulsions: An involuntary contraction of the muscles producing contortion of the body and limbs. Febrile convulsions are provoked by a fever in otherwise healthy infants and children. Deafness: partial or total loss of hearing in one or both ears.

Diabetes Mellitus: A chronic disorder of carbohydrate metabolism, characterized by hyperglycemia and glycosuria, resulting from inadequate production or utilization of insulin.

Dyspepsia: Disordered digestion, usually applied to pain or discomfort in the lower chest or abdomen occurring after eating.

Dyspnea: Labored or difficult breathing due to the obstruction of the flow of air into and out of the lungs; various diseases affecting the tissues of the lungs.

Dysuria: Difficult or painful urination.

Ecchymosis: A bluish-black mark on the skin resulting from the release of blood into the tissues either through injury or through the spontaneous leaking of blood from the vessels.

Edema: Excessive accumulation of fluid in the body tissues.

Encephalitis: Inflammation of the brain caused by a viral or bacterial infection; may also result from an allergic response to a systemic viral illness or vaccination.

Encephalomyelitis: An acute inflammatory disease affecting the brain and spinal cord. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis is a form of delayed tissue hypersensitivity provoked by a mild infection or vaccination.

 Encephalopathy: Any of various diseases that affect the functioning of the brain.

Erythema: Abnormal flushing of the skin caused by dilation of the blood capillaries, often a sign of inflammation and infection. Also; erythema nodosum; erythema multiform; erythema infectiosum.

Gastroenteritis: Inflammation of the stomach and intestine usually due to acute infection by viruses or bacteria.

Guillain-Barre Syndrome: A disease of the peripheral nerves in which there is numbness and weakness in the limbs. Usually develops following a respiratory or gastrointestinal infection that provokes an allergic response in the peripheral nerves.

Meningitis: An inflammation of the meninges of the brain resulting from infection by viruses or bacteria.

Myalgia: Muscle pain.

Necrosis: The death of areas of tissues or bone surrounded by healthy parts. Neuralgia: Severe burning or stabbing pain often following the course of a nerve.

Neuritis: Disease of the peripheral nerves showing the pathological changes of inflammation.

Neuropathy: Any disease of the peripheral nerves usually causing numbness or weakness. In polyneuropathy, many or all of the nerves are involved and the symptoms are most profound at the extremities of the limbs.

Pancreatitis: Inflammation of the pancreas.

Paralysis: Muscle impairment or loss of muscle function that varies in extent, severity and the degree of spasticity or flaccidity, according to the nature of the underlying disease and its distribution in the brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerves or muscles.

Paresthesia: A spontaneously occurring, abnormal tingling sensation resulting from partial damage to the peripheral nerves or damage to sensory fibers in the spinal cord.

Petechia: A small, round, flat, dark red spot caused by bleeding into the skin or beneath the mucous membrane.

Poliomyelitis: Otherwise known as infant paralysis caused by an infectious viral disease affecting the central nervous system.

Purpura: A skin rash resulting from bleeding into the skin from small blood vessels, due either to defects in the capillaries or to a deficiency of blood platelets.

Screaming Syndrome: Sudden, abnormal crying or screaming in infants and children, characterized by loud, high pitched piercing sounds as if provoked by extreme pain.

Sepsis: A putrefactive destruction of the tissues by disease-causing bacteria or other toxins.

Sequela: Any disorder or pathological condition that results from a preceding disease or accident.

Serum Sickness: A reaction that sometimes occurs 7-12 days after injection of a foreign serum. The usual symptoms are rashes, fever, joint pain and enlargement of the lymph nodes.

Spasm: A sustained, involuntary muscular contraction, which may occur, either as part of a generalized disorder or as a local response to an otherwise unconnected, painful condition.

Stupor: A condition of near unconsciousness with apparent mental inactivity and reduced ability to respond to stimuli.

Syncope: Loss of consciousness induced by temporarily insufficient flow of blood to the brain.

Thrombocytopenia: A reduction in the number of platelets in the blood, resulting in bleeding into the skin, spontaneous bruising and prolonged bleeding after injury due to failure of platelet production or excessive destruction of the platelets.

Vasculitis: Inflammation of the walls of small blood vessels.

Definition source: The Bantam Medical Dictionary, copyright 2000 by Market House Books, Ltd

The Role of Cholesterol in Autistic Behaviors

By William Shaw, Ph.D.



The concept of "good" and "bad" cholesterol is a frequent topic of conversation these days. While diet plays an important role in the formation of cholesterol, the genetic factors involved with the synthesis and transport of cholesterol are what typically predispose an individual to cholesterol-related health problems. Many people are unaware that much of our cholesterol is actually manufactured by our body's own cells. Determining the significance of serum cholesterol values is not as simplistic as some might believe.



Discussions about cholesterol in the media are focused primarily on elevated levels in relation to cardiovascular risk; rarely taken into consideration are the risks associated with insufficient cholesterol values of 4.14 mmol/L*; 160 mg/dL* or less. The truth is that low cholesterol can predispose people to violent behavior, suicide, depression, anxiety, deliquency, bipolar disease, Parkinson's disease, manganese deficiency, celiac disease, hyperthyroidism, liver disease, malabsorption, and malnutrition1. This is because cholesterol plays an important role in many physiological factors in the body. The formation of sterol homones, cell membranes, and bile acids, would not be possible without cholesterol.



The brain is the most cholesterol rich organ in the body requiring a large amount to sustain the myelin sheath which coats nerve cells and helps conduct electrical impulses. Cholesterol plays a very important role in brain functioning. In one published study, participants with low, "desirable" cholesterol levels (less than 5.17 mmol/L*; 200 mg/dL*) performed poorer on a range of cognitive functions than participants with borderline-high cholesterol levels (5.17-6.18 mmol/L*; 200-239 mg/dL*) or high cholesterol levels (more than 5.17 mmol/dL*; 240 mg/dL*)2.



The authors concluded that lower cholesterol levels in adults are associated with poorer performance on cognitive measures, which place high demands on abstract reasoning, attention/concentration, word fluency, and executive functioning. Lower cholesterol values were also found in chronic fatigue syndrome3 and in children with dyslexia4.



More recently, it has been discovered that cholesterol is needed to activate a protein called Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) which plays a central role in neural patterning, mood regulation, and cerebral development5. This could be why individuals with cholesterol deficiency are more prone to aggressive behavior, lack of attention, increased number of infections, and motor difficulty6. Cholesterol is essential for proper functioning of serotonin receptors which are responsible for good mood and oxytocin receptors needed for good social interactions and interpersonal bonding7.



It is not surprising then that a genetic condition which causes deficiency of cholesterol in the body called Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (SLOS) is associated with autistic features8. Doctors and researchers have known about SLOS for decades, however most autistic chldren are not routinely screened for cholesterol deficiency because only a small protion of the autistic population carries this gene mutation. This paradigm may change in the near future due to recent research that shows cholesterol deficiency is common even in the autisic population without the SLOS gene mutation.



Dr. Richard Kelly and Dr. E. Tierney at John Hopkins University involved in SLOS research investigated the incidence of cholesterol deficiency in blood samples from a group of subjects with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) from families in which more than one individual had ASD, but not SLOS. Although no sample had values consistent with SLOS, 19 samples (19%) had total cholesterol levels lower than 2.59 mmol/L*; 100 mg/dL*. The researchers found that cholesterol was low, not as a result of excessive breakdown, but because of reduced production. These extremely low values are considered to be the fifth or lower percentile of normal children the same age8. The prevalence of cholesterol deficiency was confirmed at The Great Plains Laboratory, Inc. which performed cholesterol testing on 17.5% of those studied at The Great Plains Laboratory, Inc. had extremely low cholesterol values of less than 4.14 mmol/L*; 160 mg/dL*.



The children with SLOS and cholesterol deficiency who were given medical grade cholesterol supplementaion quickly improved. Many children improved within days of taking cholesterol supplementation, even before cholesterol values had increased in the blood. This indicates that the improvements may be a result of cholesterol forming its derivatives - such as steroid hormones or bile salts. Parents reported that their children were sleeping through the night, overcoming aggressive behaviors, walking, speaking and becoming more responsive to family members. Other parents reported decreased reates of infections, reduced skin rashes, reduced self-injurious behaviors, improved muscle tones, rapid growth and improved behavior overall. It was reported that one autistic adult, without speech, even spoke for the first time8.



Cholesterol screening is an extremely useful tool to determine if dietary changes and cholesterol supplementation are necessary. The Advanced Cholesterol Panel performed at The Great Plains Laboratory, Inc. includes reference ranges which take into account the significance of low cholesterol and also measure important markers in cholesterol transport, Apolipoprotein A-1 (Apo A-1), Apolipoprotein B (Apo B), Apolipoprotein a (Apo a) and homocysteine. The test is inexpensive and should be ordered routinely by physicians for their autistic patients. Parents of autistic chldren should seek testing for cholesterol deficiency without hesitation. if individuals have difficulty finding a doctor, they may utilize GetSonicCholesterol.com, a service provided by Dr. Woeller. A pure medical grade cholesterol supplementation called "Sonic Cholesterol" is available with a physician prescription through New Beginnings Nutritionals for patients with cholesterol values that are below 4.14 mmol/L*; 160 mg/dL*.



*Some countries (Canada, Europe, Middle East, and other) report cholesterol levels using mmol/L while the U.S. and Latin America use mg/dL.





References:


1. Modai I, et al. Serum cholesterol levels and suicidal tendencies in psychiatric inpatients. J Clin Psychiatry. 1994 Jun;55(6):252-4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8071280

2. Elias P, et al. Serum cholesterol and cognitive performance in the Framingham Heart Study. Psychosomatic Medicine 67: 24-30 (2005). http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=15673620

3. Talking Point, Official Journal of the M.E./C.F.S. Society (SA) Inc. June 2001, page 38. http://sacfs.asn.au/download/talking_point/Talking%20Point%20-%202001%20Issue%202.pdf

4. Saviour P, et al. Familial patterns and biological markers of dyslexia. Int J Hum Genet, 9(1): 21-29 (2009). http://www.krepublishers.com/02-Journals/IJHG/IJHG-09-0-000-09-Web/IJHG-09-1-000-09-Abst-PDF/IJHG-09-1-021-09-320-Saviour-P/IJHG-09-1-021-09-320-Saviour-P-Tt.pdf

5. Pearson A. NewScientist.com news service, Aria Pearson, 17:00 22 January 2007. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn11005-protecting-fetuses-from-mothers-who-drink.html

6. Glueck CJ, et al. Hypocholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, suicide, and suicide ideation in children hospitalized for psychiatric diseases. Pediatr Res. 1994 May;35(5):602-10. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8065845

7. Cassidy F, Carroll BJ. Hypocholesterolemia during mixed manic episodes. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2002 Jun;252(3):110-4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12192467

8. Sikora DM, Pettit-Kekel K, Penfield J, Merkens LS, Steiner RD. The near universal presence of autism spectrum disorders in children with Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome. Am J Med Genet A. 2006 Jul 15;140(14):1511-8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16761297



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