AUTISM AND DETOXIFICATION
(Reasons
to add Extreme Healths Liver Support Formula)Could
autistic children be the proverbial "canaries in the coal mine"
whose nervous systems are more susceptible to the impact of toxic
heavy metals in the environment, incurring neurological damage even
at low exposure levels?
One recent study
found that in one group of 18 autistic children, 16 had blood levels
of toxic heavy metals and chemicals exceeding adult maximum tolerance.
This build-up of toxins may not arise simply from excessive exposure,
but from a marked inability to process and eliminate toxins from
the body. Indeed, when the children were assessed using a biochemical
analysis to gauge the bodys ability to detoxify substances,
researchers found that every child showed out-of-range results suggesting
a defect in this two-phase detoxification process. Such a mechanism
could lead to a back-up of toxic heavy metals and chemical toxins
and increased free radical activity in the body, the researchers explained.
Since the blood-brain barrier of children is still not fully developed,
these toxic and oxidized molecules could penetrate into regions of
the brain and damage neutrons, receptors, synapses, enzymes, and cell
mitochondria, and also set off auto immune reactions that trigger
further damage.
According to other
studies, autistic children may have problems metabolizing and detoxifying
certain compounds due to an impaired biochemical process called sulfation.
Sulfation plays an important role in the second phase (phase2) of
the detoxification process. Impaired sulfation could make autistic
children more vulnerable to multiple heavy metal and chemical sensitivities.
It could also help explain an exacerbation of behavioral problems
after children eat foods containing phenol, tyramine, and phenyl compounds,
which are normally neutralized through the sulfation process.
AUTISTM AND
HAIR TESTING
Much concern has
been raised over the link between exposure to heavy metal toxins and
neurological brain damage associated with learning and behavior disorders
in children. Indeed, research shows that exposure to heavy metals
such as lead, mercury and antimony, can impair brain development at
very early ages-even at low doses previously deemed "harmless".
Children are particularly
susceptible to the deleterious effects of heavy metal exposure for
several reasons. First, their developing nervous systems are more
sensitive. Second, their bodies absorb toxins, more rapidly, yet clear
them from the system more slowly, than adults. Finally, a childs
blood-brain barrier, the natural protective mechanism which blocks
harmful substances from entering and damaging the brain, is not yet
fully formed.
Many professionals
working in the field of autism have expressed concern that some autistic
children may have been exposed to potentially damaging levels of ethyl
mercury, contained in a preservative used in certain vaccinations.
Clinical neurobehavioral symptoms of mercury poisoning, they point
out, seem to closely parallel many common symptoms of autism. In response
to pressure from the FDA, the U.S. Public Health Service, and other
regulatory health agencies, vaccine manufactures have since worked
to reduce or eliminate the use of ethylmercury as a preservative in
many vaccines.
In addition, several
studies have associated high lead levels in children with autism.
Elevated levels of lead in hair, signify long-term toxic exposure
to this heavy metal, have been correlated with increased behavior
abnormalities and learning disorders in children. Based on clinicians
observations, antimony, a potential toxin found in some fire retardant
materials, is also a possible cause for concern.
Extended
Healths Oral Chelation and Longevity Formula includes 50
different ingredients to replenish.)
Nutritional balance
and healthy metabolism are also very important. Dr. Lynn Wecker and
his colleagues at Louisiana State Medical Centre observe that trace
elements imbalances in the human body can disrupt neurotransmitter
function and produce marked changes in behavior-many of which are
consistent with symptoms of autism. For this reason, Dr. Wecker and
his team evaluated trace element concentrations in the hair of autistic
children. They found clear deficiencies of calcium, copper, zinc,
and chromium that were so striking that they allowed them to discriminate
between autistic children and healthy controls with a high degree
of accuracy, using just test results. Deficiencies of mineral nutrients
can make a child more susceptible to heavy metal absorption. Magnesium
deficiencies, associated with attention-deficit disorder and hyperactivity,
may also be clinically significant in autism.
ELEMENTAL HAIR
ANALYSIS
Elemental Analysis
(hair, blood, or urine) evaluates body burden of heavy metal toxins
and nutritional adequacy of important mineral elements. Each specimen
type provides a unique window into element status. A hair sample will
reflect chronic toxic exposure and long-term.