Risperdal and S100B: Prolactin, Tumors and Tardive Dyskinesia - AGE OF AUTISM

Risperdal and S100B: Prolactin, Tumors and Tardive Dyskinesia - AGE OF AUTISM

With Autism numbers climbing, there are those who look to the profit margin of knowing thousands of children, teens and young adults may need medications to "target behavior."   It is unfortunate and incorrect that Autism is still being looked at as a behavioral and developmental disability for many instead of a neuroimmune disease that manifests in repetitive behaviors, anxiety and verbal/social regression. For many, like my daughter, that regression came about after vaccinations.  These children tend to be very vulnerable canaries to toxins, thus medications can prove to be problematic for many.  It is important to know the mechanism of action in treating symptoms short term, but especially long term as some of these drugs have severe side effects that increase with dosage as well as duration.  

Recently, I wrote about a new study showing that over a third of children with an autism diagnosis had high levels of S100B in their blood, a calcium-binding protein that is produced primarily by astrocytes and is indicative of active brain injury.  While reading about S100B, I started to realize that some abstracts and research about Risperdal and other anti-psychotic medications were appearing that seemed to show a pattern.  

More @ http://www.ageofautism.com/2012/05/risperdal-and-s100b-prolactin-tumors-and-tardive-dyskinesia.html

Autism expert urges more research - and skepticism | The Marion Star | marionstar.com

Autism expert urges more research - and skepticism | The Marion Star | marionstar.com

MARION - Beware of snake-oil salesmen.

That time-old saying is true today, according to an autism expert who spoke recently at The Ohio State University at Marion.

Joshua Diehl, who has extensively researched autism, addressed a packed Guthery Room in Maynard Hall. Diehl focused on research-backed treatment options for autism while discussing upcoming changes to how autism is classified.

He also warned parents to be careful when they hear something online promising a new treatment for autism, suggesting some of the promises to be true.

More @ http://www.marionstar.com/article/20120514/NEWS01/205140301/Autism-expert-urges-research-skepticism?odyssey=nav%7Chead

Anat Baniel Method and Austism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Austism Spectrum Disorder

More About Treatment for Autism in Children with the Anat Baniel MethodIt is estimated that one in 100 children is on the autism spectrum. The diagnosis is mostly based on the observation of repetitive, restricted and stereotypical patterns of behavior and on impairments in communication skills and in social interactions. 

With the Anat Baniel Method we see the compulsiveness and rigidity that these kids exhibit, coupled with their difficulty to relate, to transition and their often compromised coordination and poor organization of movement, as a manifestation of their brain’s inability to differentiate and form patterns like those in healthy brains. 

Movement is the language of the brain. Movement communicates with the brain, providing it with the necessary information it requires to form and organize itself, and in turn, through its experiences, to learn to organize the movements of the body, of thinking, of feeling, of emotion, and of all action. To understand more about these ideas, we recommend reading Kids Beyond Limits.When we work with a child on the autism spectrum, rather than try to make him do what he would have been doing had he not had this condition, which frequently leads to limited results, we use movement with attention and the other Nine Essentials to communicate with the child’s brain, helping it heal. As a result the child begins connecting more fully with himself, with his body and with what he feels, awakening his attention and his ability to make sense of himself and the world around him.You can learn more about how the method works by doing Anat’s workshop for parents of special needs kidsMore @ http://www.anatbanielmethod.com/children/austism-spectrum-disorder

Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS) is not an autism treatment, it's poison!

Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS) Is Toxic!

Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS) is being touted on the Internet as a natural antibiotic and cure-all for a wide range of diseases and afflictions: colds and flu (including swine flu), malaria, cancer, "HIV & AIDS," fungus, and, more recently, autism. But MMS is actually a synthetic industrial chemical - it is a concentrated (28%) chlorine bleach - sodium chlorite. When MMS is "activated," it creates CLO2, chlorine dioxide, a very strong chemical oxidizer and bleaching agent. CLO2 is the active molecule in many water purification systems. It does kill germs, but it is toxic. If you ingest it in the concentrations recommended, it can cause you direct harm.CLO2 is a toxic chemical oxidizer
More @ http://www.cqs.com/mms.htm

Certain Children w/ Autism Show More Improvement Than Others

Certain Children With Autism Show More Improvement Than Others - Yahoo! News

MONDAY, April 2 (HealthDay News) -- About 10 percent of children with autism experience rapid gains in skills -- progressing from severely affected to high functioning -- but minority children with less-educated mothers are much less likely than richer white kids to fall into this group, a new study suggests. 

Analyzing nearly 7,000 California children with autism, researchers from Columbia University in New York City also found that these kids typically display six typical patterns of social, communication and repetitive behaviors and that those whose symptoms were least severe at diagnosis tend to improve more quickly than others. 

"These children follow really different pathways over time, changing at very different paces and according to very different patterns," said study author Christine Fountain, a postdoctoral researcher at Columbia's Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy. "Most children do get better, at least a little bit. But we found it somewhat surprising that about 10 percent improve really rapidly and to a great extent."

Autism May Begin at Very Early Phases of Brain Development | Blog | Autism Speaks

Autism May Begin at Very Early Phases of Brain Development | Blog | Autism Speaks

Ten years ago, my research team found evidence of brain overgrowth in many toddlers who developed autism. Just last year, we published a study showing that the larger brains of young children with autism have an excess number of brain cells, or neurons, in the part of the brain known as the frontal cortex. In the study we published today, we found clues to how this excess occurs. 

Our study found dysfunction in several gene networks that may affect the number of neurons that are generated during the second trimester of pregnancy, when about 40 billion neurons are produced in the developing brain. We also found abnormality in gene networks that affect the number of neurons that survive through the second and third trimesters. Not all early neurons are meant to survive. Some play temporary roles during brain development and are supposed to die off when their job is done. In fact, “apoptosis” or naturally occurring cell death, is a normal and important part of prenatal brain development. By way of analogy, consider the scaffolding set up when constructing a building and then taken down once the building is finished. With autism, one possibility is that some of these “scaffolding” neurons remain. This may contribute to the excess of neurons and abnormal brain wiring. 

These findings are exciting. We’ve known that something happens very, very early in the development of the brain: There are too many neurons in frontal brain regions. Now, we also know some of the genetic basis for this: abnormal gene activity in specific networks. This appears to rule out many speculations about post-natal causes of autism. Instead, it points strongly to prenatal events, at least in a majority of cases. 

Importantly, this gives us hope that, one day, research will find ways to normalize gene activity and related neural growth and function. Normally frontal brain circuits are not fully formed at birth. They develop slowly across childhood. This provides a wide window of opportunity for intervention.

A Mechanism To Improve Learning And Memory

A Mechanism To Improve Learning And Memory: "This process, known as synaptic plasticity, has been proposed as the cellular basis for learning and memory. Indeed, alterations in synaptic plasticity mechanisms are thought to be responsible for multiple cognitive deficits, such as autism, Alzheimer's disease and several forms of mental retardation.

The study by Knafo et al. provides new information on the molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity, and how this process may be manipulated to improve cognitive performance. They find that synapses can be made more plastic by using a small protein fragment (peptide) derived from a neuronal protein involved in cell-to-cell communication. This peptide (called FGL) initiates a cascade of events inside the neuron that results in the facilitation of synaptic plasticity. Specifically, the authors found that FGL triggers the insertion of new neurotransmitter receptors into synapses in a region of the brain called the hippocampus, which is known to be involved in multiple forms of learning and memory. Importantly, when this peptide was administered to rats, their ability to learn and retain spatial information was enhanced. "

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Gene mutation in autism found to cause hyperconnectivity in brain's hearing center

Gene mutation in autism found to cause hyperconnectivity in brain's hearing center: "These effects could be blocked, however, by chemically negating the effect of PTEN loss. One of the pathways regulated by the PTEN protein involves shutting down an intracellular enzyme called mTORC1, which promotes cell growth, among other things. Zador's group found that treating the PTEN-deficient mice for 10 days with the mTORC1-inhibitor rapamycin prevented an increase in dendritic spine number and signal strength."

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Autism, Epilepsy and Self-Injurious Behavior: DSM-5 Autistic Spectrum Disorder Disaster

Autism, Epilepsy and Self-Injurious Behavior: DSM-5 Autistic Spectrum Disorder Disaster: "Has the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Lost It’s Collective Mind? Have the “36,000 Physician Leaders in mental health” ignored history? After all, decades of autism research show self-injurious behavior is a hallmark trait of severe autism.

Hundreds of research studies have been published on autism and self-injurious behavior. Hundreds of papers are written about autistics who present with self-injurious behavior. Thousands of experts have discussed the challenges of self-injury among autistics. Yet, today, you see no mention of self-injurious behavior in DSM-5 autism diagnosis."

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