Biomedical Interventions to Improve Behavior, Memory, and Learning
Heal the gut and the rest will follow.
Originally developed in 2009, this presentation was put together specifically for parents of children with diagnoses of Autism, Asperger's Syndrome, ADHD, and Learning Disabilities. I am publishing it here and now because everything that is included is still very relevant. I am also doing this now, as a follow-up to my recent article, The Gastrointestinal Tract: Your First Line of Defense Against Toxins, as several people have asked for more information on how to help heal the gut.
The presentation first gives an overview of the history of biomedical interventions. This is followed by presentation of the paradigm shift of viewing autism as a mental disorder to viewing autism as a whole-body disorder, including recommendations for addressing the underlying issues through diet and nutritional supplementation. Finally, I present a case study of one of my former clients - a five-year-old boy who was referred by his parents, due to concerns about his aggressive behavior. This little boy had been prescribed Risperdal (an anti-psychotic medication) at the age of two years because his behavior was so out-of-control. As you will see, with effective assessment, labs, and biomedical interventions, he was very quickly off of the anti-psychotic and on the road to healing with improvements in behavior, allowing him to be better prepared to enter kindergarten.
Biomedical interventions are not new. Abram Hoffer and Linus Pauling were researching and applying these same strategies in the 1960s and 1970s, as the fathers of orthomolecular medicine.
Since this presentation was first developed in 2009, the rates of autism and ADHD have continued to climb, with the CDC’s most recent numbers indicating that autism affects 1 in 36 American children. CDC’s numbers indicate that 1 in 6 American children are diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental disability, including autism and ADHD/ADD. The CDC’s autism prevalence number represents data that was collected in 2020 on children who were born in 2012. By the CDC’s own data, the autism prevalence in the United States has been increasing by 13% per year since at least the year 2000. Since the 1 in 36 number does not include any children who are currently (2024) below the age of twelve (data collected in 2020 on then 8-year-olds), it should be easy to understand that the 1 in 36 number is out of date and a vast underestimate of the true incidence of autism. Same goes for the true incidence of ADHD/ADD and all other neurodevelopmental disabilities.
When the CDC announced in 2012 that the number of children with autism was 1 in 88, I did a calculation using the 13% yearly increase to find out just what the true incidence would be. Those calculations resulted in an article on VaxTruth, entitled, “When 1 in 88 is really 1 in 29.” VaxTruth is no longer active but can be reached through the Wayback Machine.
All of these "diagnoses" are based on behavioral symptoms. They all have the same underlying factors that contribute to the physical degeneration, which results in the behavioral symptoms. Those underlying factors involve things that impact the immune system, the digestive system, the excretory system, the neurological system, the cardiovascular system...in essence, the child as a whole person.
These are the numbers come from Dr. Kenneth Bock’s book, Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma, and Allergies. The book was published in 2008. Again, since the same underlying factors are contributing to the increases in these childhood epidemics, the numbers presented in this slide (and in Dr. Bock’s book) are vast underestimates of the current rates of neuro-immune disorders in American children.
The gastrointestinal system is the first line of defense against toxins. If first and second-degree relatives had problems with GI disorders, perhaps it's because they were living in areas where they were exposed to high levels of toxins. Many toxins alter DNA, which means that if Grandma and Grandpa's lives were impacted by exposure to toxins, the lives of their grandchildren will be affected, and the impact is expected to be more damaging at lower doses/exposures.
At the time I put this presentation together, I was working in a clinical setting and seeing children who had been diagnosed with autism, ADHD/ADD, and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Some of what you will see in this presentation comes from my experience working with patients. The slide above is from my Child Developmental History Form, which was developed over a number of years, beginning when I was working in a neuropsychology private practice in Silver Spring, Maryland. I learned, through listening to the parents and gathering the data, that many children who are later diagnosed with neurodevelopmental disorders have histories of feeding difficulties in infancy.
If I were working with your family, one of the first things I would want to know is if your child had problems with feeding as an infant. Problems with breast-feeding may be related to allergies to casein (the protein in milk) or could be related to allergies to foods that Mom is eating. Colic is also one of the first symptoms of lead poisoning. Lead mimics calcium in the body and is stored for decades after exposure. So, if Mom has ever had exposure to lead, she may be passing it on to her child, in utero, and through breastmilk.
History of soy formula is very common in the children I have seen who are diagnosed with ADHD and/or autism. Soy is problematic for many reasons. It is high in estrogen, which disrupts the endocrine (hormonal) system. It is also related to problems with reflux and erosion of the esophagus. Soy formula may contain between 80-200 times the amount of manganese found in breast milk. Manganese is an essential nutrient, in very small doses. Too much produces manganese-madness (cognitive problems). This is an excellent article (from 2009) for more information on manganese toxicity from soy formula. And here is a more recent article, published in 2020, which calls for the cessation of manganese supplementation in infant formula, due to neurotoxic effects in infants.
This is not a "stim." This is a child in pain. He is trying to decrease the pain in his gut by putting pressure on his abdomen.
Take home message: There is a lot of real estate here in which things can go wrong. If you have a "scope" done by a physician who is only "humoring you" as the parent of a child with autism, you are very likely to get results that are not conclusive, because they are not comprehensive.
If your child has a problem in his or her gut, he or she is at increased risk of chronic immune system problems, including bacterial and viral infections.
Children who bang their heads and who bite and scratch themselves are not "stimming" - they are in pain. Those "professionals" who want you to deny this fact do not have your child's best interest at heart.
Side notes:
(1) High copper is very common in ASD kids. Copper and zinc have an inverse relationship. Zinc deficiency is one of the most common findings in ASD kids. If you start supplementing zinc and you suddenly have a head-banger where you didn't before, you need to slow down on the zinc supplementation. If you go too fast, you will pull copper too quickly from places where it is sequestered and this will cause a whopping headache - hence, the head-banging.
(2) Other children who head-bang, and who also head-butt (like a Billy goat) are often doing so because they have a viral infection (often HHV-6) that is causing inflammation and swelling (encephalitis) in the brain. These kids often respond very well to supplementation with lithium orotate (elemental lithium), which is a natural anti-viral that is especially effective against the herpes viruses. Start very slow (0.5 mg) and work up to a target dose of 2-5 mg. once or twice per day.
Note: At the time when this presentation was developed (2009), the research on PANDAS was in its infancy. Since that time research has identified other microbial infections that can cause the same type of waxing and waning neurological symptoms. For more information, please visit this website.
NOTE: This figure was taken from the Nourishing Hope website, credit given to Julie Matthews and to Dr. Martha Herbert (mentioned earlier in this presentation).
"Autism" used to be considered a brain disorder and all other manifestations (behavior, gut problems, etc...) were thought to be just part of "autism." We now know that "autism" is a Whole-Body Disorder and the inflammation, toxicity, and gastrointestinal damage is what causes the "psychological" or brain-associated manifestations such as impulsivity, inattention, psychosis, sensory-integration dysfunction, and cognitive difficulties.
This is a complete paradigm-shift that has taken many years for some to catch onto, but it IS HAPPENING. Thanks to professionals like Julie Matthews, Martha Herbert, Andrew Wakefield, Arthur Krigsman, and the all-time number one guru: Bernie Rimland.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders very frequently carry the MTHFR genetic mutation which makes folic acid (synthetic) not a good option for them. Food supplies this natural form. In supplements, choose the bio-active form of folate.
Note: Many children who cannot tolerate cow’s milk are able to tolerate Ghee because the lactose and casein have been removed.
Breaking The Vicious Cycle Book (SCD)
Gut And Psychology Syndrome Book (GAPS)
IMPORTANT NOTE: Do Not supplement with FOLIC ACID! Use Folinic Acid or methyl-folate instead. Children with MTHFR mutation CANNOT tolerate Folic Acid and should not receive it!! Click here for more information on the bio-active form of folate.
Note: I will never forget the look on “Brandon’s” face when I asked him at our first meeting if his tummy hurt. He got very serious as he looked at me and said, "Lots.” When I asked him how often his tummy hurts, he got tears in his eyes and answered, “Every day.” Everyone in his life was so focused on his behavior. No one had ever asked him if his tummy hurt.
Note: Cravings for fermented foods like pickles, ketchup and grapes are often indicators of yeast overgrowth.
Note: The recommendation to resume the Risperdal in the morning was made as a temporary suggestion to help mediate behavior in the short-term. As it turned out, with additional adjustments in minerals and continued dietary interventions, the Risperdal was not necessary.
Yes.
For more on gluten and casein, and the relationship to alcohol and drug addiction, please read:
Perhaps you may have insight on this situation: child with autism, age 3, only eats wide variety of meat, vegetables, fruit, yogurt, milk. Never grains, anything sugary. Always drinks water, coconut water, never juices. All foods home cooked, not packaged. Just introduced some rice in last month. Makes wide variety of sounds, but does not talk. Any suggestions?
The advice about dietary changes to help non-verbal, autistic children is great, but what does one do when the child will not eat anything but white bread of a specific brand, milk of a specific brand, juice boxes of a specific brand and container design, Milano cookies, potato chips of a specific brand and every now and then, a PB&J sandwich. DON’T try changing a brand on her, she knows. And DON’T try adding anything to the juice, she knows and will thrown the full container away. This has been going on for YEARS and no one can understand how the child grows and has good strength. “Feeding therapy” resulted in major negative behavioral changes. What to do, short of tying her down and inserting a feeding tube? She is now 9. As a toddler, she ate applesauce, toddler fruit and vegetable pouchies and eggs, but since about age 4, the diet is what is described above.