February 5, 2012

Do you know a child with Autism?
15 years ago most of us would have answered no. But in 2005, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) effects 1 in 150 in the UK1 and 1 in 166 in the US,2 up from 1 in 10,000 in the early 90’s. More alarmingly, roughly 1 in 100 boys are affected. Autism rates in Australia are similar according to many Paediatric specialists, though at this stage no official figures are available.

Australian figures on paediatric illness are equally unsettling with 1 in 4 children diagnosed with asthma (more than doubled in 10 years) and 1 in 6 having some sort of learning, behavioural or immune disorder.3 In the United States 6.4 % of children aged 3-17 have been diagnosed with attention deficit.4

One need look no further than our nut-free schools, the expanding wheat and dairy-free sections at the supermarket, the school “Ritalin bell” summoning kids for their tea-time pill, the burgeoning industry of language, literacy and numeracy programs, the increased use of grommets, the thriving practice of adenoidectomies and tonsillectomies and an increase in the number of hospital clinics now dealing with paediatric food allergies to realise that something in the past 15 years or so has triggered neurobiological, neurodevelopmental and autoimmune issues in our children.

A growing number of scientists and physicians are pointing to oxidative stress, due to toxic overload, as the underlying cause of the sudden and dramatic increase in many paediatric disorders including; ASD, ADHD, dyspraxia, dyslexia, asthma, and eczema. Most agree that there is some contributing genetic factor since not all children are affected. Autoimmune issues are also a big problem in autism and many AIDS specialists around the world are jumping on the ASD bandwagon to understand why these children are demonstrating autoimmune issues similar to those found in AIDS with a host of chronic viral and bacterial infections particularly in the brain, the digestive and urinary tracts and the ear, nose and throat.

The biomedical approach to autism acknowledges that there are actually many “autisms” and that the ASD children are experiencing multi-system breakdowns that vary greatly by individual. Treatment focuses on restoring cellular health by increasing nutrients and eliminating toxins that impair them, which in turn improves metabolism, immunity, neurological function, endocrine activity and digestion.

The biomedical model focuses on four key steps to restore cellular health; gastro intestinal healing, nutritional supplementation, dietary intervention and detoxification of heavy metals and chemicals. There is a strong focus on the individual which requires a series of diagnostic tests followed by customised supplementation, diet and detoxing. These results can be dramatic and life-changing for a child who can experience improved speech and socialisation, better sleep patterns, less bedwetting and more subtle improvements in immunity and eating habits.

By improving biochemistry, the ASD patient is better able to break down and absorb food which reduces the load of candida yeast, strep virus, clostridia bacteria and many other pathogens that thrive on undigested foods in the gastro intestinal tract.
Starving these pathogens and healing “leaky gut” leads to improved cognition, concentration, digestion and immune system function. Detoxing heavy metals also improves immunity and brain function and allows the body to detox better on an ongoing basis. The result is better nutrient absorption, fewer infections and less need for antibiotics, grommets, puffers, Ritalin, antacids, cortisone cream, adenoidectomies and tonsillectomies. Unveiling the underlying cause of so many paediatric disorders may prove to be the silver lining in Autism.

The biomedical model also requires that various modalities work together: naturopathy, nutrition, craniosacral therapy, acupuncture, kinesiology, osteopathy, chiropractic care, energy work, holistic dentistry, behavioural optometry, breath work and homœopathy can all help. Improved digestion and metabolism leads to improved brain chemistry which better supports therapies including; ABA, speech, auditory and visual processing, sensory integration, motor coordination, literacy and numeracy programs and so on.

The Biomedical Approach has gained a strong following over the past 40 years in large part due to Dr. Bernard Rimland, founder of the Autism Research Institute in San Diego. In 1964, Dr. Rimland published Infantile Autism: The Syndrome and Its Implications For a Neural Theory of Behaviour successfully debunking the conventionally accepted “psychogenic hypothesis” that Autism was an emotional disorder caused by bad mothering. Dr. Rimland knew nothing about Autism, despite 6 years of advanced study and a PhD in psychology. when his autistic son Mark was born in 1956, with this then rare disorder.

Why has the Biomedical approach gained such a following despite skepticism from the medical mainstream? The short answer comes from Dr. Rimland, “do what works”. Desperate to “cure” their own children, Dr. Rimland’s team of researchers and clinicians (Defeat Autism Now! - DAN!) put their own research to practice and found good results with nutritional medicine, gut healing, dietary intervention and detoxification. And while their biomedical approach has not yet been peer-reviewed, (government and pharmaceutical funding has not been forthcoming), the DAN! physician’s training is now accredited with many well-respected institutions including Harvard University.

Dr. John Green, a colleague of Dr. Rimland’s, and a longtime biomedical practitioner, describes this approach in more detail; “The first basic process is the identification and treatment or removal of obstacles to healthy organ activity…Commonly encountered obstacles include allergies and food intolerances, metal and chemical toxicities, infections (fungal, viral bacterial, parasitic, and mycoplasmal), oxidative stress (problems with electrons moving around in the body out of control), nutrient depletion (zinc, magnesium, selenium, B vitamins, essential fatty acids), acidosis (too much acid being produced in the system, though usually not in the stomach, where it is needed), and psychosocial stress (sensory issues, confusion, frustration, difficulty recognising and receiving love). A child may show major improvement simply by clearing an obstacle which is troubling him, such as food intolerance, yeast infection, or metal poisoning.”5

Also central to the biomedical model is the concept outlined in Dr. Jacquelyn McCandless’ book Children With Starving Brains in which she explains that ASD children have “malnourished” brains due to various etiologies including auto immune response that attacks neurons and interferes with synaptic development, neurotoxicity that blocks nutrient access to the brain, inflammation that leads to injury and death of brain cells, nutritional deficiencies in diet, and gastrointestinal problems that cause malabsorption and brain fog. Dr. McCandless urges parents to begin biomedical intervention immediately as younger children show the most dramatic improvement.

The biomedical model requires a different dynamic between patient (the parent in this case) and practitioner. The parent becomes the clinician administering nutrients, monitoring symptoms and managing dietary intervention. This requires the parent to be very knowledgeable and for the practitioner to educate and to listen carefully to clinical observation from the parents. Physician consultations are long, assessing history and a very thorough examination of the child. Typical physical markers in autism, ADD and other neuro-developmental disorders include; white lines in the nails from zinc deficiency, stinky breath and bloated tummy from gut dysbiosis, dry hair and skin from lack of essential fatty acids, dark circles under the eyes from food intolerances.

The Biomedical approach to Autism proposes a framework not yet embraced by conventional medicine. Yet the basis of it is fundamental biochemistry that makes a strong case in two simple steps; nutrients in and toxins out. This model goes way down the chain to the core cause, beyond grommets, puffers, Ritalin, cortisone cream and antibiotics.

Many parents stew over unanswered questions; Did neurotoxins from vaccines damage my child’s neurological, immunological and digestive function? Did antibiotics and low beneficial gut bacteria compromise my child’s immunity? Did lead seep out of the mother’s bones and into breast milk (not a reason to stop breastfeeding)? Did mercury from dental amalgams travel through the umbilical cord into the unborn child? Did hereditary blood, metabolic, or allergic disorders affect nutrient profiles and immunity?

The Biomedical approach recognises that there is no single answer. The complexity of the interaction between the metabolic, immuno, neurologic and digestive systems (not to mention the endocrine and muscular-skeletal systems as well as the emotional and metaphysical realms) requires the physician to treat the individual based on their unique chemistry, genetic factors, and environmental influences.

ASD children do not have 25 years to wait for “accepted” research. Clinical experience shows that the younger the child, the more effective is the biomedical intervention. In an ideal world, each Australian city would have a government-sponsored ASD clinic housing teams of specialists in biomedicine, ABA, nutrition, neurodevelopment, naturopathy, homœopathy, craniosacral, chiropractic, kinesiology, motor therapy, auditory and visual processing, sensory integration, speech and sound therapy, psychology, literacy and numeracy, retained primitive reflexes, holistic dentistry and so on.

DAN! Co-Chair Dr. Elizabeth Mumper sums up the current paediatric health crisis very poignantly; “Evolutionary changes to cellular biochemistry to get rid of toxins happen at a glacial pace. Human changes to increase our toxic burden have happened at Mach speed.” In short, the biomedical practitioners are finding that both ASD and non-ASD children are suffering from toxic overload that alters neurotransmission, energy production, cellular chemistry and even DNA production. All health practitioners and officials need to be looking carefully at the origins of our children’s toxic burdens!

Children with Autism have been likened to canaries in a coal mine. Their silence is a penetrating cry for clean air, clean water, clean soil; wholesome food that is toxic-free, unrefined, and unprocessed; education that respects intuitive communication and a creative approach for the individual; medicine that nurtures immunity and avoids the hubris of trying to conquer all disease; and adults that work together to heal them and their planet.


U.K. Department of Health
U.S. Center for Disease Control
Changing Habits Changing Lives
U.S. National Center For Health Statistics
Treating Autism, Dr. Bernard Rimland