Autism | INFJ Forum

Autism

Jack

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Mar 25, 2010
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My thoughts? I think it would be a good idea to approach her claims with skepticism.

First, there is a great deal of controversy as to the autism/vaccine link. (They
 
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I have a tendency for skepticism too, so I will agree with you that the suggested cure did look a little sketchy, however, google seems to be flooded with anecdotal reports of how various people have cured autism through homeopathic treatment and hopefully the other video can help us find room to be skeptical of the establishment as well.

I am sure your friends love their children very much, and it's for their sake that I am spreading this information. The number one reason that would likely keep people from getting over something like autism, would be the misconception that it is incurable.
 
This is a very interesting topic.

Personally Im not convinced of the actual nature of 'autism'. I think theres a lot we dont understand and that the austim is overdiagnosed and overlabled. Similar to the pheonomena of adhd. I also think that diet, lifestyle, attitude, culture and environment have a huge role in the development of autism.

Orthodox medicine, public health authorities and pharmaceutical companies all have their own agendas, as well as alternative medicine practioners. Everyone is full of shit, but to what extent? Who has most to gain?

In terms of human psychology, the single most important factor for any treatment to be effective is whether or not the person believes it will be effective. Nothing is more powerful than the human mind. I believe that all sickness can be prevented, managed and healed. Its all about finding the roots of the sickness, and treating the whole body and the person.

I am far more cynical than I want to be- and I strongly believe that if conventional medicine had found the 'cure for autism' that it would not be made public. The health industry or the 'sickness industry' doesnt care about preventing or curing sickness, only masking symptoms and profiting from them. I am not judging individual doctors or scientists, I am judging and criticising the entire industry as a whole, and the paradigms that they base their approach to illness. I know some brilliant doctors that certainly can think for themselves and are not just drug pushers.

As with anything, do you own research and homework. Ask questions and question answers. And most importantly, keep and open mind and keep questioning yourself.
 
If a cure for autism had been found, either by conventional or alternative therapies, it would be extraordinarily difficult to keep it secret because the parents of autistic children talk to each other. They have message boards. They network together, share experiences and have a huge emotional stake in helping each other and autistic children. Large groups of people participate in non-profit research and autism studies. They read medical journals. They even try alternative therapies and avoid vaccines. If something was found that worked and could be replicated, either in conventional or alternative medicine, I feel certain it would be publicized no matter what, and you wouldn't have to buy a book on some website to know about it.

I don't know much about autism, because I am not a doctor or scientist. But I do know a lot about human nature, and I'm familiar with the community nature of parents of autistic children -- I seriously doubt anyone could keep a cure secret if they wanted to. People talk, a lot. A quick perusal of message boards will show how parents of autistic children talk and discuss treatments that work, treatments that don't and how they cope. They share this information freely and do not make overblown claims.
 
If a cure for autism had been found, either by conventional or alternative therapies, it would be extraordinarily difficult to keep it secret because the parents of autistic children talk to each other. They have message boards. They network together, share experiences and have a huge emotional stake in helping each other and autistic children. Large groups of people participate in non-profit research and autism studies. They read medical journals. They even try alternative therapies and avoid vaccines. If something was found that worked and could be replicated, either in conventional or alternative medicine, I feel certain it would be publicized no matter what, and you wouldn't have to buy a book on some website to know about it.

I don't know much about autism, because I am not a doctor or scientist. But I do know a lot about human nature, and I'm familiar with the community nature of parents of autistic children -- I seriously doubt anyone could keep a cure secret if they wanted to. People talk, a lot. A quick perusal of message boards will show how parents of autistic children talk and discuss treatments that work, treatments that don't and how they cope. They share this information freely and do not make overblown claims.

Thanks for your post, It made me feel a lot more optimisitic. I think you have some great points. The internet is certainly helping these parents network, communicate, share ideas and support each other. All absolutely awesome things. I sincerely hope through this constant sharing of information they can all help each other get to the bottom of things and help their children.

I think one of the greatest issues is that there isnt enough funding or research into alternative medicine. There are definately a lot of false prophets out there- taking advantage of desperate people. I havent looked into autism in particular, but I have found that many non-profit groups for other illnesses are often funded and supported by pharmaceutical companies or other corporations. For example, the Diabetic Association recieves funding from Nutrasweet, who obviously promote the use of aspartame, even though a lot of research has indicated that aspartame has seriously harmful side effects. The FDA and similar agencies around the world continue to say Aspartame is safe despite the evidence against it. It seems that scientific evidence and findings are just too easy for people to manipulate, misinterpret or dismiss depending one the agenda of the particular organisiation. There are many natural treatments for diabetes- stevia being a wonderful alternative to artificial sweetners because not only is it not harmful it also helps stimulate the release of insulin. However stevia was disregarded by the FDA is a viable alternative natural sweetner until Coca Cola and Pepsi petioned the FDA to use it in their soft drinks.

I guess what Im trying to say is that Ive spend so much researching different illnesses and public health issues, looking at research papers, conventional and alternative medicine that I know just feel overwhelmed. There is so much contradictory information, misleading information and disinformation. I just dont believe anyone anymore or trust any medical authority to deliver the truth- conventional or alternative. I feel so sorry for people that are sick, or have loved ones that are sick because its literally a minefield of information out there that is so hard to sort through. I just wish there was an organisation out there committed to science, results, sharing information and actually helping people. It just seems sometimes that everyone is just trying to sell you something.

What you said about the internet communities made me feel a lot better though. I really hope those parents find a way to help their kids.

I do know a couple that has had a lot of success treating their son with naturopathic treatments. I dont know a lot about autism, but I do undertstand that naturopathic treatments have to be completely tailored for an individual. I dont think there are any custom packages. I do think it has a lot to with the belief and attitude of the person and the people they are interacting with as well.
 
Here are my thoughts, as the mother of an autistic son. Stop believing everything you hear on the internet. Learn some good judgement so that you can filter out the outrageous websites such as the one you linked us to.

1. We do NOT know what causes autism.
2. We do NOT know how to prevent autism.
3. While an autistic child can learn skills to help mitigate his disability, there is NO CURE.

I took a deep breath before answering, becuase maybe you are just ignorant. However, now you are alerted to the scam of that website. Go and look into this in more depth before you say anything more. I can guarantee that if you make any more mistatements as horrible as your OP, I'll be far less inclined to be patient with you.
 
First, there is a great deal of controversy as to the autism/vaccine link.
It is no longer controversial -- it was looked into with great vigilence and proven completely false. Worse, the scientist who submitted the original findings has been ostracized for fraud.

"(CNN) -- A now-retracted British study that linked autism to childhood vaccines was an "elaborate fraud" that has done long-lasting damage to public health, a leading medical publication reported Wednesday." http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/01/05/autism.vaccines/index.html
 
It seems to me people are getting a little defensive here. I can understand the feeling that it might seem like a slight to them as if they haven't 'done all they could'. No one is making that accusation.

The points I want to highlight here are as follows.

1. There is an increasing epidemic of children with autism, and attempts to downplay its significance, can only be problematic.
2. Most of the emphasis in treatment of autism is focused on coping, not curing or beating it.
3. There are cases, of lifestyle and dietary adjustment where it has been beaten.

I cited a particularly good one above, but I'll grant that anecdotal reports don't always have the same rigor as well funded research. On the other hand, it's generally anecdotal reports that clue us in on solutions to research later. That in mind, I see no reason not to pursue possible or likely solutions especially when they're healthy lifestyle changes anyway.

You may review the journals they cite, and here's another link explaining the theoretical mechanism of casein/gluten intolerance and autism.

Gracie,

I took a deep breath before answering, becuase maybe you are just ignorant. However, now you are alerted to the scam of that website.

I could be ignorant, but I don't think so. The one doctor offering the hypothetical cure was a guest. Looking back at the video, he didn't actually give his solution, I must have been thinking of a different video I saw when I made my last post.

I can guarantee that if you make any more mistatements as horrible as your OP, I'll be far less inclined to be patient with you.
In my original post, I said the following:
Interesting ideas, any thoughts?
Then I gave the links, and titles of the videos therein. So, I'm curious, which of these was a misstatement? Where did I even state my position?

The closest I came to doing so was in my second post by saying this:
The number one reason that would likely keep people from getting over something like autism, would be the misconception that it is incurable.
I'll gladly stand by that thanks.

For the sake of discussion though, the first link I provided gives peer-reviewed evidence that autism is a result of a casein/gluten intolerance, and a documented anecdotal report of successful treatment/cure on that basis also giving reference to several other successful cases of the same thing.
Ready, Set, Go.:m173:
 
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If a cure for autism had been found, either by conventional or alternative therapies, it would be extraordinarily difficult to keep it secret because the parents of autistic children talk to each other. They have message boards. They network together, share experiences and have a huge emotional stake in helping each other and autistic children. Large groups of people participate in non-profit research and autism studies. They read medical journals. They even try alternative therapies and avoid vaccines. If something was found that worked and could be replicated, either in conventional or alternative medicine, I feel certain it would be publicized no matter what, and you wouldn't have to buy a book on some website to know about it.

I don't know much about autism, because I am not a doctor or scientist. But I do know a lot about human nature, and I'm familiar with the community nature of parents of autistic children -- I seriously doubt anyone could keep a cure secret if they wanted to. People talk, a lot. A quick perusal of message boards will show how parents of autistic children talk and discuss treatments that work, treatments that don't and how they cope. They share this information freely and do not make overblown claims.

Anyone who suggests there might be a solution we haven't tried already MUST be a quack.
 
The number one reason that would likely keep people from getting over something like autism, would be the misconception that it is incurable.
I'll gladly stand by that thanks.
Until you identify the cure and offer up the scientific journal articles that document it, you know where you can stick it.
 
That was a profound response.

I suppose it illustrates the difference between people who are looking for solutions, and those looking to avoid disappointment.

There were journals cited in the link I gave.

Does anyone have any *productive feedback?