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Is Your
Child Autistic or Someone You Know?
Autism
is
a developmental disability that impacts the normal development of
the brain and affects social interaction and communication
skills.
Autism is such a difficult disorder to understand; even doctors and
experts do not know everything there is to know about it. The
Autism Society of America reports that as many as 1.5 million Americans
have some form of autism. The U.S. Department of Education says
instances of autism are growing at a rate of 10-17 percent a year.
Background
Many
people
who have seen the movie “Rainman” think autistic people are all
like the man Dustin Hoffman played in that film - that they can do
complicated math in their heads, perform musically, or do other
incredible and astonishing feats. That
is the case in only a very few with autism. While those stories
make for good movies and news stories, the real story is that one person with
autism may have very different symptoms and behaviors than
another. That is because
autism is a spectrum disorder, and shows itself in various symptoms and
levels mild to severe in each individual person. In fact,
there is a good chance you are acquainted with an autistic child and
may not even known it.
However, even at the mildest end of
the spectrum autism presents unique challenges to families, often
creating unique physical, emotional and financial difficulties.
Thankfully, support is available through government agencies as well as
organizations that link parents together with others who face the same
challenges. These groups can provide a compendium of information
on the latest research into treatments for autism.
Needless to say every parent of a child with autism
should work closely with their physician and do all they can to stay
current on investigations into new treatments that may help their
child. They can check this research out for themselves on
websites of organizations like Autism Society of America, Autism
Speaks, or the Autism Research Institute. These organizations
are dedicated to helping people understand autism and the latest
research into treatments for the various disorders on the autism
spectrum. Of particular interest is
significant evidence that deficiencies or imbalances of fatty acids and
trace minerals like magnesium may contribute to childhood
neuro-developmental problems like autism spectrum disorders.
Omega-3 Fish Oil
As
far
back as the 1970s omega-3 fatty acids were known to be important to
brain cells and the way they work. It is known that fish oil is a
helpful therapy for schizophrenia, depression, and bipolar
disorder. Children with developmental disorders have been helped
with spelling and reading as well as behavior through supplements of
fish oil.1 Research has shown
that kids with autism have lower levels of omega-3 than typical
children and they many respond well to omega-3 supplements.2
A
group
of scientists at the Medical University of Vienna recently
conducted a study to see if fish oil capsules could help children with
autism. They found that the autistic children in their study
showed fewer signs of autism when taking fish oil.1
Minerals
Research
shows that autistic children are commonly deficient in
minerals such as magnesium. This may be due to stomach problems,
or other mal-absorption issues that often affect autistic
children. Studies are consistently showing that supplementing
magnesium in the diet of some autistic kids can improve their behavior.3,4
Dr.
Bernard
Rimland at the Autism Research Institute (ARI) surveyed
thousands of parents to determine what treatments they have used, and
which they’ve found to be helpful or harmful to their children with
autism. He found that many parents reported improvement in their
children’s symptoms and health by adding vitamins and minerals.5
Parent
Awareness
In
light
of the wealth of information available Omega-3 and mineral
supplements, and their impact on the lives of children and families who
live with Autism Spectrum Disorder, many parents are seeing for
themselves how it works for them to supplement their child’s diet with
high quality omega-3 and minerals like our Active 8
and Active Omega.
CLICK
HERE to read Active 8's CEO Laura McIver's own personal
experience with her autistic son:
http://www.healthinformationupdate.com/Nutrition_articles/nutritioninfo_magnesium_autism.htm
Biographical
References:
1.
Amminger, G.; Berger, G.: Schafer, M.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids Supplementation in Children with Autism: A
Double-blind Randomized, Placebo-controlled Pilot Study. Biol
Psychiatry. 2007. Feb 15; 61 (4) 551-3. Epub 2006
Aug 22.
2.
Koutsari, C.; Tsalamanio, E.; Yanni, A.; Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Role in the Prevention
and Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders Current Psychiatry Reviews,
Volume
2, Issue 2, p.215-234 (2006)
3. Strambi, M., et al.
2006. "Magnesium profile in autism." Biol.Trace Elem Res
109(2):97-104., and Fido, A., et al. 2002. "Biological Correlates
of Childhood Autism: Trace Elements ." Trace Elem Electrolytes
19:205-208.
4. Lelord, G., et al. 1981. "Effects of
pyridoxine and magnesium on autistic symptoms--initial observations." J
Autism Dev Disord. 11(2):219-230.
5. TC \l3 "Vitamin, mineral
supplements benefit people with autism. 2003. James Adams, Ph.D.
and Woody McGinnis, M.D. Arizona State University.
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