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Popular Science Fiction is Little
Comfort to Parents of Children with Autism
By Theresa Wrangham
It was
very exciting to see autism take the spotlight on Larry King Live earlier this
month. The offering of science fiction
by Dr. Fisher and Dr. Wiznitzer in stating that the American Academy of
Pediatrics (AAP) is listening to the concerns of families of children with
autism; implying that autism screening, as recommended by AAP, is happening as
early as 18 months; that there is value in having a child diagnosed with autism
due to services and money that follow the diagnosis; there is no autism-vaccine
link; and everyone's favorite - autism is a highly genetic disorder is wearing
a little thin.
These
doctor's opinions do not jibe with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) 2007
surveillance study, Harvard's study on autism's cost to society and families,
vaccine court rulings, or the recent U.C. Davis MIND Institute study. The CDC's study found that children with
autism had a documented history of concerns regarding their development before three
years of age, with the median age of earliest documented autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) diagnosis ranging from 49 to 66 months. In simple terms, the study found that parents
voiced developmental concerns early to their pediatricians and yet screening
that should have been performed by pediatricians were delayed resulting in late
diagnosis.
Late
diagnosed children impact special education at higher than necessary levels and
tax an already underfunded education system to its limits. Late diagnosis also contributes to increased
financial burdens on families in picking up therapy fees, many of which are not
covered by insurance, due to having aged out of Federal and State funded early
intervention programs. To quote a
famous line, "Show me the money!"
The
truth is far more painful. Many families of children with autism experience
extreme financial hardship as a result of their child receiving an autism
diagnosis. While a diagnosis puts a
child on the road to treatment, there is no money tree being planted in any
family's backyard. A Harvard University
study put societal costs for caring and treating
individuals with autism in the U.S. at $35+ billion per year. Direct costs per ASD individual are estimated
to be between $29,000 - $43,000 per year with annual indirect costs to the
individual and/or family estimated to range from $39,000 to nearly
$130,000.
Read more . . .
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Protect Our Children
A message from SafeMinds board member Deirdre Imus
Fifty years ago, parents had a good understanding of their responsibilities. They were our
lifeline and provided us with food, clothing, shelter, education, and, of course, love. Like parents
throughout history, they did whatever was in their power to keep us safe and protect us from
harm. But in today's society, what does it really mean, to "keep our children safe, protect them
from harm"? In today's society, the responsibility of raising -- and protecting -- our children has become a lot more complicated.
In 1998, when my husband and I opened the gates to the Imus Ranch for Kids with Cancer, we
witnessed on a daily basis the many challenges kids face trying to cope with their disease. As
the years went by, we began to notice the increased number of children battling not only
cancer but also other serious illnesses like asthma, severe allergies, ADHD, bipolar disorder,
depression and autism spectrum disorders.
Why are so many childhood diseases on the rise?
Read more . . .
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SafeMinds Joins Rally Against Clean Coal
SafeMinds joined activists at Heron Pond Natural Area in North Denver, Colorado
on April 1st, Fossil Fools Day, to protest the opening of Xcel
Energy's Comanche 3 coal-fired power plant.
Groups represented at the rally were WildEarth Guardians, Greenpeace,
Sierra Club, SafeMinds, and Physicians for Social Responsibility.
Xcel Energy is
Colorado's single largest power provider, operating seven coal-fired power
plants, which provide 60% of Xcel's electricity distribution. These plants are Colorado's largest source of
air pollution and release 45% of the state's mercury emissions.
While emission controls, when
applied, can reduce mercury emissions by up to 90%, exposure to concentrated
mercury from coal-combustion by-products (CCBs) used in consumer products
dictate that public health would be better served by energy technologies that
are mercury free.
 Activists
attending the rally called on Governor Ritter to pursue clean energy solutions
and to stop promoting "Clean Coal" as an energy solution for Colorado. Activists carried handmade signs denouncing
the status quo and made pinwheels to symbolize the promise of clean energy.
SafeMinds President, Theresa
Wrangham, spoke to activists regarding the impact on health that mercury from
coal-fired power plants represents to individuals, s tating "Coal will never be
clean." She added, "Last year the
University of Texas, San Antonio Health
Sciences Center
published a study linking coal-fired power plants to a significantly increased
risk of an autism diagnosis. My daughter
has autism and we know the dangers of mercury first hand. Xcel must invest in truly green energy
options and not ransom our children's health to 'Clean Coal.'"
Read more . . .
Dowload SafeMinds Clean Coal Flyer
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Dr. Kent Bullis: Ball State Campus Health Center Drops Flu Shot with Mercury
Reprinted from Age of Autism
AOA Managing Editor's Note: Please notice that on April 20th Dr. Boyd
Haley will be debating a pediatrician on the topic of mercury at 7:00pm
in Pruis Hall.
Muncie, IN - Ball State University health center medical director,
Dr. Kent Bullis, has informed the Ball State Truth Movement that the
campus health center will no longer offer flu vaccines containing
thimerosal.
Dr. Bullis said only one vial of the thimerosal-containing vaccine
will be purchased in case a student has an allergy to the
thimerosal-free product.
The Ball State Truth Movement, a student activist organization
founded in the Fall of 2008, submitted research in late November of
2008 suggesting that thimerosal recipients might be at a higher risk of
getting Alzheimer's Disease later in life. The Truth Movement led a
campaign on campus to educate the campus population about the potential
dangers of thimerosal. This believed to be the first successful
student-lead effort to remove thimerosal from a college campus.
The news comes a week before the Truth Movement hosts a public flu
shot debate at Ball State University between Milwaukee pediatrician Dr.
Ted Muellerlleil and the University of Kentucky's Dr. Boyd Haley on
April 20th at 7 p.m. in Pruis Hall.
For more information, contact Ball State Truth Movement President Tony Farmer.
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Upcoming Conferences
US Autism & Asperger Association
April 30 - May 3, 2009
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Click here for more information.
Autism One 2009
May 20 - May 24
Chicago, Illinois
Click here for more information.
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Dr. Jill James Publishes on Research Funded by SafeMinds
Dr. Jill James of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences recently published an article entitled Cellular and mitochondrial glutathione redox imbalance in lymphoblastoid cells derived from children with autism in the FASEB Journal. This project was funded by SafeMinds.
Click here to read the article abstract.
Click here to read the full article.
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SafeMinds Responds to National Vaccine Plan Draft
SafeMinds provided feedback to the Department of Health and Human Services on the Draft National Vaccine Plan of 2008. Click here to read submitted comments. These comments were endorsed by the Autism Action Network, Autism One, the National Autism Association, Talk About Curing Autism and the US Autism and Asperger Association.
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How to Tell If You Are Poisoning Yourself with Fish
 Researchers are creating genetic tests to determine if mercury
hiding in that "healthy" dinner could be messing with your brain.
From the April 2009 Issue of Discover Magazine by David Ewing Duncan; photograph by Kathrin Miller
When the halibut on my hook breaks the surface, writhing in a splash
of seawater off the coast of Bolinas, California, I am thinking less of
this fish's fate than of my own. Considering that I plan to kill and
eat it, this might seem cruel. Yet inside the fat and muscle cells of
this flat, odd-looking creature is a substance as poisonous to me as it
is to him: methylmercury, the most common form of mercury that builds up inside people (and fish). At the right dose and duration of exposure, mercury can impair
a person's memory, ability to learn, and behavior; it can also damage
the heart and immune system. Even in small quantities, this heavy metal
can cause birth defects in fetuses exposed in the womb and in
breast-fed newborns whose mothers' milk is laced with it.
Scientists have assured me that one serving of halibut contains
nowhere near a dosage that might cause harm. These are the same
scientists, though, who admit that no one knows for sure what the
threshold dose is that causes mercury to subtly poison cells in the
brain and the liver, two organs where it tends to accumulate.
Read more . . .
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The Coalition for SafeMinds (Sensible Action For Ending Mercury-Induced Neurological Disorders) is a private nonprofit organization founded to investigate and raise awareness of the risks to infants and children of exposure to mercury from medical products, including thimerosal in vaccines. SafeMinds supports research on the potential harmful effects of mercury and thimerosal. Our mission is to end the health and personal devastations caused by the needless use of mercury in medicines.
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