A natural alternative to asthma medication

As I mentioned last week, Moses’ lungs have been clearing. Yay!

But, Moses still needed extra help with his breathing twice this week (which is waaaay better than 6 times a day or more when it was at its worst). I’m excited to share that we discovered a natural alternative to his Ventolin puffer. We’ve been using RespirActin, which is a natural supplement that helps relieve breathing difficulties.  It contains purified water, rosemary, honey, witch  hazel, fenugreek seed, black seed, ginseng powder, damiana leaves, marshmallow, sage, juniper berries, chamomile flowers, clover, spearmint, cinnamon, thyme and potassium sorbate.

I’ve known about RespirActin for several years and have used it myself in the past, when I have experienced severe asthmatic symptoms (which, fortunately, isn’t very often — I can only remember two times needing it in the last 10 years). Due to Moses’ sensitivities, we hadn’t felt comfortable giving him this supplement since we didn’t know if he could tolerate all of the ingredients.

I know things have really changed because DH came home from the Natural Health Shop with this supplement (typically DH is the one who is reluctant to try something new). And Moses often doesn’t like the taste of many supplements, but happily, he liked the taste of this one, plus he told us it was more effective than his Ventolin puffer.

We’re sooooooo happy to have a natural alternative to use at home. We’ll get one for his dayhome as well.  I’ll have to find out if his school would be open to using it rather than his Ventolin puffer (I kind of doubt they will be since they only administer prescription medication, but I’ll find out…)

During his reflexology appointment this week, Kim detected some “fullness” in his lung points as well as his adrenal gland on his left foot, so I think he’s still clearing things through his lungs.

Healing with glutathione – Dante’s story

I wanted to share that my friend’s son with autism, Dante, has been doing sooooooo well on Rob Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula.  Dante has been so much happier, attentive and calmer.  Yay, yay, yay!!

So at this point, Dante is way happier than when I last posted.  His energy this morning was amazing.  His eyes are open big and so bright and cheerful.  He looks at me lovingly and pats my arm gently when we hug.  He’s just so much more comfortable — Thank Goodness.

Read their entire story at Boy Connected here.

Read Tanner’s healing story here.

Use this coupon code (RKMD-90830) to get 50% off the price of any single product or single combination pack off your first order of Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula  here.

“The Journey: Home from Autism” by Rhonda Spellman

I recently read Rhonda Spellman’s “The Journey: Home from Autism”, and I highly recommend it for all parents of autistic children.

Rhonda Spellman is a fellow warrior mother and autism advocate. From her website, she describes…

My son Tanner was nearly two years old.  He had changed from a happy-go-lucky talkative boy to a sullen child that I didn’t understand. He quit talking, he quit sleeping, he even quit eating the foods he once loved. I honestly didn’t even know the little boy who had taken over the body of my son…

I took my darling son (now fully possessed by the personality of another child) to 18 doctors over the next two years. I honestly thought he needed to be seen by someone who specialized in disorders of this nature – whatever it was. Not one single doctor gave me hope.

I returned to our pediatrician, Dr. Isaac R. Melamed, desperate and confused. He was the only doctor who listened to me. Because I believed that my son had possibly reacted to vaccinations, I asked him to perform a DNA analysis. Dr. Melamed asked me for a three-generational family history of “Blood, Brain, Mental and Emotional disorders.”  The results of both changed our life.

Dr. Melamed and I were both completely shocked by the results that clearly proved that my son had been mercury poisoned – with over 250 X the ‘safe’ amount of mercury in his system. When I learned that there was severe depression and mental illness in my husband’s family tree and a blood disorder in my family tree I also learned that these illness contributed ‘Weak Links’ into my son’s DNA – and made him more susceptible to react to the poisons in the vaccines.

Her book chronicles her very thorough investigation and the results of the 7,000 hours of research that she undertakes to recover her son. I feel that any parent of an autistic child could benefit by reading her book as she shares what worked and didn’t work for her son. She shares numerous websites to make it easy for parents to implement treatments and techniques that she used.

In her book she covers: vaccinations, GFCF diets, recipes, supplements, biomedical treatments, laboratory tests, PANDAS, difficulties with school, teachers and homework and much more. At one time, her son was taking 17 different supplements on a daily basis.

For her son, the most significant contribution to his recovery was her discovery of Dr. Keller’s original glutathione accellerator formula (and is actually a supplement that I currently take daily and I’ve written about previously here).

In her own words, she shares:

I put all of my son’s supplements (17 bottles) in a box and planned to give him Dr. Keller’s original glutathione accelerator formula over Christmas break.  I gave my son his first single capsule on on December 17, 2008. He had been suffering from PANDAS since September, 2007.  We were looking into special schools and receiving Special Olympics  invitations because he was doing so poorly .

• Within one week we saw subtle improvements that included better eye contact.
• Within two weeks his overall focus was better and my husband remarked that his responses were unprecedented.
• At the end of three weeks I received a call from his school. His 100% modification was reduced to 50%!
• Within seven weeks ALL of his PANDAS (the incurable disease) symptoms were completely GONE!
• I increased his dosage slowly. Every two to three weeks I added one more capsule. We started with one every morning for two weeks. Next he had one in the morning and another at night. Next he took one three times a day for another two weeks.  Soon he took two in the morning and then two at night.
• It appeared that my son was returning from a long, long drought… he was eating well and gaining weight.
• On September 16, 2009 (one day short of nine months) I went in for his first parent – teacher conference of 4th grade. I was told that my son No longer qualified for services.
• Dr. Keller’s  glutathione accelerator was the ONLY thing we did. He was sleeping through the night again and acting like the boy I knew and loved. I wanted it to last and prayed often for him.

In January, 2009 I  began taking Dr. Keller’s glutathione accelerator myself – on a trial basis to see if it might help my chronic insomnia (that began in my teens) – since my son was sleeping so well. I began sleeping through the night in less than a week!  The bonus is that my chronic pain (from multiple broken bones and a serious head injury that left me in a coma for eight days in 1982 – from a very serious car accident) decreased dramatically as well!

Today, her son is fully recovered and no longer qualifies for special services at school.

Tanner is now excelling in a Gifted and Talented program with his new home school. He took the tests and scored a WHOPPING 100% on the Language Arts and Math entry exams. Because he has shown an amazing ability for science he is also enrolled in the gifted and talented science classes. THIS all from the very same child that qualified for a voice activated computer in October 2008 because he couldn’t hold a pencil well enough to write!

Tanner is also the author of several books that are in the process of being published (!), in addition to his younger brother, Oliver Spellman (age 10), who wrote the book, “Asperger’s Rhymes with Bass Burgers“. In his book, Oliver writes what it’s like to have a brother with Asperger’s syndrome.

You can read Rhonda’s latest update on Tanner here:

I look at my 13-year-old son who once didn’t / wouldn’t  / couldn’t talk and I see a boy with absolutely no inklings of a speak impediment whatsoever. He commonly uses words that even adults have to ask him to define.  It’s truly mind-boggling to see where he is today.

What an inspiring story!!!!!!!

Rhonda is currently offering one-on-one coaching so that she can help other families. In addition, she is offering to send you two copies of her book, “The Journey: Home from Autism”, for the price of one, so that we can all help share their inspiring story.

***Special Offer***
Use this coupon code (RKMD-90830) to 50% off the price of any single product or single combination pack off your first order of Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula.
Order Rob Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula here.

Quinton Isotonic Minerals

If you are looking for a mineral supplement, I wanted to share that Lucy at Alex’s Journey out of Autism has shared that after two days of starting Quinton Isotonic minerals, Alex started sleeping through the night and became very talkative!!

Sima started Alex on Quinton Isotonic and about 3 days later Alex started talking! It was a Friday morning when he woke up, came into my room and said “good morning mom”. That’s how it all started, that’s when our lives changed. Read her update post here.

This supplement was recommended by Sima Ash, a CEASE therapist / homeopath. Sima recommends that all of her autistic clients start with one vial of Quinton Isotonic or Hypertonic sea water in the morning and one in the evening on an empty stomach for two weeks before starting CEASE therapy. “This does such a phenomenal job in rebalancing minerals that we receive phone calls stating how much children have improved!”

Quinton™ Marine Plasma is nutrient-rich marine fluid that is harvested from the depths of an oceanic plankton bloom.

Quinton Marine Plasma is not just seawater. Discovered by French physiologist and humanitarian, René Quinton, in 1897, marine Plasma has proven to be an incredibly effective way to restore cellular homeostasis and mineral balance.

A complete spectrum of minerals is necessary to metabolize 100% of the amino acids we consume. When critical minerals are missing or represented in deficient amounts, our bodies fail to optimally metabolize and convert amino acids and enzymes into energy.

The molecular mystery of Quinton Marine Plasma is that, in its isotonic state, each of the minerals is represented in quantities that mirror, almost perfectly, those of human blood Plasma and extra-cellular fluids. Like human blood Plasma, it contains 78 minerals and marine co-factors – all at almost the perfect levels needed by the human body.

I’m considering trying it for Moses, but in the meantime, wanted to share it with you, in case it’s something that you think might help your child.  If you try it, let me know how it goes!! Thanks to my friend at Boy Connected for sharing this information with me!

Read more:

• Quinton website – FAQs
• Webiner by Dr. Garry Gordon – Introduction to the historical and current use of Quinton Marine Plasma here – starts at page 58
• Sima Ash, a CEASE therapist / homeopath recommends that all of her autistic clients start with one vial of Quinton Isotonic or Hypertonic sea water in the morning and one in the evening on an empty stomach for two weeks before starting CEASE therapy. Read more on her website here.  Sima also provided some interesting and informative information about using Quinton in the comments section of Alex’s Journey out of Autism’s blog site here (you can search for Quinton to find the comments).
• Lots of good info (usage and science) about Quinton sea water on Healing 4 Soul’s website (skip to the bottom of this page).
• Read about Dante’s response to starting Quinton Isotonic here.
• Read about how Quinton Sea Plasma helped these children with low stomach acid here.
• Drew has also started Quinton Isotonic here.

Science:

• IMPROVEMENT OF SKIN SYMPTOMS AND MINERAL IMBALANCE BY DRINKING DEEP SEA WATER IN PATIENTS WITH ATOPIC ECZEMA/DERMATITIS SYNDROME (AEDS)” from ACTA MEIDCA 2002;45(2)r83-84.  A scientific study  (see p. 83) has been done with these deep sea water minerals and they been shown to improve skin conditions and decrease IgE levels.
• REDUCTION OF ALLERGIC SKIN RESPONSES AND SERUM ALLERGEN-SPECIFIC IgE and IgE-INDUCING CYTOKINES BY DRINKING DEEP-SEA WATER IN PATIENTS WITH ALLERGIC RHINITIS” from OTORHINOLARGYNGOL NOVA 2001;11:302-303. (This study also showed a decrease in IgE levels and allergic skin responses within 3 weeks of drinking the deep sea water).
• “HYPERSALINE NASAL IRRIGATION IN CHILDREN WITH SYMPTOMATIC SEASONAL ALLERGIC RHINITIS: A RANDOMIZED STUDY” from PEDIATRIC ALLERGY AND IMMUNOLOGY 2003:14:140-143.
• “SEA WATER OR ITS COMPONENTS ALTER EXPERIMENTAL IRRITANT DERMATITIS IN MAN” from SKIN RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY 2001;7:36-39.

Update:

April 25, 2012 – I asked my Heilkunstler if she heard of Quinton marine plasma, and she hadn’t. I was mostly interested in this mineral solution to help with Moses’ teeth. My Heilkunstler says that she normally uses tissue salts or Himalayan salt sole to help with re-mineralization. Given that I have Himalayan salt sole in my cupboard that I haven’t been using, I’m going to try to add this to our regime again.  I notice that this person also discusses Quinton marine plasma and sole as “self-care daily detoxification supplements”.

My son is healthy and well

Hello my dear friends.  Just felt like giving you an update on how we’re doing. Moses is doing great healthwise. He had an allergist appointment yesterday, and all went well. He received a prick test on a couple of new food items that we were curious about: kiwi and shellfish. He passed with flying colours!  No reaction at all. His allergist re-tested him with eggs and there was no reaction (which is in contrast to the violent throwing up episode that he had after eating a pancake made with 1/8 of an egg 6 months ago). She wants us to try baking with eggs to see if he’ll tolerate that. We’ll try it over the weekend. Will start off with a very little bit of an egg in GFCF muffins and see how that goes.

He’s still reactive to wheat and fish, and his allergist didn’t bother re-testing him with mixed nuts because for the last six months, he’s been able to drink almond milk every day with no problem. He doesn’t like almond butter or almonds, so he’s not eating them very often, but we’re no longer fearful of almonds. Next step is try feeding him the rest of the tree nuts. Our plan is to feed him some mixed nuts in the ER parking lot one of these weekends (we have his allergist’s support on trying this on our own!).  Soon.  Will be sure to let you know how that goes!

So his current allergy list is:

• wheat (we avoid all gluten since he’s likely sensitive to gluten and gluten is generally not great for most individuals),
• dairy;
• and fish.

Eggs are likely a sensitivity, but as I mentioned, we’re going to try them in baked goods and we’re at the point where we are not concerned with products that are cross-contaminated with eggs. We also avoid MSG, chemicals, additives and preservatives as much as possible. Moses is doing so well that the allergist feels that she doesn’t need to assess him again for a whole year. She is very pleased and surprised by how much his allergies have healed over the last couple of years.

Holy goodness! This is amazing, amazing, amazing!  (For new readers, my son was once sensitive / allergic to 40+ foods, so I really feel that his sensitivities / allergies healing are a true miracle). I am so grateful! I once prayed that Moses would one day only be sensitive to gluten and dairy. That was my prayer (at the time, this idea was inconceivable really), and three years later it’s essentially a reality. I even think it is conceivable that one day, he will no longer need to carry an epi-pen. I actually feel that he is no longer at risk for anaphylaxis (since I know that gluten, dairy and fish are not anaphylactic risks for him). My new prayer is that Moses’ sensitivities and allergies completely heal.  So be it, and it is so and so it is.

If you need a reminder of his current treatment / supplement plan, you can read about it here. I feel like I’m a broken record, but I really feel that Heilkunst homeopathy was the most important part of his healing. We do a lot of other things as well, but we were doing many of the other things before we started healing with Heilkunst, so I feel that the Heilkunst healing was the key.

His recent eye injury back in February healed quickly (within 2 weeks, his eyesight had essentially recovered to where it was prior to that injury). I feel that prayer, total body modification and increasing his glutathione levels contributed to his quick recovery.

He has been healthy and well for four months!!!  I feel that increasing his glutathione levels has also been a significant factor in how he has been doing in the last couple of months. Like all things that create true healing on a deep level, his body detoxed when taking only the tiniest bit of the glutathione accellerator. I’ve given his body a break for the last month from detoxing anything (we haven’t tackled any new chronic miasms [Heilkunst homeopathy] since November and even gave him a break from the glutathione supplement during the last month). The last month has been heaven as Moses is really at a great point in his health. His health has stabilized and he’s generally happy. He is now a typical healthy five year old.

My boy loves Taekwon-do!

He has a powerful punch!

During our last appointment with our chiropractor (who does TBM and cranialsacral therapy as well), he assessed Moses and me, and commented that our bodies are the best they have ever been since we’ve started seeing him. My body is “less reactive”. Moses’ body is feeling “more normal”, less tense and more at ease. I really feel that our current treatment plan is really, really working!!

Now that his allergist appointment has passed, I’m going start clearing the last two levels of the Sycosis miasm (details about the first two levels here — it was a doozy). I’m a bit apprehensive about it, but feel that it’s important to do, to continue his healing journey. As always, I’ll let you know how it goes!

Some extra goodies:

• CBC radio had a special on gluten-free baking. DH called in to offer some of our tips (esp. baking with 50% GF oatmeal flour and 50% brown rice flour). Interestingly, the dietician mentioned that many individuals with a gluten sensitivity don’t do well even with oatmeal that is not cross-contaminated with gluten since a protein in oatmeal (avenin) is similar to the gluten protein.  Fortunately GF oatmeal is not a problem for my boy (although DH is actually sensitive to oatmeal). You can listen to DH (he’s got a great voice – so natural and at ease on the radio) at minute 34 to 38 of the show (the third recording on this page)!
• I recently heard this fun Wiggles song about allergies (thanks to Allergy Kinder’s FB recommendation). Check it out!

Updates:

March 10, 2012 – Moses had his first bit of kiwi. So far, so good!

March 18, 2012 – He ate 3/4 of a cashew and 1/4 of a walnut and then had a tummy ache and diarrhea.  On the good side, he’s not anaphylactic to tree nuts anymore, but seems to still be intolerant to them. Read more details about the oral tree nut challenge here.

Power up your Brain

I highly recommend the book, Power Up Your Brain, by Dr. David Perlmutter (a neuroscientist) and Dr. Alberto Villoldo (a medical anthropologist and shaman). I had mentioned this book earlier in this post here, but that was before I had read the book.

I loved this book because Power Up Your Brain spoke to both sides of me: the scientist and the shaman. My left brain and my right brain. It spoke about the science behind the right supplements and therapies, and how important energy healing is as well. Dr. Perlmutter spoke about how he found that his neurological patients who experienced “miracles” in their healing, were typically those who engaged in some form of meditative or spiritual practice. This spoke strongly to me. Many of them were also fasting from time to time, exercising regularly and taking some form of DHA (omega 3 supplement). I loved this book because it spoke about the importance of physical healing as well as spiritual healing. I believe they are both equally important in healing, especially when tackling chronic and serious illnesses and disorders.

At the back of the book, they describe a five week program designed to power up your brain. I highly recommend purchasing this book for the description of this program alone. I am going to start suggesting this program for my own clients.

I do feel that our brains (and our children’s brains) are starved of the right nutrients and the right fats. Hence the importance of healthy oils (they recommend 1,000 mg of DHA, 1 tablespoon of organic virgin olive oil and 1 tablespoon of organic virgin coconut oil). The book also speaks about the importance of glutathione for our brains, and as you know, I highly recommend Dr. Robert Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula  for increasing glutathione levels. They speak about the importance of exercise (of course) and yoga. In addition,  they outline several very simple yet powerful and transformative shamanic exercises that you can do on your own. Meditation. Sky gazing. Radical forgiveness. And others.

It was fascinating for me that they spoke about the importance of fasting because my own spiritual awakening began during a 10 day spiritual fast that I attended in 2001. It was a transformational experience for me and my view of the world was forever changed during that time. I attended a second 10 day spiritual fast in 2002, and experienced the “dark night of the soul” and haven’t been able to bring  myself to fast again (and I’m not sure if I ever will as a result), but still, I find it fascinating that they spoke about the importance of this powerful cleansing technique. They don’t recommend fasting more than one day at a time in their program.

There is a lot more to their program. I just highlighted some of the key points that spoke to me. I feel, as they do, that this program can be dramatically transformative, improving your physical, mental and spiritual health.

And then, there were three

I recently “met” another holistic mom who is raising her five year old son who has multiple allergies, hyper IgE (15,000) and a rare immune disorder Chronic Granumatolous Disease (CGD). With her permission, I’m sharing her story below so that we can all learn together. What interests me is how this mother is also using very similar treatments as myself and another holistic mom of a 12 year old with Hyper IgE syndrome. All three of us are using homeopathy and biomedical treatments. Her son is on a GFCF diet, is no longer receiving any additional vaccinations (he had a strong negative reaction to them)  and is not on a prophylactic antibiotic (which is the general treatment for CGD and Hyper IgE syndrome), and gives me more hope that one day my son will also be off of his prophylactic antibiotic (just need to get DH on board). Not surprisingly, she feels that her son’s health has definitely improved as a result of the natural remedies.

Her story is below:

When I was pregnant with T., I had some amalgams removed, thanks to ‘good advice’ given by a friend. Then I had a prolonged labour, to which T. was pulled out using forceps and I ended up with a blotched episiotomy which required me to administer high dosages of antibiotic solution directly to the wound and consume tons of pain killers. I was told none of this will go to T. via the breast milk. At 3 months I had to stop breastfeeding as I was travelling for work and he was put on dairy formula.

He started having ear infections, eczema and then chronic constipation. I had to use enemas. He was tip-toe walking, looking out of the corner of his eyes, all symptoms of autism as we now known. Then he started falling ill very often, and then he had a bad viral infection, follow by the Ah1ni, and numerous trips to the hospital for bronchitis and pneumonia. Mid 2010, we did a skin allergy test and found out he had 3 allergies, then in August 2010, he was hospitalised for 2 weeks, at which his white cell count was low. I finally insisted on a full allergy test (IgE) trying to find out what could have caused his body to be so weakened. The results came back with over 18 allergies.

I took the same test back to his immunologist in another hospital and he did further testing (lymphocytes, etc), to which he was ‘labelled’ as having Chronic Granumatolous Disease (CGD); (apparently 1 step better than Job’s Syndrome. His body apparently can’t handle bacteria and fungi). I was totally floored when I received the news. You normally hear of ‘rare’ illnesses in America. I thought this was something like the movie, Lorenzo’s Oil.

I’m very pragmatic and decided that a life-long treatment of antibiotics is not going to help T., instead kill him. So I was left with no other option, but instead look towards the natural way of doing things. And this has converted my whole outlook of medicines and health in general. It has revolutionised the way I look at things.

I decided to first try to heal T. of his allergies, telling myself that if he indeed has a genetic ‘problem’ meaning if he was born with a genetic defect or missing a gene, then there’s nothing much I can do except stem cells at a later stage. Hence I thought lets heal him first of his allergies which I have heard of people doing in the past. This led me to Dr Kenneth Bock’s book, DAN and biomedical protocol.

I consulted with a DAN doctor and did the first tier protocol. Then I decided to try classical homeopathy. So far the 1^st classical homeopathy had stabilised T. but still I knew there were a lot of underlying issues. By doing the biomed and classical homeopathy, and Epsom salt baths, and Dr Rath’s protocol of high vitamin C and Lysene, I discovered that T. had in fact started to chelate metals mildly. That’s when I decided to try another form of Homeopathy that chelates using multiple remedies to address the various metals in his body.

Now he is going through a serious healing crisis and the eczema is really bad. We do the Epsom salt baths with tea tree oil, and sometimes Apple Cider Vinegar. I also give him Magnesium, Calcium, Zinc, Vitamin C, P5P, B12, Probiotics, Kefir, Omega 3, DHA, Aloe Vera juice, Virgin Coconut Oil, Selenium, Zeolite. And we also do CST (Cranial Sacral Therapy).

So far he is s trooper. But I think I’ll need to add Culturelle for the Lacto GG, Biotin and Oil of Oregano to help fight the yeast that commonly comes up when they are chelating. I’ve also been introduced today to Far infra ray which also apparently helps with Chelation.

And of course to top it off, prayer to God.

I wish T. and his family the best in T.’s healing journey and will continue to post updates regarding his progress and any changes to his treatment so that we can all learn from each other’s healing journey.

Updates
May 12, 2012 – Her thoughts on healing the gut using the GAPS diet and natural food

I feel that my kid cannot be on gluten free and casein free diet for the rest of his life. And if this is my point of contention, then what am I going to do about this problem? So I do reverse engineering. I work backwards.

I asked the question: since T.’s gut cannot handle casein and gluten, what can I do, that will change that? How can I get his gut to a point where it can handle gluten, where it can tolerate casein? Hence, since T. has now improved his immunity (no more episodes of high fevers, no more upper respiratory issues like pneumonia, etc) and is out of the ‘danger zone’ for over 1.5 years now, I think its time to heal the gut and nip this allergy in the butt. So I researched patients, parents, doctors and protocols that have claimed to do so, without the use of allergy drugs, etc. How did they do it?

I went to the importers of food stuffs for hotels and got Norwegian salmon, Australian grass fed lamb and beef and started boiling away for a whole freaking day to make broth. I bought tons of tupperwares and I borrow freezer space to stock up. I ain’t not saint, but I cannot do it without planning. I started to learn how to make water kefir, fermented foods for enzymes, etc. Bought tons of books, etc.

I won’t be able to control T.’s diet 100% but for me, its about tipping the scales, from gluten free, to more natural foods. Drinks, I give fresh juices and kefir (water kefir with fruit juices), less rice milk. More stews, casseroles, and pies, and just protein and vegetables, etc at home; less pastas, pancakes, bread. The vegetables, fruits and lemons we use are to alkalise the blood from the protein he takes and overall we limit the carbohydrates for when we are out and about.  Breakfast is tough, so I too give almond milk and some rice puffs, but there are days, he just eats a bowl of fresh fruits.

Yes I agree it’s not easy, but I do a lot of prepping. A lot of meat/fish gets cut, marinated, meat balls get made and rolled up and all packed and frozen. T.’s can’t take diary because of the casein, but I found that fermented milk kefir (which is stronger than yoghurt and definitely better than commercial stuff in the supermarkets) was ok for him, and so was fermented clarified butter with the milk solids removed. Crazy right? I tried with just 1 table spoon to watch for reaction, so now he is slowly taking it. His eczema was already there before I introduced it, so it wasn’t related. I do simple things like stopping vegetable oils, and only use coconut oil, clarified butter and olive oil for example.

For me personally, I think the eczema is the 2^nd last round. Heal the gut, heal the eczema. I know its going to be complex, not tough. I was told its normally a 1-2 year period. But hey, time flies when you’re having fun J sorry just being sarcastic (me being fed-up of being fed-up). You know, it’s not another way of eating, it’s just our mother or grandmother’s way of eating. I’m more concerned about the last round of healing actually. The emotional part.

It was hard for me. Lots of re-educating myself once again, having trust in this new ‘diet’, learning how to prep for it and getting my game plan into action. 90% is really about getting the game plan right, then the 10% is the execution. You can google Dr Natasha Campbells’ GAP protocol on youtube. Both she and Donna Gates are in it. I think this is the link for it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLP0Ijo2CK4 and there’s ton of help on forums, etc.

March 2, 2013

Another thing I discovered recently was Macrobiotics. some dried dakon and wild pine shitake donko simmered in water purifies the blood and mucus. there’s a lot of healing using the macrobiotic foods, especially when they were using it to heal people from the nuke’s that fell in Japan. I don’t do whole Macrobiotics but its easy as its mostly vegan and besides it helps adding variety to T.’s diet. Also don’t forget unpasteurised miso soups! Yummy, filling and good for the gut as well. Tyler is doing much better now, but we still have a lot of healing to do (gut, inflammation) and the big emotional stuff

A good vegetarian omega 3 oil

I’m thrilled that a new Natural Health Shop opened up in our end of town.

I was in there today to pick up a fish oil for DH and I.  We were introduced to a new line of fish oils that are produced in Nova Scotia (close to our neck of the woods). We choose Ascenta Health NutraSea for us. (The lemon flavour tastes good!)

Even more fabulous, I learned that they have a vegetarian omega 3 oil, which is allergy-friendly (Moses is allergic to fish).  We have him on a flax seed oil, but I always felt that he needed a better source of omega 3 oil. Well, I think I found what I’ve been looking for!

It’s called Ascenta Health NutraVege.

Echium plantagineum, a common plant native to many parts of the world including western and southern Europe, represents an exciting alternative source of omega-3. Unlike flax seed oil, echium oil contains the omega-3 stearidonic acid (SDA), which readily converts to EPA. Studies have demonstrated that SDA from echium converts to EPA at a rate of up to 30% (compared to 3.28% for flax). A further advantage of echium is that it is also a natural source of the omega-6 gamma-linolenic acid (GLA).

Unlike most omega-6 fatty acids, GLA supports an anti-inflammatory effect in the body and promotes healthy skin.

Algal DHA, from the marine algae Schizochytrium sp., is an exceptional source of DHA. Unlike land plants, certain aquatic species have the ability to synthesize the omega-3 DHA. The DHA content in most fish originates from the consumption of algae; therefore, the DHA present in NutraVege is identical to that found in fish.

Ingredients
echium oil (Echium plantagineum), algal oil (Schizochytrium sp.) medium chain triglycerides, high oleic sunflower oil, all natural flavouring, lecithin (from sunflower oil), green tea extract, natural tocopherols (derived from non-GMO soy), ascorbyl palmitate, rosemary extract

Check out this comparison of NutraVege vs.  flax seed oil here. NutraVege exceeds the recommended dose of EPA+DHA (500 mg). Plus NutraVege includes the beneficial omega-6 GLA that flax doesn’t have.

I’m thrilled about this!  I still need to purchase it (I wanted to read about it before we picked it up). We’ll buy it early next week and then will hide it in his shakes and on his GF toast (like we’ve been doing with the flax seed oil). Will let you know how it goes!

February 19, 2012 – We gave Moses about a teaspoon of Nutrevege and so far so good (i.e., he doesn’t seem to be allergic to it). He didn’t like the taste (even though it’s quite palatable — my husband says that it tastes like bubblegum, although it’s citrus flavoured). We chased it with pineapple juice.

Glutathione and enlightenment

A cosmic wink…

I’ve been reading a lot lately about the benefits of glutathione, and how increasing glutathione levels can help people with many disorders, diseases, syndromes, etc. It’s been stimulating my left brain as I’ve been delving into the scientific literature and I’ve been finding the reading so rich. (In case you are interested, I’ve been compiling what I’ve been learning here).

Then last night, just for fun, I wondered if there might be a link between shamanism and glutathione.

Much to my surprise, Dr. David Perlmutter and Dr. Alberto Villoldo’s Power up your Brain book came up in my search.

This is of particular interest to me because a couple of months ago (around the same time that I was getting the message that it was important to increase my glutathione levels), I was getting the message that it was important for me to read this book. I knew about the book because Dr. Alberto Villoldo is one of the main influences in my shamanic path. He is the teacher of most of my own shamanic healers and teachers, and I’ve read as many of his books as possible. He’s the author of one of my favourite books, Shaman, Healer, Sage. At the time, I tried to find out what supplements are recommended in the book to “power up your brain” because I knew that their suggestions would be useful for my son. I couldn’t easily find out during my search, and let it go..

In Power up your Brain, Drs. Perlmutter and Villoldo team up to teach about the science of enlightenment. Dr. Perlmutter discusses the neuroscience of enlightenment, as well as treatments and supplements that can help best feed your brain, and Dr. Villoldo discusses spiritual and shamanic exercises one can do to awaken your higher brain. Two of the treatments that they discuss as being important in stimulating your higher brain is hyperbaric chamber oxygen treatments and IV glutathione treatments (interestingly, both of these techniques are also discussed in McCarthy and Kartzinel’s Healing and Preventing Autism book as being treatments that can help autistic children). Fascinatingly, Dr. David Perlmutter is one of the pioneers of using IV glutathione to treat individuals with Parkinson’s disease. (You can watch a video about that here and read an interview with him here).

Our protocols utilize intravenous glutathione and hyperbaric oxygen to optimize mitochondrial function as well as foods and supplements that help undo the damage done to the brain by years of stressful living. We find that mitochondria, the mind, and the brain respond extraordinarily quickly to these interventions. Then, through shamanic meditation practices, we can heal from toxic emotions and discover inner peace…

Using this program, you can develop the gifts once ascribed only to a privileged few. And in the process, you’ll have the chance to gain other health benefits, including a reduced risk of devastating brain diseases, cancer, heart disease, and Parkinson’s; elimination of debilitating mood swings; the breaking of unhealthy emotional and behavior patterns; the overcoming of painful memories and past traumas; a powerful clarity of thought; and the potential for maximum human life span; all without the use of drugs. When we repair our brains and heal our toxic emotions, we move toward a state of personal health and well-being. Then, we can bring forth the qualities attributed to enlightened beings: inner peace, wisdom, compassion, joy, creativity, and a new vision of the future. (excepted from their article here)

Felt like a big cosmic wink to me and how I’m on the right track…  Just seems so funny to me that such seemingly divergent topics are actually related.

I’m going to get a copy of Power up your Brain and will share more as I learn more…

More reading:

• Power up your Brain website
• read an article by Drs. Perlmutter and Villoldo about the neuroscience of enlightenment here.
• How glutathione can help children with autism here.
• A way to increase glutathione levels by supplementation: Dr. Robert Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula.

Healing by increasing glutathione levels

I first heard of glutathione while reading the book, “Healing and Preventing Autism” by Jenny McCarthy and Jerry Kartzinel.  An entire chapter in McCarthy and Kartzinel’s book describes the importance of glutathione, how it is the most important substance that our body produces to help our immune system fight infections. It’s the body’s most important antioxidant and the body’s most powerful detoxifier. Glutathione chelates heavy metals like mercury (i.e., binds to heavy metals, so that they can be removed from the body).  Most autistic children are low in glutathione (I’ve read that autistic children have 50% less intracellular glutathione than other children), which is why they have so much trouble detoxifing vaccines, medications, environmental toxins, toxins in food and why they have so much trouble fighting infections and diseases. Read a Talk about Curing Autism article about detoxification, glutathione and autism here.

Dr. Kartzinel discusses how many autistic children come from “poor methylating families”, meaning families that tend to have a difficult time producing glutathione (i.e., the overall function of the methylation pathway is under genetic control). Poor methylating families have a family history of depression, bipolar disease, schizophrenia, suicide, constipation, attention deficit disorder, alcoholism and, of course, autism. See also this list of diseases and illnesses that are linked to low glutathione levels. Furthermore, the methylation pathway is sensitive to environmental toxins, such as mercury. So a person who is exposed to a toxin (like mercury) who is already undermethylating (i.e.,  under producing glutathione) will have an even more difficult time detoxing when exposed to such toxins. It turns into a vicious cycle.

Glutathione can be taken intravenously, transdermally or through a nebulizer. Note that supplementing directly with oral glutathione is generally not effective because studies have found that glutathione does not survive the digestive process. Furthermore, supplementing with oral glutathione can result in a yeast outbreak and gut imbalance. Watch a news story about autistic children receiving glutathione IV treatments here. Injections are only minimally useful, since glutathione cannot enter into the cells themselves. It must be manufactured inside the cells (when the necessary components are available.) As Dr. Kartzinel explains, methyl B12 injections and supplementing with trimethylglycine (TMG) or dimethylglycine (DMG),  folic acid and N-acetyl-cysteine can increase glutathione levels. Read Dr. Kartizel’s blog post about the methylation process, glutathione and autism here.

When I first read about glutathione, I knew that both my son and I needed to increase our glutathione levels (given that we have a history of diseases within our family that indicates that we are a poor-methylating family), but it sounded so complicated to do. When I first found out about this supplement, Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula (which actually doesn’t contain any glutathione, but contains ingredients that will help the body to create glutathione), a voice within me told me that it was a significant supplement that could help many individuals (including autistic children).

I’ve spent numerous hours researching it and not only do I intuitively feel that this supplement could help most people, I also feel that there is strong science behind this (because glutathione has been so well researched, and there is strong science behind Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula as well).

Within hours of taking Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula, I felt my energy levels increase and my mental clarity improve. I felt more focused. More balanced emotionally. I found that my body was starting to crave healthier foods (like greens, salads and smoothies) and not comfort foods (like potato chips and chocolate). I was having energy at night to exercise. I could actually feel my brain detoxing and GI tract detoxing. I could literally feel poisons being released from my system through my bowels. Really.

Within the first week of starting Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula, Moses’ penmenship and ability to use scissors drastically improved (I feel that this has something to do with something in his brain detoxifying which allowed these neural pathways a better chance to function). His face had a “glow” to it. He stabilized emotionally (prior to this, he was understandably “fragile” emotionally, after our time in the hospital).

In any case, I’ve decided that I like the product so much that I’ve decided to recommend Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula. If you want to find out more, I’ve written more about this topic in the following posts on my Healing with Glutathione website:

• What is glutathione;
• Disease and illnesses linked to low glutathione levels (there are A LOT) here;
• Why glutathione production is important for autistic children, including testimonials by other parents with autistic children here;
• Dr. Keller’s Original Glutatione Formula’s website; and
• General instructions for taking Dr. Keller’s Original Glutatione Formula.

As always, I’ll continue to let you know how things unfold for me and the family. And, if you have any experience with trying to increase your or your child’s glutathione levels using this product or other methods, I’d love to hear about it.

Additional reading

• read these scientific papers about autism and glutathione here
• a general article about the link between Parkinson’s disease and autism [i.e., low glutathione levels] here;
• Scientific paper: “A clinical trial of glutathione supplementation in autism spectrum disorders” here (note that they did not test Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione formula specifically, but this study shows that scientists feel that there is scientific merit to increasing glutathione levels in autistic children).
• Low natural killer cell cytotoxic activity in autism: the role of glutathione, IL-2 and IL-15. “We conclude that that 45% of a subgroup of children with autism suffers from low NK cell activity, and that low intracellular levels of glutathione, IL-2 and IL-15 may be responsible.”
• Mercury and autism: Accelerating Evidence? “The process of cysteine and glutathione synthesis, which are crucial for natural mercury detoxification, are reduced in autistic children, possibly due to genetic polymorphisms [13,30]. Therefore, autistics have 20% lower plasma levels of cysteine and 54% lower levels of glutathione, which, among others, adversely affect their ability to detoxify and excrete metals like mercury”
• Biomarkers of environmental toxicity and susceptibility in autism. “Significantly decreased plasma levels of reduced glutathione (GSH), cysteine, and sulfate were observed among study participants relative to controls. The transsulfuration abnormalities observed among study participants indicate that mercury intoxication was associated with increased oxidative stress and decreased detoxification capacity.”
• read an article by American Healthcare Foundation about glutathione and autism here. “A study performed at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine suggested that excessive cellular oxidative stress may be a factor causing autism. In the study, researchers measured plasma glutathione and its metabolic precursors in 95 autistic children and 75 children without autism. It was found that levels of glutathione are significantly lower in autistic children than in the children without autism.”
• an article discussing the importance of glutathione for detoxing heavy metals of autistic children here and here. Glutathione is the body’s chief detoxifier.  It works with MT proteins to remove heavy metals and other harmful substances like pesticides and PCBs. Dr. S. Jill James has shown that 90% of children on the  autism spectrum as well as their parents have impaired methylation.  The active form of glutathione is reduced 80% in kids with autism.
• Read how Dr. Keller’s original glutathione formula had a dramatic impact on Rhonda Spellman’s son with PANDAS here.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment below or send me an email at spirityoga@live.com.

***Special Offer***
Use this coupon code (RKMD-90830) to 50% off the price of any single product or single combination pack off your first order of Dr. Keller’s Original Glutathione Formula.

Listen to Your Gut

My friend shared with me this great resource: Jini Patel Thompson’s Listen to your Gut website.

Jini Patel Thompson feels that there are eight key protocols that nearly everyone needs to implement in order to see their digestive healing progress rapidly:

1. Rest the bowel
2. Eradicate pathogens
3. Re-opulate the gastrointestinal tract with good bacteria
4. Heal inflammation and ulceration
5. Resolve nutrient deficiencies
6. Detox your living environment
7. Heal emotional contributors
8. Balance your endocrine system

Such great information. A lot of information that I’ve seen before, but she has specific supplements that she suggests in Step 5 (click on this link to find out which supplements she suggests), and I also like that she includes step 7 (i.e., heal emotional contributors) and suggests techniques such as emotional freedom technique (EFT), which is a method that I’ve used in the past which I’ve found to be very effective and easy at addressing and healing emotional issues.

Healing the gut is so important for some many ailments, including colitis, Crohn’s, diverticulitis, IBS, auto-immune disorders, MS, allergies and autism.

She also had specific suggestions for my friend’s son, who has Hyper IgE Syndrome (Job’s syndrome), including:

• an elemental diet
• Jini’s Wild Oregano Oil Protocol (cycling on and off as needed, according to his symptoms). See her video with 5 year old Zara for the easy way to take it.
• cod liver oil – 6 capsules per day, or 1.5 tsp.
• Vitamin D (get levels tested, but likely needs at least 3,000 IU per day)
• Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols) – 1 per day
• Bone Support – 1 tbsp per day
• Minerals Of Life Trace Minerals – 1 tbsp per day
• Natren probiotics – high dose
• Cycle on and off (2 weeks on, then 1-2 weeks off) these immune strengtheners: Astragalus, Maitake
• L-glutamine – 1,000 mg per day
• N-Acetyl Glucosamine, or if he has intestinal inflammation or pain issues, then MucosaHeal instead – follow label directions for adults
• B-Complex vitamins – 1 per day
• Houston Enzymes
• MetaCleanse – likely will only need a small amount, or 1 tbsp. chia seeds mixed in liquid

She also suggests a daily green juice (here is a recipe for a green smoothie that we use in our family).

She also suggests watching this”Healing Journey Movie”.

Many of her suggestions are things that we are currently doing for Moses, have considered doing, or have done in the past. It also gives us some ideas for things that we might want to implement at some point.

Camel Milk for Health

Something that I’ve been recently thinking about is camel milk. That’s right, camel milk…

Several months ago, someone on one of the Job’s syndrome FB groups mentioned that camel milk is known to decrease IgE levels. I immediately dismissed it because well, I assumed that it wouldn’t be easy to get camel milk in Canada, and since Moses is allergic to cow’s milk, I didn’t think that it would be something that would be safe for us to try.

Then, out of the blue, a couple of weeks ago, one of my blog friend’s (Tamara) posted a comment about camel’s milk on my blog. Again, I didn’t give it much thought for the same reasons as above and the fact that Moses was in the hospital at the time. But then, Tamara FB’d me about it, asking me if I’ve tried it yet and mentioned that it was good for high IgE levels. And then, one of the blogs that I am now following (You are What you Eat) just posted a video from TEDx NHH about camel milk.

When something is brought to my attention three times, I start to pay attention.

And, in particular, I pay attention when parents of sensitive children say that something is unequivocally helping their children. (And as you know, I pay particular attention when something helps autistic children because I have found again and again that these same treatments also help my son)

I’ve since learned that individuals who are allergic to cow’s milk are, in fact, safely able to drink camel milk (I haven’t found any instances of individuals who don’t do well on camel milk). In fact, camel milk helps to heal the allergies of highly allergic children, including children who are allergic to cow’s milk.

Camel milk is nothing like cow’s milk, they are not even in the same family and camel milk does not contain the beta-casein, which is what causes the opiate-effect with cow’s milk. Allergies to camel milk are very rare.

[Note: Although camel milk still does contain casein, but camel milk does not contain the 2 caseins (including beta-casein) that are allergenic.  Thus people with cow's milk allergies generally have no problem drinking camel milk. In addition the problems with an immune system are healed with camel milk].

Other things that I’ve learned from the Camel Milk website is that:

• Camel milk can be easily digested by lactose-intolerant individuals.
• The lactoferrin in camel’s milk has antibacterial and antiviral properties. It also has anti-tumor properties (Ueda et al., 1957).
• Camel milk has an apparent positive effect on breast cancer (Eiseler et al., 1998).
• Camel milk has three times the amount of vitamin C than cow’s milk.
• Camel milk has been used for centuries to treat liver disease, and studies have been performed for hepatitis and liver cancer with promising results.
• Camel milk is rich in B vitamins and iron.
• The immunoglobulins in camel milk have been shown to protect against types of cancer (Fage et al., 2005).
• Camel milk has been used to cure the following illnesses:
  • Autism (Shabo and Yagil et al., 2005);
  • Milk allergies (Shabo et al., 2005);
  • Tuberculosis (Agarwal et al., 2005); and
  • Crohn’s Disease (Shabo et al., 2005, 2006; Donechenko, 1975).

I’m still reading and learning about camel milk, and deciding whether this is something that I’d like to try with Moses. I know that others in Canada have been able to access it by getting frozen camel milk FedEx’d to your home, but it’s pricey to do.

Nonetheless, I wanted to share some resources about camel milk, in case it’s something that might be of interest to one of my readers. If you do wind up trying it, let me know what you think!!

If you want to learn more:

• Jessica’s  “You are What you Eat” blog posts about camel milk and how it is helping her sensitive (allergic) boys, one of which was once considered on the autistic spectrum – here.
• Drew’s Autism Recovery Diary — Drew just recently started camel milk. Read about that here.
• Alex at Alex’s Journey out of Autism has started camel milk. Read more about that here.
• Camel Milk in the Spotlight – TEDx NHH video about camel milk here.
• Camel Milk for Health  – read about Dina’s son’s remarkable recovery resulting from drinking camel milk (her son’s IgE levels were 6,000 and decreased steadily as he continued to drink camel milk). It only took two days from the time that he started drinking camel milk for her son’s health to start to improve.
• Scientific studies done on camel milk, including:
  • Etiology of autism and camel milk as therapy  
  • Camel milk for food allergies in children – follows 8 highly food allergic children (many of whom were allergic to cow’s milk). All suffered from severe allergic reactions. The most prominent symptom was diarrhea and vomiting after eating. Other accompanying symptoms were skin rashes, lactase deficiency, chemical imbalance, and asthma symptoms.Within 24 hours, all children’s symptoms decreased after having camel milk. Within 4 days, all of the allergic symptoms that the children were experiencing were eliminated. No recurrence of the allergic symptoms were reported.
• Camel Milk: Healing or Hype?  A great article about some of the science (in layman’s terms) for why camel milk is beneficial for the immune system, as well as for autistic children.
• Camel Milk for Health Facebook Group – connect with others who are using camel milk for health and find out where to get it.
• Healing with Camel Milk – connect with others who are using camel milk to heal their children and get your questions answered. It’s a closed group, but you can ask to be added to the group. Take a look at their “Docs” section, which has a lot of useful information.
• Dr. Reuven Yagil’s conference speech on video.  Video #3 is the one with most of the technical information about how the milk heals and why it’s tolerated by those with dairy allergies.  This is a MUST, if you are interested in healing with camel milk. http://www.camelmilkforhealth.com/symposium.php
• Camel milk for children with autism
• A camel milk association in the US, where you can get camel milk (but they don’t ship to Canada) – unfortunately, they are currently (Dec 2011) not accepting any new members
• Oasis Camel Dairy - America’s first camel milking farm – they do not currently sell camel’s milk, but you can contact them for a list of American herd share programs.
• Healthy Self’s son started drinking 150-300 mL of camel milk daily, in addition to megadoses of vitamin C. Her son now has clear sinuses and his other allergy symptoms have dramatically decreased so that he no longer needs two of three medications.

Update:

December 13, 2011 – My friend has ordered camel milk for her son with Job’s syndrome. Can’t wait to hear how it goes!!!

December 20, 2011 – Well, my friend’s son had a strong healing reaction to 1 teaspoon of camel milk (he was having difficulty breathing and his nose became very runny, like he was having an allergic reaction). My friend has decided to wait until she consults with his medical team about continuing with camel milk. Given that he is highly allergic, her fear is that he might be allergic to the camel milk (which is very uncommon, but then again, his condition is very uncommon and he is so highly allergic to everything, it is so hard to tell…).

April 4, 2012 – We haven’t tried camel milk yet. Truthfully, I likely would have tried it if it wasn’t for the fact that my husband is *very* skeptical of trying new things. I decided that since Moses is doing so well on his current treatment that I wouldn’t push trying to convince my husband that it was worth it to try camel milk as well.

Beta-glucans to help the immune system

After reviewing the DCA site’s list of alternative treatments for cancer, one of the supplements caught my eye as being potentially helpful for Moses. The DCA site mentioned that beta-glucans help to boost the immune system.

Nicolas’ mom at Recovering Nicolas discusses how beta-glucans can help with fungal infections (one of the things that is a problem for my son). They can help the body fight off fungal infections by stimulating the immune cells’ foreign-body-killing capabilities and helping prevent the infection from coming back. Dietary sources of beta-glucan are yeast, mushrooms, barley and oats. Beta glucan derived from yeasts and mushrooms show greater support for immune system functions, while beta glucan derived from barley and oats are excellent sources of dietary fiber that help in lowering levels of cholesterol.

Life Source Basics, which was the product mentioned by the DCA site as being a good one, has a children’s chewable beta-glucan supplement. Ingredients: gluco polysaccharide, sucrose, stearic acid, natural lemon flavor, citric acid, magnesium stearate, silicon dioxide. You can get Life Source Basics (WGP Beta  Glucan) from iHerb.com. Five moms have rated this product as five-star for helping with their children’s immune system. Read their comments here.

Let me know if you have any experience with supplementing with beta-glucan, and what product you use.

More reading:

• Scientific paper on the effect of beta-glucans on the immune system here.
• Information about beta-glucans as an alternative cancer treatment, including a summary of some of the scientific studies here.

Update (April 25, 2011) – I think they are delicious (tastes like a lemon candy to me) but Moses does not like the taste of them, so this was a failed experiment…  Too bad!!!  I’m going to continue to take them daily until they are gone.

DCA: promising treatment for cancer

Cancer affects most families (my maternal grandfather died of cancer; my husband’s father died of cancer), and one in three individuals are eventually diagnosed with cancer. I am sharing this information because my intuition says that dichloroacetic acid (DCA) can help individuals with cancer, but as always, I encourage you to check in with your own intuition and use your discretion.

This news story first came out in 2007, but I didn’t hear about it until last night. University of Alberta researchers found some very promising results regarding DCA as a potential treatment for cancer. The news story is here. The official University of Alberta DCA website is here.

DCA is an odourless, colourless, relatively non-toxic substance. It’s very inexpensive (costs pennies a dose). Scientists and doctors have used DCA for decades to treat children with inborn errors of metabolism due to mitochondrial diseases. The “problem” is that DCA is not patented, so private (drug) companies are not interested in funding studies on DCA for clinical trials.

Some individuals are chosing to self-medicate, and you can purchase DCA online from a number of sources (e.g., the DCA store). Information about dosage is here. Some great information about DCA can be found at the DCA site. Information about safety and side effects here. Some reports on the success of treatment using DCA here.

I particularly found it interesting that the DCA site lists other alternative treatments and supplements that may be helpful for cancer, and one of the supplements that it lists is miracle mineral solution (MMS) or sodium chlorite, which is an effective antimicrobial that does not breed superbugs. (I have been exploring MMS as an alternative to pharmaceutical antibiotics for the treatment of my son’s Job’s syndrome).

Other alternative treatments for cancer include (refer to the DCA site  for more information):

• artemisinin;
• tetrathiomolybdate (TM);
• DHA;
• ALA;
• hyperimmune egg;
• tincture of iodine;
• alkylglycerols;
• melanoma options;
• curcurmin;
• oleander oil;
• nigella oil;
• triphala;
• boswellia;
• liver cancer protocol;
• NSCLC response;
• amygdalin or laetrile;
• low dose naltrexone;
• diiodoacetate;
• iodoacetate;
• betaglucans;
• royal jelly;
• glucosaminyl muramyl dipeptide (GMDP); and
• sho-saiko-to.

They also discuss alternative treatment for:

• Zamboni treatment for  multiple sclerosis (i.e., one of my husband’s relatives with multiple sclerosis has experienced great success with this treatment. She flew to Poland and with money fundraised through family and friends, paid several thousand dollars for the treatment.  The treatment has greatly improved her health and quality of life); and
• use of triglycerides for the treatment of Alzeheimer’s.

Other reading:

• Alternative cancer treatment test here.

Curing Tooth Decay Naturally

I wanted to share a resource that I recently found about curing tooth decay naturally. www.curetoothdecay.com

I resonate with a lot of the information that is on the website and I purchased the Cure Tooth Decay book, by Ramiel Nagel, as well. Even if you don’t want to purchase the book, the website has a lot of good information about dietary recommendations, etc.

Unfortunately, a lot of the dietary recommendations don’t necessarily help us because Moses is sensitive to a lot of foods that are recommended, such as:

•  cod liver oil
• raw grass-fed whole fat milk, butter, cheese and cream
• eggs
• fish, etc.

But, Moses can eat bone broths and homemade soups and grass-fed beef and lamb (we purchase local grass-fed, organic beef and lamb directly from farmers in NL). More about foods that inhibit tooth decay here.

We’ve also started giving him aloe vera, which is supposed to stop tooth decay.

Moses has yet another dental procedure scheduled next week (a sixth stainless steel crown), and I’m hoping that it’s the last one. I’ve talked to his Heilkunstler and we’ll give him powders before and after the procedure to help clear the effects of the anaesthetic, and the x-ray. I’m not that happy with yet another stainless steel crown, but according to the dentist, alternate materials won’t be sufficient due to the level of decay.

Talking to our Heilkunstler put some of my concerns to rest about Moses’ teeth. She really feels that as we progress through the treatment, Moses teeth will also heal. Teeth can actually remineralize themselves. Given that we have seen so much progress in Moses’ health since we started the Heilkunst homeopathic treatment, I have no doubt that she is right.

I used to feel a lot of shame and guilt about Moses’ teeth, but after the deep forgiveness last month and also attending an Advanced Munay Ki workshop (learning how to initiate others with the 9 great rites of initiation of the medicine way in the  ancient Inka tradition), I’m feeling a lot less burdened about Moses’ teeth, and actually about his health in general. I really feel that it’s all going to be okay. And so it is, and so it shall be.

Updates

April 26, 2012 – Moses had a dental check up today and his teeth are in good health.  No new cavities.  Yay!!!!!  His teeth have been stained by the daily antibiotics he is on (related to his immune disorder — something that I’m not a fan of, but DH and his doctors feel that it’s important).  I’m happy that the stain came off his teeth and his teeth are white again!!!  Yay!  We don’t need to see the dentist for another 6 months.

I feel that this is more good news and yet another sign that Moses’ overall health is improving. Read about what we are doing to help heal our son here.

Oil of oregano for kids

December 19, 2012 update – A friend recently told me that I could put doTERRA Oil of Oregano and their OnGuard essential oil blend on my son’s feet and it will be absorbed into his bloodstream. This is a good option for our family since my son doesn’t swallow capsules and doesn’t like the taste of oil of oregano. We are now using these oils. Read more here.

I’ve been researching the health benefits of oil of oregano. I knew that it had antifungal and antibiotic properties, but I didn’t realize that it is actually just as efficient as antifungals and antibiotics (based on scientific research).  And, it doesn’t breed antibiotic-resistant bacteria!  Happily, my husband is also open to trying it as he’s really not keen on our son being on long-term antifungals and antibiotics.

I didn’t really seriously consider oil of oregano because I knew that it has a strong taste and I didn’t think that my son would want to take it.  Our Traditional Chinese Medicine (TMC) doctor* mentioned it to us, but she also didn’t know of an oregano oil that would be palatable for children. Last night, I did a search on google and found a link to Tori’s GFCFSF blog, which mentioned an oil of oregano product for kids!  Yay!

North American Herb and Spice has a whole children’s line of oil of oregano products! I spoke to their office to find out the best product for my son and they recommended a couple of new products that aren’t on their website yet…  Orega Cinn and Orega Mint, which are tasty oil of oregano formulations!  I ordered Orega Mint today. All it contains is organic raw honey, organic goldenberry syrup, organic water soluble oil of oregano and organic oil of wild mint.

• Honey – immune booster
• Goldenberries - high amounts of carotene and bioflavonoids (vitamin P) — nutrients which studies have shown to produce anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity. Goldenberries are also an excellent source of vitamin A, vitamin C
• Wild mint aids digestion, respiratory problems, asthma and skin care.

My hope is that we can use the oil of oregano instead of the antifungal and antibiotic. We’ll talk to our naturopath / TMC doctor about dosages.

Some links to research and information about oil of oregano’s antibiotic and antifungal properties:

• Research and studies on oregano oil here, here, here.
• How to use oil of oregano instead of antibiotics here.
• Oil of oregano as an antibiotic and antifungal here.
• Oil of oregano rivals modern antibiotic drugs here.
• Oil or oregano, nature’s antibiotic and antifungal supplement here.
• FAQ about oil of oregano here.
• Dr. Mercola’s tips on dealing with infections naturally (includes oregano oil and other natural antimicrobials) here.
• Some posts about oil of oregano and children here.

***

Other natural antimicrobials:

• berberis
• grapefruit seed extract
• black walnut
• goldenseal
• pharmaceutical grade hydrogen peroxide
• garlic
• Allimax - a garlic supplement
• Biocidin – a mom of an autistic child recommended this one Bilberry extract (25% anthocyanosides), Noni, Milk Thistle, Echinacea (purpurea & angustifolia), Goldenseal, Shiitake, White Willow (bark), Garlic, Grapeseed extract (min 90% polyphenols), Black Walnut (hull and leaf), Raspberry, Fumitory, Gentian, Tea Tree oil, Galbanum oil, Lavender oil (plant and flower), Oregano oil (plant and flower).
• miracle mineral solution (MMS)
• Mom of an autistic child rotates every 3 to 4 weeks: Grapefruit Seed Extract, Biocidin, Microbial Maintenance w/ Artemisinin, and Caprylic Complex (pharmax). All are botanicals.
• Holy basil – anti-inflammatory and anti-viral

***

Interesting side notes about our TMC doctor:

* As an aside, my husband trusts the opinion of the TMC doctor because he consulted with her about some long-term gastro-intestinal problems that he has been having for about a year. Within a week of following her advice, his digestion improved. He found out through biomeridian testing that he is sensitive to peanuts and sunflower seeds. With the offending foods out of his diet, he is already feeling better less than a week later.

Another interesting note: My husband’s mother had been bugging us for the last 6-12 months to see a TMC doctor that helped two of her brothers with health issues. We were reluctant because my son was already seeing so many other specialists and alternate health practitioners and we were happy with our current care. After the diagnosis, the wife of a colleague, who is a pediatric nurse, recommended that we consult with a TMC doctor. When we read about her credentials, we were excited to see her as she was not only a TCM doctor, but was also a practicing Hematologist and Allergist in China and had a M.Sc. in Immunology. We just found out on Saturday that this individual is the same practitioner that my mother-in-law was pestering us to see.  Feels like divine providence.

****

More reading:

• One of my new blog friends recommended a book about oil of oregano: The Cure is in the Cupboard: How to Use Oregano for Better Health.  I now have it on order!
• Read what Sustainable Baby Steps has to say about the health benefits and uses of oil of oregano

Update:
December 19, 2012:

A friend recently told me that I could put doTERRA Oil of Oregano and their OnGuard essential oil blend on my son’s feet and it will be absorbed into his bloodstream. This is a good option for our family since my son doesn’t swallow capsules and doesn’t like the taste of oil of oregano. I am now using these oils. Read more here.

Recommended supplements to boost immune system

I’ve been thinking about other things that we can be doing to boost my son’s immune system.

Currently, my son is on a high quality liquid multivitamin, Genestra  liquid B vitamin, a liquid calcium magnesium supplement, Vitamin D drops, probiotics and flax seed oil.

These are some recommended supplements and dosages  to help boost the immune system (from McCarthy and Kartzinel’s Healing and Preventing Autism book – page 70):

• zinc – 20 mg (my son currently gets 6 mg supplemented)
• selenium – 50 mcg to 100 mcg (not currently supplemented)
• chromium – 50-100 mcg (not currently supplemented)
• vitamin A (my son currently gets 315 mg, which is the estimated average requirement [EAR], according to the vitamin bottle)
• vitamin C – 500-1,000 mg (he’s currently gets 75 mg supplemented)
• vitamin E – 100-400 IU (my son currently gets 9 mg, which is the equivalent to about 13.4 IU; for his age, the recommended dietary allowance is 7 mg or 10.4 IU)
• vitamin B6 (my son currently gets 50 mg)
• fatty acids (i.e., cod liver oil, DHA, flax oil) – 1/2 tsp (my son currently gets 1 tsp)
• probiotics – 2 times/day (my son currently gets 1/4 tsp/day)
• colostrum (not currently supplemented)

Out of this list, my son is not currently supplemented with selenium, chromium or colostrum.

Dietary sources of selenium include: tuna, beef, cod, turkey, chicken, egg, oatmeal, rice, etc. Based on the list, my son is probably getting enough selenium from the typical things that he eats.

Dietary sources of chromium include: broccoli (this is a great source – 1/2 cup of broccoli provides 11 mcg), grape juice, potatoes, garlic, etc. Thankfully my son loves broccoli, but he doesn’t eat it everyday. Based on the list, I’m not sure if my son is getting enough chromium, so this is something to think about. I know that I supplement with chromium from time to time, especially when I am craving chocolate. I find the chromium helps to reduce my cravings.

Colostrum is acquired from cow’s milk. It appears to be toxic to many viruses and fungi and promotes repair of intestinal cells. More information about colostrum is here. My own hesitation with colostrum is that it contains lactose and I’m worried about my son’s sensitivites to lactose (although McCarthy and Kartinzel mention that generally children with lactose sensitivities still seem to tolerate the colostrum).

This helps me to put my mind at ease that my son is probably getting the vitamins and minerals that he needs (he’s probably getting at least the daily recommended values, but isn’t necessarily getting the dosages recommended by McCarthy and Kartzinel). It helps that over the last 6 months, we’ve been able to slowly introduce new foods (thanks to Heilkunst homeopathy), so his diet is becoming more varied.

One new supplement that my son will be taking soon is cactus juice, which is supposed to be great for the immune system. It was recommended by a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor. I’ll let you know how it goes.

If you have any other thoughts on supplements and what is helping your child, let me know.

Parents ratings of biomedical interventions for autism

I just came across this information on Autism Research Institute’s website. It’s a table of Parent Ratings of Biomedical Interventions for Autism. How cool is that?

The data was collected from 27,000 parents who rated a large variety of drugs and also biomedical interventions (such as dietary changes and supplements) and whether or not the treatment made their children “better”, “no effect”, or “worse” (6 point scale).

The treatments for autism that did the best include:

• removing dairy from their diet (32 got better: 1 got worse);
• fatty acids (31 got better: 1 got worse);
• removing wheat from their diet (30 got better: 1 got worse);
• removing chocolate (28 got better: 1 got worse);
• removing sugar (27 got better: 1 got worse);
• food allergy treatment (27 got better: 1 got worse);
• feingold diet, eliminating artificial colour, artificial flavouring, aspartame and artificial preservatives BHA, BTA and TBHQ (26 got better:1 got worse);
• gluten-free / casein-free diet (24 got better:1 got worse);
• zinc (24 got better:1 got worse); and
• detox (chelation) (24 got better:1 got worse).

We are following all of these treatments, except for chelation and we haven’t completely eliminated sugar from his diet (although most of the sugars that he eats are natural sugars, such as fruits). In our experience, all of these methods are helpful, useful and necessary for our son’s health, but I also feel that Heilkunst (homeopathy) added a level of healing beyond the dietary changes and supplements. (Note: that homeopathy wasn’t one of the treatment methods evaluated).

A number of drugs made the autism worse, including antibiotics (0.5 got better:1 got worse).

There’s a second table for rating treatments for Asperger’s syndrome, which show similar results.

Related to this survey, they have an internet program that can help you to determine which biomedical treatment(s) to consider trying based on your child’s past responses to other biomedical treatments. More about this here.

Autism Research Institute also has great information on how to prevent autism starting from before conception through to infant care and beyond - read more here.

Normal hemoglobin levels

Just wanted to share more good news today. Moses’ hemoglobin levels are normal.

For the longest time, his hemoglobin levels were down (when he was two, it was half of what it should be at 66 g/L, when normal is around 120g/L or more). As a result, he’s been on a daily iron supplement  for the last two and a half years. Even with a daily iron supplement, it took a while for his iron levels to increase.

His hemoglobin levels have been consistently higher (around 109 to 115 g/L) for the last few months. A couple of months ago, we cut back his iron supplement to about once a week, so we were curious how his hemoglobin levels would fare during today’s blood test.  Happily, his hematologist reported that his hemoglobin levels are the highest that it has ever been at 119 g/L, which is normal.  Yay!  We’ll take him off his iron supplement completely now. This is just more tangible evidence of real health changes that are occuring for Moses.

We had a consultation with a geneticist this week (nothing new), and we travel to Nova Scotia in a couple of weeks to see an immunologist, a respirologist, an allergist and a dermatologist over a three day period. I’ll let you know how it goes and hope to come back with more good news. (Well, it wasn’t good news…  update on this visit here).

Update:

October 21, 2011 – Moses hemoglobin levels are still hovering just short of normal (118 g/L today) and his hematologist is pleased. So pleased that Moses no longer needs to see this doctor on an annual basis. One less doctor for Moses to see. Yay!!!

Recommended supplements for autism

As you are aware, I have become very interested in Heilkunst in treating my son and me. I have been trying to find as much information on the subject online and there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of information. (In case you are interested, I have started a list of useful links in the “Healing with Heilkunst” tab above – at the bottom of the page). I noticed today that there doesn’t seem to be a practitioner in Calgary, where we used to live, so I feel very fortunate that we moved to Newfoundland and found a practitioner here!

During my search, I have come across a resource that I wanted to share – it’s a list of supplements that the Hahnemannn Center for Heilkunst has found useful during the treatment of autistic children (in addition to the Heilkunst treatment). You can find the list of products here.

It includes things many products that we have been using with Moses, or have used in the past, such as: hemp hearts, chlorophyll, digestive enzymes and cod liver oil, but also includes some products that we hadn’t considered, such as calendula ointment and some others.

One thing that is on this list that our Heilkunst practitioner suggested for both Moses and me is Hyland’s Bio-XII Tissue Salts, which promotes cellular health and mineral absorption from food. We both used it during our first month of treatment.