Healing autism - No finer a cause on the planet
Healing autism - No finer a cause on the planet |
| Continuation
of Articles by Dan Olmsted of UPI on The Age of Autism 45. The Age of Autism: The story so far Published: Dec. 16, 2005 at 1:31 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Part 1 of 3. In February, we began this ongoing series of articles on the roots and rise of autism. Now, at the end of the year, here's a summary of our story so far: 46. The Age of Autism: Question of the year Published: Dec. 14, 2005 at 12:56 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor This was the year Big Media pitted parents against experts over whether vaccines cause autism -- and decided the experts are right. But they may have forgotten to ask an embarrassingly obvious question. 47. The Age of Autism: 'A pretty big secret' Published: Dec. 4, 2005 at 5:18 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor CHICAGO, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- It's a far piece from the horse-and-buggies of Lancaster County, Pa., to the cars and freeways of Cook County, Ill. 48. The Age of Autism: Nuts Published: Nov. 22, 2005 at 2:50 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor You may have seen the brief news stories this week: A 15-year-old Canadian girl with a severe peanut allergy kissed her boyfriend -- and died. 49. The Age of Autism: Flu shot flashpoint Published: Nov. 19, 2005 at 12:06 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor It's flu shot season, and that simple fact is sharply focusing the debate over a possible link between vaccines and autism. The reason: Most flu shots contain thimerosal, the mercury-based preservative that some suspect caused a huge rise in autism cases beginning in the 1990s. 50. The Age of Autism: Showdown in Santa Fe Published: Nov. 9, 2005 at 8:40 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor A pediatrician had an appointment with the New Mexico Board of Pharmacy Monday to deliver a blunt message: They need to warn state residents that the mercury in flu shots could be harmful to pregnant women and their children -- or risk being remembered for 51. The Age of Autism: 'The facts say maybe' Published: Nov. 8, 2005 at 11:25 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor A small text block on the cover of the current Columbia Journalism Review may be a lot bigger than it looks: 52. The Age of Autism: Concerned in Tennessee Published: Nov. 7, 2005 at 1:23 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Susan Lynn would like some information, please: What is the autism rate among people living in the United States right now who have never been vaccinated? If you have that data or know where to find it, kindly contact her by the end of the month, care of the Tennessee House of Representatives, which is considering whether to ban a mercury preservative from childhood vaccines. 53. The Age of Autism: Amish genes Published: Nov. 1, 2005 at 12:24 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor WASHINGTON, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- What do the experts say about the idea that genes could explain a lower rate of autism among the Amish? Well, two noted medical geneticists say it's entirely possible. 54. The Age of Autism: The Amish Elephant Published: Oct. 24, 2005 at 9:18 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor A specter is haunting the medical and journalism establishments of the United States: Where are the unvaccinated people with autism? 55. The Age of Autism: Mercury goes to work Published: Oct. 20, 2005 at 11:28 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Throughout the 1920s a scientist named Morris Kharasch filed a blizzard of applications with the U.S. Patent Office. 56. The Age of Autism: 'My child is toxic' Published: Oct. 12, 2005 at 12:01 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Health Editor This column receives a welcome avalanche of correspondence, but our recent discussion of autism as a "whole-body illness" has generated more e-mail and faster than any other topic we've considered. 57. The Age of Autism: More sick kids Published: Oct. 10, 2005 at 8:50 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor In our last column, "A whole-body illness," we wrote: "Something is medically wrong with many, many autistic children. To be more precise, many things are wrong with them. Yet autism is defined by the health authorities as a mental disorder, diagnosed solely by observation." 58. The Age of Autism: Connecting new dots Published: Oct. 5, 2005 at 2:26 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Until now the debate over a possible link between ethyl mercury and autism has focused on its use in vaccines beginning in the 1930s, when the first children diagnosed with the disorder were born, but medicines were not the only commercial products to 59. The Age of Autism: A whole-body illness Published: Oct. 4, 2005 at 11:50 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor One advantage of writing an ongoing column is trends become evident as readers respond over time -- trends that might not emerge in a single installment, no matter how detailed. 60. The Age of Autism: Critics have their say Published: Oct. 3, 2005 at 9:15 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Several readers have taken us to task for continuing to highlight what they consider unsupported beliefs that might scare parents away from life-saving vaccinations for their children. Here are comments that summarize that viewpoint. 61. The Age of Autism: Regression Published: Sept 27, 2020 at 10:20 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Regression, regression, regression. That's the theme of much of the e-mail this column has received, sparked by two recent installments. 62. The Age of Autism: Case Number 88924 Published: Sept 23, 2020 at 5:30 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor In this column: An interview with a mother who reported a suspected link between vaccination and her daughter's autism in 1996. That was two years before the issue surfaced nationally and one of 83 such reports reviewed by UPI. 63. The Age of Autism: Adverseevents Published: Sept 20, 2020 at 2:38 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Senior Editor Years before the alarm sounded nationwide about a possible link between vaccines and autism, some doctors were making that connection themselves. 64. The Age of Autism: Research reversal Published: Sept 19, 2020 at 11:46 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor As public funding all but dries up for research into a possible link between vaccines and autism, advocates are trying to tap new sources, but it's too early to tell if they will find any. 65. The Age of Autism: Videos Published: Sept 13, 2020 at 9:45 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor Do parents know what they're talking about? That has turned out to be a key question in the debate over autism and its possible causes and cures. 66. The Age of Autism: One angry mom Published: Sept 7, 2020 at 8:48 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor Ginger Taylor, mother of an autistic child and a former family therapist, tells why she is angry that doctors apparently did not notice the marked improvement of the first autistic child after he was treated with gold salts for an attack of juvenile arthr 67. The Age of Autism: New York nixes mercury Published: Aug. 29, 2005 at 7:58 PM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Have America's medical authorities -- including pediatricians -- lost their credibility on an issue involving the well-being of the nation's children? 68. The Age of Autism: Gold salts to be tested Published: Aug. 29, 2005 at 2:08 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- A University of Kentucky chemist says he will do tests to see if gold salts might help children with autism -- two weeks after this column reported that the first autistic child seemed to improve markedly after that treatment. 69. The Age of Autism: Gold and mercury Published: Aug. 22, 2005 at 12:44 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Something startling happened to an autistic boy named "Donald T." 58 years ago at the Campbell Clinic in Memphis. He got better -- a lot better. 70. The Age of Autism: Gold? Published: Aug. 19, 2005 at 3:21 PM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Why would treatment with gold help someone with autism? http://www.upi.com/Consumer_Health_Daily/Repo rts/2 005/08/19/the_age_of_autism_gold/5360/ 71. The Age of Autism: March of the experts Published: Aug. 17, 2005 at 10:50 AM WASHINGTON, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- The news that the first child diagnosed with autism got better after medical treatment -- while leading experts didn't make the connection -- suggests how research and reality have been distorted for decades. 72. The Age of Autism: Case 1 revisited Published: Aug. 14, 2005 at 9:12 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor The first person ever diagnosed with autism lived in a small town in Mississippi. He still does. 73. The Age of Autism: New in name only Published: Aug. 9, 2005 at 9:19 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, Aug. 9 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- This week's column about the first autism diagnoses brought a quick response from longtime autism researcher Dr. Darold A. Treffert. He disagreed with our view that autism is something that began in the 1930s and cites cases in the 1800s. 74. The Age of Autism: But what about1930? <br> Published: Aug. 8, 2005 at 10:27 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Consumer Health Editor Sunday's Meet the Press discussion on autism and vaccines highlights an issue this column has raised before -- whether there really is an epidemic or just better diagnosis of autism. The answers could lie in the earliest cases. 75. The Age of Autism: Gene suspects located Published: Aug. 3, 2005 at 1:25 PM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor Genetic interactions that appear to create a risk for autism have been identified by researchers at Duke University. 76. The Age of Autism: The epidemic debate Published: Aug. 2, 2005 at 10:33 AM By DAN OLMSTED Readers respond to the question of whether there really is an autism epidemic or just better diagnosis. One begins: "I am an 18-year-old with Asperger's syndrome, and this is my first time writing a reply to an article like this. I went undiagnosed for a 77. The Age of Autism: What epidemic? Published: Aug. 1, 2005 at 8:11 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor The mother of an autistic child explains why the surge in autism is not because of "better diagnosis" -- and why she is so sick of hearing that it is. 78. The Age of Autism: Generation Zero Published: July 26, 2020 at 11:44 AM By DAN OLMSTED UPI Health Editor A parent who ran his own calculations on a CDC database says it shows children who were exposed to a mercury-based preservative were 10 times more likely to have autism. The CDC disagrees. 79. The Age of Autism: Zeroexposure Published: July 24, 2020 at 8:47 PM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Part 1 of 2. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says studies of autism in unvaccinated populations "could be done and should be done" (just not in the Amish). The CDC's own database would be a good place to start looking. http://www.upi.com/Consumer_Health_Daily/Repo rts/2 005/07/24/the_age_of_autism_zero_exposure/7582/ 80. The Age of Autism: Rep. wants Amish study Published: July 19, 2020 at 8:33 AM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International A U.S. Congressman who is a medical doctor said Tuesday he will seek funding to study the autism rate among the largely unvaccinated Amish. 81. The Age of Autism: Isabella'sstory Published: July 18, 2020 at 9:44 AM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Libby Rupp of St. Paul, Minn., tells the story of her autistic daughter, Isabella, and why she thinks vaccines triggered the disorder. 82. The Age of Autism: Both sides now Published: July 12, 2020 at 8:57 PM By DAN OLMSTED Part 1 of 2. Regular readers of this column know that we value a back-and-forth approach. Since beginning this open-ended series six months ago, we have paused several times to let readers speak, and our direction has been shaped by their responses. 83. The Age of Autism: 'The Times' vs. parents Published: July 11, 2020 at 8:27 AM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Parents demand corrections to The New York Times article on autism and vaccines. The Times refuses. A look at the escalating argument. 84. The Age of Autism: Dismaying 'Times' Published: July 6, 2020 at 9:19 AM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Who knew the longest word in the English language would be the best one to explain what is wrong with a newspaper article? 85. The Age of Autism: Homeschooler APB Published: July 3, 2020 at 10:03 PM By DAN OLMSTED United Press International Feedback on whether homeschoolers have a lower rate of autism suggests a pattern similar to the Amish. 86. The Age of Autism: Homeschooled Published: June 25, 2020 at 10:31 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 25 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Where are the unvaccinated homeschooled children with autism? Nowhere to be found, says a doctor who treats autistic children and is knowledgeable about the homeschooled world. 87. The Age of Autism: HHS eyes Amish study Published: June 23, 2020 at 11:28 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- A top U.S. health official is considering launching studies of the Amish and perhaps other unvaccinated groups in response to United Press International's articles about a low prevalence of autism among the Amish, according to several people who spoke wit 88. The Age of Autism: Feedback on the Amish 2 Published: June 14, 2020 at 7:59 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- The second of two columns sharing reader response to our exploration of autism among the Amish. 89. The Age of Autism: Feedback on theAmish 1 Published: June 14, 2020 at 9:57 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 14 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Readers of this column have reacted strongly to our series of reports on autism among the Amish. So far, we have found only a handful of cases of autism and have quoted some experts who think it is nearly non-existent in this group. 90. The Age of Autism: One in 15,000 Amish Published: June 7, 2020 at 2:26 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 7 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Of the 15,000 Amish who live near Middlefield, Ohio, just one has autism, according to a local doctor. If that figure is anywhere near correct, the autism rate in that community is astonishingly low. 91. The Age of Autism: Amish ways Published: June 6, 2020 at 10:00 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 6 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- The Amish appear to have a lower prevalence of autism -- a difference that could reflect diet, genetics, vaccination rates or the health of the birthing mother, people who work with them tell UPI. 92. The Age of Autism: A glimpse of the Amish Published: June 2, 2020 at 10:39 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, June 2 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Part 1 of 2. Dick Warner has just visited his 89th Amish community in the United States. He stays with the Amish. He prays with them. He has not seen any autism. 93. The Age of Autism: Oaklawn Published: May 26, 2020 at 1:32 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 26 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Finally. I found a place that could tell me all about Amish people with autism. 94. The Age of Autism: Heavy metal Published: May 24, 2021 at 8:09 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 24 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Parents of autistic children Tuesday launched an organization called Generation Rescue based on their conviction that flushing mercury out of children's bodies improves and in some instances reverses autism. 95. The Age of Autism: Goshen Published: May 23, 2021 at 12:10 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 23 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Our search for Amish people with autism is now departing Lancaster County, Pa., and heading for the Midwest, where a significant percentage of the nation's 80,000 Amish can be found. 96. The Age of Autism: Mercury and the Amish Published: May 18, 2021 at 5:00 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 18 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- The cases of autism among the Amish that I've identified over the past several weeks appear to have at least one link -- a link made of mercury. 97. The Age of Autism: Mercury ascending Published: May 16, 2021 at 12:44 PM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 16 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- A year ago, the prestigious Institute of Medicine slammed the door on the idea that mercury in vaccines bore any relation to autism. 98. The Age of Autism: Absence of evidence Published: May 9, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED LEBANON, Pa., May 9 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- After several weeks of looking, the prevalence of autism among the central Pennsylvania Amish still appears remarkably low, and the few cases I have found suggest an ominous pattern. 99. T he Age of Autism: Witness Published: May 8, 2021 at 10:43 PM By DAN OLMSTED LEBANON, Pa., May 8 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Age of Autism is series on the roots and rise of autism. Tuesday: Frank Noonan is a family doctor in Lancaster County. When I met him for lunch last Saturday, he was still in golfing togs from his weekly game -- "Saturdays are my 'I can breathe' day," he 100. The Age of Autism: Letter from Ibiza Published: May 6, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 6 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. This installment: As part of UPI's ongoing series on the roots and rise of autism, we invited readers to interact with us via e- mail. One letter we found particularly interesting is from Alan G. Carter, who 101. The Age of Autism: Mercury in the air Published: May 5, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 5 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. This installment: A new study has found a possible link between higher mercury emissions and higher rates of autism. The study looked for an association in Texas between rates of autism, special education 102. The Age of Autism: Backward Published: May 4, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 4 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. When Leo Kanner first identified autism as a unique developmental disorder in 1943, he was certain it was present from birth. Almost 30 years later, in a 1972 speech, Kanner was of the same mind. 103. The Age of Autism: Feedback Loop Published: May 3, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 3 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. This installment: One of the great things about being a journalist in this day and age is how easy it is to interact with readers in a meaningful way. Feedback was requested from readers and feedback, lots of 104. The Age of Autism: Educated Guesses Published: May 2, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, May 2 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. This installment: There was something similarly strange about the children who caught Leo Kanner's attention starting in 1938. He called their behavior "autistic." There also was something strangely similar 105. The Age of Autism: Donald T. andFritz V. Published: April 29, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED BALTIMORE, April 29 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- They were born within four months of each other, Fritz V. in June of 1933 and Donald T. that September. Fritz was born in Austria, Donald in Mississippi, but they had a surprising amount in common. Unfortunately. 106. The Age of Autism: 'Absolutely different' Published: April 29, 2021 at 12:05 AM By DAN OLMSTED WASHINGTON, April 29 (UPI) -- (UPI) -- Repeating a series published earlier this year. This installment: "Virginia S. has resided at a state training school for the feebleminded since 1936, with the exception of one month in 1938, when she was paroled to a school for the deaf for 'educational Lenny Schafer, editor@sarnet.org SAR ARCHIVES: Back issues: http://tinyurl.com/ylclr6 The Schafer Autism Report is a non-profit corporation. |