Tampa area: Wholistic Pediatrics, Berger MD newsletter

[Guest guest]

From:

AutismRecoveryNetwork

[mailto:AutismRecoveryNetwork ] On Behalf Of Holly

Bortfeld

Sent: Monday, April 26, 2010 4:24 PM

To: AutismRecoveryNetwork

Subject: [AutismRecoveryNetwork] FW: Vaccine Rights, Special Hockey,

Autism Movie and Upcoming Tikvah Talk

Wholistic Pediatrics- Berger, MD, FAAP

April 2010 News

Florida Vaccine Rights and Informed Consent

In the winter of 2009-2010, Dr

was asked by a Florida State Senator and Representative to create a

form that would be part of a Bill that explains the Rights granted by

the Florida Law and Informed Consent, regarding vaccinations.

Unfortunately, the Bill never was voted out of the committees and

therefore died. This form has been renamed " The Statement of Florida Vaccine Rights and

Responsibilities " and can be viewed here. Please feel free to

distribute this form to any family who you think would like to know

more about their vaccine rights. Some parents are presenting this

signed form to their pediatrician to be placed on their medical charts,

to acknowledge that they know what their rights are.

4/29/10

Tikvah Talk: Extinguishing Tantrums

The TIKVAH Special Needs

Program at Tampa Jewish Family Services invites you to attend our

upcoming TIKVAH Talk group. S. Gaies, Psy.D., Licensed

Psychologist, Certified Family Mediator and Parenting Coordinator, will

speak on the topic of " Families Apart: Helping Children Cope

Through Separation and Divorce " . Attendees will learn about

the range of emotional and practical challenges faced by families

coping with divorce or separation (including families separated by

military deployment or by financial circumstances related to the

recession). Special attention will be placed on effects of children,

including children with special needs. Approaches for helping

children cope and helping parents co-parent through divorce or

separation will be discussed

TIKVAH Talk will be held

Thursday, April 29, from 7-9 p.m. at the Tampa Jewish Community Center.

TIKVAH Talk is open to the community and a voluntary $5 donation is

appreciated. CE's are available for LCSWs, MFTs, MHCs (2.0 CE's

for $10; BAP #1002 Exp. 3/2011). RSVP is preferred but not

required. Directions and other information are available

at: www.tjfs.org. Please contact Lydia Abrams at lydiaa@... to

answer any questions or to RSVP.

Starting 5/1/10

Ice Skating and Hockey for Children with Special

Needs/Disabilities

We recently learned about a new program

that has been designed to teach children with various disabilities and

special needs, including Autism, how to ice skate and play ice hockey.

This program is sponsored by USA Hockey and the first Bay area location

is in Clearwater, with plans of opening a second group in and

then hopefully in Ellenton.

To learn more about the specifics

of Tampa Bay Spirit Special Hockey, Click Here.

6/5/10

Film Documentary Debut: " Walking In The Dark, Finding The

Light Of Autism " .

This past winter Dr was

interviewed for a new documentary that has been supported by the

University of South Florida - Center for Autism and Related

Disabilities (USF-CARD). Dr was also asked to fact check the film

to ensure accuracy. The film will be used as a resource to families

affected by Autism, and will also be aired on the Education Channel.

According to the producer of the

documentary, " In the film, Director K Dery will focus on how

the family copes, how they receive the best therapies and medical

attention for their children. The film will also show the different

degrees of Autism through the behaviors of the children. Our main

focus is to highlighting from a very severe case to almost a

non-existent case. The production will wrap with leaving our

viewers who are new to the world of Autism, not only educated, but

motivated and inspired. "

The debut of the film will be held at the

USF Marshall Student Center on June 5, 2010 at 7PM.

For more information

about this project, Click Here: www.tripleknotproductions.com

Vitamin D-Autism Prevention Study

Wholistic Pediatrics continues to

participate as a recruitment and participation site for a new study

that is investigating a potential role of Vitamin D deficiency in the

development of Autism. Vitamin D deficiency has been associated with

many chronic conditions including weakened immunity, autoimmune

diseases, cancer, diabetes, and declining cognitive function and

memory. It has been theorized that vitamin D deficiency during

pregnancy and early childhood may contribute to children developing

autism.

The goal of this study is to see if

vitamin D supplementation can prevent the recurrence of Autism in

siblings of families with at least one child with Autism, by recruiting

mothers of children with Autism who then become pregnant. Vitamin D

levels of the mother are collected during the pregnancy, the mother

will then be started on vitamin D3, and then the baby will be assessed

for Autism at 18-24 months of age.

Please click here for more information about the

treatment protocol and recruitment criteria.

Please contact our office at

or info@...

if interested in participating in the study.

I recently completed an informal

study of 75 patients, and found that only 3 out of the 75 children

and pregnant women had 25 hydroxy-vitamin D levels in the optimal

range. We are recommending that all people have their blood levels

checked, with a desired goal of 70-80ng/ml. Full information about

vitamin D deficiency and treatment can be found at www.vitamindcouncil.com.

Forward email

Berger, MD

| Wholistic Pediatrics | 3341W Bearss Avenue | Tampa | FL | 33618