Dr. Oz Show Recap: What Causes Autism? What To Do About Vaccines?

[Guest guest]

Dr. Oz Show Recap: What Causes Autism? What To Do About Vaccines?

Today on the Dr. Oz show, Dr. Mehmet Oz discussed Autism and what causes it. He

says that 1 in every 110 children born in the United States will have autism.

Boys are more prone to it, at 1 in 70 children.

Dr. Oz says that autism is a neurological disorder that robs a child of an

emotional foundation. More and more children are being diagnosed with it each

year too. Why is autism on the rise? Mainly because doctors are getting better

at diagnosing it, and also because the diagnosis has spread to include children

with milder forms of it.

Alison Singer, President of the Autism Science Foundation, says that there’s a

strong genetic component as to the cause of autism. It’s not 100% of the cause

though, so they are researching environmental factors that interact with the

genes to trigger the disorder.

Dr. Oz outlined three theories as to the cause of autism. First is vaccines. But

that is extremely controversial because the original research by Dr.

Wakefield was proven to be fraudulent. Still, many parent associate the onset of

their child’s autism with vaccines, and not just mercury. Aluminum in vaccines

should be researched.

Dr. Oz brought on a panel of pediatricians to discuss what causes autism. Most

of them said that science shows vaccines are safe, which the audience (of

parents with autistic children) seemed to disagree with.

Dr. Oz then had Dr. Bob Sears, author of “The Autism Book,” speak to the

subject. Dr. Sears vaccinates children, but on a different schedule. He does the

important ones first, spread out farther apart, and saves the lesser important

ones until the child is a bit older.

Dr. Ari Brown, spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics, however

voiced concern that delaying vaccinations leaves the youngest, most vulnerable

babies at risk. She brought up a measles outbreak that happened due to

unvaccinated children, and one of them was Dr. Sears’ patient. Dr. Sears then

rebutted by saying that the studies which prove vaccinations are safe are funded

by the pharmaceutical companies. He is calling for better studies that parents

can trust.

Dr. Oz revealed that he did immunize his children but on a delayed schedule.

Another theory about the cause of autism is environment. Dr. Irva

Hertz-Picciotto from UC talked about a study that showed women who lived

within a quarter-mile of a freeway during their pregnancy have about a twice the

likelihood of their child having autism. She does not think there’s one cause of

autism. She thinks there will eventually be found a number of contributing

causes.

The third theory is the age of the parents…not just the mom. Dr. Brown says the

study shows that for every 10 years increase in age of the mom, the risk of

having an autistic child goes up by 30%. For fathers, for every 10 year

increase, the risk goes up over 20%. Alison Singer also say that science

indicates an increased risk of autism with fertility treatments. Dr. Oz

pinpointed the age of 35 as being the age over which the risk appears to start

growing.

Dr. Sears talked about dietary tips. He says he’s seen so many children improve

on the gluten-free, casein-free diet.

Alison Singer talked about how early intervention makes a huge difference, so if

you see any early warning signs in your child, get him or her screened.

According to Dr. Ari Brown, author of “Toddler 411,” some early signs of autism

in children under one year of age are: lack of eye contact, failure to respond

to name, constant repetitive behaviors, preference for unusual comfort objects,

lack of symbolic play or imitation, no babbling by 12 months, no gesturing by 12

months.

Signs in the second year of life are no words by 16 months, lack of social

skills, not following simple commands, not pointing to show you something, not

looking when you point at something, not pretending or imitating, seeming

disconnected, seeming deaf when not, does not feel pain or is fearless, no

interest in toys or doesn’t play with them appropriately, keen interest in

inanimate objects.