Where Autism and Down Syndrome meet: Mitochondrial Dysfunction (Part 1)

Being a mom of a child with a genetic desoder, it is like being a soldier. I don't go to the battle feilds; howsoever, I have my own battles against insurance companies, doctors and a mainstream health care system that refuses to accept that genetic is complex, so the "one-fit-all" health policies may not be for everyone, specially for a child that has a GENETIC disorder. We, parents with a chid with Autism, have raised our voices to let people know what has happened to our kids after they have received a vaccine or a medication, and then, our kids suddenly regressed without an apparent reason. To any mom out there: You should know that there is a reason, your child may have MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION.  

MITOCHONDRIA DYSFUNCTION (PART 1)

What is 'mitochondria'?

Mitochondria is specialized structures unique to the cells. They are like batteries, that give energy to various functions of the cell and the organism as a whole. So without proper mitochondrial function we struggles with endurance and complete physical activities.

According to the the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, Depending on which cells are affected, symptoms may include loss of motor control, muscle weakness and pain, gastro-intestinal disorders and swallowing difficulties, poor growth, cardiac disease, liver disease, diabetes, respiratory complications, seizures, visual/hearing problems, lactic acidosis, developmental delays and susceptibility to infection

Can medications interfere with the mitochondria?
Yes! There actual a huge list of medications that can interfere with the mitochondria function. Click here to see the list that has been put out for the public by Mitoacion.org.

Scientist research have identified that kids with Autism alone or Down syndrome alone have issues with the mitochondria as an underline cause of many of the issues these kids face. Some drugs, but not all, have been identified to interfere with mitochondrial function. All the vaccines safety studies having conducted in patients without Down syndrome alone or Autism alone. How doctors can guarantee that vaccines are safe for a child with Autism or Down syndrome if there is not a vaccine safety study that includes these kids?

We know now that non-share environmental factors have 50% responsibility in causing Autism. But more studies need to be done with a population with a compromise immune system and vaccines, because vaccines are in the non-share environmental factors category. We know that the in resent years Mitochondria Autims has been identified a s subtype of Autism. The kids with mitochondrial Autism are the ones began to show signs after an infection. medication has interact with their immune system.

Even when there is not a vaccine study proven the connection with the mitochondrial dysfunction, it is scientifly proven that mercury and aluminum can damage the mitochondria, which are key ingredients in vaccines. Pharmaceutical companies may claim that the dosage of mercury and aluminum are very minimum in the vaccines, but what happen if the child has an underline issue with the mast cells. If the child has an issue with the mast cells the child can have an allergic reaction to Mercury or Aluminum, which means that the mast cells attack the allergens. This can produce an anaphylactic or sensitivity reaction. An anaphylactic reaction is life treating. But what happen if the child has a sensitivity reaction to Mercury or Aluminum. The allergic reaction will be slowy and progressive rather than quick and instant like the anaphylactic reaction. A sensitivity to an allergen can even take up to 6 months to manifest because the allergen is still inside the body. The slow reaction can cause internal inflammation, which includes the brain. The inflammation in the brain ins known as ENCEPHALITIS that has also been linked to Autism. Inflammation is the underline cause of many health issue. Therefore, If the patient already has  a disrupted methylation cycle will result that toxins from mercury or other heavy metals won't be efficiently be detoxed, so this toxic chemicals can contribute to mitochondrial toxicity that impterrup the normal mitochondrial function, which result in the inability of the patient to function. This also raise other question, if the child has methylation issues then, Could the child has a MTHFR mutation? So vaccines may not directly cause Autism, but it may contribute to it. 

There is other underline consequesnse that may happen to some kids, but the medical community or the media don't talk much about this.  It can happened that the viruses in the vaccines can infect the gut, which it has happened in some patients. One thing to remember, One of the big manifestation of Autism is GUT ISSUES. We should always remember that genetic is not a cookie cutter, so there is a lot of genetic information merged in a human being which is different from person to person, so following "common sense", every human body react differently to medications/vaccines. Pharmaceutical companies know this!

My kids have all their vaccines, Francis had a vaccine reaction at 3 month old. So I began to delay his vaccines, and he never had another reaction again. Tommy has all his vaccines as well, we didn't noticed any reaction when he was given the vaccines, but we did see it when he was in antibiotic during in 2011 when he got hospitalized due to RSV. Yes, there are certain antibiotics, steroids and sedative that interfere with mitochondria dysfunion.

I am not against vaccines, but they should be used with caution and Parents should be a lot more educated about underline issues as the ones I have explained above. Instead of making this a big controversy, every family should be giving the option of genetic testing to check if a newborn has healthy cells with an apropiate methylation cycle to detox toxins from mercury, aluminum or any other allergen before a newborn is vaccinated. This options is not giving to parents by Medical professionals or even the GOVERNMENT. WHY?

Here is what the court says about a case  that was proven to cause Autism due to inflammation in brain caused by a vaccine:

"...The doctors conceded that the child was healthy and developing normally until her 18-month well-baby visit, when she received vaccinations against nine different diseases all at once (two contained thimerosal).  

Days later, the girl began spiraling downward into a cascade of illnesses and setbacks that, within months, presented as symptoms of autism, including: No response to verbal direction; loss of language skills; no eye contact; loss of “relatedness;” insomnia; incessant screaming; arching; and “watching the florescent lights repeatedly during examination.” 

Seven months after vaccination, the patient was diagnosed by Dr. Andrew Zimmerman, a leading neurologist at the Kennedy Krieger Children’s Hospital Neurology Clinic, with “regressive encephalopathy (brain disease) with features consistent with autistic spectrum disorder, following normal development.” The girl also met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) official criteria for autism. 

In its written concession, the government said the child had a pre-existing mitochondrial disorder that was “aggravated” by her shots, and which ultimately resulted in an ASD diagnosis..." Click here to read the full article.

ACTION PLAN
There ere are possibilities that my son may have mitochondrial dysfunction, MHTFR mutation, as well as some degree of Encephalitis; which has empowered me to find the help he needs. Howsoever, my new battle has been getting a doctor who specialized in mitochondrial dysnfuntion, which there are not many doctors trained in this field or doctors who are willing to treat kids with Down syndrome. So I have not stopped searching for a doctor and I found a local functional doctor who truly knows about human biochemistry, so we have been working on shifting and balancing Tommy's biochemistry to support his mitochondria and his entire body. The improvement is huge because  Tommy's gut is beginning to heal and it stated to happened in just two months working with our new doctor. After 5 years working so hard in healing his gut, our hard work is being rewarded! It feels great!

I talk to our new doctor about my concern of Tommy possible having a MHTFR mutation (I think I may have it, too).  He believe the problem is not the genetic, the issue is environmental factors which is "the straw that breaks the camel's back."I think in the same way because I have experienced since 2011.

• Decreasing toxins level in our home.Tommy's toxicity test showed that he has high levels of two chemicals found in plastics. Therefore, I am beginning to put in boxes all toys made by polyester and plastic (Polyester is a synthetic fabric made with plastic).  I already replace most of plastic kitchen utensils with stainless steel, bamboo and ceramic. I am also avoiding the use of harmful cleaning products or any conventional product because it you read the label and they ingredients have a weird sciencitc name, them it is scienteti, harmful and a chemical. 
• Purify in the air. I am getting plans to purify the air, which includes essential oils.
• Avoiding mainstream medications such tylenol, antibiotics, etc. to the maximum extent possible. Even our pediatrician has told me to not give tylenol to the boys, hah!. We use mainly homeopathic medicines and I am glad Walgreens is selling them.
• Reducing internal inflammation with essential oils and pharmaceutical grade supplements. Thyme is a great oil supported by a sciecist study. To confirm if Tommy has encephalitis (brain inflammation), spinal fluid samples should be taken and I don't want him to go though this medical procedure. Our doctor give me order for blood work so we can confirm inflammation in his body with a less invite testing.
• Healing the gut, healing the brain. We have made big progress on it. He is giving signs that his guts is starting to heal and his broken lining is getting repaired because his body is producing his own good flora/microbine.  

Please send prayers in Tommy's way because this is a long journey with a lot of bumps, so I need the strength, the time and the money to keep going with my long list of intervesnions that are not covered by insurance. Regardless the bumps, my action plan is working in my son's benefit.