OT: Need Baby Hair Samples from Typicals, can you help?

[Guest guest]

Do you know of anyone who has a child born between 1988 - 1999 that would donate some baby hair? The hair is from 12months of age to 24 months. Only 30-40 strands, 1 inch long is needed for the study. Forward to anyone you think could help, or print this article out and show to Mommies of typicals . Here is an article from the front page of the Tempe section of the Arizona Republic.

Thanks,Becky

ASU autism study needs samplings of baby hairFeb. 12, 2004 12:00 AM

It's clear that B. , a Tempe resident and Arizona State University chemical and materials engineering professor, is not afraid to make waves.

Because of his tenacity, some people feel could be on the verge of a very important health-related discovery.

, 42, teaches a class on heavy metal and chemical toxicity, focused on lead and mercury poisoning. But he has refocused much of his research efforts onfinding a cause for autism, honing in on those same toxic chemicals.

"My daughter is 11 years old and was diagnosed with autism at age 2 years, 6months," said. "We were told that it was a lifelong, incurable disability, that she had only a 32 IQ, and that it was only a matter of time until she would need to be institutionalized.

"It was devastating to my wife and I. However, I have since learned that autism is treatable, and we have used many medical and behavioral therapies to help my daughter, who has now improved significantly.

"At age 5 she could not talk, but can now speaks in short sentences and can read and write at early second-grade level."

is determined to find out what caused his daughter's autism and try tosave other families from the same fate.

Through studies involving baby hair samples, family medical histories andvitamin, mineral and enzyme level abnormalities, said he believes he and other researchers may be closing in on a cause.

"The cause of autism is clearly both a genetic vulnerability and anenvironmental exposure," said. "Recent research by our group and others suggests that most cases of autism are due to mercury poisoning, due to mercury from fish, childhood vaccines and dental fillings.

"Although most children can excrete the mercury they are exposed to, children with autism cannot, so it builds up to dangerous levels and causes neurological damage."

also suspects other factors, such as complications from excessiveantibiotic use, severe reactions to the DTaP and MMR vaccines and nutritional deficiencies such as low iodine.

His research team is finishing a study analyzing baby tooth samples fromautistic children to look for anything unusual, before and after they were born.

An earlier baby hair study, which revealed lower levels of mercury excreted in autistic children's hair, is now waiting to be replicated by the NationalInstitutes of Health.

and his team could use help to carry out this study.

"Our current study with the NIH involves evaluating levels of mercury in baby hair of children with autism compared to typical children. We have lots of baby hair samples from children with autism, but we need lots of baby hair samples from typical children born (between) 1988-1999" explained.

If you have baby hair samples and could donate some, please contact assistant, Jane Romdalvik at: jromdalvik@... or . Other contacts: www.eas.asu.edu/ or http://www.eas.asu.edu/>~autism

also serves as president of the Greater Phoenix Chapter of the AutismSociety of America, which has a Web site offering resources for local families affected by autism at www.phxautism.org. <http://www.phxautism.org.>

[Guest guest]

Wanted to add to this...

After listening to the IOM meeting the other day and hearing them pick apart studies, we really need this to reinforce the Amy Holmes study that was done. The more controls we have the better the study will be. We need it to be as strong as possible! It is replication of studies that makes it all the stronger.

Thanks for any help to find controls!

JaneMama to ASD (6) and NT (3)

[Guest guest]

Wanted to add to this...

After listening to the IOM meeting the other day and hearing them pick apart studies, we really need this to reinforce the Amy Holmes study that was done. The more controls we have the better the study will be. We need it to be as strong as possible! It is replication of studies that makes it all the stronger.

Thanks for any help to find controls!

JaneMama to ASD (6) and NT (3)