Is Autism a Protective Mechanism?

[lilrawhoney]

I apologize in advance if this post comes across as disorganized/scatterbrained, but I wanted to share a few thoughts that I had and maybe some individuals smarter than I could weigh in.

I recently read the book Niacin: The Real Story. In this book, Dr. Hoffer details how niacin was used to cure pellagra. Through his work with pellagra he realize that pellagra and schizophrenia mirrored symptoms exactly and that schizophrenia could also be healed with niacin. He called those who suffered from pellagra “niacin deficient” and those who suffered from schizophrenia “niacin dependent” as it took extremely large doses of niacin, over time to heal schizophrenia and these patients would often have to remain on relatively high doses permanently. Pellagra could be healed with relatively small doses and then a healthy diet would suffice.

Dr. Hoffer stated that those who developed schizophrenia actually had desirable genetics, in a way, and that the schizophrenia was a protective mechanism, because though he believed pellaga and schizophrenia were essentially the same disease, those who developed schizophrenia were less likely to die from their symptoms and instead would develop the severe mental symptoms. Pellagra, on the other hand, could kill people fairly quickly. It was a bit more complicated, but I’m paraphrasing. He also stated that those who developed schizophrenia were significantly less likely to die from other diseases, especially cancer. In fact schizophrenics are highly resistant to developing cancer.

This got me thinking a bit that maybe Autism could also be a protective mechanism. My anecdotal experience is that my 2 year old son who is autistic seems perfectly healthy in so many other ways. He has good digestion, beautiful skin, hair, and teeth. He’s strong and robust. When he gets sick it’s mild and he’s over it quickly. I worry about him so much, because of his autism, but then I got to thinking that the only real physical health problem I can think of is that he gets dark circles. Physically he seems to be my healthiest child. I know many other families with autistic children who report similar. I also have several men in my family who would have probably been diagnosed as autistic had they been born in this day and age, namely my Dad, maternal grandfather, and brother. The former two were nonverbal until ages 5 and 4, respectively and had extremely high IQs. They both had a lot of social quirks, but were very successful in their own rights. My dad made it to his 80s before he was taken out by pharmaceuticals (very long story) but until that point he had no health issues, was muscular, very active, almost no grey hair, and had all his teeth. He conceived me in his 60s and then went on to have 4 other children (I also have 4 older siblings). My maternal grandfather is 92. He has no health issues, doesn’t use medication, still lives alone, drives, is 100% still there mentally. His mom lived to be 103. My brother also seems extremely healthy physically. He was late to talk and has a very high IQ, but unfortunately struggles a lot mentally. Though he appears to be extremely charismatic at first, he doesn’t make friends easily especially long term friends, hates social situations, and is prone to meltdowns and depression.

A quick google search brought up several articles/studies showing that autistic individuals have a reduced risk of dying from many different diseases, especially cancer. (It will say that the life expectancy for an autistic individual is 36, but that average comes from the fact that many autistic children tend to elope and are at a significantly increased risk of dying from accidental causes. Autistic individuals that make it to adulthood do not have a lower life expectancy.) Another thing I noticed is that children who are vaccine injured tend to develop chronic disease OR severe autism, not usually both. (To clarify though, my own son has never had any vaccines or meds of any kind. He was born at home)

Now to be clear, I’m not saying that it’s desirable to develop severe autism, just as it’s not desirable to develop schizophrenia. However, what if those who are prone to developing autism actually have the desirable genetics? Autistic individuals are often incredibly smart and creative, which is something Dr Hoffer also remarked about schizophrenic patients. What if the drastic rise in autism is actually a type of evolutionary response to how toxic our world has become and those who do not develop autism are at more risk of dying quickly and developing severe physical diseases from toxicity, such is the case with pellagra versus schizophrenia? I am not educated enough to be able to understand the exact mechanism by which that would happen (why some would display their toxicity through physical chronic disease while others suffer more mentally) but it just got me thinking and would be interesting to see more research done on this topic (though I know there’s really no hope for that).

Obviously, please take this all with a grain of salt, as these are simply just thoughts that have been on my mind lately.

Please share your own thoughts! : )

 

[Peater]

It's an interesting idea. I am prone to spergy tendencies and have the dark circles too. I am interested to see if the liver "detox" improves this by lightening the VA load.

Certainly, the usual liver supps don't seem to have done much in my case, although I do like taurine for its other effects.

 

[lilrawhoney]

It's an interesting idea. I am prone to spergy tendencies and have the dark circles too. I am interested to see if the liver "detox" improves this by lightening the VA load.

Certainly, the usual liver supps don't seem to have done much in my case, although I do like taurine for its other effects.

We are on low A right now too, for a little over a month now. I’ve noticed that his dark circles will get noticeably better and then they will get worse again while he is exhibiting detox symptoms and then better again and his behaviors improve. I’ve noticed positive changes in him from niacin and I’ve just recently added taurine. He’s actually enjoying low A as his favorite foods are red meat, apples, and rice haha

 

[Peater]

We are on low A right now too, for a little over a month now. I’ve noticed that his dark circles will get noticeably better and then they will get worse again while he is exhibiting detox symptoms and then better again and his behaviors improve. I’ve noticed positive changes in him from niacin and I’ve just recently added taurine. He’s actually enjoying low A as his favorite foods are red meat, apples, and rice haha

We should all be so lucky. I think your boy will develop into quite a man. Although I saw some chat on Grant's forum about egg yolks and choline, so I added 2 in every other day or so. It's worth keeping in mind as some people that were stuck or not enjoying it noticed improvements. I just separate it out and chuck it in at the end of cooking my beef and beans. Apparently the choline makes up for the negligable A.

 

[lilrawhoney]

We should all be so lucky. I think your boy will develop into quite a man. Although I saw some chat on Grant's forum about egg yolks and choline, so I added 2 in every other day or so. It's worth keeping in mind as some people that were stuck or not enjoying it noticed improvements. I just separate it out and chuck it in at the end of cooking my beef and beans. Apparently the choline makes up for the negligable A.

Thank you so much for saying that and thank you for sharing! I actually haven’t cut eggs completely. I do exactly what you do, one or two (raw) every other day or so. I can blend them into drinks for my son. We have our own chickens so it’s also nice that I know what they are eating

 

[Peater]

Thank you so much for saying that and thank you for sharing! I actually haven’t cut eggs completely. I do exactly what you do, one or two (raw) every other day or so. I can blend them into drinks for my son. We have our own chickens so it’s also nice that I know what they are eating

Well the white goes down the drain, I just use the yolk for the choline and whatever other good stuff is in there, like biotin. I guess your boy isn't vaccinated either?

I wonder how much of my issues are related to the MMR. Nothing I can do about it now of course, and it could be worse. I was 2 months premature in the 80s.

 

[lilrawhoney]

Well the white goes down the drain, I just use the yolk for the choline and whatever other good stuff is in there, like biotin. I guess your boy isn't vaccinated either?

I wonder how much of my issues are related to the MMR. Nothing I can do about it now of course, and it could be worse. I was 2 months premature in the 80s.

I just got used to shooting the whole egg haha I like the whites for the protein.

Nope, he isn’t vaccinated and has never had any meds. It definitely changed how I viewed autism, because up until I had him I just assumed that it was mostly a vaccine injury, but obviously it’s a lot more complicated and there’s a lot of nuance. I’ve been researching for over a year now, and finding Garrett Smith and Grant Genereaux’s work here has connected so many puzzle pieces for me. I shudder to think how much worse off my son might be if I had given him vaccines.

I wasn’t vaxxed as a child, but my mother conceived me while she was going through chemotherapy so I’m sure I have plenty of toxicity to contend with. I have also had some autistic tendencies my entire life, but never really realized it until I had my son and realized that he mirrored me in a lot of ways. It’s actually pretty helpful, because I find I can often gage how something will make him feel by testing it on myself first.

 

[Peater]

I just got used to shooting the whole egg haha I like the whites for the protein.

Nope, he isn’t vaccinated and has never had any meds. It definitely changed how I viewed autism, because up until I had him I just assumed that it was mostly a vaccine injury, but obviously it’s a lot more complicated and there’s a lot of nuance. I’ve been researching for over a year now, and finding Garrett Smith and Grant Genereaux’s work here has connected so many puzzle pieces for me. I shudder to think how much worse off my son might be if I had given him vaccines.

I wasn’t vaxxed as a child, but my mother conceived me while she was going through chemotherapy so I’m sure I have plenty of toxicity to contend with. I have also had some autistic tendencies my entire life, but never really realized it until I had my son and realized that he mirrored me in a lot of ways. It’s actually pretty helpful, because I find I can often gage how something will make him feel by testing it on myself first.

Oh I just joined the dots...he isn't vaccinated but still shows autistic traits. I think enough good nutrition (And lack of toxins) along with a good environment will work wonders. Were you high VA when you had him? I know even 'they' suggest low VA for pregnant ladies, so I guess not. But maybe you had some stored, and I'm only asking out of curiosity not trying to reduce it all down to VA.

 

[lilrawhoney]

Oh I just joined the dots...he isn't vaccinated but still shows autistic traits. I think enough good nutrition (And lack of toxins) along with a good environment will work wonders. Were you high VA when you had him? I know even 'they' suggest low VA for pregnant ladies, so I guess not. But maybe you had some stored, and I'm only asking out of curiosity not trying to reduce it all down to VA.

Yes exactly. He will be 3 in July and is still nonverbal. He doesn’t have good receptive language. He is very affectionate to my husband and I, but often times he’s in his own world and has no interest in other people. He has no interest in even playing with his siblings. He stims a lot and participates in mostly sensory play. Only recently he’s started to participate in some correct play with toys, but no pretend play or anything like that. His motors skills are great and he’s a fantastic problem solver though. I have 3 other children who are developing typically including a 13 month old who was concieved only 10 months after my autistic son was born. She’s talking already and pretty advanced in her communication skills.

I was very high A before and during pregnancy with my son. I was doing something between primal diet and Weston Price, so lots of liver and other organ meats, lots of raw milk and cheeses, almost no fiber, because I thought grains and beans were bad for you. Ironically, I thought I did all the healthiest things for him. I had an all natural pregnancy and homebirth and he’s been exclusively breastfed and then was only introduced to “healthy” high vitamin a foods. I followed Weston A Price suggestion of egg yolk and liver as his first food. He drank tons of grassfed raw milk. I started noticing that all the healthy foods seemed to be making him worse and it was driving me mad. We’ve been avoiding as many toxins as possible in my house for years now, even down to the fact that all his clothing and bedding, etc is organic cotton, linen and wool. Unfortunately, I was misled on the most potent toxin of all so I’m now trying to undo the damage and praying it helps. I wracked my brain for so long trying to figure out what could’ve happened and toxic bile theory is the only thing I’ve found that makes any sense so I do think that played a big role. I’ve had the most awful nausea and vomiting in all my pregnancies which also lines up with toxic bile, but all of my pregnancies have seemed healthy and all of my babies have been full term and healthy at birth, no issues during labor and delivery.

 

[Peater]

Yes exactly. He will be 3 in July and is still nonverbal. He doesn’t have good receptive language. He is very affectionate to my husband and I, but often times he’s in his own world and has no interest in other people. He has no interest in even playing with his siblings. He stims a lot and participates in mostly sensory play. Only recently he’s started to participate in some correct play with toys, but no pretend play or anything like that. His motors skills are great and he’s a fantastic problem solver though. I have 3 other children who are developing typically including a 13 month old who was concieved only 10 months after my autistic son was born. She’s talking already and pretty advanced in her communication skills.

I was very high A before and during pregnancy with my son. I was doing something between primal diet and Weston Price, so lots of liver and other organ meats, lots of raw milk and cheeses, almost no fiber, because I thought grains and beans were bad for you. Ironically, I thought I did all the healthiest things for him. I had an all natural pregnancy and homebirth and he’s been exclusively breastfed and then was only introduced to “healthy” high vitamin a foods. I followed Weston A Price suggestion of egg yolk and liver as his first food. He drank tons of grassfed raw milk. I started noticing that all the healthy foods seemed to be making him worse and it was driving me mad. We’ve been avoiding as many toxins as possible in my house for years now, even down to the fact that all his clothing and bedding, etc is organic cotton, linen and wool. Unfortunately, I was misled on the most potent toxin of all so I’m now trying to undo the damage and praying it helps. I wracked my brain for so long trying to figure out what could’ve happened and toxic bile theory is the only thing I’ve found that makes any sense so I do think that played a big role. I’ve had the most awful nausea and vomiting in all my pregnancies which also lines up with toxic bile, but all of my pregnancies have seemed healthy and all of my babies have been full term and healthy at birth, no issues during labor and delivery.

Well if it helps I can tell you from experience that even if it seems like he isn't changing, at puberty he very well may suddenly change, so stick with it, as you want all the 'inputs' for it to be positive. Think of it as a mental growth spurt.

 

[lilrawhoney]

Well if it helps I can tell you from experience that even if it seems like he isn't changing, at puberty he very well may suddenly change, so stick with it, as you want all the 'inputs' for it to be positive. Think of it as a mental growth spurt.

Thank you so much. That does help! I really appreciate hearing about others experiences. Sometimes I’ll feel discouraged, but I have to remind myself it’s not a race. Slow and steady. Like I mentioned, my dad didn’t talk until 5 and my grandpa was 4 and they were both successful men who lived very full lives so I do have a lot of hope for my son and this community has given me even more hope :) Despite everything, my son is a very happy little boy. It’s mostly hard dealing with other people (family and such) as they all expect me to put him into all the mainstream therapies and of course, public school and then blame me when they don’t think he’s making enough “progress” because I refuse to do those things. Sometimes it’s hard living in this world where you have to pretend to play by rules you don’t believe in. Thankfully my husband is very supportive.

 

[Sebastian B]

I saw some chat on Grant's forum about egg yolks and choline, so I added 2 in every other day or so.

Grant's forum as in the LYL network?

 

[Peater]

Grant's forum as in the LYL network?

Discussion

Discussion

ggenereux.blog

There's some interesting posts here. I just browse, I'm not a member, I might apply for an account though at some point.

 

[Clyde]

Autistic individuals that make it to adulthood do not have a lower life expectancy.

I enjoyed your post but this can't be right can it? Do you recall where you saw this?

 

[lilrawhoney]

I enjoyed your post but this can't be right can it? Do you recall where you saw this?

I definitely should have elaborated on this point more, because it’s kind of complicated and I was going off memory typing this up. From what I’ve read autistic individual have a lower risk of dying from certain chronic diseases, especially cancer. (But I’m totally aware that this could just be a chicken or egg type situation) The mainstream reports that the average life expectancy for an autistic person is somewhere around 36 years old. However, that’s highly misleading. 1) Because of the way they diagnosis/categorize autism currently. My son for example seems to suffer from moderate regressive autism without other comorbidities. This is the type of autism we often see after vaccination or other toxin exposure. However, many children with severe genetic syndromes that do come with a lower life expectancy (Down syndrome for example) have an “autism” diagnosis because of their syndrome and so those are all added into the statistics. I think it’s unfair to categorize these all under the exact same umbrella when they are completely different, but I believe it’s a way the mainstream keeps people from healing. There is also a higher risk of suicide in adulthood (just like with schizophrenia) and those with more severe autism that need a higher level of care into adulthood are more likely to be mistreated and abused by caregivers leading to an early death. Also, like I mentioned there is much higher risk of autistic children dying in accidents. So there are many factors skewing the reported life expectancy. But maybe the statistics on disease risk are also skewed due to these same factors. It’s hard to find accurate info as the mainstream doesn’t seem to want to admit that regressive autism is caused by environmental factors.

I’m totally open to the fact that I could be completely off base with this entire train of thought.

 

[Sebastian B]

@Peater

Dr. Garrett Smith cautions against seeking advice from certain groups claiming to be low vitamin A. He specifically discussed the avoidance of eggs and choline in one of his livestreams.

 

[Peater]

@Peater

Dr. Garrett Smith cautions against seeking advice from certain groups claiming to be low vitamin A. He specifically discussed the avoidance of eggs and choline in one of his livestreams.

Oh right, I didn't know he'd covered choline as well. I'll see if i can find it, thanks.

 

[lilrawhoney]

@Peater

Dr. Garrett Smith cautions against seeking advice from certain groups claiming to be low vitamin A. He specifically discussed the avoidance of eggs and choline in one of his livestreams.

In one of his latest podcasts he did state that there are certain people who do better on eggs, especially in the beginning.

 

[Sebastian B]

@lilrawhoney

Choline slows detox by directing toxins back into the liver, rather than allowing them into the bloodstream to exacerbate issues. However, it doesn't promote detox; it merely slows it down, potentially aiding those overwhelmed by the process.

 

[Clyde]

I definitely should have elaborated on this point more, because it’s kind of complicated and I was going off memory typing this up. From what I’ve read autistic individual have a lower risk of dying from certain chronic diseases, especially cancer. (But I’m totally aware that this could just be a chicken or egg type situation) The mainstream reports that the average life expectancy for an autistic person is somewhere around 36 years old. However, that’s highly misleading. 1) Because of the way they diagnosis/categorize autism currently. My son for example seems to suffer from moderate regressive autism without other comorbidities. This is the type of autism we often see after vaccination or other toxin exposure. However, many children with severe genetic syndromes that do come with a lower life expectancy (Down syndrome for example) have an “autism” diagnosis because of their syndrome and so those are all added into the statistics. I think it’s unfair to categorize these all under the exact same umbrella when they are completely different, but I believe it’s a way the mainstream keeps people from healing. There is also a higher risk of suicide in adulthood (just like with schizophrenia) and those with more severe autism that need a higher level of care into adulthood are more likely to be mistreated and abused by caregivers leading to an early death. Also, like I mentioned there is much higher risk of autistic children dying in accidents. So there are many factors skewing the reported life expectancy. But maybe the statistics on disease risk are also skewed due to these same factors. It’s hard to find accurate info as the mainstream doesn’t seem to want to admit that regressive autism is caused by environmental factors.

I’m totally open to the fact that I could be completely off base with this entire train of thought.

It would be interested to see if any experts have played with the numbers bc in my mind a life expectancy 36 seems worse than a cancer diagnosis. An article I posted mentioned an autistic subset with no learning disabilities and a lifespan of 58. But I assume it's a small subset or the larger average wouldn't be so low.

I don't understand why the system keeps expanding the autism category to include other groups. I assume billing or something like that.