Ready for latest autism controversy?

Wait, are we done with any of the previous ones?

Vaccines? Biomed treatments?

Nope. But get ready for a new one.

Well an old that has come back yet again…

What is it?

It is autism secondary to mitochondrial disease or AMD.

What are Mitochondrial Diseases?

Since the mitochondria are considered the power houses of our cells, when you have a problem with them, your cells may not have enough energy to do their jobs.

“The parts of the body, such as the heart, brain, muscles and lungs, requiring the greatest amounts of energy are the most affected. Mitochondrial disease is difficult to diagnose, because it affects each individual differently. Symptoms can include seizures, strokes, severe developmental delays, inability to walk, talk, see, and digest food combined with a host of other complications. If three or more organ systems are involved, mitochondrial disease should be suspected.”

What is Mitochondrial Disease?

It is important to understand that there are actually many different kinds of mitochondrial diseases or mito and they cause many different symptoms. Some even cause different symptoms in the same person over time.

There also isn’t one quick and easy test that you can do to diagnose someone with mito.

And for most people, mitochondrial disorders are thought to be genetic.

A genetic condition that causes a range of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe – a spectrum if you will, which usually begin to appear in toddles and preschoolers, at least when they affect children.

Starting to understand that mito disorders might be caught up with an autism controversy?

What is Autism Secondary to Mitochondrial Disease?

Especially since the Poling decision, some folks have gotten the impression that it has been confirmed that vaccines are associated autism, at least for kids with mito.

“As of now, there are no scientific studies that say vaccines cause or worsen mitochondrial diseases. We do know that certain illnesses that can be prevented by vaccines, such as the flu, can trigger the regression that is related to a mitochondrial disease. More research is needed to determine if there are rare cases where underlying mitochondrial disorders are triggered by anything related to vaccines. However, we know that for most children, vaccines are a safe and important way to prevent them from getting life-threatening diseases.”

Mitochondrial Disease – Frequently Asked Questions

It hasn’t.

Even those who are actively studying mitochondrial disease and regressive autism admit that any inflammation can lead to regression and that it is better to get vaccinated and protected, so that these kids don’t worsen after they get a vaccine-preventable disease.

“As noted above, an important consideration for treatment of AMD is that “normal” inflammation can impair mitochondrial function. Although most infections cannot be avoided, certain measures can limit the risk of injury during infection or other causes of inflammation… We believe it is much better to immunize with DTaP than risk infection with highly inflammatory and potentially damaging community-acquired pertussis.”

Dr. Richard Kelley on Evaluation and Treatment of Patients with Autism and Mitochondrial Disease

In fact, in one of the few studies on vaccines and autism secondary to mitochondrial disease, Fever Plus Mitochondrial Disease Could Be Risk Factors for Autistic Regression, the authors found that the great majority of children either   regressed after fever WITHOUT vaccination or regressed without fever.

Very few regressed with fever and vaccination.

“In our patients with mitochondrial disease and autistic spectrum disorders, the vaccines did not appear related to the neurologic regression.”

John Shoffner et al on Fever Plus Mitochondrial Disease Could Be Risk Factors for Autistic Regression

And despite some folks saying that all kids should be tested for mito and treated with supplements, it is very important to keep in mind that most autistic kids and adults do not have a mitochondrial disorder.

“Most patients who have autism have a genetic non-mitochondrial etiology for their symptoms.”

Understanding Mitochondrial Disorders

What about the UC Davis study that so many folks use to say that 80% of children with autism enrolled in their study had blood tests that showed mitochondrial disease? There were only 10 kids in the study…

So why do we continue to see so many people pushing the idea of autism secondary to mitochondrial disease is so common and that it could be triggered by vaccines?

For one thing, it gives them a chance to scare folks away from vaccinating and protecting their kids.

Plus, they get to sell more supplements, mito cocktails, and lab tests…

And many people have forgotten that this was all old news ten years ago…

More on Autism Secondary to Mitochondrial Disease

• CDC – Mitochondrial Disease – Frequently Asked Questions
• Mitochondria and vaccines – the science
• Mitochondrial Mutations and Autism
• Mitochondrial Disorders Common in the General Population, But What About for Autism?
• What is Mitochondrial Disease?
• Understanding Mitochondrial Disorders
• Mitochondrial Diseases
• About Mitochondrial Disease – Mito FAQ
• Myths and Facts About Mitochondrial Diseases
• Mitochondria, autism and thimerosal
• Mitochondrial Dysfunction and autism. Brief Q and A with lead author
• Evaluation and Treatment of Patients with Autism and Mitochondrial Disease
• Study – Fever plus mitochondrial disease could be risk factors for autistic regression.
• Study – Genetic Evidence for Elevated Pathogenicity of Mitochondrial DNA Heteroplasmy in Autism Spectrum Disorder.
• Study – Reassessing the role of mitochondrial DNA mutations in autism spectrum disorder.
• Reassessing the role of mitochondrial DNA mutations in autism spectrum disorder.
• Bad mitochondrial DNA may increase risk of autism in kids
• Mitochondrial Disease and Autism: Linked?
• Mitochondrial Disease in the news again
• Court Clarifies: Hannah Poling case “does not afford any support to the notion that vaccinations can contribute to the causation of autism”
• Fever Plus Mitochondrial Disease Could Be Risk Factors for Autistic Regression
• Mitochondrial Dysfunction and autism. Brief Q and A with lead author
• Vaccine injury compensation and mitochondrial disorders
• Why the whole “mitochondrial disease plus vaccines = autism” argument is nonsense
• This Whole Mito Thing (My Final Vent…Hopefully!)
• Vaccines and Autism Revisited — The Hannah Poling Case
• The Hannah Poling case and the rebranding of autism by antivaccinationists as a mitochondrial disorder
• Reassessing the role of mitochondrial DNA mutations in autism spectrum disorder.
• Court Rulings Don’t Confirm Autism-Vaccine Link
• Why Was Hannah Poling Compensated?
• Vaccine Critics Claim Court Paid for Autism Cases
•  Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes
• MMR and Autism Rises from the Dead
• Is The Vaccine Injury Compensation Program Covering-Up An Autism-Vaccine Link?
• Autism Omnibus: Hazelhurst appeal denied
• An Open Letter To The Poling’s
• Developmental regression and mitochondrial dysfunction in a child with autism
• Andrew Zimmerman Finally Speaks
• David Kirby on mitochondral autism
• Politics of Mitochondrial-PDD
• Evidence of Misinformation
• Vaccines, Autism and the Concession
• Hope and False Hope