How to find out what toxins are in your child

Stacy asks "I have recently been turned on to your blog from the enlightened homemaker's blog whom I don't know personally but I am drawn to her knowledge as I am yours. I have two sons and one daughter. I don't see signs of Autism in them however my youngest is only 7 months and at 5 months I did take him to get his first set of vaccines. My oldest completed the series and I believe he is fine but then I wonder, he is so sensitive to the wind blowing and has melt downs over it. He also has meltdowns over water being too hot or cold (when everyone around him would be fine about the temp) too much noise or attention bothers him. Anyway, whether or not he is on the spectrum he probably has toxins in him. I am a big juicer, gardener, essential oils user but I feel I am lacking in so many other ways and now I am having discussions with my husband as what to do with our youngest son to finish his vaccines or not. I probably need to go back and read every post you have written, thank you so much for this blog as it has made me more introspective and aware. Where can I start? Where do you take your kid to see what toxins are in them? Sorry this is so long, I have so many questions but I guess I'll begin there. Thank you again!"

First off, thanks for reading my blog and asking questions, I love it! And way to go for delaying all vaccines until 5 months with your youngest!! That alone is a good thing!! It sounds like you are on a great path already with juicing and essential oils use. Your oldest son sounds like he may have some sensory issues. I am not an OT and this is just my opinion. And EVERYONE has sensory issues to an extent so do not take this to mean there is anything "wrong" with your child. But, those issues you describe (sensitive to wind, temperature, and noise) are all very indicative of sensory issues. My son has many of the same ones, especially noise. We did the Wilbarger Brushing Protocol years ago and that helped him a lot in calming down his nervous system. But, some kiddos are just a little more "sensitive" than others. Seems like maybe your son is in that category.

Moving on to how to find out whether your child has toxins in them. Tricky, tricky. Unless you want to start seeing a naturopath and doing a blood draw (which is not fun, speaking from personal experience here) I would suggest a different route. I would suggest maybe finding a good naturopath in your area. We started seeing Dr. Carrie Rittling at East Valley Naturopathic Doctors (www.eastvalleynd.com). But, my personal Naturopath suggested to give Thuja to my son and daughter, it is a homeopathic remedy designed to help the body handle and excrete the toxins from vaccines. Dr. Matthew Baral, head of pediatrics at the School for Naturpathic Medicine here in Tempe is in charge of bringing in what vaccines. He spoke at a local support group meeting the other night. He touched on this issue. He he also has a clinic for Autism treatment here, partnering with Dr. Jeff Bradstreet. He stated a few things, some I did not catch fully. He stated that they do a Vitamin A protocol along with other supplements.

Here are some things that I would recommend:

* No vaccines before age 2.
* Never give vaccines on a day where your child is showing signs of illness (any runny nose, any fever).
* Never give vaccines on a day where your child is showing signs of an allergic response (food allergy, eczema, etc).
* Give support supplements at the guidance of your naturopath to help mitigate the negative reactions of the vaccines.
* No flu shot, ever.
* No Rota virus vaccines, ever.
* No Hep B vaccine, unless of course your child is having unprotected sex or sharing needles with others on the playground.
* Epsom salts baths or creams. Epsom salts really help detox your body. We do nightly baths for the kids. About a 1/2 cup per bath, waist deep, as warm as they can tolerate and hopefully for at least 15 - 20 minutes. You can also do a cream.
* Big one for helping detox is just keep the junk out. No hydrogenates oils (trans fats), reduce preservatives, dyes, etc. What you cannot pronounce and do not know what it is / does should not go in/on your body. Reduce toxic load in your house, use safer cleaning products, lotions, shampoos, nothing with parabens and lauryl suphates, etc. You skin is your largest organ, choose healthy things to put on it, the junk does get absorbed. Do no buy "flame retardant" sleepwear. It is treated with arsenic. That gets absorbed into their little bodies while they sleep, when they should be regenerating. If you really worry about your kids burning up in a house fire, maybe you have a little work to do around the house to make that less likely. Install smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors for peace of mind and leave the toxins out of their sleepwear. Old Navy has non treated sleep wear. There are many, many other things but these are big ones. Reduce the plastic usage in your house, get rid of teflon, go organic if possible. All these little things help keep your body functioning and removing those toxins.
* Make sure your child is having regular bowel movements. This is HUGE. If they are not, get them some magnesium citrate. This is a huge way to get the junk out of their systems. Pee, poop, sweat, the ways we detox. Good exercise is also helpful.
* If you really want to do testing for heavy metals, you can do a hair analysis. It is not 100% reliable and the lack of metals in the hair will actually tell you more. We excrete metals through our hair so you often will find a sibling of a child with Autism who has higher levels of metals in their hair because their body is actually getting rid of them, and the child with Autism's body will hold onto them. But this is the least invasive test.
* Seeing a holistic health professional will be your best bet to maximize your body's detox pathways though, I highly recommend a naturopathic doctor.

I hope that helps Stacy!