It’s 2006, and for the first time in history, U.S. children are sicker than the generation before them.

Both a blood coagulation defect and a capillary fragility state have to be considered as possible causes of any spontaneous hemorrhage. Talbert (2004) has given reasons for believing that the sudden increase of intravascular pressure occurring when an infant coughs, chokes, or gags, might cause rupture of intracranial blood vessels and bleeding which could be misdiagnosed as “shaken-baby syndrome” (1). Certainly, the measured systolic blood pressure of 180 mg Hg would increase the probability of leakage from fragile capillaries and venules within the walls of the bridging veins between the brain and the dura mater. A subdural hemorrhage would be most likely if there were an increased capillary fragility state. Such a weakness of the capillaries and venules can arise from many conditions which cause excessively high blood histamine levels. Majno and Palade demonstrated leakage of rat blood vessels within minutes after the intravenous injection of histamine.

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD, 314.0) is a psychiatric diagnosis described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM) published by the American Psychiatric Association (1994). This publication contains behavioral descriptors and diagnostic labels for numerous so-called "mental illnesses" relevant to the medical model of psychiatry. The descriptors and labels themselves have been compiled across multiple versions of this publication. Each version has involved achieving a consensus of many professionals with huge conceptual, theoretical, and technical differences of opinion working within the field of behavioral health.

In 1997, I wrote an article for the journal of the National Autistic Society in the UK about how profoundly my son, Alec, had been affected by a gluten and dairy free diet. Basically, being on the diet had meant the difference between a life in the mainstream (in all senses of the word) and a life with seriously disabling behaviour.  At the time, we had been convinced by the research of Paul Shattock at the Autism Research Unit in Sunderland, UK that our son suffered from the effects of opioid peptides derived from proteins in the diet.  We did not, however, know why this was happening.  Now, several years and many investigations later we are beginning to understand why he is the way he is.

The Irrational Abuse Of Helpless Children

The practice of circumcising male infants was once regarded as a sacred cow - immune from criticism - in the United States. Other nations, however, look on the practice

A Mother’s Approach To Cancer Care

March, 2001. This month will always hold a dark significance for me. This was the month my 13-year-old daughter, Brett, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma (a malignant bone tumor in her right femur). There aren’t many words to describe

FOR HEALTH, HAPPINESS AND HARMONY

I. Every Pregnancy Is A Wanted Pregnancy. Every Child Is A Wanted Child

An Open Letter to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Junior Product Manufacturers Association (JPMA)

Autism includes a spectrum of diagnoses which fall under the umbrella of pervasive developmental disorders. These diagnoses include Autistic Disorder, Rett’s disorder, Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Asperger’s Disorder (ASp), and Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS). Impairments in social and/or communication skills, though in greatly varying degrees, are common to these diagnoses. Also noted across this spectrum are varying impairments in motor skills, cognition, and play skills (i.e., lack of imaginative play). Children falling on the spectrum often have restricted, repetitive behaviors, rigidity, or peculiar movements such as toe walking, teeth or finger clicking, rocking, or hand flapping. Seizures or mental retardation may be present as well. Diagnosis is usually made by age 3 or 4 excepting ASp, which may be diagnosed later in childhood, since verbal and cognitive skills are within normal limits in toddlerhood. AD is an especially devastating diagnosis for families, as few children with it go on to function independently as adults.