Friday, February 20, 2009

Matthew's Heavy Metals & MTHFR Mutation

Above is a picture of Matthew's Fecal Toxic Metals test results. As you can see he is high in Antimony, Nickel, and Tungsten...and pulling lots of other metals. (Mercury is always the last to come out so it is low here.) I've been getting some good advice from my autism mamas on FaceBook, but if you have any advice please comment! This test was done after his 10th round...a round is 3 days on, every 8 hours of transdermal DMSA (cream applied to his feet, back, shins, thighs, or forearms), then we take 11 days off. Most people say transdermal is ineffective and go for oral, suppository, or IV chelation. Well, in Matthew's case, the transdermal is effective and we are sticking with it. His DAN wrote "incredible pull of metals" on her note..which is great that they're coming out, but not good that they're in his little body to begin with!

His blood tests showed that Matthew has the "double defect in MTHFR" which is a genetic mutation. Per LabCorp: "two copies of the C677T mutation were identified. Results for the A1298C were negative." ...so he has 2 copies of the same mutation (C677T), which means he inherited them from both John & I. I will call my doctor next week to schedule a blood test. I read some of the risks associated with this mutation are: heart disease, blood clots, stroke, etc. Our DAN noted that Matthew will have to be on B6, B12, and folate for life (all of which he is already taking - but B6 in P5P form and follinic acid which is folate broken down). This is not good news, but at least we know he has this and can plan accordingly. (BTW, I specifically asked for this test b/c I had heard it was more common in kids with autism.)

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow! Fascinating post!

We just started Z on DMSA with ALA (oral) after his last urine metals test. His results were much lower, but I'm fascinated by the fact that you got such dramatic results from the fecal test. I'll ask my DAN! doc about that when I see her next.

Hope all is well. BTW, Matthew looks great in that bottom picture (sans glasses!) (We still haven't done anything about Z's crossed eye...)

- Your friend in the bullpen.

Anonymous said...

About the crossed eyes...I have been told that Vitamin E helps prevent or maybe cure this.

Good luck!

Lynn Stallworth said...

Do you have any idea what the cost of the test for the MTHFR was? I'd love to check that out and our insurance covers zip related to autsim. For us, it'd be times 2-ugh!

Angoraknitter said...

Wow, all that just about flew over my head. We're doing the folic acid (folate) and B6/ B12 for blood production...and I know folic acid is thought to effect so many other things.

Anyhow, we're officially in the region now and they have us assigned to the clinic at Belvoir...we'll see what that brings.

Worried Mom said...

Hello,
I have three boys and only my youngest has PDD-NOS. We had him tested and found out that he has a single mutation of the MTHFR. He is currently taking Methyl B12 shot daily. I guess my question is, do you now if there is an increase chance of having another child on the spectrum if there is a known mutation? Did you have any other children after Matthew? I just found out that I am prego again and I am freaking out to have another child on the spectrum. and since I know we have a single mutation does that mean we have increased chances.
thanks
worried mom

Cyndi said...

For Worried Mom:
I was tested last week and have the same double mutation as Matthew. To answer your question, it depends on whether you think vaccines/environment played a role in your son's autism...kids w/ this defect have lower b12 & glutathione thus are less able to detox. I think as long as you're aware and make sure you/he/she has sufficient B6, B12, and folate, you'll all be fine. (I now have to take an aspirin/day b/c it puts me at risk for blood clots/strokes.) Once you have a child with autism, your risk for having another goes up slightly, but it's not b/c of the MTHFR mutation (which is actually quite common). Hope this helps, Cyndi
PS Matthew is my only child.

Unknown said...

Hi,

Were you all posted in Fallon Nevada or Sierra Vista, AZ?

I noticed your husband is in the Navy - also the very high Tungsten...

S.L.

Unknown said...

So do you do Dr. Yasko's protocol? Your son pulls so many more metals than my son does. That's great!!! I really hope you do this approach, the mutations you're talking about are the ones she tests for. We do it and it's wonderful!

Unknown said...

Hi, My daughter was diagnosed on April 20, this year. She will be 3 on New Year's day. She was hitting all of her milestones until one year old. At her one year well check up she had a cold, a fcver, and a double ear infection. They gave her the one year vaccines any way. One of them was the MMR. After that she was very sick more on than off for the next 5 months. We are getting the ABA therapy. We are seeing 2 DAN! Dr.s. She is on the GFCFSF diet. (Which seems to help her a lot.) Her urine tests show she is pretty low in heavy metals. My question is .... Is the fecal testing better for this? Also, what other treatments are out there for treating yeast? We just tried Grape root extract and Caprystatin and she can't get past the taste. She takes all her other supplements so well, I hate to ruin it by forcing this. I am looking for some other suggestions. I am slso on Facebook and looking for some friends to ask questions. Any one interested in mentoring a new Autism mom, I would appreciate it.

Sincerely,
Melissa Altmeyer

km said...

how interesting. I have the double mutation too, as does my son. We take folic acid only. No sign of autism.(heart defect though) My understanding is as long as homocysteine levels are normal it's not worth worrying about.

j.elohim said...

apple cider vinegar, organic, like bragg's or river of life, and even heinz regular apple cider vinegar from the grocery store, helps because of the valuable minerals every body needs but that are not present in most diets or foods. It is a very very gentle and lifetime cleanser and healer of many many problems. Also, now there is an enzyme test that they(doctors) can do the very first day after birth - if a particular enzyme is absent, autism is possible/likely(if fthe baby is exposed to vaccines). If the enzyme is present, the baby MAY be able to process/metabolize out the poisons in the vaccines and thus not get autism. All the hoopla recently in the media trying to defend the vaccines is all paid for by the vaccine makers and is motivated by sheer avarice and greed. No one should ever get a vaccine. Ever. (I worked in pharmacy, in 4 hospitals in the u.s.a., for almost 4 years. THEY NEVER TELL YOU (the public) THE TRUTH. NEVER. NOT EVER. THEY ALWAYS LIE. period. That is what I learned from them (the pharmacy industry) ).
..
p.s. a recent medical revelation from Britain. - so-called 'genetic' diseases are ALL CAUSED BY VACCINES!!! - the 'genetic' label was made up by the pharmacy to prevent people from finding out. EVERY TIME ANYONE GETS A VACCINE, they have 'micro'-seizures. EVERY TIME. ALL THE TIME. EVERY ONE. (and many many die).

Anonymous said...

Hi there, i noticed your son as tested for the MTHFR. i also am a double, meaning one from mom, one from dad. Its been carried in my family for generations. There is alot of medical info out there, you just have to find a dr who listens. Mine has never effected my blood clotting stroke, heart diease. I am a healthy mom of 4 healthy kids who alo are double carriers. here is a link i found when looking into it and its side effects. I had no idea about it until my aunt told me to get tested. ( they are all singles) here is a helpful site but a hard read with out much science backround. My kids are on methylguard, found at health food stortes, i am on a prescription folast. Makes a world of difference in thier personalities ad moods, let alone energy. I hope it helps and all goes well for you!!http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/165/1/1.full

Anonymous said...

So interested in your blog. My son is homozygous for c667 mutation. He has had a stroke and been dx with Asperger's, ADHD, OCD, anxiety disorder and other issues. My daughter was dx compound heterozygous and after taking high doses of folic acid had a beautiful baby girl. Obviously, my husband and I both have different forms of the mutation. Hoping to learnmore about it and am excited to finally meet others in a similiar place who have found success.

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Anonymous said...

Do you see Dr. Megson? I see that this is an old post, but just curious to see how he's doing today and how much this stuff works.