Heavy metals may be implicated in autism

Heavy metals may be implicated in autism
30 May 2006

URINE samples from hundreds of French children have yielded evidence for a link between autism and exposure to heavy metals. If validated, the findings might mean some cases of autism could be treated with drugs that purge the body of heavy metals.

Samples from children with autism contained abnormally high levels of a family of proteins called porphyrins, which are precursors in the production of haem, the oxygen-carrying component in haemoglobin.
Heavy metals block haem production, causing porphyrins to accumulate in urine. Concentrations of one molecule, coproporphyrin, were 2.6 times as high in urine from children with autism as in controls.

Autism is thought to have a number of unknown genetic and environmental causes. Richard Lathe of Pieta Research in Edinburgh, UK, says he has found one of these factors. "It's highly likely that heavy metals are responsible for childhood autistic disorder in a majority of cases," he claims. The study will appear in Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. [Emphasis added.]

Read full article at: http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg19025535.400&feedId=health_rss20

For information, resources and practical strategies on autism visit:

www.child-autism-parent-cafe.com
www.AutismConcepts.com