Meat rice easy dish

Here's a nice slap-it-together GFCF meal. Everyone in my family likes this one. And it's free of gluten, casein, soy, egg, beans.

- 1 recipe pizza sauce

- ground meat (beef, chicken, turkey)

- brown rice, cooked OR pasta noodles OR kidney beans OR quinoa OR potatoes

Now, make the pizza sauce in a sauce pan. Cook the brown rice or pasta. Brown the ground meat.

When done, drain grease from the meat. Add some pizza sauce to the meat and stir in -- as much or little as you like. Add a cup or more of the rice or pasta. Stir. Sprinkle with some sea salt and/or favorite spices.

Serve.

Yummy gluten-free sausage

I don't mind, every so often, promoting a product that I come across. I found a pretty good brand of sausage that not only offers gluten-free varieties, but also states that it's gluten-free ON THE FRONT of the package. And, because they did so, I bought a pack of their sausage. This is Aidells sausage. I bought the chicken-apple flavor. It is gluten-free, no MSG and made with chicken not injected with hormones. Perfect! The kids liked it but I had to explain why there were small pieces of apple in the sausage. I told them it was potato, which they would prefer over apple. Anyway, great product.

Check Aidells out at its Web site. They also have this to say about gluten: "Gluten is an ingredient in soy sauce which we use in some of our sausages. These are Thai, Lamb with Rosemary and Lemon Chicken. As for dairy products, our Pesto Sausage contains Romano cheese. Our spice blends are our trade secrets. However, if you are allergic to any particular spice, please contact us. We will happily tell you if it is in any of our products."

How cell phones and Wi-Fi might cause autism

I don't know about you, but this study makes a heck of a lot of sense to me.

Link Between Wireless Technology and Autism Unveiled in New Scientific Report

Washington, DC (PressReleaseHelp) November 15, 2007 -- A groundbreaking scientific study published this week in the peer-reviewed Australasian Journal of Clinical Environmental Medicine warns that wireless communication technology may be responsible for accelerating the rise in autism among the world’s children. (J.Aust.Coll.Nutr.& Env.Med, 2007; Vol.26, No.2 pages 3 – 7; report attached.)

Autism is a disabling neuro-developmental disorder whose cause is not completely understood, but is known to involve heavy metal toxicity. American advocacy groups call autism "the fastest-growing developmental disability in the United States." Twenty years ago, only 1 in 10,000 children were diagnosed with some form of autism; U.S. government data show the rate in 2002 to be 1 in 150; clinicians who treat the disease estimate the occurrence today to be closer to 1 in 100.

Although some of the increase in autism can be ascribed to more efficient diagnosis by the medical community The children studied were seen by Tamara Mariea², a certified clinical nutritionist based in Nashville, Tennessee, specializing in treating autism. She is the primary author of the paper, along with Dr. George Carlo¹, an expert on the dangers of electromagnetic radiation (EMR), who headed the world’s largest research program on mobile phone health hazards in the 1990s. Their work revealed the autism-wireless technology connection following a series of tests on autistic children monitored during 2005 and 2006.

The autistic children followed specific detoxification protocols in an environment that was mitigated with regard to sources of EMR including mobile phones and WiFi³. Heavy metal excretions were monitored from hair, urine and feces over periods ranging from several weeks to several months. The researchers found that with protocols administered in the mitigated environment, heavy metals were cleared from the children’s bodies in a pattern dependent on time and molecular weight. The heaviest metals, such as mercury and uranium, cleared last. In many of the children, the decrease in metals was concomitant with symptom amelioration.Tamara Mariea, said: “These findings give us very important clues to solving some of the enigmas we see in the autism literature regarding the efficacy of detoxification. And, we are extremely pleased with the results we are now seeing in these children. Our protocols are working.”

Dr. Carlo said, “These findings tie in with other studies showing adverse cell-membrane responses and disruptions of normal cell physiology. The EMR apparently causes the metals to be trapped in cells, slowing clearance and accelerating the onset of symptoms.”

The authors point out that the rise in cases of autism is paralleled by the huge growth in mobile phone and WiFi usage since the late 1990’s – with worldwide wireless usage now having reached nearly 4 billion persons.

“Although some of the increase in autism can be ascribed to more efficient diagnosis by the medical community,” Dr. Carlo said, “A rise of this magnitude must have a major environmental cause. Our data offer a reasonable mechanistic explanation for a connection between autism and wireless technology.”

Notes to Editors:1. In the 1990s, Dr George Carlo headed the $28.5 million Wireless Technology Research program, funded by the mobile phone industry and overseen by the federal government, studying health hazards from mobile phone technology. He is currently head of the non-profit Science and Public Policy Institute, based in Washington, D.C. 2. Tamara Mariea is Director of Internal Balance, Inc. in Nashville, Tennessee. Since 2000, she has helped over 500 autistic children.

3. WiFi refers to technologies that use wireless communication to connect computers to the Internet.

Helpful flu shot brochure

It's flu season of course, which brings all sorts of concern about flu shots, thimerosal (mercury) and other disturbing vaccine ingredients that those of us in the Autism Spectrum Disorder community worry about. Anyway, here's a helpful brochure from SafeMinds -- The Coalition for SafeMinds (Sensible Action For Ending Mercury-Induced Neurological Disorders). It tells you which flu shots to watch out for, if you're considering them.

Autism medicine research & a dose of skepticism

Nothing like a strong dose of skepticism to start the morning. Sorry folks, I'm very concerned about this. First, note the word "relieve" in the release. That, to me, means this would be like a cough medicine. If you give the medicine, your child's symptoms are relieved, but not cured. When the medicine wears off, they return. And, then, like other meds, there's other impacts. With my kids, the preservatives and dyes are problems. They cause behavior issues that are almost worse than the initial illness. Again, sorry, but I think this is the mainstream medical community seeking that "pop a pill" answer to autism rather than the complex treatments that actually make life-changing differences for many of us. Make up your own mind. You'll find the original release here.


INVESTIGATIONAL MEDICATION TO BE STUDIED IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM
PITTSBURGH, Nov. 26 – Children with autism spectrum disorder between the ages of five and 17 years are needed to participate in a research study looking at how a medicine called fluoxetine works to relieve the repetitive behavior and other symptoms associated with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). The study will take place at the John Merck Child Outpatient Clinic and Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC).

Researchers are looking for both children with autism and those who have symptoms of ASD. For the purpose of this study, fluoxetine is investigational. An investigational drug is one which has not been approved for this use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Autism is a developmental disorder that is characterized by impairments in communication and social interaction skills, as well as the presence of stereotyped patterns of behavior. Many children with autism also experience challenging behaviors, such as overactivity, anxiety, irritability and agitation. The targeted behaviors for this study include:

· constant rocking, spinning, twirling or pacing
· repeating words or phrases over and over
· repeating activities such as going in and out of doorways, picking up and putting down objects
· insisting objects be in a precise order; or that they do things in a particular way or particular order, et cetera
· insisting parents or caregivers perform activities in the same manner over and over again
· asking the same questions or making the same requests over and over
· issues with any other type of repetitive behavior that interferes with daily function

The study will require nine visits, and additional visits may be scheduled if clinically indicated. Participants will be compensated for their time.

Autism research at Harvard

If you missed Kent Heckenlively's piece "The Harvard Gang" at the Age of Autism site, it's worth reading. Here's a snippet, but you can read the rest by following the link. It's interesting stuff about what Harvard researchers are finding in the autism world.

THE HARVARD GANG
By Kent Heckenlively, Esq.

You can always tell a Harvard guy,” my dad would say, beginning one of the innumerable jokes he told during my youth.

“How?” my brother and I would respond, knowing we were being set up.

“Because he has to tell you he went to Harvard within the first five minutes you meet him,” came the answer.

If earlier generations of the crimson and black were known for trumpeting their credentials, I have to admit that the current crop now impresses me with their research into solving some of the mysteries of autism.

Dr. Martha Herbert of Harvard Medical School first caught my attention back in 2005 with her article, “Large Brains in Autism: The Challenge of Pervasive Abnormality.” Dr. Herbert was investigating the most replicated finding in autism neuroanatomy, namely that autistics seem to have unusually large brains. In her review of autism research, she noted that the picture which was emerging suggested inflammation as a reason for the large brains observed in autistic children.

Dr Herbert wrote, “Although there is a great deal of heterogeneity to the medical complaints that frequently accompany autism, there are common threads that may indicate common or related molecular and cellular mechanisms between body and brain. For instance, the pathophysiologies of inflammation and oxidative stress, and excitotoxicity are greatly linked, and it appears these types of mechanisms are implicated in the brain as well as some of the sensory and sleep regulation, epilepsy, immune, and gastro-intestinal complaints commonly seen in autism.”

To translate the medical-speak, inflammation is something we know from infections or injuries, oxidative stress is another expression for the signs of stress on the body from chemicals, and excitotoxicity is another word for how nerve cells responds to toxins.

Read the rest at Age of Autism.

Gluten free stuffing ... just in time for Thanksgiving

You'll find this recipe for a basic, Thanksgiving gfcf stuffing at the GFCF Recipes site at Recipe Circus. I tried this the other day. Pretty good.

Garlic, Onion and Sage Stuffing
Source of Recipe: Angela Lowry

List of Ingredients
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted GFCF margarine (I just used canola oil in a pan)
2 small onions, finely chopped (I used 1 medium onion)
2 celery stalks, diced (I used 1 stalk)
5 garlic cloves, chopped (I used 3)
6 cups GFCF bread cubes (I used 1 recipe of Noah's Bread)
1 1/2 tablespoons rubbed or ground dried sage
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning (I skipped this and added a pinch of cayenne pepper)
2 eggs, beaten to blend (I used flax eggs)
1 cup chicken stock or canned broth (I used homemade)

Recipe
Melt margarine/oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add
onions, celery and garlic and sauté until soft, about 8 minutes.

Combine bread, sage, salt, oregano, thyme, pepper and other spices in large bowl. Stir in onion mixture and eggs. Add stock and mix well.

Use to stuff goose, turkey, duck or chicken, or prepare as a side dish by baking in a casserole dish covered with oiled foil. I baked 20 mins at 350.

Happy Thanksgiving.