I want to go over a brief explanation of mitochondria. We know that that mitochondria play a big role in body metabolism in those individuals with Autism. Mitochondria also play a role in everyone’s health in terms of how our body produces energy. Some individuals have underlying mitochondrial disease, which is usually detected early in life and can even be life threatening. Other people have an underlying mitochondrial dysfunction which may not be life threatening but certainly can be problematic when faced with environmental challenges. If an affected individual gets sick, has a vaccine reaction or has heavy metal toxicity, that can put a lot of stress on the body.
With chronic fatigue syndrome the body cannot produce enough energy so the person is constantly tired. The mitochondria have become stressed to the point where they are not functional. The same thing can happen with those who have Autism, their mitochondria can be dysfunctional and their energy metabolism can become compromised. This can negatively impact everything from the immune system to the nervous system to the detoxification system.
You can envision mitochondria to be little factories that are inside our cells, producing tons of energy. The primary fuel sources for mitochondria are fat and protein. We get a lot of energy byproduct from the metabolism of fat and protein versus sugar for example. The mitochondria are crucial for this level of energy currency production.
An appropriate example to help explain this concept is to think about starting a campfire. In the beginning, you use small twigs and dried leaves, kindling, to start the fire. It burns quickly but will not burn for a long time, similar to the way our body uses sugar or glucose. It can jumpstart the body but will not sustain us. Once you have the fire started you need to add larger pieces of wood to sustain the fire. This would be the fat and protein to help sustain our body for longer periods. Burning sugar is a quick yet inefficient form of body metabolism whereas our body usually burns fat for longer periods.
But, if you start having issues in the mitochondria with their ability to regulate your metabolism, that is when you run into problems. We see this often in Autism where various factors inside the mitochondria become dysfunctional. There are supplements that support mitochondrial function like CoQ10, NADH and ribose. They fuel and feed the mitochondria so they will function more appropriately. You will hear more about mitochondria in the future, they are the energy systems inside our cells. The mitochondria produce energy to keep our organs functioning appropriately and to keep us all healthy.
Asperger’s Syndrome was first described by an Austrian physician in the 1930s. The official diagnostic criteria of Asperger’s Syndrome accepted by The American Psychiatric Association includes impairment in social interactions; repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior without significant deficits in language development or cognitive ability. However Asperger’s Syndrome may result in social,occupational, and other areas of functioning
Children with this disorder may be extremely sensitive to sudden noises and certain types of sensory input. They may suffer from motor clumsiness. They demonstrate an avoidance of eye contact. Their language may be pedantic and somewhat odd. They often talk more like an adult than a child. They provide too much information and have trouble getting to the point. They may be perfectionist and believe that they are incompetent at doing things. They are poor at organization. Good at dealing with objects, they are poor at dealing with people. They have difficulty recognizing and expressing feelings. They seem to lack the words to express their own feelings.They are delayed in social maturity and have difficulty making friends. They may exhibit intense interest in certain topics and become quite knowledgeable about these topics. Yet they are distracted with topics that did not arouse their interest. They are described as having a “one track mind” They can be inflexible and unable to find an alternative when one solution does not work. They do not tolerate sudden changes in routine, such as a substitute teacher. In those situations that may have an emotional meltdown. They may be negative, pessimistic, and fearful of making a mistake. The term “theory of mind” is used to describe their inability to understand the intentions of feelings of others. They do not recognize sarcasm and may mistakenly believe that others are laughing at them.
The cause of Asperger’s has not been identified. It tends to run in families. There is some neurological evidence that the amygdala, a structure in the limbic system of the brain associated with emotion may be abnormal, with fewer connections to the frontal lobe. They may exhibit abnormal degrees of anger, anxiety, and sadness. and are emotionally over-reactive.
Children with Asperger’s require a toolbox of strategies and interventions to help them socially and emotionally. Sometimes medication for anxiety, depression, and mood swings may help. However, they also require social and emotional tools to stay calm and in control. Affective education can help teach these children to recognize facial expressions and non-verbal cues of others. They can benefit from being taught social skills such as eye contact and rehearsal of social situations. (”What would you do if…?) They can be taught to label their feelings with an emotional barometer and to recognize and respond to cues that things are getting out of hand. Solitude is the best curative for loss of emotional control. Keeping diaries, writing e-mail, listening to music can be helpful. Classroom accommodations are usually necessary, such as permission to leave the room when they feel themselves becoming upset.
Asperger’s is not all bad. If social demands can be minimized Asperger’s adults may become highly successful as mathematicians, physicists, even corporate executives. Some claim that Einstein demonstrated symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome. A child with Asperger’s Syndrome remarked to me that if a cure could be found, he would not agree to take it. “I am who I am,” he explained. “Killing that part of my brain that is Asperger’s would be changing my personality.”
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