Autism Correlates with Circumcision

After publishing Circumcision Linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome a couple of days ago, I said to myself, “If there’s a link between SIDS and circumcision there’s got to be a link between autism and circumcision. And with a quick check, sure enough, I found that there is a correlation.

When I searched for “circumcision autism” I found that many prominent, mainstream websites bring up the topic. I looked for the ones that attempt to debunk the connection, like Vice’s article, Don’t Worry Circumcision Probably Doesn’t Cause Autism but they didn’t actually have any evidence against the findings. So what are the findings?

Based on converging observations in animal, clinical and ecological studies, we hypothesised a possible impact of ritual circumcision on the subsequent risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in young boys.” – Study by Morten Frisch and Jacob Simonsen

The study was a national, register-based cohort study done in Denmark, published in 2015. The study looked at 342,877 boys born between 1994 and 2003, with an age range of 0 to 9 years old. The study showed that circumcised boys were more likely than intact boys to develop autism spectrum disorder, regardless of cultural background.

We confirmed our hypothesis that boys who undergo ritual circumcision may run a greater risk of developing ASD. This finding, and the unexpected observation of an increased risk of hyperactivity disorder among circumcised boys in non-Muslim families, need attention, particularly because data limitations most likely rendered our HR estimates conservative. Considering the widespread practice of non-therapeutic circumcision in infancy and childhood around the world, confirmatory studies should be given priority.”

Recommended: Detoxify and Heal From Vaccinations – For Adults and Children

I always find it strange how averse people are to discussing the problems with circumcision. I suspect that the idea that we would do such harm to our children conjures up the strongest cognitive dissonance, even more so than with vaccines. I don’t think people who have had their kids’ circumcised can accept the damage they’ve done. I don’t think most circumcision men can accept that something is wrong with their beloved penis. What surprises me is how angry anti-vaxxers became, claiming that we were trying to hide the real cause of the increasing prevalence of autism spectrum disorder. The topic of the aforementioned circumcision-SIDS article created a very heated debate on social media.

On that note, let me be clear: Autism and SIDS and other chronic childhood diseases are caused by damage. The damage is done with toxins, trauma, and a lack of good nutrition. Poor food choices including most formulas, GMOs, and refined sugars (to name just a few) cause damage. So do vaccines. So does circumcision. So can dropping a baby on his head. So does ignoring a child for long periods of time. As much as we all like simple cause and effect explanations, there is rarely only one cause for chronic illness. Our society’s inability to understand complex systems will be our undoing.

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Circumcision Linked to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

Every year in the United States 2,500 infants die from SIDS, and sixty percent of those are boys. The origin of SIDS is generally treated as a great mystery. Some of the frequently suggested causes are respiratory failure, low birth weight, bed-sharing, vaccines, and/or abnormal brain cells. Boys are sixty percent more likely to be born prematurely, another risk factor, but a new paper from a researcher at the University of Sheffield suggests another reason SIDS disproportionally affects baby boys – neonatal circumcision.

How They’re Linked

Circumcision is trauma. We don’t know exactly how trauma will affect an infant, but we do know that trauma can halt development and interrupt other important processes in the body.

Related: Circumcision, the Primal Cut – A Human Rights Violation

Due to how quickly circumcisions are performed, most doctors opt out of anesthesia for the treatment, leaving the baby traumatized by the pain. The most common complication as a result of circumcision is bleeding, although shock, sepsis, circulatory shock, hemorrhage, and death can occur.

Dr. Eran Elhaik, the researcher behind the paper, addresses the effect of circumcision on the cardiovascular system and SIDS.

For instance, circumcision reduces the heart rate [20] and together with the loss of blood there is a danger of reducing the blood volume, blood pressure, and the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues [5, 77]. A reduced blood pressure has been associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition where the walls of the throat relax and narrow during sleep, interrupting normal breathing [77, 78]. Unsurprisingly, SIDS victims experienced significantly more frequent episodes of OSA [79].”

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Culturally Speaking

The U.S. has one of the highest rates of SIDS in the world. We also have one of the highest rates of circumcision in the developed world, establishing a link between neonatal circumcision and SIDS. Once you break things down into further groups, the connection becomes stronger. There is one group in the U.S. that experiences lower rates of SIDS – Latinos like Mexican Americans, who circumcise 44% of boys at birth in comparison to the white rate of 90.8%. Unsurprisingly, rates of SIDS among Hispanic are 39% lower than whites in the U.S.

Related: 10 Circumcision Myths – Let’s Get the Facts Straight

The data in other countries also suggests that circumcision is a risk factor for SIDS. Japan is recognized for its famously low rate of SIDS. Neonatal circumcision is rarely performed there.

Unnecessary Procedure, Avoidable Deaths

This is by no means a comprehensive study. We still don’t know what causes SIDS. It is amazing that years of research have overlooked such a simple factor. Why have scientists considered sleeping arrangements a bigger issue than a life-altering instance of trauma?

Neonatal circumcision is an unnecessary procedure. Many circumcised adult men express regret regarding their circumcision, and science has determined that negative effects from circumcision persist later in life, reducing sexual pleasure and a greater likelihood of infection or cancer. The damage caused by genital mutilation is very much real and likely still not fully understood. There is no good reason to continue it.

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Baby Treated with Nap and Bottle of Formula, Parents Received an $18,000 Bill

A South Korean family took a vacation to San Francisco two years ago. In a hotel room, their then-8-month-old son fell off their bed and hit his head.  After unsuccessfully trying to console him, they grew concerned. They called 911. An ambulance showed up and transported the family to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital to check him out for internal injuries.

At the hospital, the doctors determined that the baby was fine. He had a short nap in his mother’s arms and drank some hospital infant formula. He was discharged less than four hours later. The family finished their vacation. Then, some two years later, a hospital bill arrived for $18,836. $15,666 of the charge was  designated “trauma activation.”

It’s a huge amount of money for my family. If my baby got special treatment, okay. That would be okay. But he didn’t. So why should I have to pay the bill? They did nothing for my son.”

If my baby got special treatment, okay. That would be okay. But he didn’t. So why should I have to pay the bill? They did nothing for my son.” – Jang Yeo-im, the mom, told Vox

Jang says they had travel insurance that covers only the first $5,000.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm9jJYMZR90

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Trump’s Administration Is Not A Fan of Breastfeeding

There was an unexpected battle over a resolution supporting the use of breast milk at the World Health Organization in may. The New York Times reported that the resolution to encourage breastfeeding was expected to be approved quickly by hundreds of government delegates but the United States delegates opposed the language.

The World Health Organization (WHO) of the United Nations is an agency headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that is concerned with international public health. A proposed resolution asked countries to restrict the misleading marketing of breast milk substitutes. In multiple studies spanning decades of research, breastmilk has been proven beyond a doubt to be the healthiest option for children. The New York Times reported that the resolution was expected to pass easily but U.S. delegates took issue with the language that encouraged countries to “protect, promote and support breastfeeding.” The U.S. did not want to impede the sale of baby formulas.

The U.S. Delegates reportedly told Ecuador, who planned to introduce the resolution, that if the proposal wasn’t dropped that the U.S. would implement trade measures and withdraw military support from northern Ecuador (violence from boarding Colombia causes ongoing issues here). The Ecuadorian delegates caved and then health advocates found another sponsor for the resolution. The Russian delegation introduced the measure, and unlike with Ecuadorian, Russia received no resistance from the U.S.

The Trump administration’s aggressive attempts to water down an international resolution supporting breast-feeding go against decades of advice by most medical organizations and public health experts.” – NY Times

Global health experts believe that the president’s stance on baby formula was due to a lack of knowledge regarding breastfeeding and the history of how baby formulas are marketed in developing countries. In these poor countries when powdered formula is mixed with unclean, unsafe water, it can lead to death.

What happened was tantamount to blackmail, with the U.S. holding the world hostage and trying to overturn nearly 40 years of consensus on best way to protect infant and young child health,” Patti Rundall, policy director of Baby Milk Action

Despite the United States’ best efforts, the final resolution retained most of the original language, but the portion calling on WHO to provide support to countries seeking to halt “inappropriate promotion of foods for infants and young children,” was removed.

A 2016 study published by The Lancet stated that breastfeeding could save 843,000 lives and $300 billion in reduced health care costs a year. The New York Times reported that the baby food market is a $70 billion industry.

This kind of support for corporations over health isn’t new. We could thank Trump’s administration for being so blatantly corrupt and unsubtle that the issues like this are brought out into the open. We could, but we won’t.

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Georgia couple loses custody of son after giving him marijuana to treat seizures

Georgia took custody of a 15-year-old child named David in April when he tested positive for marijuana. The parents, Matthew and Suzeanna Brill, say they gave their son marijuana to treat his seizures. They are fighting to regain custody of David while they are charged with reckless conduct and facing jail time.

The Brills say David had up to ten seizures a day but was completely free from seizures when their son began smoking marijuana. The couple said he had not gone that long without a seizure before.

Nine states and Washington D.C. allow recreational marijuana, and Medical marijuana is legal in 29 states. But Georgia has very strict marijuana laws. The state does allow those with a state-issued medical card to possess “low THC oil” but physicians are not allowed to prescribe marijuana for medical use and it’s illegal to sell or possess marijuana.

The only way he could get a medical card would be a six-year waiting list,” Suzeanna said.

So the Brills, frustrated with traditional prescription medication, took matters into their own hands. Matthew said he smoked the illegally-purchased marijuana first to make sure it was okay before giving it to his stepson.

Someone alerted the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services to the marijuana that David was using. The couple was in jail for six days. On April 20, David was taken away and remanded to state custody. On that very day, he had a seizure and had to be rushed to a hospital.

When I talked to him tonight… the 10-minute phone call I was allowed to have with him, he is on the verge of going into a seizure,” Suzeanna said.

David is currently living in a group home 60 miles from his parents.

They’re facing real criminal charges. I think even if they beat the criminal case…They still are definitely in hot water with regard to Child Protective Services.” – Criminal defense attorney Rachel Kugel

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Tonsillectomies Linked to Increased Risks of Allergies, Respiratory Illnesses, and Infectious Diseases

An original investigation published online by the Journal of the American Medical Association’s Otolaryngology-Head & Neck division finds that children who underwent tonsil and/or adenoid (the gland on the roof of the mouth that near the connection between nose and mouth) removal contend with increased risks of allergies, respiratory illnesses, and infectious diseases. Researchers conducted a review of nearly 1.2 million children where roughly 60,000 of them had tonsillectomies, adenoidectomies, or adenotonsillectomy. The children that underwent the procedure were 2 to 3 times more likely to experience upper respiratory diseases. In addition, adenoid removal resulted in a 17% higher risk of infectious disease.

When I was younger, I remember reading a Sweet Valley Twins book where the twins get their tonsils out. They were scared, but by the end of the book all fears had been assuaged and they accepted that getting your tonsils out was an easy operation, simply another cost of childhood. No one asked any questions. As an adult, I have many. What condition is serious to warrant removing a body part? Were there any other alternatives? Most importantly, what does the removal of your tonsils mean for your health long term?

Why do they do a tonsillectomy? 

Tonsil and adenoid removals are usually done in childhood. In fact, the adenoids typically shrink after the age of seven so later removal of them is usually not considered necessary. Both removals are performed in response to inflammation, as enlarged adenoids and tonsils can block a child’s airway. Tonsils, in particular, are associated with sore throats.

Related: What Causes Chronic Inflammation, and How To Stop It For Good

There is a good reason that tonsils are associated with sore throats. Tonsils and adenoids are the body’s first line of defense against pathogens that enter through the mouth. Doctors remove tonsils and adenoids because they’re inflamed, causing sore throats…but that’s what they’re designed to do. The inflammation is a direct response to infection. The tonsils produce T and B cells, and the adenoids produce white blood cells to combat infection. These organs are known to perform vitally important functions in the body, yet removing them is one of the most commonly performed surgeries in childhood.

Alternative Treatment Options

Many doctors are beginning to steer clear of tonsillectomies and adenoidectomies, as they’re finding equal or better rates of success with antibiotics. Of course, while much better than surgery, antibiotics are problematic as well. There are other ways to get in front of a sore throat, sinus infection, or cold. Time is of the essence, so the sooner you react to the little tingle at the back of your throat indicating something is wrong, the better. Implementing these steps quickly can be the difference between a day of feeling groggy and a week of downing supplements in a valiant effort to avoid bronchitis or strep. Some of them will obviously be difficult for children. Prevention, aka diet, is really the most important, especially for kids.

Related: How to Detoxify From Antibiotics and Other Chemical Antimicrobials

Step One: Lock down the diet. This is not a time to be treating yourself. Sugar, processed foods, and dairy all feed the infection and can prolong the amount of time you need to recover. Big, diverse salads loaded with lots of chopped garlic and herbs are a must.

Step Two: Find (or make) a fire cider. Sip on it all day. The spicier the better. If you have a small child or if you absolutely can’t take the cider without something to sweeten it up, the only option is truly raw honey. Once the honey is heated in any way, the body recognizes it as simple sugars and it feeds the infection. Pro tip: try gargling the cider, especially at the back of the throat. Here’s one we like.

Step Three: Chew on raw garlic. Garlic should be your new best friend. For more on how great garlic is, read this article. You don’t have to swallow it (especially on an empty stomach, as no one wants to puke when they potentially have a sore throat), but if you feel like you can keep it down, go for it! The longer you can chew the garlic in your mouth, the better.

Related:  Make Your Immune System Bulletproof with These Natural Remedies

If you catch the issue in time, these three steps can be lifesavers. If you need a little extra oomph, other good natural treatments include oil of oregano, berberine in one of its many forms, slippery elm tea, cayenne in your lemonade, and in dire straits, herbal snuff (it hurts).

Conclusion

Tonsillectomies and adenoidectomies are responses to these organs working the way they are designed to. There’s a pattern of this, the removal of necessary body parts, in modern medicine, from the tonsils to the appendix to circumcision. In our effort to figure out and control our surroundings, we frequently forget to consider the whole picture. We forget how holistic health actually is.

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HPV Vaccine May Be Associated with Infertility…Again

A new study has found that women who received the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine were statistically less likely to conceive than those who had not received it. Reviewing data on 8 million U.S. women from ages 25-29 gathered by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the study suggests that under a 100% HPV vaccination rate, the number of women who successfully conceived would drop by 2 million. The data does not give the HPV vaccine as the cause of infertility, but after accounting for others factors like income, ethnicity, marital status, and education women who received the vaccine were 25% less likely to have conceived.

HPV and Controversy

The HPV vaccine has been massively controversial, and it has been associated with infertility before. Three girls aged 16 to 18 in rural southwestern Australia were diagnosed with premature ovarian insufficiency shortly after receiving the vaccination. The study examining those young women also noted that the report for the HPV vaccine did not present an ovary histology report (even though the vaccine is for women…). Gardasil has also been linked to other long-term damage, with many women experiencing the development or aggravation of autoimmune issues or neurological problems like seizures, paralysis, and speech problems. Popular Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, says,

Gardasil alone has had more than 38,000 adverse events reported through March 2015. And that number is estimated to be only 10% of all actual adverse events…”

Even the vaccine inserts show evidence that the HPV vaccine is a factor in inducing serious long-lasting health conditions.

Related: Vaccines, Retroviruses, DNA, and the Discovery That Destroyed Judy Mikovits’ Career

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkyjgY70yPA

Related: How To Detoxify and Heal From Vaccinations – For Adults and Children

A Bad Deal

The HPV vaccine is only one reason for declining fertility, but then again premature ovary failure is only one of the health issues that has been reported as a result of the vaccine. There are nearly 32,000 instances of HPV caused cancer every year in the U.S. The National Institue for Health estimates that 23.5 million Americans suffer from an autoimmune disorder, one of the commonly reported health issues caused by Gardasil. Conventional medicine is pushing a vaccine that will protect thousands at the cost of negatively impacting millions. Why is this ok? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that healthcare costs associated with autoimmune disorders are twice as much as those associated with cancer. Autoimmune disorders create repeat customers…and business is booming.

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