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It’s Your Life
devoted a total of 1700 hours to studying nutrition and its
relationship to chronic conditions, including the micro biome
and our immune system. Additionally, I have also read over
200 books on nutrition, and listened to over 600 hours of
expert interviews on a wide range of subjects from internal
inflammation to mitochondria dysfunction.
In fact, once I understood that symptoms in the brain
related to learning, mood and focus, were being triggered in
the gut (our second brain) I felt empowered to use food as
medicine. Until recently, the central nervous system (CNS)
and peripheral immune system were thought to operate
independently. However, new research confirms that
immune-related issues (including “leaky gut”) can influence
CNS processes, like cognition, mood, behavior and more. If
you want a healthy brain, you must have a healthy gut.
We really did our healing in the kitchen. Two of the most
beneficial foods we used were bone broth and fermented
vegetables (sauerkraut) because of the ability to heal
the gut. It is critical to restore the integrity of the mucosal
lining of the small intestine and improve digestion. Then,
re-inoculating the micro biome (our gut) with bacteria.
Stephen today
Joyce: How soon did you see changes in your son after the change?
Kathleen: Stephen’s progress was slow and steady. We rarely included anything aggressive. In fact
the only treatment we tried that presented adverse effects was homeopathy. We worked with a local
MD that was trained in homeopathy and unfortunately this made Stephen’s symptoms much worse.
Personally, I do believe this approach is both effective and safe. In Stephen case, it was not ideal and
that’s what people need to remember. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach even with natural solutions.
You have to experiment and find techniques and approaches that are right for your child and their
constitution.
Once we implemented dietary and nutritional changes, Stephen’s progress was faster and more
noticeable. I believe that if we had incorporated the nutritional changes earlier, Stephen would have
responded faster than he did.
Joyce: How long did it take for your son to be completely healed?
Kathleen: Stephen just completed very comprehensive testing for his neuro-psychological evaluation
which he did over three years prior in order to determine his eligibility for services in public school. We
are proud to say that Stephen’s doctor delivered the news that Stephen no longer meets the criteria
for an autism spectrum disorder. It would be an understatement to say that we are overjoyed. We have
worked hard. He has worked hard. We have so much to be proud of and grateful for. The opportunity to
share our story with others is our greatest gift of all.
Joyce: Did all the symptoms of autism disperse?
It’s Your Life Magazine • Issue 1