Families expand autism group

Grant Fulton started showing signs of autism at the age of 15 months. He stopped speaking and became withdrawn.

"We were so panicked. He was so sick," said his mother, Denise Fulton of Lacey.

She started researching and kept returning to the same Web site — Talk About Curing Autism. The site offered information on biomedical treatments that weren't listed in mainstream sites, such as vitamin supplements, removing heavy metals from the body and a diet that restricts wheat and dairy products.

She found an Oregon doctor who specializes in autism, and they worked together to treat Grant with biomedical and behavioral therapy.

She thinks the treatment worked.

At 5, Grant attends a regular preschool, and most people wouldn't recognize him as autistic. John Green, a physician at The Evergreen Center in Oregon City, said he expects Grant to recover in a year.

Now Fulton and her husband, Dean, are joining with six families to start a Western Washington chapter of TACA, which started in California in 2000 and features Jenny McCarthy as its spokeswoman.

The families will sponsor a booth at the Brighter Tomorrows 2008 Northwest Special Needs Conference on Friday and Saturday at Saint Martin's University.

The event includes speakers and exhibits with information about autism, cerebral palsy and Down syndrome. It's hosted by the Wyatt Holliday Foundation, started by Therese Holliday of the Black Lake area in memory of her 9-year-old son, Wyatt, who had Asperger syndrome — a high-functioning form of autism — and died in a car wreck in 2003.

One of the focuses of the conference will be the theory that vaccines can cause or trigger autism.

Speakers include a geneticist and the former editor for United Press International, who authored the series "The Age of Autism," which included interviews with the Fultons and other Olympia families who link their children's regression into autism with vaccines.

Denial in the mainstream medical community about the link and requests by other parents prompted Holliday to assemble speakers about vaccines and autism.

"I'm trying to make people aware that this is a much bigger issue than they're being led to believe. It's more common than people know," she said.

Vaccines and autism

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 150 children in the United States has an autism spectrum disorder. The agency said there is no cure and the cause is likely genetic.

The CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics and Food and Drug Administration all say there is no link between vaccines and autism. "There is no convincing scientific evidence of harm caused by low doses of thimerosal in vaccines," the CDC says.

Thimerosal is a mercury-containing substance that is used as a preservative, and the FDA ordered that thimerosal be removed from most vaccines in 1999.

Dr. Diana Yu, Thurston County's public health officer and a member of the state Board of Health, said the misconception about vaccines has led parents to skip vaccinating their children.

"The reality is that we are seeing children that have diseases that are vaccine-preventable, and that's very unfortunate," she said.

She encourages parents to attend the special needs conference, but also suggests parents be critical of the information about vaccines.

"People need to listen, do research, ask questions. Don't take anything anybody says for fact without checking it out, including me," she said.

Support and resources

Some parents and organizations, including the National Autism Association and Autism Research Institute, argue there is compelling evidence that vaccines can trigger autism.

Some South Sound families say their children exhibited signs of autism shortly after being vaccinated, said Holliday, who runs an autism support group. Many believe their children received too many vaccines at once.

Fulton believes vaccines played a part in Grant's autism. He had reactions, including rashes and diarrhea, after receiving shots. He also had two viruses as a baby that seem to have weakened his immune system, she said.

She also said the biomedical treatments that sped up Grant's recovery might not work for everyone.

TACA serves as a place to provide parents resources, information and support, should they choose to try biomedical treatments. Parents who aren't interested in biomedical treatments can find local doctors and behavioral therapists, as well as information on special education laws and how to work with local school districts, she said.

The support, she said, "can be an anchor for families, that there's someone who cares."

Fulton said the families starting TACA aren't focused on the political debate about vaccines — they want to give parents resources to improve their children's lives.

"We're a support group helping families on their autism journey to find their own answers," she said.

Diane Huber covers education for The Olympian. She can be reached at 360-357-0204 or dhuber@theolympian.com.