AIBU to think this is child abuse

[hipposarerad]

www.theguardian.com/society/2018/apr/27/more-than-120-homeopaths-trying-to-cure-autism-in-uk

Homeopaths are offering a treatment which involves inducing diarrhoea, fever and other symptoms in autistic children order for them to eliminate 'toxins' and 'vaccine damage' in a bid to 'cure' autism. They advocate not doing anything to alleviate the effects of the treatment (which includes higher than recommended dose of vit C, among other claptrap).

I have never had much respect for homeopathy, but have thought that if people want to spend their money on placebo then fine, it's their money. But this is another level of disingenuity and exploitation.

I've tweeted this to the NSPCC, I hope they respond to me with their thoughts.

I'm feeling very upset by this. Am I, as parent to autistic children, being oversensitive? Is this OK?

There seems to be a growing distrust of scientific research - particularly among those 'woke' individuals who pick up some bullshit opinion (or concoct one of their own) and run with it, with no regard for empiricism.

Welcome to the age or endarkenment.

Oh balls there's a typo there - should say age of endarkenment

There seems to be a growing distrust of scientific research

I think it was ever thus, personally .

I think this "cure" that is being peddled is barbaric and targeting desperate people.

I have 1 child who has aspergers syndrome (aged 11) and one who is being assessed (aged 3). My youngest is much more severely affected than my eldest. He is almost non verbal and screams like he is being tortured when something happens that he feels isn't right for some reason. And he struggles to communicate so it's really hard to work out why he is upset sometimes. My eldest can tell me if something is bothering him. He gets upset sometimes but he is mostly very happy, good at playing the piano, can build really complicated stuff out of lego. My youngest really struggles and I wish I could have a cure for him so he could be happy.

For those who really want to know what the problem with CEASE therapy is, it's not the vitamin c, it's not the useless homeopathic remedies. It advocates not treating fever, diarrhoea, infections and so on. It treats what what many would regard symptoms of potentially serious conditions as cause for celebration rather than requiring medical attention. To quote for the CEASE therapy book (which Guardian truncated) -

^... All kinds of detoxification reactions may occur. The most common are eliminative reactions with an increase of reactivity (fever). Fever should not be treated with medication, as it is a healthy reaction of the organism and not a disease! It helps greatly to overcome an acute disturbance, shortens the healing process, stimulates reactivity and avoids complications. Eliminations like diarrhea, flu, expectoration, and bad-smelling and cloudy urine should also be left alone, because they are a part of the healing process.

A case of diarrhea as a cleansing reaction

I remember an autistic child who got diarrhea during the detoxification of his vaccines. The diarrhea relieved his system so much, that his autism almost disappeared instantly. After ten days the mother started to worry and went to the family doctor because I was absent at that moment. He prescribed Immodium (Loperamide) to stop the diarrhea by paralyzing the peristaltic motions of the bowels. Almost immediately the child had a setback and became autistic as before. The diarrhea was a perfect detoxification for his bowels and brain. Neither the doctor not the mother understood this, and the medication interfered with the progress of the cure.^

CEASE therapy is a safeguarding issue. It is very clearly neglect. What UK practitioners get up to beggars belief. These are people, on the whole, with no autism awareness training, no safeguarding training, no awareness of the limits of their own competence. They do not recognise what they sell as neglect.

The quote is the tip of the iceberg as far as CEASE therapy lunacy goes.

Health and social care professions, teachers, volunteers, etc do not necessarily recognised things like CEASE therapy as neglect. CEASE therapy, dietary interventions look mild compared to outright physically dangerous treatments such as Miracle Mineral Solution, chelation and hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

It's also the case that blame for neglect will fall on the parent(s)/carer(s). The practitioners are not medically qualified. There are very few effective sanctions against them.

UKHomeopathyRegulation thanks for joining the thread - your first paragraph sums it up well.

CEASE practitioner: "oh your child's had diarrhoea, vomiting and fever for nearly a fortnight? Great! That's the bad humours being purged. Next week, leeches.

hipposarered Exorcism involving "beating the Devil out" is known to have occurred historically. The odd case still turns up in the UK media every so often.

Toxins are largely metabolised by the liver and excreted via the kidneys. Cloudy, bad smelling urine is often a sign of urinary tract infection. Or cancer. Toxins can pass from the bowel into the bloodstream but they do not pass the other way.

recovering from shoulder reconstruction compuer use very slo and painful but have a blog if you want to see even worse eg ukhomeopathyregulation.blogspot.co.uk/2018/04/homeopathic-treatment-of-autism_6.html

Next week, leeches.
Which are currently used in the NHS (or something very similar)! My favourite nurse in Plastics showed them to me. I think they were going to eat away round the wound edges (not jealous)

I think they were going to eat away round the wound edges

As do some maggots ?

Not everything new is good, and not everything old is bad ...

I just read that blog post, UKHomeopathyRegulations

I can't seem to compose a coherent response so I'm going with "gah!"

Yes, I think they were more like maggots

Thanks Davros and DGRosetti, I get your point but I also think mine was pretty clear

This is awful. I can't believe they can be allowed to do this.

Oblomov18 It's not allowed in Sweden. Patientsäkerhetslag (Patient Safety Law) prohibits medically unqualified from treating children under 8 and pregnant women. Criminal offence.

But in the UK, it's fine. Animals enjoy more protection under UK law from quacks than children do. Long advocated for amendment to legislation but difficult to get people interested.

Regardless of any of this, shouldn't we, as a society, be asking a lot more questions as to why so many children are autistic now? And it's bollocks to say it's just better diagnosed etc. Except, it's really not!! I can identify a few kids I attended school with who would have been dx as ASD. I can also identify adults now who are autistic and have been diagnosed, or who should be.

Many girls flew under the radar for YEARS because it was believed to be a "male" condition.

And it was also misdiagnosed years ago as childhood psychosis and or schizophrenia.

I agree; I can think of several kids I went to school with who were definitely autistic. Not diagnosed of course , but clearly displaying the characteristics.I think they certainly suffered as they were so different.

And to say that I am shocked by the detox nonsense is putting it mildly.

You know when fuckwits on here argue that homeopathy is great and sure what harm can it do anyway, even if it doesn't work? This is the answer to that. This is what is what is wrong with the charlatans and dickwads peddling their woo bollocks to the vulnerable and gullible.

I've now created a brief Wikipedia page about CEASE therapy en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CEASE_therapy

Jo

It's back in the media. Best place to read to read about what is going on is ASA www.asa.org.uk/news/cease-therapy-claims-must-stop.html which is where most of the papers etc got the story from.

Sad thing is that nothing has really changed from nearly a year ago. The worst offenders are still making the same claims. The various homeopathy associations have done very little if anything. The regulators who have the powers to halt the supply of the homeopathic remedies used, the Medicical and Healthcare Product Regulatory Agency and the General Pharmaceutical Council haven't acted.

My ASD kid would love leaches. She'd make them a leach house and take them to school. Then she'd come home with some story about "the OCD kid, the hamster poo one" having a meltdown because of the leaches.

There is no need for a cure for autism, there's just a need for an understanding world.

Yes the ASA ruling is a positive step but I think more needs to be done. I also suspect that the quacks will find another way to practice it.

Quote from this (www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47666939?ref=hvper.com&utm_source=hvper.com&utm_medium=website) BBC article:

"The Society of Homeopaths said that some of the terminology surrounding Cease has been misleading and it would take steps to avoid unsubstantiated claims being made."

Which sounds like "we'll continue with this dangerous nonsense, but we'll do it a bit quieter and change the wording a bit.

hipposarerad The Society of Homeopaths annual conference started yesterday and runs until Sunday afternoon. The more cynical might think the ASA and the BBC conspired over timing to cause maximum discomfort.

It's also odd that last year's Guardian story also appeared just before the start of the last conference.

The Society of Homeopaths are in a difficult position. Membership numbers are shrinking, they are in financial difficulties. If they took a hard line on CEASE they could lose up to 10% of members. They are ideologically opposed to doing anything concrete about the problem.

Yes BoringlySensible it seems the Society of Homeopaths are more concerned with paying some lip service whilst hoping the scrutiny will just go away.

Ideologically opposed indeed.