FAQ's
Immunizations and Avoiding Toxins
Q: What is the "Integrative Pediatrics immunization schedule?"
A: Both the AAP Immunization schedule and the book The Vaccine-Friendly Plan schedule are available at our clinic. The AAP schedule is the official recommended schedule, however our providers agree that the official schedule can be modified safely for your child’s circumstance, and we will take into consideration your preferences. Our providers will have a full discussion of the risks and benefits of each vaccine, and help you determine what is right for your child.
Q: What are the most important things we can do to avoid toxins?
A: Eat organic, never microwave plastics and avoid plastics, eat little or no fish, drink filtered water and vaccinate selectively with focus on limiting the amount of mercury (still in some flu shots) and aluminum: Hep B - 250 micrograms, Hep A 250 micrograms, DTaP 170 - 625 micrograms depending on manufacturer, HIB (only the PedVaxHib has - 225 micrograms), Pc (prevnar) - 125 micrograms, HPV - 225 micrograms, Pentacel (DTaP, HIB and polio combo) - 330 micrograms, Pediarix (DTaP, Hep B and polio combo) - 850 micrograms. Note that the adult safe daily maximum has been listed as 50 micrograms a day for IV fluids and 5 micrograms per Kilogram of body weight a day for children per the FDA.
Q: Should I give my newborn the Hepatitis B vaccine?
A: If Mom is Hep B positive (has Hepatitis B) or if another family member in the household has Hepatitis B, or If parents have risk factors like multiple sexual partners or IV drug use then YES the newborn should get the Hep B Vaccine as soon as possible after birth. While the official recommendation is that all babies - regardless of risk factors - get the Hep B vaccine at birth it is a parent's choice to consider the following and make their own decision:
Q: If I don't do all the vaccines in the AAP recommended schedule, won't my child be excluded from day care or school?
A: In Oregon it is a parent's right to vaccinate as they feel best. The brochure from the state of Oregon "Claiming A Religious Exemption to School/ Child Care Immunization Requirements In Oregon What Parents Need to Know" states the following " DEFINITION OF RELIGION Oregon Administrative Rule 333-050-0010defines "religion" for the purposes of immunization requirements to be "any system of beliefs, practices or ethical values". Parents who elect to vaccinate differently from the published schedule can check the box for religious exemption based on their beliefs - whatever they may be.
Q: Can I get immunization or other health records over the Internet?
A: Integrative Pediatrics has a secure Portal system set up so you can use a secure-log in for each child and access their records of immunization, medications, allergies, and major problems list. If you have not yet signed up for the Portal, please connect with a front desk team member as soon as possible.
A: Both the AAP Immunization schedule and the book The Vaccine-Friendly Plan schedule are available at our clinic. The AAP schedule is the official recommended schedule, however our providers agree that the official schedule can be modified safely for your child’s circumstance, and we will take into consideration your preferences. Our providers will have a full discussion of the risks and benefits of each vaccine, and help you determine what is right for your child.
Q: What are the most important things we can do to avoid toxins?
A: Eat organic, never microwave plastics and avoid plastics, eat little or no fish, drink filtered water and vaccinate selectively with focus on limiting the amount of mercury (still in some flu shots) and aluminum: Hep B - 250 micrograms, Hep A 250 micrograms, DTaP 170 - 625 micrograms depending on manufacturer, HIB (only the PedVaxHib has - 225 micrograms), Pc (prevnar) - 125 micrograms, HPV - 225 micrograms, Pentacel (DTaP, HIB and polio combo) - 330 micrograms, Pediarix (DTaP, Hep B and polio combo) - 850 micrograms. Note that the adult safe daily maximum has been listed as 50 micrograms a day for IV fluids and 5 micrograms per Kilogram of body weight a day for children per the FDA.
Q: Should I give my newborn the Hepatitis B vaccine?
A: If Mom is Hep B positive (has Hepatitis B) or if another family member in the household has Hepatitis B, or If parents have risk factors like multiple sexual partners or IV drug use then YES the newborn should get the Hep B Vaccine as soon as possible after birth. While the official recommendation is that all babies - regardless of risk factors - get the Hep B vaccine at birth it is a parent's choice to consider the following and make their own decision:
- Babies don't do the risk behaviors like being sexual active or IV drug use, so the only way a baby gets Hep B is if their mom has it. (there may be a few rare cases from household contacts out of millions).
- The Hep B vaccine has 250 micrograms of aluminum (the adult daily maximum for IV Aluminum is 50 micrograms)
- 10 year follow-up data indicates that almost half of the babies who got the Hep B series at birth, 1 month and 6 months are no longer immune at age 10, suggesting there may be good reason to wait on doing this series when the child is older and closer to the risk behaviors.
Q: If I don't do all the vaccines in the AAP recommended schedule, won't my child be excluded from day care or school?
A: In Oregon it is a parent's right to vaccinate as they feel best. The brochure from the state of Oregon "Claiming A Religious Exemption to School/ Child Care Immunization Requirements In Oregon What Parents Need to Know" states the following " DEFINITION OF RELIGION Oregon Administrative Rule 333-050-0010defines "religion" for the purposes of immunization requirements to be "any system of beliefs, practices or ethical values". Parents who elect to vaccinate differently from the published schedule can check the box for religious exemption based on their beliefs - whatever they may be.
Q: Can I get immunization or other health records over the Internet?
A: Integrative Pediatrics has a secure Portal system set up so you can use a secure-log in for each child and access their records of immunization, medications, allergies, and major problems list. If you have not yet signed up for the Portal, please connect with a front desk team member as soon as possible.
Autism
Q: What is Autism?
A: Autism is also sometimes called PDD (pervasive developmental disorder) when diagnosed after age 3, or Autism Spectrum Disorder when symptoms are not classic or are mild. The classic symptoms of autism involve poor language acquisition or loss of language, poor social interaction with others, and repetitive movements or mannerisms (sometimes called stiming). About 10% of children who end up with the diagnosis of autism never develop normally. Around 90% of autism cases these days involve normally developing children, who sometime between ages of 1-3 regress and lose language and eye contact and seem to go into a world of their own. Sometimes children with autism have bizarre or repetitive behavior patterns, or uncontrollable screaming or head banging and have great difficulty with transitions.
Q: What should I do if I think my child might have Autism?
A: Schedule a visit with us as soon as possible! The standard approach if your child has autism is to recommend behavioral therapies and speech therapy which is very helpful--the earlier this is done, the better. Many of our providers have studied extensively in biomedical approaches that attempt to address the underlying causes of autism, and in many cases, recovery is possible.
Q: How common is Autism in Oregon?
A: Autism is now 1/50 children by the age of 5 in Oregon. Nationwide it is 1/45 or 1/67 depending on the study. This rise is real. In the 1970's it was 1-2 / 10,000.
Q: What causes Autism? Why are we seeing so much more autism these days?
A: While there are many theories, and no one knows for certain, our team believes that, in genetically vulnerable individuals, toxins (heavy metals like mercury and aluminum, lead and arsenic), pesticides and plastics, along with too many vaccines at a very young age (possibly triggering an immune issue or perhaps just simply the toxic load of all the vaccines) triggers autism.
http://www.drpaulapproved.com/research
http://vaccinepapers.org
Q: Is there a cure for Autism?
A: In some cases the answer is yes! Contrary to what you may have heard from other doctors, there are increasing numbers of children who have lost the diagnosis of autism by following biomedical interventions. There are, however, some cases that seem resistant to treatment. The DAN (Defeat Autism Now!) movement was a huge force in moving forward the treatments for autism that address underlying body systems that are in distress (immune, gastro-intestinal, nutritional deficiency, allergies and more). Where DAN! left off, MAPS (Medical Academy of Pediatric Special Needs has taken over (https://www.medmaps.org/about-us/)Many great organizations are working to educate, inform, and get to the truth:
http://www.nvic.org
https://www.generationrescue.org
Dr. Thomas spoke at this great summit:
http://theautismintensive.com
and at the "Truth About Vaccines:" http://tinyurl.com/k9n9v9a
Q: What treatments does Integrative Pediatrics recommend for Autism?
A: Children should be treated based on their individual needs after a careful assessment. Treatments typically might include: improving the diet, trying the GFCF diet for at least 3-6 months, testing for allergies and avoiding foods that seem to trigger an allergic response, multivitamin and mineral support, essential fatty acids, probiotics, and in certain circumstances consideration for antifungal treatments, B-12 injections, digestive enzymes, and other more targeted treatments if indicated. (Note that this information is not intended to be a treatment recommendation and is for informational purposes only. You should consult with your child’s health care provider). It is generally wise to also only make one major change at a time so you are sure that changes you see in your child are due to that intervention.
Q: Why should I be concerned about my newborn if autism doesn't typically happen until after a year or two of age? How can I prevent autism?
A: If autism is triggered by the accumulation of toxins and/or by the deregulation of the immune system, then the most important time is the 9 months in the womb and the first months of life when the (BBB) blood brain barrier - a semi-permeable membrane that protects the fetus and infants brain -- is not yet formed. Toxins have much greater access to the developing brain up until 6 months of age when the BBB is thought to be fully formed. There may be a body burden of toxins such that a certain threshold is reached at different times for different children. It thus would be wise to minimize pesticide toxins by eating organic and minimize mercury by not eating fish while pregnant or serving it to an infant or young child, and to minimize the toxins we inject (like aluminum in vaccines), and to avoid giving too many vaccine's at once in the very young, in case there is an immune trigger mechanism to autism. The live virus vaccines (MMR and Varicella) present a very difficult challenge and require in-depth discussion with your Integrative Pediatrics healthcare provider.
Q: How do I know if my child may have ADD or ADHD or be on the spectrum (autism spectrum disorder)?
A: A careful evaluation is needed to figure out if what you are seeing is just normal or might represent something to be concerned about. We like to have parents and teachers of school age children fill out the Vanderbilt forms and bring them to an initial 50-minute evaluation. Note that ADD (attention deficit disorder), ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), ASD (autism spectrum disorder), and Asperger's, are all labels and diagnoses based on a constellation of symptoms. There is no blood test, and the treatments typically offered may not address the underlying issues of toxins or allergies or nutritional deficiencies. Our team will recommend treatments that integrate holistic and complementary medicine approaches and can also discuss the medications that might be helpful.
Q: Which Vanderbilt forms should we use for the evaluation of ADD or ADHD?
A: There is an initial form for parents and teachers and a follow-up form for parents and teachers. If this is your first evaluation, use the initial (longer) form. All subsequent visits --the providers like to see children if they are treating the patient for ADD, or ADHD, or Autism, etc. about every 6 months (sooner initially if making lots of adjustments to the treatment).
A: Autism is also sometimes called PDD (pervasive developmental disorder) when diagnosed after age 3, or Autism Spectrum Disorder when symptoms are not classic or are mild. The classic symptoms of autism involve poor language acquisition or loss of language, poor social interaction with others, and repetitive movements or mannerisms (sometimes called stiming). About 10% of children who end up with the diagnosis of autism never develop normally. Around 90% of autism cases these days involve normally developing children, who sometime between ages of 1-3 regress and lose language and eye contact and seem to go into a world of their own. Sometimes children with autism have bizarre or repetitive behavior patterns, or uncontrollable screaming or head banging and have great difficulty with transitions.
Q: What should I do if I think my child might have Autism?
A: Schedule a visit with us as soon as possible! The standard approach if your child has autism is to recommend behavioral therapies and speech therapy which is very helpful--the earlier this is done, the better. Many of our providers have studied extensively in biomedical approaches that attempt to address the underlying causes of autism, and in many cases, recovery is possible.
Q: How common is Autism in Oregon?
A: Autism is now 1/50 children by the age of 5 in Oregon. Nationwide it is 1/45 or 1/67 depending on the study. This rise is real. In the 1970's it was 1-2 / 10,000.
Q: What causes Autism? Why are we seeing so much more autism these days?
A: While there are many theories, and no one knows for certain, our team believes that, in genetically vulnerable individuals, toxins (heavy metals like mercury and aluminum, lead and arsenic), pesticides and plastics, along with too many vaccines at a very young age (possibly triggering an immune issue or perhaps just simply the toxic load of all the vaccines) triggers autism.
http://www.drpaulapproved.com/research
http://vaccinepapers.org
Q: Is there a cure for Autism?
A: In some cases the answer is yes! Contrary to what you may have heard from other doctors, there are increasing numbers of children who have lost the diagnosis of autism by following biomedical interventions. There are, however, some cases that seem resistant to treatment. The DAN (Defeat Autism Now!) movement was a huge force in moving forward the treatments for autism that address underlying body systems that are in distress (immune, gastro-intestinal, nutritional deficiency, allergies and more). Where DAN! left off, MAPS (Medical Academy of Pediatric Special Needs has taken over (https://www.medmaps.org/about-us/)Many great organizations are working to educate, inform, and get to the truth:
http://www.nvic.org
https://www.generationrescue.org
Dr. Thomas spoke at this great summit:
http://theautismintensive.com
and at the "Truth About Vaccines:" http://tinyurl.com/k9n9v9a
Q: What treatments does Integrative Pediatrics recommend for Autism?
A: Children should be treated based on their individual needs after a careful assessment. Treatments typically might include: improving the diet, trying the GFCF diet for at least 3-6 months, testing for allergies and avoiding foods that seem to trigger an allergic response, multivitamin and mineral support, essential fatty acids, probiotics, and in certain circumstances consideration for antifungal treatments, B-12 injections, digestive enzymes, and other more targeted treatments if indicated. (Note that this information is not intended to be a treatment recommendation and is for informational purposes only. You should consult with your child’s health care provider). It is generally wise to also only make one major change at a time so you are sure that changes you see in your child are due to that intervention.
Q: Why should I be concerned about my newborn if autism doesn't typically happen until after a year or two of age? How can I prevent autism?
A: If autism is triggered by the accumulation of toxins and/or by the deregulation of the immune system, then the most important time is the 9 months in the womb and the first months of life when the (BBB) blood brain barrier - a semi-permeable membrane that protects the fetus and infants brain -- is not yet formed. Toxins have much greater access to the developing brain up until 6 months of age when the BBB is thought to be fully formed. There may be a body burden of toxins such that a certain threshold is reached at different times for different children. It thus would be wise to minimize pesticide toxins by eating organic and minimize mercury by not eating fish while pregnant or serving it to an infant or young child, and to minimize the toxins we inject (like aluminum in vaccines), and to avoid giving too many vaccine's at once in the very young, in case there is an immune trigger mechanism to autism. The live virus vaccines (MMR and Varicella) present a very difficult challenge and require in-depth discussion with your Integrative Pediatrics healthcare provider.
Q: How do I know if my child may have ADD or ADHD or be on the spectrum (autism spectrum disorder)?
A: A careful evaluation is needed to figure out if what you are seeing is just normal or might represent something to be concerned about. We like to have parents and teachers of school age children fill out the Vanderbilt forms and bring them to an initial 50-minute evaluation. Note that ADD (attention deficit disorder), ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), ASD (autism spectrum disorder), and Asperger's, are all labels and diagnoses based on a constellation of symptoms. There is no blood test, and the treatments typically offered may not address the underlying issues of toxins or allergies or nutritional deficiencies. Our team will recommend treatments that integrate holistic and complementary medicine approaches and can also discuss the medications that might be helpful.
Q: Which Vanderbilt forms should we use for the evaluation of ADD or ADHD?
A: There is an initial form for parents and teachers and a follow-up form for parents and teachers. If this is your first evaluation, use the initial (longer) form. All subsequent visits --the providers like to see children if they are treating the patient for ADD, or ADHD, or Autism, etc. about every 6 months (sooner initially if making lots of adjustments to the treatment).
Q: Will Integrative Pediatrics take the same insurance I had while at a previous clinic?
A: Integrative Pediatrics has contracts with many of the same carriers. Please call your insurance company directly using the number on your insurance card, as well as contacting the front desk for more information: 503-643-2100.
Q: Will there be advice nurses available when the office is closed?
A: There will always be an advice nurse 24/7 365 days-a-year for current patients. The nurse will either be one hired Integrative Pediatrics (familiar to our patients) or part of the Emanuel Children's Hospital Pediatric Advice Line. Our providers are always available to back up the nurses in cases of complex questions or health issues.
If you have a health question that cannot wait for office hours, or in any emergency that is not a 911 crisis, simply call our main office number: 503-643-2100. If the office is closed, the call will redirect to the answering service who will then direct the call to the appropriate on call nurse or provider.
Q: Can I email my provider?
A: E-mail is not a secure way to discuss healthcare and limits our ability to give you the best care. This is why our patients sign up for the portal! Not only does the portal give you access to your records, appointment information, invoices, but it also gives you secure direct-to-provider-or-department messaging capabilities!
A: Integrative Pediatrics has contracts with many of the same carriers. Please call your insurance company directly using the number on your insurance card, as well as contacting the front desk for more information: 503-643-2100.
Q: Will there be advice nurses available when the office is closed?
A: There will always be an advice nurse 24/7 365 days-a-year for current patients. The nurse will either be one hired Integrative Pediatrics (familiar to our patients) or part of the Emanuel Children's Hospital Pediatric Advice Line. Our providers are always available to back up the nurses in cases of complex questions or health issues.
If you have a health question that cannot wait for office hours, or in any emergency that is not a 911 crisis, simply call our main office number: 503-643-2100. If the office is closed, the call will redirect to the answering service who will then direct the call to the appropriate on call nurse or provider.
Q: Can I email my provider?
A: E-mail is not a secure way to discuss healthcare and limits our ability to give you the best care. This is why our patients sign up for the portal! Not only does the portal give you access to your records, appointment information, invoices, but it also gives you secure direct-to-provider-or-department messaging capabilities!