I haven’t talked about Nathan’s supplements in a little while so I figured since little man is still away, today would be a good day to discuss this topic. I’m going to do this as a Q&A format as I think it’ll make things clearer:
How do you know what supplements to give him, and how much of each?
Dr. Kenny, Nathan’s alternative doctor, determines what Nathan needs and how much based on biofeedback. She has boxes and boxes of vials which represent all sorts of different supplements. She puts them against his body, and then uses muscle testing to see which ones he needs. I’ve talked about muscle testing here and here.
Also, every month I will order a couple of different supplements based on my research (from books, autism research, from reading blogs and forums) and I will bring them to her. Again, she puts them against his body and tests his response.
Then, once he tests strongly for a supplement, meaning that he needs it, she will muscle test to determine the amount. At the end of each session with Dr. Kenny, I have a new list of supplements to give him and how much of each.
I know it doesn’t sound like an exact science but it works for us! Nathan has been SO HEALTHY since we started seeing Dr. Kenny. Functional medicine doctors and DAN doctors might be more precise by testing using blood, urine, and stool cultures – but for me, as I tend to be more right brained, Dr. Kenny’s method works perfectly.
How do you give him all of the supplements?
This has been a slowly evolving art. It used to be very difficult, but now, we have it down to a science.
The first thing I do is grab a tiny cup, and then I open up all of the capsules and mix all of the powders from the capsules. If they are gels, I poke them with a knife or something sharp and mix them in there. If they are not in powder form, I crush them with a pill crusher or in between 2 spoons. If they are liquid, I just drop the amount in there. At the end, I end up with a little mountain of wet powder.
Then, I mix in just ONE spoonful of organic cinnamon apple sauce. That ONE spoonful is enough to give it some taste and to make it edible (it binds it together).
Finally, I add in some brown sugar to make it even sweeter.
The end product – an apple saucey texture with a very sweet taste that he eats in just 4 or 5 spoonfuls!
What supplements are you giving him?
This is what he is currently taking. I am linking to random sites, not necessarily the places where I order, so you can read the list of ingredients and see more details.
B6 – 17 drops
CoQ10 – 1
Rutivite – 1
Quantum brain complex – 1
Quantum brain complex – 1
Omega 3 oil – 1
Vit D3 – 1
5HTP – 1
Advanced Brain nutrients – 2
Quantum nerve complex – 2 twice a day
Neuroplex – 2
Neurolink – 2
Phospholipids – 1 tbsp
Combocillus – 1
Single Delight – 1 drop
The vast majority of these supplements are considered Brain Food and help to produce neuronutrients to help with brain development.
Other than these supplements, I have him on high dose B12 shots prescribed by his DAN doctor, which we give him every 4 days.
Finally, he is also on G-therapy.
Anything else?
My next goal is to finally get him completely off Prevacid, which he is still taking for reflux. I’ve ordered L-Glutamine and Slippery Elm to see if, between these two, we can control his reflux enough to lay off the Prevacid. This is, and has been, his only prescription medicine and I can’t wait to take him off it. Prevacid prevents proper digestion and absorption of nutrients so a lot of what we’re doing is counterproductive as the Prevacid doesn’t allow his body to fully process the supplements. I’ll keep you guys posted to let you know if we’re successful!