A small article in yesterday’s WSJ, on how the FDA has prodded manufacturers to remove zinc from denture cream caught my attention: WSJ.com – Zinc in Denture Creams Poses Risk http://on.wsj.com/fgxZbs.

Studies show that repeated or prolonged exposure to zinc used as a bonding agent, can increase zinc toxicity. I don’t wear dentures and would have just told my mom to use zinc-free denture cream, but the text “high doses of zinc can cause copper deficiencies, which studies have shown can cause nerve damage/neurological disorders” reminded me of  a study in the UK to determine a  link between vitamin and mineral deficiencies and Autism and similar cognitive disorders.  This study was also the subject of  one of my previous blogs on Autism.

http://wp_blog.scanavert.com/a-link-between-autism-allergies-and-birth-control.html

Recalling how my obstetrician prescribed prenatal vitamins, I researched the list of RDA vitamins and minerals by the American Academy of Pediatrics and American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologist and found the following statement ; “Zinc is involved in nucleic acid and protein metabolism; therefore, zinc is important in early gestation. The RDA for pregnant women is 11 mg, which increases to 12 mg during lactation. Well-balanced diets provide the RDA for women who are pregnant and lactating, and supplementation is not recommended. Both iron and copper compete with zinc at absorption sites; therefore, zinc supplementation is recommended when elemental iron supplementation exceeds 60 mg/d. Likewise, whenever zinc supplements are used, copper should also be supplemented.” I am a very healthy eater, yet no information on my diet was collected or evaluated.   How did my prescribed vitamin account for such absorption inequality? and did I tip the scales further with my healthy diet?  While my youngest is 14, prescribing prenatal vitamins was SOP for obstetricians and according to my recent inquiries, it still is so these questions are still pertinent for expectant mothers.

I have not found any studies in the US that track zinc and copper levels of mothers or fathers of autistic children but this seems to be a credible cause and at the very least deserves some attention.  Autism organizations should direct the same mobilization they employed to focus attention on vaccines,  to find answers on a more established  theory of cause.