Pregnancy, Candida and Autism

by | Apr 19, 2009 | Columns, Gut Ecology | 2 comments


The Body Eology Diet

Dear Donna,
Is there a link between autism and fungal infections in a mother during pregnancy?


Donna’s response:
Understanding fungal infections may be the key to unlocking the mystery of autism. When a woman has a systemic fungal infection (candidiasis) she can infect her baby, and neither of them may have any visible symptoms!

Babies born with yeast in their gut (inherited from mothers with candidiasis) lack the normal healthy bacteria that establish a thriving immune system.

A baby’s blood-brain barrier isn’t formed until 6 weeks after birth. Before the blood-brain barrier is formed, there is potential for fungal, bacterial and viral infections to enter your baby’s brain.

A baby born without an inner ecosystem and therefore a healthy immune system is not a good candidate for vaccinations like the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella). Their weak immune systems cannot develop antibodies to the viruses and instead the infant actually becomes infected with the disease that the vaccination was intended to prevent!

Vaccinations were originally created for people with strong immune systems who had resistance to the pathogens that were injected into their blood stream. Newborn babies have not had time to build strong immune systems. Without a healthy inner ecosystem, the immune system will never be strong.

Most parents of autistic children tell us that their child appeared to be “normal” upon birth. They may have had some health issues like digestive disturbances, constipation, frequent colds and ear infections – yet when vaccinated (often with the MMR at 18 months) their child began to regress in their language development and social behaviors. They behavior even becomes abnormal, much like a schizophrenic. If you look at photos of these children you can see from their eyes that they appear to have an infection in their brain.

Our theory at Body Ecology (based on my research) is that upon inoculation with these three live viruses, the child who is not strong enough to be vaccinated is instead infected. The mumps virus in particular will cause the child’s blood pressure to elevate. Elevated blood pressure will open the blood brain barrier. Any infections in the body can then easily enter the brain. Even though current research shows clearly that the blood-brain barrier opens when blood pressure is elevated, your child’s pediatrician may not know this, since it is not taught in medical school.

While a child is supposed to develop immunity, his/her immune system is not developed because the inner ecosystem was not established and maintained at birth. The immune system is already overwhelmed dealing with an inherited fungal infection. The child has no ability to resist the assault from 3 live viruses: measles, mumps and rubella (measles has been found on the gut wall by Dr. Andrew Wakefield). For more on autism and fetal health, read The Myths and Truths of the Mercury/Autism Connection.

Mom’s Mood
Establishing a vibrant inner ecosystem is just one way an expecting mother can influence her baby’s health; a mother’s mood can also help or harm her unborn child.

When a mother is under a lot of stress during pregnancy, her fetus ends up with expanded adrenals and the baby is unable to handle stress. (Adrenals are glands that provide energy to every system in your body.)

When the adrenals are healthy, a person is calm and centered with excellent mental focus. Children who experienced expanded adrenal cells in the womb will be highly intelligent but will find it difficult to concentrate. These children are usually diagnosed as having ADD or ADHD.

Nutrition and lifestyle can significantly impact your health and the health of your baby. If you are planning to have a child, the Body Ecology program is your foundation for creating wellness.

Body Ecology’s Pregnancy Protocol
The Body Ecology program’s emphasis on establishing a healthy inner ecosystem, cleansing your body of built-up toxins, and nourishing your adrenals is an ideal way to prepare your body for pregnancy.

If you are thinking about becoming pregnant, it’s not too late to start thinking about your own health!

The best things you can do to prepare for pregnancy are:

  1. Start the Body Ecology program – this will help both parents build health and vitality to pass on to baby.
  2. Build up a storehouse of nutrients in your cells.
  3. Eliminate toxins that have been accumulating in those cells throughout your life.
  4. Eliminate stress as much as possible before and during your pregnancy.

Crave Pickles and Ice Cream? Try Fermented Foods!
You may have heard of pregnant women who crave the unlikely combination of pickles and ice cream. Craving pickles and ice cream is actually your body’s way of saying it needs sour, fermented foods rich in beneficial bacteria and the sugar to feed them.

Unfortunately, most commercial pickles and sauerkraut are pasteurized and contain too much salt and vinegar, so you won’t get the health benefits of true fermented foods. For more on beneficial fermented foods and drinks, read: Which Fermented Food Starter Should You Use for What?

The Body Ecology program is the only nutrient-rich, probiotic diet that emphasizes fermented foods and drinks. These superfoods establish plenty of good bacteria in your intestines that quickly populate your birth canal. Maintaining this healthy inner ecosystem is the crucial first step to wellness for you and your baby.

When your baby passes through the birth canal, he/she will be inoculated by beneficial bacteria and be well on the way to establishing his/her own inner ecosystem.

Benefits of the Body Ecology Diet’s Fermented Foods:

  • Create A Healthy Inner Ecosystem – Fermented foods lay down the foundation for a healthy inner ecosystem.

  • Provide More Nutrients – When fermented, a food’s nutrients increase hundreds of times. The microflora, abundant in unpasteurized, fermented foods, act like enzymes to properly process a food, releasing all the nutrients for you to absorb. At the same time they help retain those nutrients so your blood delivers the best possible nutrients to each growing cell in your baby’s developing brain and body.

  • Improve Digestion – The microflora in fermented foods increase the bio-availability of each meal by improving digestion.

  • Reduce Damage From Sugar – Microflora enjoy the sugars in foods and shield you from damage that sugar can often cause.

  • Control Cravings – Fermented foods help control cravings for carbohydrates and provide that sour taste so many pregnant women intuitively crave.

  • Help The Body Detoxify – Microflora will attack toxins, combat parasites and restore the acid/alkaline balance of your intestines.

  • Help Babies Digest Mother’s Milk – Mother’s milk is nature’s most perfect food for babies. But it is critical to establish a healthy inner ecosystem so that the baby digests the milk. We often say that finely pureed cultured veggies and small amounts of fermented beverages should be introduced as “baby’s second foods.”

Ideally both potential mothers and fathers will follow the Body Ecology diet for 6 months to 2 years before conception. The father’s genes contribute to a healthy placenta, liver and adrenals, all important for your baby’s immunity.

A Legacy of Health
Nutrition and lifestyle can significantly impact your health and the health of your baby. Whether you are pregnant, nursing or just planning to have a baby some day, the Body Ecology program is your foundation for creating wellness and will help ensure that you have happy, healthy children.

Create a legacy of health and happiness for your baby – read The Body Ecology Diet to prepare for your pregnancy!

For a happier, healthier world,
Donna

Author

  • Julie Genser, founder of Planet Thrive

    Earthwalker is the username that PT founder Julie Genser created for her online interactions so many years ago when first creating Planet Thrive.

    Julie's (Earthwalker's) life was derailed over twenty years ago when she had a very large organic mercury exposure after she naively used a mouth thermometer to measure the temperature of just-boiled milk while making her very first pizza at home. The mercury instantly expanded into a gas form and exploded out the back of the thermometer right into her face. Unaware that mercury was the third most neurotoxic element on Earth, Julie had no idea she had just received a very high dose of a poisonous substance.

    A series of subsequent toxic exposures over the next few years -- to smoke from two fires (including 9/11), toxic mold, lyme disease, and chemical injuries -- caused catastrophic damage to her health. While figuring out how to survive day-to-day, and often minute-to-minute, she created Planet Thrive to help others avoid some of the misdiagnoses and struggles she had experienced.

    She has clawed her way over many health mountains to get to where she is today. She is excited to bring the latest iteration of Planet Thrive to the chronic illness community.

    In 2019, Julie published her very first cookbook e-book called Low Lectin Lunches (+ Dinners, Too!) after discovering how a low lectin, gluten free diet was helping manage her chronic fascia/muscle pain.

    View all posts

2 Comments

  1. Julie Laffin

    I found this article extremely interesting. It explained some things that have been on my mind. j8

  2. Dr Robert Green

    I would just like to remind everyone that Dr Andrew Wakefield has been completely discredited as a doctor and as a reasearcher. He has been since struck off the General Medical Counsel and had his liscence revoked.

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