Chemar

the manufacturers of Candida Clear, NOW, claim it is formulated to synergistically balance intestinal flora, and to aid in the detox process KEFIR is an excellent source of good bacteria and yeasts

hi Greyhound Candida Clear is formulated to help with die-off reaction lots of pure water and the epsom salts tubs also help, as does acupuncture/reflexology and chinese cupping detox Also add KEFIR to your diet to replenish good bacteria and good yeasts die off is unavoidable, and *does* mean that yeast are being eradicated. but preparing your system ahead of time helps to minimize the nasty effects when we first began the fight against candida our physician had us on careful diet FIRST for a month (starve the yeast)and then started the supplement program to kill the yeast plus aid the detox and boost good stuff in gut The Yeast Syndrome by Walker and Trowbridge gives excellent info on doing candida eradication with minimal upset to system

oceanperiwinkle...I noticed that you did not have a clear dx of Fifth's and so do also want to mention the SCARLATINI rash associated with strep/scarlet fever I am assuming it was fifth disease because other children in her class had it or at least their moms thought they had it (?). BTW..my daughter's tic has REALLY subsided since breaking out in the rash. I believe when they get the rash this indicates that the virus is leaving the system.

Greyhound try soft light- daylight lamps in the room when using the screen....that helps a lot

lurker, the more I see the stress factor as the major trigger for my son's Crohn's and OCD, the more I am logging it as one of, if not his highest tic trigger. and it isnt just bad stress....anticipatory excitement can sometimes trigger him big time too...............

Call me nuts too but I so agree with you re the gut-brain connection Caryn....and ya know I think it all starts in the genetic makeup,.... even tho we still need Kim to show us just where but yup, the brain gut thing is so very evident in my son and hubby....and have to say I know I feel lousy when I eat something not healthy for me.... and it *does* impact my psyche too, tho maybe in different ways to my 2 TS dudes. I know I have irritable bowel syndrome ONLY when I deviate from the healthy diet my son now has all of us on.

Hi CP my husband's tics were limited to just facial grimaces and throat clearing for most of his adult life. It has only been since the car accident and likely due to the steroid burst with Medrol that his tics have re-emerged so. His OCD and depression/anxiety have been with him all his life tho, and he remembers lots of childhood tics

Hi CP I havent ever said that a healthy diet hasnt helped my son's tics.........only that he does not have food allergies and so eliminating gluten/wheat/corn and dairy did NOT make a difference to his tics or OCD. Those were amongst the first things we checked for. However his diet is very important and we have totally eliminated all food additives as he is very reactive to those (coloring, artificial sweeteners, MSG, high fructose corn syrup, preservatives and all other chemical additives) we also use only organic foods to avoid any pesticides and obviously wont go near any gentically modified foods since his Crohn's dx he has an even more careful diet, avoiding foods that promote inflammation or acidity I am not sure what you mean by "how long" I researched. We had a doctor who ran tests. found no food allergies but suggested we try eliminations anyway which we did. All that helped was eliminating the chemical additives. Going gluten, corn and dairy free over a period of about 3 months did not.

Hi twobit and welcome my son has genetic TS -- no PANDAS my first advice....find a Doc who clearly knows what he/she is doing re PANDAS! IMHO that would not necessarily be a neurologist I am sure neuros play a vital role inhelping many people but the overall reports for them on PANDAS and even TS are not very glowing when it comes to anything that isnt just writing a rx for a med or the standard....."wait and see" We have an "essential threads" sticky at the top of this forum along with one for "finding medical help" which may also be helpful to you. just wanted to also mention based on the last line of your post above mine ....yes, PANDAS (as with any infection) can trigger tics in TS kids, but a kid with PANDAS who tics does not necessarily have TS. It is believed that neurological inflammation from the strep triggers tics in PANDAS kids whereas TS tics are rooted more in the dopaminergic mechanisms in the brain, often genetically inherited. from what i have seen reported by PANDAS parents, when on prophylactic antibiotics (many report zithromax/azithromycin works well) the tics/OCD etc are subdued. But exposure to strep (sometimes with no classic symptoms of the strep itself) can trigger waxing. I think I explained that right...hope so If you use the search feature and enter PANDAS keyword you will get many many posts that may shed light and you can also filter by adding Ronnas as the member name...Ronna has done a number of posts to try to explain PANDAS and it's testing I know you will find much support and lots of info here that will hopefully help you help your child

Hi Sunshine and welcome we were referred to the doctor by a friend. if you are seeking help with TS and allergies you may benefit from an Environmental Doctor have you checked the "finding medical help" sticky http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=565 hope you find a good Doc to guide you

Myrose "my mind is telling me" "must do" "have to" "just right" are all flags for OCD OCD can occur with Tourette but is also a PANDAS symptom ilovedogs, after what I have learned the preservatives do I honestly wouldnt go near them. Sodium benzoate is not on your list but is one of the top offenders IMO The food additive restriction is one we really adhere to as even small slip ups seem to bring big tic reactions (nevermind the OCD flares from the coloring and MSG etc) as mentioned before, chlorine sensitivity in my son would set of such severe tics when he went in pool that he voluntarily decided no more. He was only 11 at the time and so it was hard, especially as we live in Florida, but it was a clear enough reaction for him to feel it worth giving up chlorinated swimming pools.

Hi Greyhound honest I wouldnt go up over 500mg taurine and if you arent reacting well to it you shouldnt continue. each person is so different and IMHO one should always take little steps with supplements and especially amino acids another reason I always mention one should work with a qualified person who can guide

(((((((((Kim)))))))) thanks so much for the summary in language I could understand LOL one of the reasons I quit my pre-kids career was I am chemically/mathematically challenged and I can research endlessly on some things but totally blank out on others....so you have no idea how I respect your ability to dig into the biochemistry and the genetics I hope I didnt sound unthankful for your looking into this so deeply, and drawing it to my attention. I had to rush out to a meeting and was doing my quick morning fly-by here I will dig out old blood tests on hubby and son and see if any homocysteine or glutathion stuff shows. The 500mg methionine per day was rx for my son by the integrative doc back in 2002 when he had waxing of anxiety -OCD quite seriously. He was already on the 50 mg 5HTP each evening and taking the inositol & st John's wort mornings. The methionine had an instant calming effect on him. The form he takes now is incorporated in his protein shake mix and says seleno-methionine. son has not used samE hubby only started using the samE about a month ago on advisement of an ortho to help with the back pain and found it really helped his mood/OCD both already take methyl-cobalamin form of B12, and I know there is folic acid in the shake son uses will post back if I learn anything more blessings

hubby's mom had glaucoma and never ever took methionine hubby is suspected glaucoma but cant complete the testing as it seriously wonked him out for days and totally diorientated him I dont know about hubby or son's homocystine Kim, and at this point my son will NOT have any blood tests done as he is in OCD re needles/metals I am still not fully understanding what you suggest the solution would be?

hi Greyhound do the best you can with diet and take a yeast buster supplement like CANDIDA CLEAR by NOW you will be amazed at how much healthier you feel when the candida is dealt with!

Hi Kim as you know I glaze over trying to understand biochemistry and the nitty gritty of genetics..... so honestly confess I dont fully understand what you are saying but one thing I know for sure.......... Methionine helps my son VERY much (and my hubby too....hubby has started taking the samE form and it helps both OCD/mood as well as brings pain relief for him) Neither of them have any increased tics fromit....quite the opposite... so where that may or may not fit into the above I dont know, but for them it definitely and without any doubt in my mind works and does not bring any effects that I am aware of!! ps the form of methionine that my son now takes is seleno-methionine

((((((((myrose))))))))) as these things occur to you, write a one liner on your list of things you want to ask, then before you go put them in the order you feel is most important. Take that list with you when you go to the Doc and even if you just quickly read it to her, it may give her vital clues to help your daughter all these are pieces of the puzzle, and hopefully your observations will help the Doc to help your daughter.

myrose this sounds like the Sensory Integration Dysfunction (aka Sensory Processing Disorder) that many of our kids have my son cuts all labels out of clothes and turns socks inside out because of the seams and he will only wear soft fabrics, all 100% cotton etc etc etc we had occupational therapy for him when he was younger that really helped the SID a lot the book "The Out of Sync Child" also taught me a lot about SID http://www.out-of-sync-child.com/ for my son the SID and OCD often blend

so glad to hear the diet modification is working Nan Bmom, we tried all kinds of food eliminations ...... but my son with Tourette Syndrome does NOT have food allergies other than to chemical additives, and so we did not see relief with cutting out wheat/gluten/corn/dairy .....however we did see the major change when we supplemented the things he was deficient in. As I have mentioned before, this did not cure his TS and he still waxes and wanes and with varying tics...but the difference in severity and frequency is like night and day from before However, for those who do have food allergies or intolerances or sensitivites...dietary change to eliminate those makes absolute sense, and has been anecdotally proven effective in reducing or eliminating tics by the many testimonies on this forum ........... great to see that your child is now added to those, Nan

you are welcome myrose I know how overwhelmed and scared I was in the beginning and just thank God for helping my son....so it is "pay forward" I am blessed at just how much time and energy all our members here put into helping each other.

not sure on mag chloride personally but it seems mrsD says the slow mag, which is mag chloride , is ok http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/showthread.php?t=1138 with my son's sensitivity to chlorine I tend to avoid as much of it in all forms as possible, tho salt is sodium chloride and he doesnt seem to have a problem with using it

oops I didnt read ingredients beyond that they had mag taurate...sorry, me multitasking again I tend to be careful on anything chloride for my son becasue of his hypersensitivity to chlorine, tho he can eat salt which is sodium chloride sooooooo....

Greyhound for larger tabs I break them in half first...if they dont break easily, score the middle with a sharp knife then break along the score line. That should also make them easier to crush 1/2 at a time

Greyhound here is a UK site that has mag taurate http://www.revital.co.uk/Magnesium_Taurate Tracey, the taurine is the free form amino acid and the taurate is its compounded form

Hi Greyhound I found this Mag taurate listed for a UK site http://www.revital.co.uk/Magnesium_Taurate