Heather

Jean, Glad to hear your son is improving. It is great to hear of the successes that you all are having. My kids have both had fears for years....nothing serious, but my daughter is 10 and my son is 7 and up until a month or so ago they still wanted me to lie down with them every night because they would be scared in bed to go to sleep. Within the last month they have both quit asking and now go to sleep with lights off and settle more easily than they ever have. It is really amazing to me that after years of this, they both have overcome it right at this time in their lives when they have both started the supplements with the naturopath. I do belive that God has taken us down this path to improve the well-being of my whole family. The natural treatment is not something I would have ever believed in had it not been something as serious as my son's tics to take me in that direction, seeking help out of desparation. Now, I am 100% convinced of the benefits of a good vitamin/mineral supplement to maintain good health. Heather Heather

Tap water is something we totally avoid these days too. When my son gets angry with me, his big threat is that he is going to drink water from the fountain at school. He knows it makes me cringe.

Claire, Great to read about your findings and how you are taking time to heal yourself as well as your son. That is great news about your son's computer time. I am finding my son more tolerable of the TV these days as well. Thanks for keeping us posted. Heather

EFGH, My naturopath uses Electrodermal testing for yeast. THis machine assesses intestinal health by measuring electrical conductivity in the body. It is along the same lines as acupuncture. I should say that it is not always considered reliable by some practitioners, however, from what we have experienced so far, the readings coincide with the progress in Will. So with that said, we don't have definite diagnosis that that yeast is gone. If he doesn't continue to improve I will seek more invasive testing but for now I have to believe that we are on the right track. Also, regarding the above post, I meant to say aerobic oxygen, not anaerobic oxygen.

Claire, I didn't use the Oxygen Elements Plus mainly because I was using some Anaerobic Oxygen from the Health Food Store which was basically the same thing (oxygenated water) to help with the detox. If I didn't have that, I probably would've ordered the Oxygen Elements plus to go with the Threelac. Yes, that summary is great to describe the theory behind the yeast and how Threelac works. I wish I could find that other article because it was not written by the people who sell it but by someone doing research into the effectiveness of Lactic Acid killing yeast. It was similar to the one you posted on the Japanese research. There are many sites such as the one you posted that discuss Threelac that promote the product. They do have good background information on the theory behind it. If you do a yahoo search and just type in Threelac, there are many. EFGH, The powder comes in a small packet and I started with just a pinch of powder to determine his tolerance. I gradually increased to about 1/4 tsp. with his food twice a day. I gave it to him for a couple of months until his yeast was under control. He hasn't taken it regularly for a few months but I do give him a little every once in awhile for maintenance. It is lemon flavoured so it definitely isn't hard for him to take. He is doing very well these days. I take one day at a time and pray that this trend will continue.

Claire, My naturopath was impressed with your doctor's protocol. She said that she personally doesn't use capryllic acid but acknowledges it as a common treatment for yeast. In her opinion the Threelac is a safe product that can be used with all other supplements since it is simply a probiotic that is natural to the body. Her feeling was that if the Threelac was used, she wouldn't use another probiotic since your body uses what it can and the rest is just a waste. It can only benefit from a certain amount which your doctor must asess for your needs but she said you can't OD with it and that it won't cause any adverse reaction with other supplements. Regarding the article, I am so sorry but it has disappeared somehow from my home. We are very disorganized in our current living situation and it is either in a pile of clutter somewhere that I can't put my hands on at the minute or it was mistakenly tossed out. As I said, I read it very recently so I have a feeling it will turn up. If I only knew the site it was from I could search for it on here but I don't even know that....sorry. My naturopath had the article given to her by a doctor friend and didn't have a copy accessible in her office today. It was mostly information about candidas (what it was and various products to treat it) It discussed the benefit of Lactic Acid in healing our gut which is the main ingredient in Threelac. Threelac is not something she uses or plans on using in the future so she is not even sure where the article went. She has her own products for yeast that her clinic prescribes. She says there are so many products out there for yeast right now that you have to be very careful that what you are using has been proven effective. She was looking into it for my use only since I had asked her about it. Her feeling is that it is completely safe for use in a child and she acknowledges its positive effect on Will (my son) in ridding his body of yeast. If I do put my hands on it I will definitely post it here. Good luck with your appt. tomorrow and keep us posted. Heather

Hi Claire, I have had a hectic couple of days and just read your post now. I understand your concerns with other supplements and adding Threelac. The information that I have is actually an article that my naturopath gave me when she was looking into it and I have been searching the apartment just now and can't find it but I do believe she printed it off the internet (can't remember the source). I am off work tomorrow and will look for it in the morning again...I know it is here somewhere as I read it again just last week. Anyway, I am also going to visit my naturopath for my own consultation tomorrow so I will ask her when I go at 11:00 a.m. This is my initial consultation for myself (not my son) so I am eager to find out what she will find. I will ask her about what her feelings are too on taking Threelac with other supplements and the duplication of the bifidus probiotic. When Will was taking Threelac, he wasn't taking anything else other than the coral calcium water and DHA (Omega 3). If you are interested in hearing her opinion you could leave me a quick post telling me exactly what your son is taking right now and I could ask her what her thoughts are on adding Threelac. I realize you will follow your doctor's protocol and recommendations since he is the one testing and determining what your son needs but it is sometimes nice to hear another doctor's thoughts. It would only be for interest sake really. Another product to research is Primal Defense for yeast which is what Dr. Mercola recommends. I was going to order it but it was capsules (which my son won't take) so I opted for the Threelac since it is in a lemon powder form. If you want to do that (sorry I can't remember exactly what he is on right now and don't have time before then to search through back posts) just leave me a quick post before 10:00 a.m. tomorrow which is when I am leaving home. I will also ask her for another copy of the article if I can't find it here at home. Heather

Hi Claire, Just a note regarding your issue that you are praying for and not sure which direction you will end up taking. I don't know if you are country music fan or not but even if you aren't, you should listen to the words of Garth Brook's song, "Sometimes God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers". It is a beautiful song and it almost makes me cry everytime I hear it. He is not ignoring you...he just has another path in mind for you. Heather

Claire, Sorry to hear about the strep. Hopefully it won't touch your son this time. The thing about fears really has me thinking as well. My son has always wanted me to sleep with him at night to help him settle. He always said he was scared. Well I wasn't even connecting this but during the last month he has told me he wants to go to sleep himself and also wants the lights out. We always had to leave the hall light on. It is the first time ever that I am able to put him to bed and say goodnight and not have him calling out and taking an hour to settle. The change is really significant. Just as I am reading your email Claire, I am realizing what a difference it has been in the last month. I can go into his room and 5 minutes later he is asleep. It really is amazing to me. By the way, his tics have been pretty much gone the last couple of days. I see the odd one every once in awhile but I can hardly see it myself anymore. Heather

Kathy, When you say he has been sick from birth it makes me wonder if he has yeast/heavy metal issues which cause many disorders and illnesses. They have a dramatic affect on the immune system and can cause all kinds of neurological disorders. It breaks my heart to hear you say that you want to hug it out of him as that is exactly the way I felt when my son was at his worst. I just wanted to hug him and love him and make it go away and I felt so helpless. I have never experienced such a feeling of despair in my life. Anyway, my son was also diagnosed with PANDAS. Somewhere else I read about the 5 year prophylatic (sp?) and it seems like an awfully long time to be on antibiotics when the antibiotic may actually be the root cause of the problem causing more overgrowth of yeast playing havoc on the immune system. I hope you will take some time to read some of the posts on here. From what I read in Dr. McCandless's book and other articles, the viral titers remain high because there is a malfunctioning immune system. Viruses that should stay suppressed in the body become active. My son was on an antiviral drop and also natural supplements to help get rid of metals and intestinal yeast. His tics are barely noticeable at this point. Keep in touch. Heather

Claire, I also have a great article on Threelac that I will post later. I am on my way to work right now. Heather

Claire, Yes, you are right. The peace of mind is a wonderful feeling. He has not tried the DVD movie on the LCD monitor yet but that is definitely an idea I will try. I am finding that when he plays computer games on the LCD monitor, he does not react the same as to the TV. I think his tolerance level is building right now since I am finding that even with the TV, his tics are not as strong as they have been. I am hoping this is because of the NDF and the detox of the metals progressing. I know what you mean about those games with levels. When I was reading your post I was totally relating to what you were saying as we have had the same conflict here when I have made him get off and he has spent hours getting to that level in the game. He is also invited to a birthday party sleepover this weekend and the invitiation says "Pizza, Popcorn and Movies" Ugh!!!!! All his triggers. I don't know the mom at all so I will have to talk to her about his tics. It almost seems a little far-fetched to say to her that these foods are triggers for him and "oh, by the way, the movie will be a trigger for him as well". These are times when I just want life to go back to the way it was when I could just send him off and not worry. All his friends are going so I simply can't say no. As I said above, even with the TV right now, his tics are minimal so I have to pray for a light reaction. Every summer we go to our cottage for 2 weeks where there is no TV/video/computer.... "no screens" period. I always enjoy our time there knowing our kids are finding others ways to spend their time. I am especially looking forward to it this summer more than ever before. My daughter is now saying even when she watches TV now, it is not as appealing as it was before. She is getting into the habit of enjoying other activities more. YEAH!!!! Heather

EFGH, He actually gets both motor and vocal tics when watching. He gets a tongue rolling thing as well as a continual sniff and it happens while he is watching and then pretty much stops an hour after he stops watching. I am definitely convinced the TV is the main trigger for him these days. I do believe if we stopped the screens completely that his tics would stop. However, as I mentioned before, it is worth the minimal tics right now in order to avoid the upset over no TV. He has a few favourite programs and that is all he watches. Claire, I am truly thankful to you for this. At least I know at this point how I can control the tics and even stop them. I have always been fearful over the past few months that they would come back severely and I don't really think about that anymore as I feel if they started to wax again, I would just remove the screen completely. I also do believe that we are on the road to recovery. We are up to 4 drops a day with the NDF (max. dose for him is 5 drops/day). The next few months will tell for us. Heather

EFGH, I am curious in finding out about the Pyroluria since my son, my daughter, and myself all have poor stress control and mood swings. Will's stress control isn't bad.....it is worse for me and my daughter. Also, there has been some alcholism in my family so it may be an issue for us. Will is watching minimal screens these days and still has minor tics but not enough to worry about. It is worth having the few minor tics in order to not cause a big upset over the TV. It is cold and rainy once again this weekend so it is sooo hard to completely remove the "screens". I can't wait for the good weather and the time when we are moved into our new home. Heather

Jennifer, Another site that may be of interest to you is Truehope.com. This is a non-profit organization that was established by a man who's wife suffered from depression and took her own life. A multi-vitamin has been formulated to contain ingredients specific to Bipolar/Depression. You can read extensive information about the product (Empower Plus) on the website. The staff on the phone are very helpful and will monitor your son's progress with phone support. I am aware of others who have been helped by this product. It has also been used to treat tics successfully in some cases. I would still recommend seeing a doctor in your area who can properly assess your son's imbalance, however, if money is tight, it is worth looking into this product. Heather

Jeff, I am unsure of your history since I didn't see your posts when you first started writing on here, so I don't know if you have the true Tourette Syndrome that is genetically passed down or if you have developed tics because of other factors. However, if you read some of the posts on here, you will see that THERE ARE answers as to why people tic and that is because there is a chemical imbalance in the body caused by yeast, heavy metals, pesticides, etc. The theory of the naturopaths is that this chemical imbalance can be corrected so that you are once again able to tolerate those offending foods and that is the goal that many of us are working towards. Once the body has detoxed, it should be able to handle the triggers without causing a tic reaction. I know your treatment is to remove the offending triggers (Feingold) so that you won't tic but I have never read in your posts where you have tried any supplements to help your situation. Have you attempted to detox your body? If so, what did you use? Heather

Julie makes a good point in saying that sometimes teachers or other adults may feel that the child can control their tics and that is entirely wrong. I definitely do not want the idea out there that my son can control his tics in the classroom if he surpresses the sensation he is feeling. His tics are definitely uncontrollable and it would be devastating to him if someone told him that he had to stop by surpressing the sensation. We allow him to tic freely and rarely talk about his tics and he is far less stressed when he knows it is not a big deal to us. Heather

In my mind, my son's body IS twitching uncontrollably. He is only 7 so maybe the age makes a difference in how you view it. Heather

Jeff, I would be very interested in reading the article as well. As Claire said, it is great you are spreading the word. I do understand what you are saying, however, when my son's tics were at their worst, there was noway he could hold it for any length of time...even a few seconds. Now, I do believe he has some control, however, when he is stressed and in certain situations, he has absolutely no control over his tics, no matter how hard he tries. Heather

Liz, I am no expert on supplements for ADHD but I do now you won't find anyone on this forum who advocates the use of prescription drugs for anything. There are some who have had severe side effects. The mouth chewing and teeth grinding could very well be side effects and they could possibly get worse. I am sorry I can't help you with specific supplements for ADHD, however, a good vitamin/mineral is a place to start. I would recommend you seeing a naturopath/environmental doctor to help diagnose your nutritional deficiencies. If you read some of the tourettes posts you will see many threads with different supplements that people have tried. You will also see where Chemar's son sufferred severe side affects for a couple of years while taking prescription drugs. Since he has been taking natural supplements, his symptoms are minimal. ADHD is considered to be on the same spectrum of neurological disorders so you may benefit from some of the posts under other titles (Aspergers, autism, tourettes, etc.) There are many successes you will read with the use of natural supplements on this forum.

Hello, My son is currently using NDF and has been for a couple of months now. He suffers from both vocal and motor tics. The tics were quite severe before Xmas and he used a supplement (Threelac) to kill intestinal yeast. His hair analysis showed high aluminum and moderately high lead and mercury. Since the end of January we have been using NDF. I have only used about 1 drop/day until last week and we are now up to 3 drops per day taken with Reverse Osmosis water. His tics are so minimal right now that they are barely noticeable. We have also eliminated certain foods and have found out recently the TV/computer is a trigger. The naturopath feels that these environmental triggers happen because of his body being out of balance with the heavy metals. She prescribed the NDF and has used it regularly for about a year now in her practice with much success for various disorders. I do believe that the use of the NDF is why my son has improved so much over the last few months. Our goal is to be tic free and to be able to once again tolerate TV viewing, as well as the offending foods (milk and corn). Good luck and keep me posted. Heather

lawsuit, Welcome to the forum!!!! First of all, I find it very odd that your doctor would diagnose Tourettes after a 5 min. exam. To be a true diagnosis, the tics must be present for at least a year (both motor and vocal). When you mention the stomach reactions, I would guess that your son perhaps has a problem with intestinal yeast which can wreak havoc on the immune system. I am in no way an expert but over the past several months I have spent hours and hours reading and learning about the yeast syndrome and heavy metals in the body that can trigger all kinds of disorders depending on your genetic makeup. When you talk about these tics worsening with viruses it seems even more plausible that there is a yeast issue there. My naturopath says that when the immune system is supressed, viruses that are in the body become active and can cause tics to occur. If your son is taking antibiotics this can cause further overgrowth of yeast resulting in a worsening of the symptoms. You should always follow the antibiotic with a probiotic. As Phyl said, the allergies can be causing the tics as well. You might read back on previous threads referring to food allergies, tv and tics, etc. Since we first elimintated milk products, tomato and corn from my son's diet his tics improved substantially. We also used a natural supplement to kill the yeast and we are now using a natural supplement to help him excrete aluminum and mercury which he tested high for. Over the last 2 weeks we have almost cut TV out of his day and the tics are barely noticeable at this point. You will read about others who found great improvement eliminating TV. Claire's son stops ticcing completely with no screens (TV/video/computer). Anyway, as I said, it would probably be most helpful for you to take the time to read over every thread that you can on this forum as there is an abundance of helpful information regarding supplements that all of us have had success with. Keep us posted. Heather

Susanna, I am truly hoping that the antiboitics will work for you by killing the strep antibodies and I do know that in many children the antibiotic works in lessening the tics. However, my son was diagnosed with strep in October when his tics became worse and we were prescribed an antibiotic. By Day 8 on the antibiotic his tics were worse than ever. I had to take him for drives at night to get him to sleep as his whole body was heaving with a loud snort every 2 seconds. That is when I started madly researching the natural alternatives. What I have later concluded after using the natural supplements is that my son had a bad case of intestinal yeast and the antibiotic was worsening the condition. Once we started using Threelac for the yeast (about a week after the antibiotic) his tics lessened within 2 weeks to more manageable. As we know, each case is very unique so I am not saying this is your son's problem. I just want you to be aware of our situation so that if his tics don't improve, don't worry, because there are other alternatives to help. Since treating my son for intestinal yeast before Christmas, we then started a detox for heavy metals around mid January. Since then his tics have been minimal and have even been gone at times. This weekend they are virtually gone and I feel that he continues to improve each week. We have had a couple of minor episodes of tics coming back but both occasions were when he had a virus. I believe my son's tics are definitely viral related. We also do the no TV thing (upon Claire's advice) and that has made a substantial improvment as well. Our goal is to get to the point were he can once again tolerate the triggering foods as well as the TV. I do believe we are heading in that direction. My daughter (dealing with other issues: not tics) also had rashes under her arms that were itchy and the naturopath assumed it was yeast (as Claire mentioned, yeast can cause rashes). Good luck to you and I hope that the antibiotic will solve your problem. Keep us posted. Heather

Chemar, Claire, Mustang Carole, Thanks for the tips for proper evaluation. I will have to check on the NDF since that is the only supplement that Will is taking right at this time. I remember reading the 3 day thing somewhere too, Claire, but don't remember where I read it. I will have to do some more reading in order to be prepared for a proper assessment. Mustang Carole, Do you know if the doctor's name can be a naturopath doctor or does it have to be an MD? The lady on the phone didn't tell me that when I ordered the test. There are some things that I read about pyroluria when researching it that makes me think that it could possibly be an issue for my son, as well as for myself and my daughter. Heather

Chemar, Thank you for this post. I have phoned and ordered the urine test from Kansas and will hopefullly receive it in a few days. I figure with the low cost of it, it is worth finding out if it may be an issue with us. Heather