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Posted by Kevin J. McMahon for the DDR.
I am posting this notice for the DDR. If you wish to contact them directly
use the contact number in the message. If you wish to contact me directly
send mail to [log in to unmask] as I may remain a subscriber on this
list.
DEVELOPMENTAL DELAY REGISTRY (DDR)
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The DDR is a year-old non-profit organization formed to help meet the
needs of parents and professionals working with children who have delays
in motor, sensory motor, language, and social emotional areas, including
attention deficits. Recent DDR activities include a survey seeking links
between developmental delays and antibiotic use and a March 1995
conference titled "After the Diagnosis, Then What?".
The mission of the DDR is to find healthy options for those supporting
children with developmental delays and to prevent more children from
being affected. We do this through our quarterly newsletter, periodic
one and two day conferences and by selling materials that are compatible
with our philosophy. Membership is $25 for students and retirees, $40
for families, $60 for professionals, $125 for organizations, and $100+
for individual sponsors. The DDR currently has over 1400 families
registered.
The dates of our next conferences are October 20th in Pennsylvania
(co-sponsored by Special Needs Agency, a division of the Glatfelter
Insurance Group and Allen Natural Foods), December 2nd in Northern
Virginia, February 23-25, 1996 in San Diego, and March 15-17 in
Stamford, CT. We are in the process of lining up speakers in the areas
of immune system functioning, nutrition, occupational therapy, auditory
training, vision, homeopathy, chiropractic kinesiology, osteopathy, and
chemical sensitivity among other things. About half of the speakers will
be the same as the conference in Maryland last March. The rest will be
new. Audiotapes and copies of the conference manual from the March
conference are still available.
The DDR can now be reached at 7801 Norfolk Ave. #102, Bethesda, MD 20814
Telephone: 301-652-2263 Fax: 301-907-2427.
Board of Directors:
Kelly Dorfman, M.S., L.N., L.D. - President
Nancy Lewis, O.D. - Vice President
Sheri Present, OTR-L - Secretary
Wrenn Reynolds - Treasurer
Patricia S. Lemer, M.Ed., NCC - Executive Director
Professional Advisory Board:
Stephen Edelson, Ph.D.
Alan R. Gaby, M.D.
Michael J. Goldberg, M.D.
J.N. Gordon, M.D., F.A.A.P.
Celia Hinrichs, O.D.
Richard E. Layton, M.D.
Bernard Rimland, Ph.D.
Michael Schmidt, B.S., CCN
William R. Spear
Serena Wieder, Ph.D.
SURVEY SHOWS LINK BETWEEN ANTIBIOTICS AND DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS IN CHILDREN
A new, nationwide survey of nearly 700 children is showing a disturbing
link between children with developmental delays and the amount of
antibiotics they have taken.
The survey, which included youngsters between the ages of one year and
12 years found that those who have taken more than 20 cycles of antibiotics
in their lifetime are over 50% more likely to suffer developmental delays.
Children who have had three or fewer found of antibiotics were half
as likely to become developmentally delayed.
The 9 month survey began in June 1994 by the Developmental Delay Registry,
a multi-national database of 800 families, most of whom have children
with developmental delays.
The survey's other findings:
o Nearly 75% of the delayed children were reported to be developing
normally in their first year of life.
o Developmentally delayed children were 37% more likely to have had
3 or more ear infections than unaffected children.
o Affected children were nearly four times as likely to have had
negative reactions to immunizations.
o Affected children were twice as likely to have had ear tubes than
unaffected children.
Kelly Dorfman, a licensed nutritionist and co-founder of the Developmental
Delay Registry cautions, "Parents should be put on notice that utilizing
antibiotics prophylactically could jeopardize their children's development.
We believe alternative approaches to treating ear infections should
be considered."
The incidence of children in the United States with developmental,
behavioral and mental disorders is dramatically increasing. Conservative
estimates show that in the last four years the number of children under
age 18 with these disorders has grown from 4.8 million to 7.5 million.
Included in these pervasive developmental disorders are autism, speech
and language problems and multi-system developmental disorders. Symptoms
range from skin irritations and sleep disturbances to repetitive
behavior and loss of language.
According to Patricia Lemer, a National Certified Counselor and co-founder
of the Developmental Delay Registry, "The difference in the occurrence
of developmental delays between children who take high doses of antibiotics
and those who don't is astounding. We are urging the medical research
community to conduct scientific, longitudinal studies to help us find
out what is going on here."
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