Dear Ms. Ireland,
Thank you kindly for your recent and well written article about the use of chelation in the treatment of autism. It is a sad day when a parent such as Anne Borden King needs to shed light on a potentially dangerous treatment for which there is no evidence that it actually helps children with autism.
There are over 500 “treatments” offered for autism. Most of these have little to no scientific support. Any ineffective intervention detracts from time and resources allocated to treatments that are shown to make a difference. As you illustrate in your article, some interventions, such as chelation, may also cause harm. Movin g forward, we urge you to inform your readers that early intensive intervention based on applied behavior analysis is the treatment that enjoys the most abundant scientific support.
Your readers may be interested in some of the following articles. Given the absence of recent research supporting the use of chelation, these articles raise concerns that continue to bear relevance for anyone considering chelation.
- Chelation Therapy for autism</a
- Taking a closer look at chelation therapy
- When is a therapy a therapy?
Simply put, science matters! People with autism and their families deserve access to treatments grounded in science. They also deserve access to professionals who not only respect the role of science in treatment, but who implement their services with great care and collect and use outcome data to guide their decision-making.
Your article moves us closer to the basic right to effective treatment and for that we are very grateful to you and to parents like Anne Borden King.
Best,
David Celiberti, PhD, BCBA-D
Executive Director
Association for Science in Autism Treatment (www.asatonline.org)
