News from ValeriesList, 7.6.2008

This is my son, Tony Saraf. Tony was diagnosed at age 2 with Autism and ADHD. For the last 24 years, he has been my guiding light and the love of my life...and the biggest, toughest challenge I have ever had.

Helping Tony to be the best Tony he can be, is my goal. Where that goal will lead the two of us, is yet to be seen. Tony continues to improve and I know there is more to come.

Doing this newsletter and learning all that I can for you and for Tony, started out as a small project with 40 people and has turned into an elephant with over 1,300 readers. And just like Tony, there is no end in sight!

Thanks for joining me on this fascinating ride!
Valerie Dodd-Saraf

Links

	Empowering Through Information & the Fostering of Connections I never endorse anyone or anything. Opinions expressed in what I send out, may not be shared by me. Everything is for informational purposes only. People who "advertise" through this newsletter have never been checked out by me. This includes professionals and even people who are interested in babysitting, etc. Please take the time to thoroughly check out anyone and everyone that will be working with or caring for your child. We are all sadly aware, through news stories and word of mouth, of people who pray upon special needs children because of their extra vulnerability. Thank you, Valerie Dodd-Saraf My enewsletters are archived on my website: www.ValeriesList.com

'ASK CHANTAL'
	Do you have any autism - related questions you would like answered? Is there an area of real life with autism you need help with about? Now, you can write to 'Ask Chantal' for some practical advice. The 'Ask Chantal' column is published in The Autism File magazine, and will be available in the US and Canada starting in September in Barnes and Noble and Borders. Please send your questions to chantal@autismfile.com. For more information about the Autism File, go to www.autismfile.com /.

Mom looking for a Pediatric Dentist & Swim Instructor for 4 yr old ASD girl
	Mom looking for a Pediatric Dentist & Swim Instructor for 4 yr old ASD girl I am looking for a good pediatric dentist with experience in treating children with Autism. I am also looking for a good Swim Instructor with experience in teaching children with autism for private lessons. Any referrals would be greatly appreciated. Thank You! olsjas@yahoo.com

Lying About Your Vegetables.....
	July 1, 2008 How much are you really eating every day? (Randy Harris for The New York Times) Itʼs long been known that people claim to eat far less than they really do. Some studies suggest people underreport their caloric intake by 30 percent or more. But when it comes to fruits and vegetables, it appears people lie in the other direction - vowing that they consume far more than they really do. The finding, reported in the current Nutrition Journal, suggests the data the health community has collected on fruit and vegetable consumption are tainted by "approval bias." We know we are expected to eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables a day, so thatʼs what we say when we are asked, and we may even really believe it to be true. Researchers from the University of Colorado in Denver randomly selected 163 women who were recruited by telephone and told they would be taking part in a general health survey. Half the women were sent a letter describing the survey as a study of fruit and vegetable intake. The letter included a brief statement of the benefits of fruits and vegetables, a Five-A-Day sticker and a Five-a-Day refrigerator magnet. The rest of the group received a general letter, without mention of fruits, vegetables, stickers or magnets. Within 10 days of receiving the letters, the study subjects answered a food frequency questionnaire and were asked to recall how many fruits and vegetables they had eaten in the past 24 hours. Because the two groups were randomly selected, average fruit and vegetable consumption should have been similar. However, the group that had seen the five-a-day promotional material reported far higher consumption, 5.2 servings per day, compared to 3.7 per day in the other group. And 61 percent of the five-a- day group reported eating fruits and vegetables on three or more occasions the prior day, compared to just 32 percent in the other group. The problem with food reporting has been extensively detailed by Michael Pollan in his well-known New York Times Magazine piece "Unhappy Meals.'ʼ He writes about trying to fill out the food-frequency questionnaire used by the large Womenʼs Health Initiative study: The survey, which took about 45 minutes to complete, started off with some relatively easy questions: "Did you eat chicken or turkey during the last three months?" Having answered yes, I was then asked, "When you ate chicken or turkey, how often did you eat the skin?" But the survey soon became harder, as when it asked me to think back over the past three months to recall whether when I ate okra, squash or yams, they were fried, and if so, were they fried in stick margarine, tub margarine, butter, "shortening" (in which category they inexplicably lump together hydrogenated vegetable oil and lard), olive or canola oil or nonstick spray? I honestly didnʼt remember, and in the case of any okra eaten in a restaurant, even a hypnotist could not get out of me what sort of fat it was fried in. In the meat section, the portion sizes specified havenʼt been seen in America since the Hoover administration. If a four-ounce portion of steak is considered "medium," was I really going to admit that the steak I enjoyed on an unrecallable number of occasions during the past three months was probably the equivalent of two or three (or, in the case of a steakhouse steak, no less than four) of these portions? I think not. In fact, most of the "medium serving sizes" to which I was asked to compare my own consumption made me feel piggish enough to want to shave a few ounces here, a few there. (I mean, I wasnʼt under oath or anything, was I?) This is the sort of data on which the largest questions of diet and health are being decided in America today. So what do you think? Are you lying to yourself about your fruit and vegetable consumption? Blessings & Good Health, Valerie Saraf www.valsarafjuiceplus.com If you can't afford prevention, how are you going to afford disease?

Why Juice Plus+???
	Why Juice Plus+? The best way to answer that question, is to ask another. How do you think you would feel; how healthy would your body be; how much positive energy would you have, if you ate a serving of 15 different fruits and vegetables and 2 grains EVERYDAY? That is what JP+ is and that is what it does. Juice Plus+ provides the natural nutrition (millions of nutrients) of fully ripened, RAW fruits and vegetables in a capsulated form for adults and chewables and gummies for kids. The cost for adults is $41.50 per month, or $1.36 per day. (Could your buy a serving of 15 fruits and veggies, and eat all of them, RAW for $1.36 per day?) The cost for kids for Chewables or Gummies is $22.50 per month, or .74 cents per day? Could you even get your kids to eat 15 RAW, fruits and veggies per day? For more information about Juice Plus+ and/or purchase it, please visit my website here. JP+ is certified GF/CF Dairy Free and Kosher!!! If you have a JP+ franchise and are interested in selling it, please contact me.

Atlanta: $17.6 million autism center to open next month
	By CRAIG SCHNEIDER The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 07/01/08 Children's Healthcare of Atlanta will open a $17.6 million autism center next month. The Marcus Autism Center will occupy a 90,000- square-foot building on Briarcliff Road. The funding comes from a mix of donor support, the health care system's endowment, government aid and financial support from Atlanta businessman Bernie Marcus.
	read on

CALL For ARTISTS with autism
	Autism Today announces a new book Artism A-New and website Artism Today Check out the website www.artismtoday.com and please forward to any artists on the autism spectrum who may want to contribute to this book. Autism Today is excited to have people with autism showcase their special skills as an artist on our website and in consideration for publication in the new book Artism Anew. We would like to welcome new artists to our community by encouraging them to look through our site, read the information, and look at the art that has been posted. It is very easy for artists to upload their art work and have their own gallery to show friends and family! Simply follow these simple instructions. 1. Go to the home page www.artismtoday.com 2. Register for an account. You need a six digit password (letters and numbers) 3. Pay a $5.00 administration fee through paypal. 4. Once you are registered, you can create an album. We ask that the album name be all in lower cases with no spaces (i.e.,kevinhosseini). The album title should be the name of the artist as you want it to appear on the web page (i.e., Kevin Hosseini). We also ask that you upload a picture of yourself and add where you reside and year of birth in the Summary section. 5. Once the album is created, you can add up to 4 images from your computer. The images must be in jpeg or gif format to be seen on the screen. Once they are uploaded you will instantly see a thumbnail of the art work in our gallery http://www.artismtoday.com/index.phpoption=com_gall ery2&Itemid=39 If your pictures are chosen to be in our new book, we will ask you to submit them at a later date in high resolution TIFF or PNG format. We will also request a biography. We have all ages of artists who have already submitted work for our book! Check out our gallery at www.artismtoday.com. Karen Simmons CEO, Founder, Autism Today Debbie Hosseini Curator, Artism A-New artism@autismtoday.com

San Diego County Chapter, ASA Events
	Monthly Family Pizza & Pool Party July 11th \| 6:00-8:00pm Boys & Girls Club 4635 Clairemont Mesa Blvd San Diego, CA \| 92117 Bring the whole family to enjoy a swim in an indoor heated pool. Lifeguards are provided. For safety purposes, no flotation devices or arm "floaties" are permitted. Please bring old cell phones and print cartridges which will be recycled, with the proceeds going to the SDASA. A special thanks to Aqua Pros for making this event possible! Please RSVP to info@sd-autism.org or 858.715.0678. Save the Date: 6th Annual SDASA Fall Conference September 19-20, 2008 Dr. Paula Kluth · Jerry & Mary Newport Mark your calendars for this upcoming fall conference! September 19th: focus on inclusion and mainstreaming for children with disabilities. Our guest speaker Paula Kluth, Ph.D. is author of "You're Going to Love This Kid: Educating Students with Autism in Inclusive Classrooms" in addition to her work as a consultant, teacher, advocate, and independent scholar. She works with teachers and families to provide inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities, and to create more responsive and engaging schooling experiences for all learners. Her research and professional interests include differentiating instruction and supporting students with autism and significant disabilities in inclusive classrooms. September 20th: Transition to adulthood workshop with Jerry & Mary Newport as well as a series of presenters. Topics will include autism in the w orkplace, legal services, special needs trust information, community/college living, and more. End of Summer Family Party Saturday, August 30th Boys & Girls Club 4635 Clairemont Mesa Blvd San Diego, CA \| 92117 More details coming soon! Last year's event included swimming, BBQ lunch, door prizes, and family fun for everyone. Both members and non-members are welcome. A small cost is payable at the event. Contact info@sd-autism.org or 858.715.0678 for more information.

CARES: Little Builders Schedule
	play based, social skills group for children with ASD, ages 3-7 July Summer Intensive July 21-August 1 (Monday- Friday) 9-11am August Summer Intensive (dates to be determined) Monday- Friday 9-11 am (for 2 weeks) Next Regular Session (starts in August) Tuesdays & Thursdays 4:30-6pm or Wednesdays 3:30-5pm & Fridays 3:30-5pm For more information contact: Courtney Olinger 858-444-8823 x1221 or colinger.cares@yahoo.com

AEFCT Summer Camps
	Hi Valerie, Could you post this again as we have one camp starting next week and I would like to remind people. Thanks so much!! SUPER FUN SAN DIEGO SUMMER CAMP July 7-July 25 1:00-4:00 (Tues/Thurs OR Mon/Wed) This camp is designed to be outside, active, entertaining, and educational. Camp will focus on social facilitation and improving community-based skills. BASKETBALL CAMP July 28-August 15 1:00-4:00 (Tues/Thurs OR Mon/Wed) Camp Goals: Increased participation and skill level in the sport of basketball from the first day to the final day of the summer program. Increased social interaction with typical peers (as available). TEEN GIRLS GROUP (Two sessions) July 7 - July 25 & July 28- August 15 (Tues/Thurs OR Mon/Wed) Age Range: Between the ages of 14 and 17 This group will work on age appropriate attire, cash exchange and community outings. The girls will go on trips to the mall as well as shopping centers. We will work on being out in the community, eating in restaurants, and shopping. We will target teaching and facilitating typical teenage girl interactions. ACADEMIC TUTORING Available from June 23-August 22 An AEFCT supervisor will review your child's academic goals/ areas of need and personalize a supplemental academic program to prevent regression during the summer months. Highly trained behavior consultants will work one on one with your child on their individualized program, "Fun" breaks will be interspersed throughout the academic session. Minimum 2 hour sessions, flexible hours of service. Shannon Wallace, MA, MFTI AEFCT Clinical Director www.aefct.com 619.767.8386 cell 619.269.6057 office 619.269.6387 fax

Top 10 Facts About Autism and Top 7 Autism Myths
	Parents of children with autism quickly become authorities on the subject. But what about in-laws, teachers, coaches, and cousins? Few people outside the immediate family really want to read 20 closely- written pages from the National Institutes of Health. This brief, pithy article provides the bare bones basics for a quick read - along with links to more in-depth information for those who want to know. Read On Top 7 Autism Myths A diagnosis of autism is not the end of love and hope. But media stories thrive on the most overwhelming and horrifying circumstances. Here are just a few of the myths perpetuated by TV, magazines and movies -- myths that, at least in my opinion, deserve to be blown away! Read On

Autism Class Action Filed Against Blue Cross

Autism Class Action Filed Against Blue Cross DETROIT, July 1 DETROIT, July 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The father of an autistic child has filed a class action lawsuit against Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, and it was set for hearing by Judge Sean Cox in Federal Court. Mr. Chris Johns alleges that the insurer has wrongfully refused coverage for his child's therapy and care. The suit alleges that Blue Cross is required to provide coverage for the care under the terms of its policy, but that it has not done so in bad faith and in violation of the federal ERISA statute.