Autism Society of Larimer County

Pediatric RN's Letter To President Obama January 9, 2009, Dear President Obama, I would first like to state that, from the onset of your campaign, you have had my full support and trust.  Rarely has an individual inspired such hope in the American people.  Because of your wisdom, intelligence and ability to lead, many of us who had lost faith in our government will now stand with you as we face the tough challenges that lie ahead.  The health crisis that affects this current generation of children is one of those challenges and if not addressed effectively, this problem will greatly impact not only our economy, but take it's emotional toll on families, the country and on future generations of Americans. I have been a pediatric registered nurse for 32 years.  During that time, I have watched as the number of children with chronic conditions such as ADHD, Autism, Asthma, Obesity, Allergies, etc have escalated dramatically.  Many of us in the medical and nursing professions read the studies every day implicating environmental toxicity and poor nutrition as culprits.  Additionally, a growing segment of health professionals, as well as thousands of intelligent, caring, and observant parents, believe that childhood vaccines are partially to blame. Most of us who hold this theory, do not believe that all vaccines are unsafe.  However, the number of vaccines given to a child has doubled since the early 90's.  If you then look at the rising incidence of chronic childhood conditions during that same period of time, as well as listen closely to parent after parent report the decline of their previously healthy child after they received multiple vaccines in one doctor's visit, or received them when their child was sick, it's simply common sense to deduce that there is a connection.   After 10 years as serving as the organizer of the Defeat Autism Now! Conferences where thousands of parents and physicians gather to learn from the world's leading experts on ways to improve the symptoms associated with autism (sometimes to the point of recovery),  I came to the realization that more needed to be done to PREVENT these childhood conditions.  To this end in September 2008, I launched the first Saving Our Kids, Healing Our Planet Green Expo.  In this forum, we bring experts from the fields of nutrition, green living and pediatrics to conduct workshops and presentations for   parents, teachers, physicians, children's therapists etc.to learn effective solutions for minimizing or averting these preventable childhood conditions.  Our intention is to bring these "green" expos around the country including urban areas where often times children are diagnosed late, services are minimal and chances for recovery or even improvement are limited or non existent. Many intelligent parents and health care professionals share my perspective on the role the environment, suboptimal nutrition and vaccines are playing in these escalating epidemics and are  waiting to be of service in helping funders of research and policy makers understand and reverse this health crisis.   I am at your service. Respectfully, Maureen H. McDonnell, RN Saving Our Kids, Healing Our Planet Conference Coordinator