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buryuntime
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18 Feb 2009, 6:40 pm

Do epsom salt baths, etc. actually help autism in anyway?

My mother gives my sister these baths and occasionally wants me to do it. So I'm wondering if it actually does anything?



SPCOlympics
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18 Feb 2009, 8:04 pm

buryuntime wrote:
Do epsom salt baths, etc. actually help autism in anyway?

My mother gives my sister these baths and occasionally wants me to do it. So I'm wondering if it actually does anything?


Epsom salt contains magnesium sulfate. Some people have theorized that magnesium deficiency may be a root cause of neurological problems (err, differences) including autism and adhd. Some parents try to help their kids by either giving supplements with high concentrations of magnesium and/or giving their children bath with mixtures that have magnesium salts.

Even if the salts don't help, most consider the salt baths soothing, which may temporarily reduce autistic behaviors that are cause by over stimulation, anxiety, physical irritation, etc.

It can't hurt to try it.



pakled
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18 Feb 2009, 8:52 pm

they do wonders for your feet...;)



poopylungstuffing
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18 Feb 2009, 9:02 pm

I recently started taking magnesium supplements.



2ukenkerl
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18 Feb 2009, 9:09 pm

SPCOlympics wrote:
buryuntime wrote:
Do epsom salt baths, etc. actually help autism in anyway?

My mother gives my sister these baths and occasionally wants me to do it. So I'm wondering if it actually does anything?


Epsom salt contains magnesium sulfate. Some people have theorized that magnesium deficiency may be a root cause of neurological problems (err, differences) including autism and adhd. Some parents try to help their kids by either giving supplements with high concentrations of magnesium and/or giving their children bath with mixtures that have magnesium salts.

Even if the salts don't help, most consider the salt baths soothing, which may temporarily reduce autistic behaviors that are cause by over stimulation, anxiety, physical irritation, etc.

It can't hurt to try it.


The salts ARE nice. If you have problems, like athletes foot, they will help. As far as it helping autism? NOPE! MAGNESIUM is good! GREAT idea! It can get rid of SOME pain, headaches, arthritis, mental/immunity problems. Will it help autism? NOPE!

So I like and recommend both, but they WON'T cure autism



Tahitiii
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18 Feb 2009, 9:13 pm

Our old family remedy for migraines is epsom salt. You take a handful of it (teaspoon or so), toss it back, and wash it down with a big glass of water. I foolishly rejected it for decades it because the doctors hinted that something terrible could happen. (As it turns out, the worst that could possibly happen is a few minutes of diarrea.)
I rediscovered it less than a year ago, and it certainly works.

Folk medicine should not be rejected just because it is not FDA approved. (They're nothing but a cartel with a gun & a badge.) They'll never approve of anything related to epsom salt because you can get a life-time supply for $2. If there's no known harm, and a lot of people believe it helps, it probably does help for some reason.

With the epsom salt bath, it could just be that it's soothing, it could be something about the quality of the interaction when mom gives special attention, or there could actually be some chemical thing happening. No one will ever pay for the research to prove it.

Like the man said,

SPCOlympics wrote:
It can't hurt to try it.



lionesss
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18 Feb 2009, 9:17 pm

All I know is that I sprained my foot back in October and soaked it in water filled with epsom salt and it helped a lot! I should try bathing in it regularly to help lessen anxiety more than anything.



2ukenkerl
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18 Feb 2009, 10:07 pm

Tahitiii wrote:
Our old family remedy for migraines is epsom salt. You take a handful of it (teaspoon or so), toss it back, and wash it down with a big glass of water. I foolishly rejected it for decades it because the doctors hinted that something terrible could happen. (As it turns out, the worst that could possibly happen is a few minutes of diarrea.)
I rediscovered it less than a year ago, and it certainly works.

Folk medicine should not be rejected just because it is not FDA approved. (They're nothing but a cartel with a gun & a badge.) They'll never approve of anything related to epsom salt because you can get a life-time supply for $2. If there's no known harm, and a lot of people believe it helps, it probably does help for some reason.

With the epsom salt bath, it could just be that it's soothing, it could be something about the quality of the interaction when mom gives special attention, or there could actually be some chemical thing happening. No one will ever pay for the research to prove it.

Like the man said,
SPCOlympics wrote:
It can't hurt to try it.


It could be more than a few minutes. Why don't you take a magnesium supplement instead? It is BETTER!



LabPet
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18 Feb 2009, 10:43 pm

No - don't think so! But Epsom bath salts, Magnesium Sulfate, are supposedly relaxing for the bath and can be scented with lavendar, vanilla, etc. No correlation to autism....but many people like Epsom salt baths just because it feels relaxing - soothes muscles in the bathtub. And you buy Epsom salts - cheap - from any drugstore.

Those fancy department store bath salts are (guess....) just Epsom salts with scent/perfume(s) added & you can make this at home just as easily.

Taken internally??? Umm...why? Epsom salt, ingested, is a laxative. Also salts can act as an emetic (don't do this.....) if not taken properly. Again, nothing to do with autism treatment, but whatever. In actuality, if you do take Epsom salt internally (laxative) routinely one should hope this is done under medical supervision or you can inadvertently cause a serious electrolyte balance (again, nothing to do with autism) - just physiology.

Remember, Mg supplements are NOT correlated to Epsom salt (MgSO4)! Salt is a salt (ligand), Mg is a mineral necessary in human diet that occurs naturally too - doesn't have anything to do with autism. Most OTC multi-vitamins have Mg anyway.

Just for ex: Ca (Calcium) is a necessary and good dietary supplement - found in dairy, etc. BUT CaCO3 isn't calcium. It's chalk - don't eat it. In sum: Ca does not = CaCO3::Mg does not = MgSO4....just basic chemistry.


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Tahitiii
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18 Feb 2009, 10:43 pm

1. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. (And I don't get that side effect.)
2. Did I mention that it's $2 for a life-time supply?
3. I already own it.