Touchstone Naturopathic Centre (TOUCHSTONE) is a Family Medicine Centre that has developed several streams of expertise. In recent years, a major focus has been on treatments for autism. The foundation for this special interest began in late 2001 with treatment of three children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) using NAET treatments for allergies to foods and other toxins. While treating these children, Dr. Clack began learning how they could be recovered by following “the Biomedical Approach”. This is an assessment and treatment process based on functional medicine principles and research. To date the successful application of this approach has helped children and families from southern Ontario, Quebec and several children from Europe. Dr. Clack completed his training as a Defeat Autism Now! Practitioner in 2005.

Touchstone: “a standard or criterion against which something is judged” (formerly, a stone against which gold and silver were rubbed, to assess their purity). — Oxford Study Dictionary

Since then, Dr. Clack has lectured at several conferences (OAND 2006, Restorative Medicine Conference 2007) and presented a research poster at the 2008 Geneva Centre Conference in Toronto (see the study report is this issue of IHP).

Thorough history gathering and lab testing are the essential starting points for successful treatment outcomes. Biomedical or functional medicine treatment programs are a complicated mix of dietary changes with nutritional and herbal supplements. Objective testing helps achieve compliance with what are often considered complicated treatment strategies. The testing is also critical when dealing with patients who typically have speech and/or communication difficulties, and are known to have high pain-tolerance. Very often in such cases, it is difficult through verbal communication/physical examination alone to establish underlying causes of the presenting concerns. Testing is able to reveal Candidiasis or Dysbiosis when symptoms are absent, common to more than 50% of ASD cases, for example.

Testing at TOUCHSTONE has been one of the biggest changes in its operations. Early testing options include in-house urine tests (e.g. Indican, Koenisbourg), Electrodermal Screening, Bio-Impedance, and occasional blood work or Live Cell/Darkfield microscopy. ASD patients are now recommended to have the following tests: bloodwork (CBC, ferritin, immunoglobulins, plasma zinc and serum prealbumin), Organic Acid testing, Urine Peptides, IgG Food Sensitivity, Comprehensive Stool Analysis tests, and heavy metal toxicity testing (either by hair analysis or post-provocative fecal metal analysis). As treatments progress, Amino Acid testing and DNA-based testing for viruses, bacteria or parasites are often recommended. The tests are performed through a variety of labs: Gamma Dynacare for conventional labwork, and Great Plains Laboratory, Genova Diagnostics or MetaMatrix Labs for functional medicine testing.

An experienced Pediatric phlebotomist is scheduled at the Clinic every two weeks to provide patients with quick access for bloodwork.

Moving forward, TOUCHSTONE is in the process of instituting several changes geared towards improved patient care as well as increasing the amount of clinical research produced by the facility. Integration of current functional medicine practices with European drainage techniques is viewed as a key aspect of future growth. The strategies developed for the management of ASD are awaiting application in the realm of neurodegenerative disease, notably Parkinson’s disease and Multiple Sclerosis. Hydrotherapy (Infrared sauna, constitutional hydrotherapy) as well as I.V. therapeutics are also considered integral for comprehensive management of these ailments.

The TOUCHSTONE team further recognizes the ability of diet and lifestyle-based therapies to impart a tremendous magnitude of efficacy in the management of cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes. As such, it is excited to increase awareness and utilization of these strategies within the Clinic. The tremendous success of the initial research initiative has resulted in plans to assemble the TOUCHSTONE research team, whose mandate will be to coordinate with other health care facilities in the area and assemble objective evidence of impact from the biomedical/functional medicine approaches used in the management of ASD.

HBOT Overview (TNC)