autism and adhd seems to be getting related in some of the cases. please find below interesting information on the various supporting groups on autism.

pass it along to your known parents.

also inform this group your findings.

 

Kennedy

 

 

Top  20 Autism  Support  Discussion Groups  on the Internet

      This is a list of the largest, most relevant autism support and discussion lists on the Internet.  We published a similar list six months ago.  Then the number of discussion lists that included the word "autism" in their group description was 650.  There are now 840 such groups.  The individual groups also experienced a swelling of membership.  Parents "vote with their feet" for preferred treatments.  This gives some rough indication of what seems to be helpful and safe. Absent interest from the medical establishment, parents turn to each other in such groups in attempt to pool experiences and make some sense out of the latest scientific, and not-so-scientific treatments.  Behavioral treatment programs and dietary interventions top the list of parent interest. While the GFCF Kids (gluten-free, casein-free) list has the largest membership, there are at least two additional lists for ABA in the top twenty.  There is also another popular diet-oriented discussion group,  autism-FBI, which made the top listing, besides the ME-List in the number 2 position.  
      Missing from the top of the list are discussion groups on secretin and auditory integration therapy.  However, a list tied to Facilitated Communication has over 500 members. 
      This year we did not include newsletter lists, which are not discussion/dialog oriented.  Also left off are moderated and psuedo-unmoderated lists.  "Moderated" here is a euphemism for censored.  The moderator must pre-approve any post.  Unless the theme is of a very sensitive or specialized nature (e.g. autism and sexual abuse), moderated lists tend to be mediocre, boring and should be avoided.  For some reason, yahoogroups allow group owners to falsely list their group as unmoderated, while giving list hosts the tools to do stealth censorship despite the description declaration.
      Yahoogroups has some other strange practices.  They do not list their groups alphabetically, or by size as below.  If you use their supplied search engine, you will not get the return list of hits in either order, but in random order.  For example, if you searched on  "autism diets", the GFCFKids list, the most popular autism diet list, does not show up on the first page of the returned listings.  Why they would intentionally degrade their users search reports is unclear.  

      For the complete listing of groups by size: http://www.freewebz.com/schafer/URL/YGrpSz.htm      

Groups

Members

07-02  02-03 Archive

GFCFKids¶	This list is unmoderated and unrestricted. The principle aim of this list is to provide a discussion forum for parents of children on the autism spectrum who are avoiding gluten and casein and other substances in their children's diets. We hope that the discussions will include practical information and tips on following a GFCF(etc) diet; scientific research and opinion; the latest developments in understanding GFCF(etc) diet-related health problems; your personal stories and experiences with ... more	2802	3192	For Members
The ME-LIST*	This is an email list centered around discussion of issues related to provision of high-quality, intensive, discrete-trial-based* intervention for children with autism. [*Discrete-trial-based intervention is also often referred to as ABA (applied behavior analysis), behavioral intervention or "Lovaas" therapy.] *Not a Yahoogroup list.	3100	3109	For Members
Autism-Mercury¶	To discuss current issues related to the increasing incidence of autism & the potential link between excessive mercury exposure via thimerosal in infant vaccines. Topics include mercury detoxification ("chelation")~ mercury-related issues/news~ and vaccination-related issues/news. Most members are parents of children with autism~ aspergers~ ADD~ ADHD~ PDD~ PDD-NOS~ SID~ oppositional defiance disorder~ apraxia~ speech disorders~ and/or other related symptoms. There are many labels you are welcome ... more	1600	2081 ¶	Public
DTT-NET¶	One of the most complex tasks both parents and professionals face is developing and implementing an effective language intervention for children with autism. Parents and professionals are finding that BOTH Discrete Trial Training (DTT) and Natural Environment Training (NET)~ together with the help of Skinner's (1957) Functional Analysis of Verbal Behavior to be very effective for children with autism. This is commonly referred to as Applied Verbal Behavior (AVB)which is a specialty within the ... more	1676	1832	For Members
VerbalBehavior¶	The focus of this list is teaching verbal behavior (VB) within a program of applied behavior analysis (ABA). B.F. Skinner's 1957 analysis of verbal behavior looked at the functions of language over its forms~ and described numerous verbal operants~ or units of language. ABA/VB addresses difficulties in the development of communication seen in most individuals with autism and other related disabilities~ in part by emphasizing functional language and tying it to motivational variables. ... more	1011	1302	For Members
abmd¶	The Autism Biomedical Discussion group has been created for the discussion of research and biomedical interventions as they apply to the investigation and treatment of autistic spectrum disorders. Topics of discussion include immunology~ endocrinology~ gastrointestinal issues~ allergies~ metabolic and mitochondrial issues~ exposure to neurotoxins~ vaccine injury~ dietary and nutritional protocols~ medications~ and other areas pertinent to diagnostics and treatment protocols for individuals with ... more	876	1079	For Members
autism-awareness-action¶	This list is an Autism informational list to share and receive information and support on Autism. Members on this list are from all across the United States and Worldwide. All issues of Autism are explored- from diet~ supplements~ interventions~ legislation~ treatments~ and educational and vocational strategies~ and even some off topic humor. The purpose of this list is to be a well rounded resource for Autism and all it encompasses. As the name implies~ this list is about Autism~ sharing ... more	866	961	For Members
NIDS¶	The NIDS list is an information and support forum for families affected by Neuro Immune Dysfunction Syndromes~ including Autism~ Aspergers~ ADD/ADHD~ CFS/CFIDS~ MDD~ PDD~ and others~ and who are using or considering the NIDS protocol. Bashing~ flaming~ flame-baiting or personal attacks have no place here and will not be tolerated. Infractions may result in immediate removal from the list.	615	820	For Members
Latetalkers¶	To discuss developmental speech delays caused by apraxia (dyspraxia)~ phonological disorders~ autism spectrum disorders~ learning disabilies~ or other causes. The list is varied but our common thread is helping those children attain intelligible speech. A welcome is extended to family~ speech language pathologists~ medical professionals~ students~ & educators who wish to participate in discussions. If anyone has concerns about a child's development~ please consult a registered speech language ... more	701	763	For Members
RecoveredKids¶	This list is parents of kids recovered or on the road to recovery from autism. Others~ however~ are welcome to join.	621	743	Public
Autism-Software¶	Children with speech and language delays and difficulties such as Autism/PDD are usually highly visual and can benefit enormously from a home computer. However~ there is a lot of over-priced and over-rated software out there with very little reinforcement and limited educational value. The best software allows you to edit information and enter new teaching material and reinforcement. Reinforcement is vital (and severely lacking in most learning software packages) to keep up the child's interest ... more	729	701 ¶	Public
AspergersSupport¶	A support list for parents of children with Asperger's Syndrome or High Functioning Autism.	459	554	For Members
autismlist¶	Welcome to the Autismlist. We have been in existence since September '98 with 550 members and some of the best professionals and parents on the net. Feel free to join and ask any questions about autism or just to learn about the condition. Posting is unmoderated for members~ but either I or other volunteers monitor the list closely. I have thirty years of experience in the field and have advocated for Autism and Facilitated Communication since '95 on the internet. We average about 5 posts a day~ ... more	536	546 ¶	Public
autism_alabama¶	News and announcements about autism~ activities in Alabama~ and legislative alerts.	514	526 ¶	Public
ReedMartinSPEDlaw¶	Reed Martin~ J.D.~ Special Education Strategies And Resources. Assisting parents and advocates in special education advocacy for children with disabilities. Welcome to the ReedMartinSPEDlaw listserv. Everyone is welcome in the discussion of special education laws and advocacy techniques. The chat room is always open http //www.reedmartin.com/specialeducationchat.htm Reed Martin attends the regularly scheduled parent chats each Thursday evening~ 9-10 30PM~ EST. We look forward to hearing from ... more	421	508	For Members
autismaba¶	The Autism and ABA list is an open forum for discussing anything related to autism. Much of our discussion centers around Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)~ including specializations of ABA~ such as Applied Verbal Behavior (AVB) and Natural Environment Training (NET). However~ any and every topic related to autism is welcome! We're a quiet list~ but we have a healthy mix of parents~ professionals~ and others involved with autism in some way. Welcome! Group Moderator autismaba-owner@egroups.com To ... more	412	498	For Members
Autism_in_Girls¶	Restricted membership! This list is for all parents and professionals who wish to exchange information regarding treatment of autism in girls~ how autism effect females in the family~ and any other issues dealing with autism and females and/or the comparison of males and females with autism. Other than the restricted membership... The list will not be censored in any way so as to promote the free flow of information between its members. The list forum is not intended for inflammatory remarks ... more	442	489	For Members
AUTISM-FBI¶	"FIGHTING BACK with dietary INTERVENTION" is a list for the experienced parent using dietary intervention in the treatment of their child afflicted with autism. The focus of this group will be to give support to fellow parents who already have their child on a gluten-free~ casein-free~ yeast-free~ sugar-free~ chemical-free~ allergy-free and hydrogenized oil-free diet. This list is for intermediate through advanced dieters~ not for beginners.	~300	486 ¶	Public
autism-aspergers¶	This list is for parents and caregivers of kids with autism and aspergers~ and any other duisability. I am the mother of 4 special needs boys~ and I created this list to share stories~ ideas~ treatments~ therapies~ advice and support. It's a list where we can all make friends and have fun. There will be no flaming tolerated.	349	477	For Members
Texas-Autism-Advocacy¶	This list is for people wanting to share information or get information about interventions for autism and related disabilities in Texas. Professionals~ parents~ and students are welcome; as well as disability/advocacy related organizations. The list may be used for Networking to find services for a child; Discussion of various intervention strategies educational~ medical~ therapeutical~ and others relating to the needs of a child with autism; Announcement of upcoming conferences or meetings~ ... more	351	446	For Members
Autism-Michigan¶	Welcome to Autism-Michigan! This list is for anyone on the Autism Spectrum or with a loved one~ student or patient with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. The list is to provide resource information & support. Posts are not limited to any type of therapy or subject. This is for people to share their experiences and ask/answer questions about Autism. The majority of information may be specific to Michigan but is not limited to Michigan. Thank you for your interest in our list and we look forward to ... more	384	407	For Members
pfeifferautispatients¶	This group is for patients and parents of patients who are being treated using the autism treatment protocol at the Pfeiffer Treatment Center. It is also for anyone who is interested in this treatment protocol. Examples of discussion topics are innovative methods to get kids to take their supplements~ MT Promoter as Chelation Therapy~ lessons learned during treatment~ effectiveness of the other supplements (CLO~etc) Parents/patients should feel free to discuss their perceptions of their Pfeiffer ... more		395	For Members

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