PCA-RX is a dietary supplement made by Maxam Nutraceutics.  The claims for this product are amazing.  According to the maxamlabs website, this product can do the following:

As the father of two children diagnosed in the autistic spectrum, this product greatly interested me for obvious reasons.  Chelation, the removal of toxic metals, is a popular treatment to attempt for autism, but the drugs, regimen, and cost can be very taxing on a family.  PCA-RX claims to use a different process called clathration.  Clathration is supposed to work by surrounding the toxin in a cage which allows it to be eliminated from the body.  One danger of mercury is that once it is floating around, it can enter the system again. 

One thing about autism is that there really is no typical medical treatment.  Go to a doctor with high blood pressure, and he will do all sort of tests.  Go to a doctor for autism, and they will at most try to diagnose the level of impairment and recommend therapy.  My kids are already in therapy, where one is making great progress, the other very slow progress. 

There lies the problem.  If someone told you there might be a cure for your child, can you ignore it?  Of course not, at the very least you owe it to them to research everything you can about it, talk about it with your doctor, and speak with someone who has undergone the treatment.  Such is the case with heavy metal removal.  I’ve met parents who swear their child improved after chelation.  For that alone I felt I owed it to my kids to at least investigate.

The downside?  

1. Too many people in the field of autism are in the business of selling false hope.  Much like cancer cures, they prey on your desire for finding a cure.  They will suggest all kinds of crazy treatment ranging from spinning lights to scuba diver pressure chambers.  I even question the doctors who prescribe some of these “cures”.  After seeing hundreds of kids, don’t they have an idea what works and what doesn’t work yet?  Why continue to peddle cures if they never see results?

2.  Treatments like PCA-RX are expensive.  Anywhere from $75 to $100 a bottle.  Not to mention the medical costs for testing if you really want to do it properly.

3. PCA-RX is a dietary supplement.  As such, it is unregulated and any claims are unproven.  Good luck finding a real study with a doctor signing their name to it.  Most claims are from affiliate sites pushing the stuff and always 3rd party.  Testimonials often claim their doctor suggested it, but what doctor would recommend something without at least one published study?

4. Suppose it does really eliminate toxins?  What is the proper dosage?  What danger signs to look for?  When should you stop treatment?  Are we so desperate as parents for a miracle cure that we are willing to play doctor?

The Upside?

1.  Enough people claim chelation works that I’m willing to investigate it.  Even if you don’t want to risk taking medical supplements, common foods like egg-white and cilantro have toxin removing properties.  At the very least it is worth discussing with your doctor.

2. While I’ve found no conclusive medical studies that PCA-RX works, I’ve also found no negative reports about it.  Since it claims that mercury does not enter the system again, and that it does not remove useful minerals, it seems harmless enough.

The Test.

You really should measure the amount of mercury leaving the body under a doctor’s supervision.  In my case my insurance doesn’t cover it and I don’t have the finances for proper testing.  Risking $100 seemed a reasonable cost to answer nagging questions we had about mercury, and if we saw any positive changes we could always get into a properly supervised program.  Of course, there is also the ethical issue of experimenting on your kids.   For that reason I decide to take PCA-RX myself.

I probably have a ton of mercury in my body from all the fillings I got as a kid.  I still have most of my fillings, minus a few that fell out or I swallowed.  I tried a few sprays morning and night for a few weeks and felt no effects at all.  No bad taste, no odd bowel movements, no physical effects to report either positive or negative.  Seemed OK to gradually allow the kids to try it.

I had my sons take a few sprays in the morning and at night, since you aren’t supposed to eat right after taking it.  They really liked it.  We called it the “Rescue Spray” after the rescue heroes TV show.  My oldest son also took a chewable zinc vitamin as a supplement.  Neither one reported any ill effects.

As for any miracle cure, there was none to be found.  If I had to judge, it did seem like my older son had slightly improved verbal ability.  Of course, that might all be wishful thinking.   There was no dramatic change in behavior.  Add it to the list of things that worked for others but not for us.  Gluten free – cassein free diets, TMG supplements,  L-Carnosine supplements, Epsom salt baths, cod liver oil, and whatever other treatments people have suggested worked for them.

In the end, both my kids continue their regular therapy.  The younger one is making great strides, the older one slow progress.  We will continue to use PCA-RX until our supply is used up and then make a final decision to continue or not.  For what it’s worth, one bottle does last a long time.  It’s good for about 240 sprays.  Considering the cost vs risk, I don’t regret exploring this particular path. 

You can find PCA-RX along with almost every other heavy metal detox supplement at Chelation4Life