Derrick Lonsdale
Encyclopedia
Derrick Lonsdale M.D., Fellow of the American College
of Nutrition (FACN), Fellow of the American College for Advancement in Medicine (FACAM) is a pediatrician and researcher into the benefits of certain nutrients in preventing disease and psychotic behavior. Thiamine is a special vitamin because as the cause of beriberi it is one of only four vitamins associated with a named pandemic deficiency disease. Of these four vitamins, only thiamine requires transport proteins to diffuse throughout the body. A thiamine derivative called TTFD is a thiamine precursor that does not require transport proteins to freely diffuse.

Positions

Dr Lonsdale was a practitioner in pediatrics
Pediatrics
Pediatrics or paediatrics is the branch of medicine that deals with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. A medical practitioner who specializes in this area is known as a pediatrician or paediatrician...

 at the Cleveland Clinic
Cleveland Clinic
The Cleveland Clinic is a multispecialty academic medical center located in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The Cleveland Clinic is currently regarded as one of the top 4 hospitals in the United States as rated by U.S. News & World Report...

 for 20 years. He became Head of the Section of Biochemical Genetics at the Clinic. The Cleveland Clinic is rated as the third best hospital in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

In 1982, Lonsdale retired from the Cleveland Clinic and joined the Preventive Medicine Group to specialize in nutrient
Nutrient
A nutrient is a chemical that an organism needs to live and grow or a substance used in an organism's metabolism which must be taken in from its environment. They are used to build and repair tissues, regulate body processes and are converted to and used as energy...

-based therapy.

He is also on the Scientific Research Advisory Committee of the American College for Advancement in Medicine and is an editor of their Journal.

Research work

Lonsdale has written over 100 published papers and the conclusions tend to support the idea that healing comes from the body itself rather than from external medical interventions.

Lonsdale has studied the use of nutrients to prevent disease
Disease
A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...

s and his work has been favorably reviewed. He is particularly interested in Vitamin B1
Thiamine
Thiamine or thiamin or vitamin B1 , named as the "thio-vitamine" is a water-soluble vitamin of the B complex. First named aneurin for the detrimental neurological effects if not present in the diet, it was eventually assigned the generic descriptor name vitamin B1. Its phosphate derivatives are...

, also known as thiamine
Thiamine
Thiamine or thiamin or vitamin B1 , named as the "thio-vitamine" is a water-soluble vitamin of the B complex. First named aneurin for the detrimental neurological effects if not present in the diet, it was eventually assigned the generic descriptor name vitamin B1. Its phosphate derivatives are...

. Lonsdale's research on the effect of high doses of thiamine has been described as 'pioneering'.
  • Lonsdale D, Shamberger RJ. Red cell transketolase as an indicator of nutritional deficiency. Am J Clin Nutr. 1980 Feb;33(2):205-11.

Autism

Lonsdale lead a successful (uncontrolled) study on the treatment of autism
Autism
Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restricted and repetitive behavior. These signs all begin before a child is three years old. Autism affects information processing in the brain by altering how nerve cells and their...

 spectrum children with thiamine.

He also lead a study (uncontrolled) of secretin in the treatment of autism spectrum disorder. Both of these studies are controversial because they link nutrition with autism. The study, Lonsdale D and Shamberger R J (2000) "A clinical study of secretin in autism and pervasive developmental delay." Journal of Nutritional and Environmental Medicine, Vol 10 (4), pp 271–280, has been cited by the National Autistic Society
National Autistic Society
The National Autistic Society is a British charity for people with autistic spectrum disorders , including autism and Asperger's Syndrome. The purpose of the organisation is primarily to improve of the lives of people with Autism in the United Kingdom.Founded in 1962 as the Autistic Children's Aid...

.

Sudden deaths

The World Health Organisation have cited three of Lonsdale's papers on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Sudden infant death syndrome
Sudden infant death syndrome is marked by the sudden death of an infant that is unexpected by medical history, and remains unexplained after a thorough forensic autopsy and a detailed death scene investigation. An infant is at the highest risk for SIDS during sleep, which is why it is sometimes...

:
  • Lonsdale D. Thiamine deficiency and sudden deaths. Lancet. 1990 Aug 11;336(8711):376.
  • Lonsdale D. Erythrocyte transketolase activity and sudden infant death. Am J Clin Nutr. 1981 Oct;34(10):2326-7.

Child violence

In 2002 Lonsdale caused controversy when he linked child violence (children killing other children) to dietary deficiencies rather than the accepted social causes. Lonsdale put this down to 'high calorie malnutrition' where children overeat high calories foods that lack vital nutrients resulting in an upset to 'brain balance'. He pointed the finger at a range of 'normal' foods as well as generally accepted junk foods.

Books

Lonsdale has written several books, including:
  • A Nutritionist's Guide to the Clinical use of Vitamin B-1.
  • Why I Left Orthodox Medicine: Healing for the 21st Century
  • Free Oxygen Radicals and Disease
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