Dyslexia Remains a Puzzle
Based on my experience with around 200 children in my reading business and further experience with another 200 or so children I evaluated who were undergoing developmental vision examinations, I’ve concluded that children who struggle to learn to read usually have problems with their visual skills and that those problems tend to run in families.
It is this genetic pattern of poor vision skills combined with an inability to learn to read efficiently that I believe causes most of the symptoms a parent would consider dyslexia. I’ve also tended to give the impression that if you successfully address the vision problems and ensure that phonics instruction is in place, dyslexia can be overcome in the sense that your child will then become an able, willing reader. While this was indeed the outcome for many of my clients, I also saw children who remained a puzzle even after vision therapy and phonics instruction had clearly had their respective impact.
That is, some children had their vision problems corrected, as determined by objective testing, and also readily absorbed my phonics instruction, again as demonstrated by objective testing, but they continued to struggle with print. I’ve seen clients of mine who learned to confidently decode three and four syllable words when all they did was guess at them three months earlier, but who still read aloud haltingly and occasionally hesitated at common one syllable words.
While it’s always tempting to want to think that those children just needed more practice using their newly-acquired skills, I’ve seen enough of them in my client base over the years to realize that there’s another pattern present, and that it probably has another explanation for its existence.
Could Dyslexia Be Caused by a Deficiency of Vitamin D?
Could a lack of vitamin D be responsible? Actually, I think it's possible. Think about what we've covered so far. I've argued that dyslexia is associated with a pattern of delayed development, including the lack of development of certain key vision skills. I've also argued that there's a definite genetic underpinning, that it runs in families. I eventually came to realize that instead of beating a child over the head with phonics instruction that he couldn't absorb, it made more sense to address his vision needs first. This usually worked, and phonics instruction became less challenging, both to the child and to me. But maybe the delay in development of visual skills is not a cause, but rather a symptom. If it's a symptom, it points to the need to find a deeper cause. Evidence is mounting that a deficiency of vitamin D might be that underlying cause. Another potential dietary candidate is a deficiency in Omega-3 essential fatty acids.
This isn't just wild speculation, incidentally. In the next section, The Diet Piece of the Dyslexia Puzzle, I will go into some of the fascinating research on vitamin D that has been done and will point you toward other resources that I believe you will find to be invaluable.
Some Other Possibilities
There are two additional areas that, according to others but outside my experience, have shown some promise in addressing dyslexia. One consists of various types of auditory training and the other of various exercise regimens. Several programs exist in each area, but I have had personal experience with none of them. In The Auditory Piece of the Dyslexia Puzzle and The Exercise Piece of the Dyslexia Puzzle, I'll have a bit more to say about each area, but they will only be summaries of what I've learned from other sources, not from personal experience.
I would add, though, that if answers are to be found in either area, auditory or exercise, it might well be because the same pattern of developmental delay in vision skills could also be manifesting itself in both the auditory realm and in the physical exercise realm. As with vision skills, perhaps it's worth asking if there's a deeper underlying cause at work.
Summing Up The Dyslexia Puzzle - Does a "Magic Bullet" Exist?
I used to argue that instead of pounding away at the phonics instruction for years, or worse yet, switching to some eclectic mix of instruction that totally confuses your child, you should instead first address any vision issues, then take care of the phonics instruction. In fact, I still do argue exactly that. But it's not always the answer. Something was missing for some children I saw. Perhaps something more needed to be done, auditory training, for example, or a program of physical exercises?
In the past couple of years, l've found myself wondering if, instead of widening my search for answers, I should instead look deeper. I found myself asking if something was creating all these dyslexic children, or triggering dyslexia in those families genetically predisposed to it. Now, I will readily admit to being a "magic bullet" sort of person, but all I mean by that is that I accept the proposition that often the simplest explanation is the right one. Certainly we have long tied ourselves into knots trying to figure out why some children struggle so much learning to read. Explanations of the phenomenon cover a wide range of possibilities, and a wide range of actions seem useful. There are aggressive proponents of many sorts of programs to address dyslexia, or at least the symptoms associated with dyslexia.
In The Diet Piece of the Dyslexia Puzzle I lay out my reasoning as to why a vitamin D deficiency might well be the simple explanation I've been looking for, i.e., the magic bullet. But even if it's not, I can assure you that the information contained there is well worth absorbing. A lot has been happening lately and virtually everyone should be made aware of it, for their own health as well as the health of their children.