A long term study of mothers caring for children with autism is revealing what many of us already knew:That caring for our kids can be stressful and exhausting and can take a toll on our health. Marsha Seltzer of the University of Wisconsin Madison has found that "over a five-year span, Moms of children with autism spent nearly all of their time on caregiving activities, experienced an inordinate amount of daily fatigue, often got into arguments at home and at work, and reported having negative feelings far more often than positive ones." Seltzer reports "seeing remarkably low levels of cortisol activation in mothers caring for their children with autism, which may reflect the toll taken by chronic stress and fatigue in their lives." Supplements cannot take away the challenges of caregiving, but they may help moderate some of its effects on our mood, energy and health.