Why There Is More Autism Today Than Years Ago

Many people ask why autism seems to be so much prevalent today than it was years ago, but unfortunately while there are significant amounts of speculation to that question, there are no definitive answers.

We know that today, approximately 1 out of every 160 children are affected with autism to varying degrees. Perhaps our measurement of what defines autism has grown more granular where even very mild cases of autism that were not counted years ago are now included in that figure. Many people believe that years ago, we spent too much time just assuming that the child was naturally withdraw or anti-social instead of recognizing those symptoms as being signs of autism.

We know that boys are more affected with autism than girls by a significant ratio, and perhaps years ago it was thought just to be a gender difference in the rate of maturity of boys versus girls.

Finding out what causes autism and what can be done to prevent it or treat it has become a major priority in the medical and scientific community. Many children are "losing their childhoods" because of autism, and despite their parent's best efforts to help them, many only reach of state of marginal self-reliance as they grow older.

Although it is commonly accepted that autism is a neurological disorder, there are many theories as to what constitutes a "concrete sign" of the existence of autism in a young child, especially a child who is young enough to not fully understand what is supposed to be "normal" versus abnormal. It is known that autistic children frequently have chronic diarrhea and frequently have trouble keeping food down. Would that indicate that the intestines are somehow involved in providing a sign? Although that aspect has been studied, the results are as yet inconclusive. Autistic children also frequently have more occurrences of colds, earaches, and allergies, so does that mean that the child's immune system is trying to tell us something? Again, this aspect has been studied and the results to date are inconclusive.

Could autism be caused by some chemical that is commonly used in our modern day environments? Again, this is a possibility, but the lack of funding has permitted the study of only about 30 to 40 of the more than 80,000 chemicals that may commonly be found in most environments, so that question is still up in the air.

Your best bet at this point is to watch your child for signs of autism and if seen, to get a professional diagnosis as soon as possible. If your child has autism, work with the teachers at their school to form a team to accommodate their special needs, which can aid in minimizing the effects of autism until a cure can be found.

By: Jon Arnold

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