Interesting article on Autism

[Jean, Rylee and Cooper]

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/05/health/research/scientists-link-r...

Thought this was interesting.

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I listen to every news clip or article on this subject.   I heard this one yesterday too.  However little this finding is, it is a start! 

Oh and for once, so far, it can't be blamed on the mother.

Does anyone remember a few years back Autism being reported to effect male children and those male children born second or third? 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I remember that Joanne. Perhaps there is a link.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Thank you for posting.  Having taught many children with Autism and Asperger's my DH and I have a special interest in research developments on this.

[Jean, Rylee and Cooper]

Your welcome.  Yes, I think many people are touched in some way by Autism and Asperger's.  A good friend of mine is a social worker and deals with some of this, she works early intervention with young children.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

I am very interested in this too. My daughter does a lot of work with children on the Autism spectrum and my BF has a daughter with it who I have been developing a relationship with as another daughter is going for major surgery to the UK in September and I need to help take care of her. We meet every couple of weeks as I am developing her trust and I'm hoping that by the time her Mom has to go away (for perhaps a month) that I will be in a position to offer some real help.

I remember when It wasn't recognised at all here and the parents have had to fight long and hard to get recognition of the condition.  

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Interesting article which raises more questions than it answers in my mind. Thanks for posting it Jean. Here is another one with an entirely different take on the issue.  As far as gene mutation in the males goes...if it is a true factor in autism, what is causing these genes to mutate? Could it also be related to this article and  toxic environmental factors affecting all of us which then trickle down to the children on the genetic level? It is interesting to me that they mention pet flea treatments and cosmetics...:(

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=autism-rise-driven...

[F, Calla & Luca]

This is interesting but I think autism as we know it is not a single entitiy but many entities with some shared symptoms. More confusion may result when things are reclassified in the couple of next years when the new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders comes out. I gather that everything may be on the autistic spectrum and Asperger's may be history.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

So do you think we can expect to see another sharp rise in the autism stats when that reclassification comes into effect?

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

There was something on the news today stating that maternal obesity and gestational diabetes might be contributors - at least in the study done those factors occurred more often than in the general population.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

The Autism spectrum is so  vast so it's interesting that they believe it comes from a series of mutations.  That would explain the diversity.