Autism Cause - So, What Exactly Causes Autism Anyway?

                

 

This is a question that has been asked by many people for many years, particularly of late, since the number of autistic children seems to be at an all time high. There have been many research studies conducted to try to find the exact cause of autism, and while there are several theories, none have been proven, as of yet.

Currently, medical researchers are thinking that autism may be caused by a genetic trait, or marker, and there are studies being conducted to try to prove this. It is complicated, because scientists think that autism is caused by several genes, that mix together to cause autism. If you have one child that is already been diagnosed as being autistic, you have about an eight percent chance of other children being autistic as well.

Autism is also seen in children who already have other medical problems, so researchers are also looking at those links as well. Babies or children who have PKU, and don?t get proper medical treatment, have a higher chance of later developing autism, as well as those diagnosed with rubella, toxoplasmosis, or cytomegalovirus, otherwise known as CMV. Not to say that you should panic if your child is diagnosed with one of these conditions, but some children with autism have had these problems as well.

At one time, researchers and physicians also thought that autism could be brought on by severe emotional trauma, such as seeing a horrific accident, neglect, or anything traumatic happening early in a child?s life. Since there was no definitive proof of these theories, they have since been retracted.

Many autistic children who have been tested have been found to have high levels of mercury in their blood, which is one reason why so many believed that childhood vaccines were to blame. Exposure to mercury during early childhood has been linked to many other disorders, such as slow development, Attention Deficit Disorder, and slow language development. The theory is that if exposure to metals such as mercury can cause these neurological issues, then it very well could cause autism too. It is possible to be exposed to metal in your food and water that you consume common pesticides, and other chemicals used around the home.

Other studies have also shown possible linked between the immune system and autism as well. There are some treatment trials being done focusing on boosting the immune system to help lessen the effects and symptoms caused by autism, so that an autistic person or child can function normally.

Still other theories point to food allergies playing a role in autism, but like the many other theories, none have been verified. Still others think that autism may be caused by poor eating habits, or parents not ensuring that their children get the nutrients their bodies need, but that theory has no supporting evidence at the moment, although there have been some autistic patients who have shown improvement when given vitamin therapy.

Basically, what all this means is that no one to this point really knows the exact cause of autism. There are many ideas and theories, but none that have been proven. In the end, we may never really know what the exact cause of autism is; it may end up being a combination of things. That may not give parents a lot of hope for the future, but it is all we really have at this time, unsupported theories and maybes.

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Understanding Autism Statistics

                

 

It would seem there are more alarming autism statistics each year. These are often hard to comprehend, and can be very misleading if you don?t understand what you are reading. Autism is a blanket term for quite a few different conditions that are all related, yet vary in degree of function.

Asperger?s is a relatively new term that covers a wide range of higher functioning children and adults. This is something that is relatively new, and people are now just getting the proper diagnosis. Though it would seem that the numbers of those with autism is rising almost out of control, it may be that diagnosis has been wrong in the past, and it is now easier to make the proper one.

If you go by the number presented in 2007 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 150 births will result in autistic children. This number seems scary, but the actually cases are probably about the same as before, but many others just were not known or could not be diagnosed. Some of these children had never been seen by a doctor, and many grew into adulthood with a different but wrong diagnosis. They may have been living with autism, but they were thought of as introverted, troubled or disruptive.

If you go back to the findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2001, it was estimated that about 1.5 million children and adults are living with autism. The statistics from that year in comparison to this year would leave you to believe that the cases of this condition are rising by 15%. That seems alarming, but it might show in increase in proper diagnosis rather than an increase in overall cases. More and more children are now being diagnosed with autism when they would have normally been left to fall through the cracks and suffer needlessly.

There is some good news, even though the numbers seem to be very troubling. It would seem that an early and proper diagnosis might help avoid some of the costs of raising and caring for a child with autism. Most of the extra costs are ones that occur in adulthood, with some people requiring care for their entire lives.

When a child is diagnosed early, they can go through programs designed to help them communicate and socialize with others more effectively. This lessens the costs associated with caring for them when they reach adulthood in most cases. Though many children with autism are unlikely to fully integrate into society, some manage their condition well and go on to have pretty normal interactions and jobs when they reach adulthood.

The rise in Autism statistics can not be attributed to bad parenting nor is it something a person can ever leave behind, but through the proper support and intervention they can lead happy and fulfilled lives.

By Rachel Evans. Sign up for a free newsletter about aspergers and discover more on the signs and symptoms of autism

'Broken Mirror' May Cause Autism

                

 

When observing and imitating emotions, children with autism display virtually no activity in a key part of the brain's mirror neuron system, according to new imaging research published in Nature Neuroscience.

The human brain has a matching system of observation and execution that causes mirror neurons to fire both when a person observes others performing a goal-directed action and when he or she carries out the same action. This is the neural mechanism that allows most people to automatically understand others' actions, intentions and emotions, neuroscientists believe.

But autism is characterized by difficulties with social interaction, including verbal and nonverbal communication, imitation and empathy. The new findings dramatically bolster a growing body of evidence pointing to a breakdown of the brain's mirror neuron system as the mechanism behind these symptoms.

Dysfunctional Mirror Neuron System

"Our findings suggest that a dysfunctional mirror neuron system may underlie the social deficits observed in autism," says Mirella Dapretto, lead author and assistant professor in residence of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

"Together with other recent data, our results provide strong support for a mirror neuron theory of autism. This is exciting because we finally have an account that can explain all core symptoms of this disorder," Dapretto adds.

Researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure brain activity in 10 high-functioning children with autism while they imitated and observed 80 photos depicting different emotions, such as anger, fear, happiness or sadness. The brain activity of 10 typically developing children also was studied while they performed the same tasks.

All of the children rehearsed the tasks prior to the fMRI scans to assure researchers they could perform the tasks. Both groups performed equally well. Normal brain activity in areas of the brain involving sight and facial movements indicated that the children with autism remained on task during the fMRI scans.

The team assessed symptom severity of each autistic child with two independent measures: the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Generic, and the Autism Diagnostic Interview.

Reduced Activity in the Emotion Centers

Unlike the typically developing children, the autistic children showed virtually no activity in the part of the brain called the pars opercularis of the inferior frontal gyrus, which has been identified as a key part of the mirror neuron system in previous research.

Importantly, the level of mirror neuron activity seen in children with autism was inversely related to symptom severity in the social domain.

Children with autism also showed reduced activity in the emotion centers of the brain, consistent with the hypothesis that this mirroring mechanism may play a crucial role for understanding how others feel and for empathizing with them.

Nicole Weaver is a health journalist for Daily News Central, an online publication that delivers breaking news and reliable health information to consumers, healthcare providers and industry professionals.