A Target That Seems To Move
Autism Spectrum Disorder has a broad definition, and it is only recently that codified understanding of the disorder has begun to become prevalent. Currently, approximately 1 in 68 children are diagnosed with autism. In 2010, 3,999,386 infants were born in the United States. At a ratio of 1/68, that would come to 58,814.5 new cases of autism.
Complicating the issue is previous estimates of autism. In the 1980s, autism was only diagnosed in about 1 out of 10,000. As can be seen, there is a massive difference between 1/68 and 1/10,000. However, some of that disparity results from means by which autism is categorized. When the disorder was first noted in modern medicine, it was often confused with schizophrenia. The years have seen greater understanding of autism than there has been; but this change in diagnosis isn’t quite enough to justify the massive difference in numbers.
The Rising Tide Of Autism
Autism is statistically on the rise, and as yet there is no concrete answer why. The blame game is heavy here, with fingers pointing at diet, nutrition, poverty, technology, chemicals associated with vaccinations, and poor parenting. In reality the truth may be that autism results from a confluence of such things, which themselves seem to be on the increase. Poverty and poor nutrition are increasingly widespread through foodstuffs replacing sound supplements, and economic fluidity. Meanwhile, technology is more pernicious than ever. There will be very few reading this who have not at some time seen a young child with a tablet, smartphone, or other electronic device. There has been shown to be a link between screen time and susceptibility to autism; at least according to Psychology Today.
But then there is also a hereditary link to autism as well. Engineers and scientists are scientifically more likely to have autistic traits. If this is true, it can be expected that a family of engineers and scientists will be more likely to have autistic children. However, the prevalence of the condition, and its expansion, seem to indicate there are preventable factors in play. That is to say: there are things modern society does today which are to some degree stimulating the spread of autistic tendencies. As yet the full scope of such possibly influential behaviors have not been nailed down, but there are treatments which have been shown to decrease the severity of autistic symptoms. Certain diets which restrict gluten and casein have been observed to reduce how severe autistic symptoms are.
Complications And Cures?
As you can see, anything and everything about autism has a high degree of complication. This is one reason it’s described as a spectrum disorder. Some children with autism are just inverted socially and a little incidentally estranged. Some children are so deep into the spectrum their only means of ingesting sustenance is a feeding tube. Though there are increasing treatments available, as yet the condition is not known to be curable. Still, some parents have developed strategies that seem to have worked. This woman had a husband who was a Ph. D., and claims she and he managed to cure their son primarily through catching the condition early and using proper dietary strategies.
Continuing Developments
There is success being experienced in terms of autism research, but it is taking time. If you are a parent with a child who suffers from autism spectrum disorder, there is hope. The internet represents one of the finest resources at your disposal, and you are not alone. There is a community out there that wants to help you, and more is becoming understood.