Glenn Ellis
*With a rise in diagnosed cases and a sea of conflicting information, autism is a condition that leaves many parents terrified. Yet affected families have every reason to be hopeful about the future.
Today, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 1 in 88 children are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders, or ASDs, and its four to five times more likely to occur in boys than in girls.
An almost fivefold jump in schoolchildren diagnosed with autism between 1993 and 2003 prompted some authorities and politicians to proclaim that we were in the midst of an autism epidemic. We also know that some of the increased prevalence is due to changes in the way we diagnose autism. This includes increased recognition of less severely affected individuals.
Experts believe that Autism presents itself during the first three years of a persons life. The condition is the result of a neurological disorder that has an effect on normal brain function, affecting development of the persons communication and social interaction skills. Autism has become dramatically more common over time. We cant pin the increase on a single cause. However, weve identified a number of risk factors. Older parents, low birth weight, shorter time between pregnancies and certain gene mutations have all been shown to increase the risk of having a child with autism.
There are three different types of ASDs:
People with autism or Asperger syndrome may appear to behave unusually. There will generally be a reason for this: it can be an attempt to communicate, or a way of coping with a particular situation.
ASDs begin before the age of 3 and last throughout a persons life, although symptoms may improve over time. Some children with an ASD show hints of future problems within the first few months of life. In others, symptoms might not show up until 24 months or later. Some children with an ASD seem to develop normally until around 18 to 24 months of age and then they stop gaining new skills, or they lose the skills they once had.
A person with an ASD might
Many people with anautism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulty processing everyday sensory information such as sounds, sights and smells. This is usually called having sensory integration difficulties, or sensory sensitivity. It can have a profound effect on a persons life.
See the original post:
Glenn’s Strategies for Well-Being: Understanding Autism