Autism ...I'm shocked

[johnnie]

I was just listening to Howard Stern and he had Triumph the Insult comic dog on. He is part of a benefit for Autism and he said that today 1 in 166 children are being born with Autism. I was shocked by this number and was reading a little about it on the Internet.
I never knew that Autism was becoming almost an epidemic and that it is so widespread. They have no idea as to why the numbers are increasing so drastically? Is it our diet?
I am just...shocked. Did you realize that the numbers were so high?

[ScreamingMeemie]

1. No I didn't. Wow! I did know that autism has many different levels.

And that many people can be autistic and fully functioning. I am hoping they are doing more than just a little bit of research on this. :hi:

[MemphisTiger]

10. I know someone whose daughter has autism

She is not severe, but she will never lead a normal life. If she gets off schedule, she freaks out.

[shesemsmom]

2. I didn't know this but the numbers are shocking

I can not imagine why there would be so many. What could have changed to have caused this. Those numbers are frightening

[MADem]

4. Our air, our water and our food supply are CRAP

The little kids are the canaries in our coal mine. We need to get back to healthier living, I think.

[Guaranteed]

8. It might be a gene pool thing...

But, to be honest, I have no idea what might cause it.

[shesemsmom]

13. I think you're right.

this new generation is in more trouble than we are. Look what we are doing to them and what we will leave them to deal with. Providing the world is even still here.....

[johnnie]

23. I agree

That is one of the major problems with this administration, not one of them seems to give a shit about what we are eating and breathing.

[ImpeachBush]

29. Maybe Teflon?

They are finding traces of this crap in our bloodstreams ... I'd bet on this being part of the problem.

[trotsky]

31. Teflon and Scotchguard

They never break down. Both are found in our bloodstream, in nature, virtually everywhere.

You have to wonder if figuring out what DOESN'T cause autism would be easier.

[HereSince1628]

3. There have been several articles on mercury in vaccinations

as a possible contributing factor.

[trotsky]

12. And lots of research disproving it.

Including the fact that autism appears at the same rates in unvaccinated children.

[redqueen]

38. What about the stuff in fillings?

I read something about the material they use in dentistry having an impact on the incidence of autism.

Have there been any studies on that, do you know?

[trotsky]

40. Mercury in amalgam fillings is harmless.

Here's a good writeup:

http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/mercury.html

Very sensitive instruments can detect billionths of a gram of mercury vapor in the mouth of a person with amalgam fillings. However, the minuscule amount of mercury the body absorbs from amalgams is far below the level that exerts any adverse health effect <1-6>. One study found that people with symptoms they related to amalgam fillings did not have significant mercury levels. The study compared ten symptomatic patients and eight patients with no reported health complaints. The symptom group had neither a higher estimated daily uptake of inhaled mercury vapor, nor a higher mercury concentration in blood and urine than in the control group. The amounts of mercury detected by the tests were trivial <6>. Some studies have shown that the problems patients attribute to amalgam restorations are psychosomatic in nature and have been exacerbated greatly by information from the media or from a dentist <7-11>

...

The most commonly used analyzer is the Jerome mercury detector (pictured to the right), an industrial device which multiplies the amount of mercury it detects in a small sample of air by a factor of 8,000. This gives a reading for a cubic meter, a volume far larger than the human mouth. The proper way to determine mercury exposure is to measure urine levels, which indicate how much the body has absorbed and then excreted. Scientific testing has shown that the amount of mercury absorbed from fillings is too small to be significant.

It's quite unfortunate that if you do a search on "mercury fillings" that you get a whole bunch of quack sites first.

[goddess40]

45. I'm having my fillings replaced

After allergy tests proved I was allergic to mercury. One side is done and a miracle happened - no more sores on that side of my mouth!


"Scientific testing has shown that the amount of mercury absorbed from fillings is too small to be significant." They should add "for most people"

[trotsky]

46. Oh of course - allergies notwithstanding. :-) n/t

[johnnie]

15. I know mercury is becoming a major factor in a lot of things

When I saw Robert Kennedy Jr. talking about the mercury problem, once again I was shocked. There are statistics showing that because of the mercury levels in our water, I.Q.'s of children are being lowered each year. It is another thing that we really have to start getting on before it is too late.

[trotsky]

22. Yes, and it's important to know that...

environmental mercury is a different form of mercury than the kind used in vaccine preservatives.

Environmental mercury, I can definitely see contributing to neural disorders since it takes a very long time to be removed from the body.

[redqueen]

43. And that's what's in the tuna, correct?

Or wait a second... the govt said that's just quackery, too!

Time to stock up on albacore!

;)

[chelsea0011]

5. There's a lot of increases in pediatric diseases

crohn's and ulcerative colitis are sky-rocketing in children. Again, they are not sure why. I know there is a large group that think mercury used in needles for childhood vaccines is the cause of increase in autism. But the jury is still out on that.

[Guaranteed]

6. Well, it's not necessarily a bad thing.

Autism, as already pointed out here, has many different levels, and many different effects on people. For some it creates behavior problems and compulsive disorders, and for others- well, they're geniuses.

My mother has worked as a behavior modification specialist with children and young adults for twenty years. She used to tell me that she wondered if I was a little autistic. I actually took it as a compliment, though.

I'm just different. That's a good thing. :)

[trotsky]

7. Autism is a spectrum, not necessarily one "disorder."

There's a lot of causes being looked into. One interesting theory is genetic - the "geek syndrome." What happens is that in today's society, the modern "geek" is able to be highly successful - and tends to pair up with other geeks. The genes that lead to "geekiness" (intelligence, quirkiness, etc.) might carry with them some recessive traits that lead to autism, but only when paired with recessive genes from another "geek".

Supposedly the rates of autism in high-tech areas (Silicon Valley, etc.) are even higher than the general population, which would seem to support this theory.

[Guaranteed]

14. LOL my girlfriend and I have actually had many, many discussions

about that. We're both...out of the ordinary. We wonder what might happen if we spawned. :P

The kid's gonna be different, we're pretty sure. The question is HOW different, I guess.

[trotsky]

18. Well, my wife found that research and immediately thought of us.

Both of us are total geeks. Our son, who is in kindergarten now, has struggled mightily in the traditional classroom environment, where my wife and I both excelled. He matches a LOT of the characteristics of a "Spirited Child," which is considered by some to be a mild form of autism. So from personal experience, this theory makes quite a bit of sense.

[Guaranteed]

20. I think I give a lot of credit to that one.

I think our society's gene pool is getting pretty large and accepting, and we're seeing a lot of diversity coming from it.

Again, though, I think that's a great thing. It's evolution. On an individual basis it doesn't always work out that well, but we'll just have to see what happens.

[johnnie]

26. Lol

Isn't everybody "out of the ordinary"? In my experience, I have met more people who are "different" than I have who are "normal".

[SCDem]

9. Yes

But there is quite a range in the Autism Spectrum Disorder, from slight autism (or developmental delays) to full Autism. A lot of the chemicals being spewed out by industry for so long do have consequences. I spent two years on a grant working with a lab and a developmental pediatrician and environmental epidemiologist to study the occurrence of autism in children with respect to their fish consumption as I live in a state with one of the highest methylation rate for mercury in our black water rivers. But because it is a silent killer (well it doesn't kill but it does lower IQ and is a cost to our overall healthcare system) like lead and other environmental toxins the outrage is just not there and so people are reluctant to award grants, legislate money, or environmental initiatives.

OK sorry, probably more than you want to know! But if you want to know more just PM me.

[johnnie]

19. Oh no, not more than I wanted

That is very interesting, thank you. I just haven't though about how high the numbers are.

[Coyote_Bandit]

11. I Have a Friend

who has 3 sons. The two oldest boys are fraternal twins. One is a normal healthy boy. The other is a 12 year old in diapers who does not speak and never has. Their youngest son has a milder form of autism.

As a family they have participated in a number of university studies including genetic testing. The one thing that did seem to make a behavioral difference was a gluten free diet. This, of course, required very careful attention to food labels and baking almost all breads at home using gluten free flour.

It is just so sad to see.

[Guaranteed]

17. Would you say that the parents of those children are a little

on the eccentric side?

[Coyote_Bandit]

25. Ummmm

The dad is a computer guy - a little wierd but much more normal than a lot of the computer geeks I've known. He is an obsessive compulsive perfectionist - especially with visual symetry kinds of things (as in bought installed and then returned five different dining room chandeliers before finding one that he considered visually balanced). Some of this could be attributed to his upbringing. He was born into a family that had money and servants. Before the kids were born the mom was an elementary school teacher. Now she is a stay at home mom. She grew up in the middle of nowhere and is the best cook I know (don't tell my mother please). She is pretty normal - aside from the fact that I suspect that she married for money as much as for love.

[China_cat]

37. What you say about his o/c

actually sounds more like the perseveration behavior of autism. He may be mildly autistic himself.

[Coyote_Bandit]

42. Could Be

Though it has never been identified. And I know of at least 5 university studies in which they have participated including genetic testing of all family members. Also, the family was/is the sole subject of a Ph.d. dissertation (not sure if it has been completed and submitted yet). One would hope that the researchers would have tried to identify familial patterns.

[Ilsa]

24. They have a very hard life.

I have heard that having three sons is one of the hardest combinations of children to raise. One that is severely autistic creates a whole new dimension to family problems. Can you imagine total care of that 12 year old? Or his frustration level at not being able to communicate spontaneously (I suppose he uses PEC cards to help a little.)

My oldest is eight and has PDD, a moderate to severe form of autism, but he is slightly verbal. He couldn't focus to get to the potty for his BM's until we started him on Strattera. He is able to go on his own, mostly, with a little help on cleanup. The change of that one thing, of not having to clean out his underwear twice a day, was enough to make me feel like I'd been given uppers.

[Coyote_Bandit]

28. Yes They Do

The husband is quite well off financially so they are able to afford to hire help. But it takes a lot much time to develop any kind of cummunicative abilities with the 12 year old. Even with his school programs, most of his care is left to the mom. The boy doesn't have the fine motor skills to even dress himself. It is very stressful. And yet they are in a better position than many.

[Az]

16. Its largely a diagnostic issue

The ability to recognise autism as opposed to mental retardation is increasing. With an increase in our ability to diagnose we are going to be pulling in more and more cases.

Keep in mind not all cases of autism result in comlete loss of functional social skills. There are functional autistic kids out the (asperger's syndrome). If these went undiagnosed previously then they too add to the increase in cases.

[johnnie]

21. So

Autism was previously diagnosed sometimes as mental retardation?

[Az]

32. Very often n/t

[Karenina]

47. A "doctor" at UCLA

tried to convince me my son was simply severely retarded, would NEVER be able to function and that I should institutionalize him and get on with my life.

She did not know that my dad was a neuropsychiatrist and I was quite aware of how little TPTB really knew, that I was doing "layman's research" for our WONDERFUL pediatrician and had by that time observed and written up a dozen kids for him, that I was quite aware the test she gave him (I ALWAYS insisted on observing) required expressive language that he did NOT at the time possess.

He's now a sophomore at a university, Dean's List and all...

I had to TEACH him to look me in the eyes and respond to my non-verbal cues. Whenever he was evaluated I watched the tests and devised games to address his weaknesses. I always addressed it as him simply being WD (wired differently). Nothing wrong with that.

DIET is important. I'd convinced our pediatrician by the time I got to 25 kids. Mine wasn't the only kid whose system was assaulted by dairy products, pickled products, wheat, RED FOOD DYE, etc...

[LynzM]

27. I think this is a good point to address, in general

As diagnoses and diseases become more specific, and more testing and health care is available (as well as internet-groups, etc), to some extent we will see the numbers go up. This is not to say that the numbers aren't actually going up, by any means, only that that is one factor to consider. How much to consider, I don't know.

I would imagine there are many cases that used to be diagnosed as non-specific mental retardation of some sort, that are now able to be classified into some level of autism.

[China_cat]

35. And highly functional autistic adults.

The most famous of which is probably Dr. Temple Grandin, an Associate Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University.

http://www.grandin.com/professional.resume.html

[redqueen]

44. I was wondering about that - thanks.

[goddess40]

30. Many with a form of autism have been overlooked in the past

labeled bright but lazy or a trouble maker. I also believe that the increase in pollution is causing a portion of the rise.

Both of my boys have Nonverbal Learning Disorder (NLD) and before they were diagnosed we went through hell with most of there teachers. The school wanted to label one of them as emotionally disturbed even though I kept pointing out that he would get very frustrated BEFORE he would have a melt down. Having the diagnoses has help a lot but we still meet teachers and administrates the resist.

Many of these kids are the loners because they don't read body language and since they don't pick up on nonverbal clues bullies have a heyday with them.

[DU GrovelBot]

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[havocmom]

34. I would like to see stats about when the spike in this condition started

and when just about every pregnancy immediately got an ultrasound. Sure, they are safe... That was insisted about a lot of things which were later found to have harmful effects. Are we really positive ultrasound is completely safe for the very delicate, newly forming nervous system of a fetus?

I am pretty convinced a lot of problems may be triggered by environmental problems. There is a very significant Autism cluster in kids who live/lived in Sierra Vista, AZ. For the population of the town, the CDC says a rate of about 4 cases would be normal in the years 1999 through 2004. There are 12 kids living there now and 6 more who lived there for a few years then moved during that period, who all have this condition. That is a whomping big increase over the statistical average for the population size. There is some thought that any environmental trigger may have been made worse by the drought in the area during the same years. The mountains rising from Sierra Vista's back yard were once minded for tungsten and there may be a metal dust problem.

Of course, there is also a big, tethered blimp with a lot of radar hovering over the town, sending beams out in search of drug smuggling airplanes. The radar is not really effective as the sweep of the area has to stop when the beam aims in the direction of the Kitt Peak observatory. Pretty easy for a pilot to come in on a course which allows them to stay withing that dark spot. So, the blimp does NOT make us safe from drug traffickers but what might it be doing? Oh, and if you are ever in the area, take a look at the monster big and very odd radar or transmission equipment the base at Ft Huachuca since it became a big site for military intelligence (called 'Langley West' by many locals now)

Little people are just so sensitive to the environment. We know that is a fact. Why do we not hear about the electro magnetic fields and the possibility that they might play a part in some of the damage we are seeing more of in the kids?

[johnnie]

36. Why we don't hear about it

Most things that are bad for us are good for certain people's bank accounts. There is too much money to be made to think of the future generations.

[havocmom]

41. your reply definitely echos my suspicions

"What's good for General Bullmoose is good for the USA" is a more accurate appraisal of how we are lied to in for the cause of industry now than when the line was first penned. Sadly, the Americans don't seem to fare as well as 'General Bullmoose' for all the plagues we have unleashed upon the environment and our kids in the name of corporate 'progress'.

[bleedingheart]

39. It is better classified today than in the past

my son has Aspergers and to be honest unless you are around him on a daily basis you won't know that he has some very real social problems. He is bright, sweet and quite the chatter about his favorite topics and to be honest it was because of his more severe symptoms that we had him evaluated...

I truly believe that it was just as common when I was a kid but that the kids that had variations of it were just considered odd...many went on to have relatively normal lives....

[KamaAina]

48. In a related story, the numbers of DUers with autism are rising, too

You might be surprised to find out just who's been posting all those witty, clever pearls of wisdom...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=250x129

in our brand new Disability Issues & Activism forum.

[KamaAina]

49. I can't wait to hear Triumph work out on the "neurotypicals"

that is, those who do NOT have autism!

http://isnt.autistics.org/

What Is NT?
Neurotypical syndrome is a neurobiological disorder characterized by preoccupation with social concerns, delusions of superiority, and obsession with conformity.

Neurotypical individuals often assume that their experience of the world is either the only one, or the only correct one. NTs find it difficult to be alone. NTs are often intolerant of seemingly minor differences in others. When in groups NTs are socially and behaviorally rigid, and frequently insist upon the performance of dysfunctional, destructive, and even impossible rituals as a way of maintaining group identity. NTs find it difficult to communicate directly, and have a much higher incidence of lying as compared to persons on the autistic spectrum.

NT is believed to be genetic in origin. Autopsies have shown the brain of the neurotypical is typically smaller than that of an autistic individual and may have overdeveloped areas related to social behavior.

So there!

[SmileyBoy]

50. I have an Autustic specrtum disorder, but not the kind you think.

Aspberger's Syndrome (what I have) is on the opposite end of the spectrum from "retarded" autism. Although I don't know if what causes Aspberger's might have to do with the causes of low-functioning Autism. The causes could be ralated.