Autism epidemic?
Recently it has been discovered that every 1 in 166 children are diagnosed with autism. Originally it was 1 in 2500. It has been called an epidemic and many wondered what had caused it to rise so dramatically. Many have blamed vaccines that may have had small traces of mercury. However the way of diagnosing autism has changed quite a bit. Origianally a child had to have all 6 of 6 symptoms to be diagnosed, where now one can be diagnosed if they have 8 of the 16 symptoms. This has probably helped to raise the amount of those diagnosed, and also the awareness of autism has greatened which would also help doctors to recognize someone with autism much easier. It is most likely the number of those with autism hasn't changed, but rather that developements in science have increased our awareness of autism and therefore we more are diagnosed so the figures have changed. So if it has raised it is probable that it hasn't raised as much as we think.
My opinion of this article:
This article was well written to keep one informed but also to keep one interested. It helps to lessen the worries about a possible epidemic, and brings a logical and objective view on it's subject. The writer did well in staying away from rumors and basing his writing on facts. This article does it's purpose well in giving it's message without pointing fingers at vaccines and antibiotics and instead follows the history of diagnosing autism. This article is a good one to read and is worth the reader's time.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=is-there-really-an-autism-epidemic
posted by David Perfect @ 2:02 PM
3 Comments:
When I saw the title of this article, it made me nervous. Through further reading, this was eased. It is weird to think that the number of symptoms they related to autism has nearly tripled. It makes me wonder if a child who has only 8/16 symptoms would really have autism or just some other issues. I am so glad that awareness is being raised, so hopefully a cure is in sight.
I think that the article is 100% correct. There never was a spectrum of autism until the 80's. At my church, there are kids that are autistic. Some of these kids are almost perfectly able to functio while others cannot talk or even walk. I think that the new way of diagnosing, if applied to the past, would reveal just as many autistic people.
That is a very interesting article. I would have never known there were so many symptoms of autism, or that they have increased greatly. Its awful that so many children are being diagnosed with autism, but like your article says, the raise in numbers of autism children with also raise awareness and hopefully raise the motivation to find a successful cure. I know already there are a few treatments for certain forms of autism. For example my three year old cousin was just diagnosed with high functioning autism, so my aunt tried putting her on a strict diet keeping her away from specific foods and although it doesn't cure her it does help.
Post a Comment
<< Home