Autism: Causes, Symptoms, Maybe Even Preventions

By Maria Orlando Pietromonaco

We probably all know at least one child in our circle of family and friends who suffers from autism. I happen to know several children, and it's astonishing to see how widespread this disorder has become. Growing up, I can hardly remember a classmate, cousin, or neighbor afflicted with autism. The numbers today are staggering: one in 150 kids (that number is a bit conservative - some studies are revealing it's more like one in 90) have autism, and boys are four times more likely to be affected by autism than girls.

These facts alone have to make you wonder what the heck is going on. Why the sharp increase in recent years? Though there are no concrete answers, there are a lot of theories and speculations about the causes. They are mind-blowing, and though they might leave you feeling vulnerable as a parent, the knowledge and information might just help protect your family.

Medically speaking, autism is a brain development disorder that, unfortunately, usually lasts a person's lifetime. It's marked by an inability to communicate and relate to others. Though autism can now be diagnosed as early as six months of age, it's most commonly identified by around age three.

Essentially, parents first realize that their child is not reaching some developmental milestones. Some red flags might include:

- Absence of smile by six months of age.

- No non-verbal exchange of facial expressions by nine months of age.

- No babbling, or discontinuation of babbling, by 12 months.

- Lack of gesturing, including pointing, reaching or waving by 12 months.

- No words by 16 months.

- Any termination or change in communication or social interaction after they have been developing normally.

"Autism is an epidemic that is accelerating... Autism is a medical illness. The majority of children are not born with it. These children are born 'normal' and somewhere in the first two years of life their biochemistry is damaged and the tipping point can be a vaccine, antibiotics, environmental pollutants or some other insult that causes them to recede into the world of autism," explained Dr. Andrea Libutti, a certified Defeat Autism Now! physician. She should know. Dr. Libutti's son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 20 months, and now she has devoted her medical and personal life to the disorder. Through her practice in Remsenburg, the Spectrum Healing Center, she is dedicated to the treatment, education and prevention of autism.

Though there are many factors that can contribute to the onset of autism, Dr. Libutti is convinced, along with many parents of autistic children, that it was a vaccine that caused her son's autism. She noticed a change in him just one week after receiving it. The majority of her patients think their children fell victim to the effects of a vaccine as well. This is a highly controversial conviction, as it's not a widely accepted belief among the medical community. However, the evidence is building that vaccines could be a trigger.

It isn't just the vaccine alone; it's the "rigorous vaccine schedule" our kids are subjected to at such a young age. They are given multiple vaccines together in a single visit to the doctor, and these vaccines are being given at younger age than they used to.

Other factors believed to play a role in the epidemic of autism include overuse of antibiotics, pesticides in the food we give our children, toxins in our environment and heavy metals, like mercury, found in our water supply. Also, a family's health background may hold a clue. "In my years of practice, I have discovered some commonalities in the family histories of these children that are 'red flags' that a child may be at increased risk for the disorder," said Dr. Libutti. A dysfunctional immune system in a parent (such as allergies, asthma, lupus, MS and rheumatioid arthritis) could increase the child's risk for a neurodevelopmental disorder like autism.

Some methods of prevention include giving our children organic foods that are free of pesticides as well as additives and preservatives, keeping as "green" a household as possible, spreading out your child's vaccination schedule and even waiting until they are a little older (you would need to discuss this with your pediatrician), and avoiding unnecessary use of antibiotics.

If you suspect any abnormal behavior or deficiency of skill development in your child, early intervention is crucial. There are many treatment strategies that work well in helping your child progress and even reverse some of the effects. Along with speech, behavior and sensory therapy, there are also biomedical treatments. Some resources for parents include the Cody Center (associated with Stony Brook University), the Spectrum Healing Center, and Web sites such as generationrescue.org and talkaboutcuringautism.org.

Back to Contents