autism news stories on Newser

Culprit for Epidemics of Autism, Obesity: Fungicide?

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:14:08 CDT

Can the recent increase in autism, obesity, and anxiety disorders be traced back to chemical exposure? That's what a new study involving pregnant rats suggests, AFP reports. Pregnant rats who were exposed to the common fungicide vinclozolin had descendants who, three generations later, weighed more, were less sociable, and displayed...

Smoking While Pregnant May Raise Autism Risk

Dustin Lushing — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 17:21:15 CDT

If any expectant mom needed yet more evidence that smoking is a bad idea, here it is: Doing so during pregnancy raises the risk of having a child with Asperger's or another kind of autism, a new study suggests. Researchers analyzed data from about 630,000 kids born in the...

'American Diet' Linked to Autism

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:11:05 CDT

The typical American diet may be to blame for more than just the obesity epidemic: A new study also links it to the autism epidemic. Unhealthy diets make it more difficult for the body to eliminate toxic chemicals, thus increasing the risk of autism and other problems, explains one expert....

Mom Sues School Over Shocking of Autistic Son

Rob Quinn — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 02:25:00 CDT

A deeply disturbing video of an autistic teen being restrained and shocked at a facility in Massachusetts was played in a Boston-area courtroom yesterday. The teen's mother is suing three workers at the Judge Rotenberg Center and the center itself, alleging that they tortured her son and left him with...

Obese? Chance of Birthing Autistic Kid Jumps 67%

Matt Cantor — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 06:34:19 CDT

The shocking new autism research just keeps coming: A mother's obesity while pregnant may greatly boost the odds of having a child with autism, a study out today suggests. Compared to normal-weight study participants, those who were obese while pregnant were 67% more likely to have autistic kids and twice...

Autism Tied to Gene Mutations for First Time

Kate Schwartz — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 09:26:48 CDT

Big autism news: A number of gene mutations linked to the disease have been uncovered for the first time, announced a number of scientists in three papers published yesterday. The sobering detail: These particular mutations are super rare, and are responsible for only a very small number of autism cases....

1 in 88 Kids Have Autism

Kate Schwartz — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 09:30:11 CDT

The CDC released new autism estimates today, and the numbers are pretty scary: About 1 in 88 kids have autism, according to the report. That's up 25% from the CDC's 2006 analysis, and twice the reach officials said it had a decade ago, reports Reuters . The AP adds that officials...

Asperger Syndrome? Nope, Just a Nerdy Teenager

John Johnson — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:20:32 CST

Psychologists may soon narrow the definition of autism , which could reduce the number of people diagnosed with the disorder and related ones such as Asperger Syndrome. The move is controversial, but if you're looking for a compelling reason in favor, see Benjamin Nugent's essay in the New York Times today....

No More Epidemic? Autism Definition May Change

John Johnson — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:48:55 CST

The New York Times has what sounds like a bombshell story on autism: The American Psychiatric Association is poised to narrow the definition of the disorder so far fewer people would be considered autistic. The kicker quote from the Yale author of an analysis on the subject: "The proposed changes...