Rising Concerns: The Growing Prevalence of Autism in Today's Society

johnfuller on 31/07/2024 - 16:43
Last edited 08/08/2024 - 08:31 by 2 other users

I'd like to discuss a serious and seemingly widespread issue: autism. When I speak with individuals aged 80 and above, they recall that there was typically one person in their village with Down syndrome, known by everyone, and they were treated just like everyone else, leading a normal life. Nowadays, a child born with autism has their life significantly adjusted to accommodate their needs.

I've observed that many families have at least one child on the autism spectrum, and some even have two, despite the parents being unrelated. This appears to be becoming increasingly common, raising concerns about the future and whether our children will be able to have their own children, given the prevalence of this issue.

In my opinion, this situation is more alarming than any pandemic because it is insidious and often goes unnoticed.

Is it pollution? The environment? Stress? The food we eat? Plastics?

As a new parent, this truly terrifies me.

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Comments

  • choosk on 01/08/2024 - 11:55

    What's the situation with abortion rates of down's syndrome affected fetuses these days? Would that account for any correlation of less children born with the condition these days?

    • SupeNintendoChalmers on 01/08/2024 - 13:57

      Good point, never seen the stats, though I'm sure more DS foetuses are aborted due to better screening.

  • Hardlyworkin on 01/08/2024 - 12:13
    +3

    as a new parent. That you're a new parent really terrifies me.

    • johnfuller on 10/08/2024 - 15:18

      your worried about me being a parent, you should see the monkeys running the country

  • Mythreesons on 01/08/2024 - 12:32
    +4

    Ok so I do have a child with Autism, my middle child (he is actually an adult). I don’t think there are more cases of autism, I think since the government started paying people money for having children diagnosed with autism that there are parents who are doctor shopping to get their child diagnosed, all you have to do is join a autism support group on Facebook and watch the amount of people asking for recommendations of doctors that will give their children the diagnosis they want, people will actually brag about finding doctors who will do the paperwork after only seeing your child once. I know people who say there child has autism but are perfectly normal children or their child’s speech was a bit delayed but these same parents spend all their time on the phones and don’t actually interact with their child.
    I think a lot of problems with kids now is self absorbed parents, go sit at a shopping centre/ park and watch how many parents actually pay attention to their children, they are all on their phones, some people treat their kids like accessories.
    My son will live with me forever and most of my life is about preparing for his care when we are gone, we have turned the bottom of our house into a self contained unit to teach him life skills and he has a helper that takes him shopping and supervises him while he cooks. My heart bursts with pride for how far he has come and how hard he tries everyday.

    • johnfuller on 01/08/2024 - 15:03
      -1

      im not talking about fake autism, im talking about real diagnosis

      • Mythreesons on 01/08/2024 - 15:38

        How to do you know exactly what percentage are fake, if doctors are giving this diagnosis it will be counted towards those percentages you are looking at.
        Just look at our just system, how many people claim mental illness and find a doctor that will agree with them to get out of serious crimes.
        I think you don’t need to be worrying about this sort of thing, my son is great and is very loved, it’s like living with a giant toddler some days but he amazes us all the time, he was non verbal until the age of 4 and now talks non stop, he is extremely smart and artistic in his own ways (he might not have attended uni like his brothers) but we pushed for him to attend main stream school and he did graduate high school.
        The only downside is the way other people treat him, especially other older adults/children.

        • johnfuller on 01/08/2024 - 15:39
          -4

          im not going by stats, im going by what i see day to day .. you can tell which have autism even tho stats back what im saying

          • GrueHunter on 02/08/2024 - 20:06
            +2

            @johnfuller: "I don't need evidence and facts, I've got plenty of confirmation bias of my own thanks"

            Nice one John

            You're certainly fuller something

        • TEER3X on 01/08/2024 - 20:24

          I think those people you worry about are a tiny minority, sure they exist, but I feel you're wasting your energy concerning yourself with them.

  • Frisco2018 on 01/08/2024 - 13:35
    +5

    I’ve got no data to base my opinion on, like Op, but I’d like to add that when I arrived in Australia from Asia, I noticed significant number of people in wheelchairs and people who appear to have mental illness here compared to my country. I was wondering why. Then I realised that the ratio is probably similar everywhere but it’s just that Australian society allow all people to be out and about, while my country doesn’t (not by law, I mean unwritten rules of society, as well as infrastructure to accomodate wheelchair etc.) you can’t blanket rule everything but I assume similar with parents with autism. Maybe “back then” more parents kept their children with autism inside homes?

    • iridiumstem on 06/08/2024 - 13:32

      My father once said something absolutely ridiculous around how homosexuality might "rub" onto my younger brother and how he may turn gay when I was looking for housemates at uni 10 years ago. If anything I was taken back by how much of this was a textbook example of "misconception on sexuality" that I imagined I'd only read about and not see in real life.

      He has batchelor degree and he is well educated considering his age and his nationality (South Korean). He even worked for an international company based in US and had been stationed in different parts of Asia as well. He's now in his late 50s and going into 60s, so he's not even that old.

      Asia, I feel, is still fairly new to whole mental health and individuality.

    • johnfuller on 10/08/2024 - 15:20

      i think australia sugar coats everything and throws money at stupid shit, oh hey you need support, lets get you a wheel chair..oh you have a wheel chair, lets get you a car suitable for that wheel chair ..

      go and look at other countries that have people with down syndrome, you can tell they have down syndrome but functions better than any one in australia that has ds because they've adapted to living like everyone else instead of being thrown into special care

  • harveyworld on 01/08/2024 - 13:42
    +2

    I've recently been lead to believe that we ALL are on the Autism Spectrum to some degree or other - some are just more obvious than others.

    I only discovered in my 50's that I was a bit higher up on the spectrum than most…
    I was watching the ABC's 'You Can't Ask That' TV programme, which highlighted more extreme cases but the more I watched the more I could relate.
    After the programme I turned to my wife and said wow - some of that sounds like me - I am sensitive to loud noise, I don't like unexpected surprises or big crowds, I tend to overthink situations, and also I like things to be neat & tidy, planned & organised as well as rules & general order… and she said that she had suspected for a long time - whatever that meant…

    All I can say was that there were a lot of old unanswered childhood memories that got resolved from that day…

    I don't feel any different as a person - they are just my quirks as no doubt you would have yours…

    I believe that this topic is been understood and highlighted more than in previous generations. There is more or less a name for every type of varied condition these days…

    • johnfuller on 02/08/2024 - 09:49
      -1

      is that how they say everyone has cancer ? lol

  • Bruceflix on 01/08/2024 - 13:49
    +1

    Autism diagnosis increased parallel to NDIS funding

  • Commander Shepard on 01/08/2024 - 14:28
    +1

    Simply being on ozbargain should be classed as a bonus point to potentially being on the spectrum.

    Caring about saving money and getting a good deal to this level has to raise some questions.

    Either way. Everything needs a label nowadays. But giving everything label just makes people feel worse.

  • iridiumstem on 01/08/2024 - 15:13
    +1

    I wouldn't be surprised if there is a parallel between prevalence of neurodiversity and how marriage are becoming more delayed (thus age of the parents are getting older).

    I will mention that there is that sense of the illness becoming part of your identity as well (where people become attached to the diagnosis and use that to explain who they are), which I am two minded about. Huge part of me things it's good that people no longer need to hide their presentations, but there is a little part of me who thinks it has gotten to a dangerous point where people no longer try to adjust to others in the name of diversity. I digress a little here.

    Regardless of my feelings on this topic, I do think this new way of thinking has made people more vocal about their neurodiversity. Less people are trying to fake being "normal" as a result.

    I do feel like neurodiversity has became more prevalent (due to what I mentioned above with societal changes resulting in late birth + there would be polutions and other factors), but why it is observed more is probably a combination of actual number increasing and more people being open about their diagnosis.

  • echelon6 on 01/08/2024 - 15:25
    -2

    I blame microplastics.

  • tabitha731 on 01/08/2024 - 18:06

    I think it’s more to categorise people who aren’t the stock standard .. so if ur not a boring healthy person, u just get labeled on the spectrum… I dont actually think there is so many who are actually autistic. Yes everyone is different, we don’t just have to categorise them as autistic

  • huggsymersh on 01/08/2024 - 18:18
    +2

    OP, if you do find the recent increased prevalence of neurodivergence worrying you might find this book helpful. It provides a bit of context to the way mental illness is understood in modern society overall.

    https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53404242-nobody-s-normal

    https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/side-effects/202102/…

    In short - It talks about how a lot of our understanding of certain mental illnesses are understood through the culture we exist in. In times past, more 'traditional' societies were in many ways more accomodating to neurodivergent individuals. But increasing scientific interest and knowledge came to identify certain non-conforming behaviours and pathologise them. At the same time, modern societies became more complex, demanding specialisation and specific competencies among individuals in modern capitalist society - driving to the margins people who don't conform.

    That's not to suggest certain mental illness don't exist or are a cultural construction - just that the society we current live in has a tendency to mark out and pathogise certain forms of difference that wasn't the case in the past. But modern society also has greater diagnostic opportunities and interest, as well as the potential to assist some people who need it.

    There's lots more to this than my very potty summary above. It's worth a read if you're curious.

  • Pokemon Dust on 01/08/2024 - 18:50

    Mental disorders including Autism and Down syndrome were not as accepted in society until recent years. Many suffered in silence and did not seek diagnosis for fear of discrimination. Also factor in the fear of bringing shame to their family, many chose to keep swept under the rug.
    Push for tolerance and inclusion in society is allowing sufferers to seek understanding and help. I mean, even after reading a few comments, I can see some people question if they are in fact on the spectrum themselves.
    Coupled with massive government funding, you can see why it’s brought on a surge in this area. I’ve heard of some people being disappointed not to be high enough on the spectrum to receive this type funding.

  • bobolo on 01/08/2024 - 20:19

    As an aside, many VERY successful people I know have been diagnosed as being on the spectrum. The focus on tasks, lack of emotions and lack of self consciousness just makes them rise easily above normal human behaviours that hold most people back which are difficult to overcome

  • FareEvader on 01/08/2024 - 23:01
    -1

    I think autism has a lot to do with poor diet leading to conception, during birth and after birth. We are what we eat, so if we eat highly processed foods, I think it leads to deficiencies in people's mental capabilities. I know that my wife and I will be eating nothing but the best when our time comes.

    • Grunntt on 01/08/2024 - 23:26
      +2

      Not agreeing or disagreeing with your opinion but what I will say is that you need to be doing all the right things before you even make the decision to embark on a pregnancy.
      It quite often happens before you decide it's time to start and it's too late then to commence your changed diet etc.
      eg folate is strongly recommended for all women who may become pregnant, not just those who decide it's the right time to try.
      It is recommended to have been taking extra folate at least one month before and 3 months after pregnancy starts.

    • Ghost47 on 03/08/2024 - 18:50

      Omega 3s are extremely important during pregnancy. It's not a surprise considering omega 3 fatty acids make up a lot of the brain's structure. Considering omega 3 supplements have been found to be rancid, women who take those ones specifically without actually eating fatty fish like salmon or sardines may give birth to children with mental defects.

  • sheebies on 02/08/2024 - 01:37
    +3

    It’s simple, back in the day kids on the spectrum were considered naughty, dumb or both. Look far enough back and they were just locked up in institutions, even further and they were considered possessed or witches.

    Now people are realising that autism isn’t just someone who can’t function in society. It’s a spectrum with a number of different traits..I’ve got a kid with an intellectual disability and level 2 autism, back in the day he probably would have been considered to be “dumb”. He can function quite well in certain situations but he wouldn’t have been considered to be “bad enough” to warrant any further discussion and yet the therapies he’s getting have been an absolute winner for his progress.

    Also on the other side. It’s also a popular diagnosis to get funding through NDIS. I know a kid that has a speech delay, which isnt enough to get NDIS funding but putting him down as level 3 autism… his funding is off the charts, more than enough for one appointment of speech therapy a week and occupational therapy too. Does he need speech therapy, yes. Does he have autism, probably not.

    Now it’s all about early intervention and getting people help to function in society.

  • Miss B on 02/08/2024 - 06:26
    +2

    All of my grandparents were autistic, 3 are dead and were never diagnosed, the 4th is approaching his 90s and will never know it.

    My parents are autistic and I haven't even figured out how to tell them that I am autistic, much less themselves. My sister's kind of easing my mum into it, she got more ADHD and less autism, she's better at people stuff.

    My father, stepfather, and pa are textbook autistic, if they were kids today they'd be diagnosed.

    Just because they weren't diagnosed doesn't mean they didn't exist. This is common amongst my friends who are autistic too, families full of undiagnosed autistic people.

  • Zondor on 02/08/2024 - 09:12

    Lots more people = lots more of the 0.1%. Simple math.

  • Nicoletta on 02/08/2024 - 09:23

    How many over 80 year olds who lived in villages did you survey?

    • johnfuller on 02/08/2024 - 09:48
      -2

      4 oldies from various countries, the villages everyone knew each other so you'd know about newborns etc

      • iridiumstem on 02/08/2024 - 14:30
        +2

        I would not take those at face value. Cultural and generational differences would make any recollection virtually meaningless (even if those observations were unbiased and perfectly recollected which I doubt anyone can do).

        I was unfortunate enough to be in uni when DSM-5 was being introduced. Even though DSM-4-TR was only 10+ years old, the changes caused so much issues. I participated in a study that required me to do two separate tests on the same personality disorder, just to confirm that I met the criterion for the study I participated in (as two conceptualised the personality disorder in question slightly differently). That's just talking about 10~15 years difference.

        Right now, one of the heavily discussed topic is neurodiversity in female population and in adult population. Girls tend to be better at hiding their symptoms than boys (it might be cultural norm related or might be due to biological differences). Because we understand that now, we are recognising neurodiversity in female population more than we did before.

        I am personally all for the biomarkers for that reason, far more objective and less room for changes. Even then, it would probably not be perfect given how individual differences would make it very difficult and how presentation of symptoms (and its impact on the person) would be what's more important.

        I guess what I am saying is, diagnosis (and the clinical meaning of the diagnosis) is almost never clean cut when it comes to anything human behaviour related.

  • Hangryuman on 02/08/2024 - 11:55

    the internet and instant worldwide communications have enabled awareness and shared notification of extremely rare diseases and problems.

    like sexual assault, increased reporting does not necessarily mean increased occurrence - it may simply be more victims feeling empowered to report it after seeing similar stories

    100 years ago I'll assume the word autism was not in most people's common parlance, and e.g. what might have once been called 'the village idiot' can now have a whole list of pathological conditions described with fine-detailed medical terminology.

  • Aleigh123 on 02/08/2024 - 13:42
    +4

    I mean, is it necessarily that there's an actual increase? It could be a perceived increase owing to our acceptance of autism, and that it lies on a spectrum. And since we are more accepting of it as a society, people are more likely to get a formal diagnosis.

  • zetapulse on 02/08/2024 - 14:09

    To start with, if having an autistic child terrifies you, then I suggest you read up a little more on what the spectrum of autism entails, and what kind of effects it has on how people with it think. Also read up on what kinds of symptoms are more or less prevalent.

    From my point of view, autism is not too different from a person who just thinks in a way different to the "normal", which can be both a blessing and a curse. This divergence from typical thought processes can be identified more easily thanks to the widespread availability of information. Said information can be used positively to make the best of one's capability. It can also create an obsession with unhealthy information that contributes to a lapse in mental health. In some cases, either effect is quick to take hold and develop, or might be slow to absorb even with external assistance. It's a spectrum of effects.

    Some cases are extreme for sure, but in a lot of cases, people grow up without even knowing that they're autistic, yet managed to find their own ways to cope, which goes to show how capable they can be. That's a large part of understanding autism: they have their own way of processing things, a strong individuality that sets them apart from typical people, even compared to people that are trying to make themselves unique.

  • Alley Cat on 02/08/2024 - 14:59
    +1

    lol most IT people are on the spectrum. The only issue is when people make it one. Granted AI might disrupt IT too much to leave us any room for good old software engineering work, but I’m sure we’d make a new industry that is just as tech-centric and autism-positive.

    If you are truly interested in the possible causes, look up RFK Jr’s work. I don’t have kids so it a relatively logical question and his answers make total sense. Don’t let your emotions drive your understanding.

    • TEER3X on 02/08/2024 - 19:55

      If you are truly interested in the possible causes, look up RFK Jr’s work

      Autism rates are correlated to vaccine uptake?

      Correlation doesn't necessarily mean causation.

    • GrueHunter on 02/08/2024 - 20:09

      look up RFK Jr’s work.

      Or, you know, I could read an actual medical journal written by qualified professionals publishing peer reviewed research.

    • foursaken on 13/08/2024 - 17:00

      I don't consult electricians when I want my car fixed, so no, I wont be looking up RFK because he's a crackpot in addition to deceptive.

  • TEER3X on 02/08/2024 - 18:24
    +1

    Have two kids, eldest one is level 1 on the autism spectrum has some sensory issues among a few other manageable issues. Wife had a severe case of the flu during pregnancy, a possible cause, I have no idea.

    Thank goodness the Mrs is in healthcare and recognised the early signs.

    The youngest is 3 years younger, (wife was approaching 40) no issues whatsoever. So in our case, age likely didn't play a factor.

    • Ghost47 on 03/08/2024 - 18:38

      How old was your wife when she had the youngest? That sounds lucky that they came out healthy.

      Although I know someone who had kids young, I think in their teens and they have a kid with autism. Then I know someone else who had three kids young and their kids are healthy.

  • Gene3 on 02/08/2024 - 21:25

    https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/disability/autism-in-austral…

    Rates seem to have been going up at in Australia, at least 2009-2015 from the data in the link, would be nice to have more recent data though

    • Munki on 03/08/2024 - 00:04
      +3

      I do believe it might also be due to having a more concerted effort at diagnoses as well as expanding the spectrum resulting in more cases being detected.

  • MessyG on 03/08/2024 - 08:26
    +3

    Because neonatal mortality rates have plummeted. Genetics. Environmental exposures. Occupational exposure. Epigenetics. Higher diagnosis rates now.

    Back when the 80 year olds were kids, only the severest cases were diagnosed. The rest just went through life and suffered without support.

  • Mordaunt on 03/08/2024 - 09:04
    +4

    Glyphosate effects the blood-brain barrier. We ingest it residually. Its usage was ramped up in the 90's, which is when these neurodivergent disorders really began appearing everywhere. See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9101768/#:~:text=3.1.&text=These%20investigations%20have%20shown%20that,nervous%20system%20(Table%201).

    https://www.goldstarrehab.com/parent-resources/does-glyphosa….

    And for a cited, peer-reviewed study: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3271/6/2/29

  • TassieTommy on 03/08/2024 - 10:24
    +1
    1. There is some correlational (not causal) evidence that the risk of ASD in children increased with increasing age of parents:

    Results: A total of 9556 children were diagnosed with an ASD. Both maternal and paternal age were associated with a greater risk of ASD in the offspring (hazard ratios ranging from 1.21 (1.10–1.34) to 1.65 (1.09–2.48) depending on combinations of parental age categories; <35, 35–39, and 40+ years). For mothers younger than 35 years, the risk of ASD increased with increasing father’s age group. For fathers younger than 35 years, the risk of ASD increased with increasing maternal age.

    (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4562461/)

    1. My parents were both 19 when I was born. My wife and I were around 24 (five years older) when my first child was born. My kids are 30+ and not married, so their first kid (if they decide to have one) is going to be when they are more than 10 years older than I was.

    1 + 2 = more and more ASD kids.

    • Ughhh on 03/08/2024 - 13:30
      +1

      It's not just for ASD, but other illness/disorders too.

  • Bunnyburger on 03/08/2024 - 11:16
    +1

    No or very little reported autism in Asia, Africa, India, natural selection took care of it.

    • foursaken on 13/08/2024 - 16:58

      Yes, I think it killed all the clinicians?

  • Ebany on 03/08/2024 - 12:17

    All issues are on the rise, it's modern living.

    There's really only a few choices;
    1. accept it and try to move on.
    2. advocate for change.
    3. move to a remote location where junk food doesn't exist, smog is unheard of, and things like Teflon don't glaze our frying pans.

    That said, best piece of advice I'd give to a new parent is that they'll never stop worrying about their children - don't fight it because that's what makes a good parent. Prior to becoming a parent we're all children who's worries often revolve around our own doings. New parents should change what they can, accept what they can't change, and let the kids fall when they play ….. but not too hard.

  • Eeples on 03/08/2024 - 12:59

    My doctor told me I was on the artistic spectrum. I’m sure he said artistic spectrum.

    Seriously though, comparing past populations with current populations and trying to work out the vibe regarding autism would be near impossible as there wouldn’t be enough data to make a meaningful conclusion.

    It would appear to me however that we are healthier now and more educated health-wise and that might imply less problems for fetal development.

  • bailbondsh on 03/08/2024 - 13:23
    +2

    I didn't get diagnosed until a year ago (ADHD and Autism (ASD). I'm 39. I haven't researched it in any significantly academic way yet. I'm just trying to understand the way I am and have been all my life. I'm personally terrified by people and social relationships, however this wasn't always the case. I'm less terrified now, as I have an important resource now of actually knowing what I have. I'm also more relaxed about things as there's resources to help us. However like any minority, the majority that isn't like us is mostly ignorant, or unempathic, or passively hostile about "another miniority whining and getting extra help that the rest of us didn't get" - My reply to that would be, personally I haven't had much help before knowing I had these issues (because before it was just anxiety/depression - some of the symptoms of neurodivergency. And the help I now get just enables me to enjoy a fairer life for me compared to others that didn't have a significant problem growing up and well into my 30s, where I couldn't have a normal life that a majority of people didn't have to deal with - Crippling anxiety, OCD, highly sensitive and hurt easily, misunderstood - bullying and indirect bullying (isloated from groups and belonging), problems understanding social rules in the environment, being communicated to and how to communicate back.

    Getting rejected for relationships, jobs for not doing the right things and doing things that you aren't meant to do etc. And then people not explaining what you did wrong (if indeed it was wrong or just a different way of doing things and being). Basically being punished (expecting to know why). Which all leads to dislike and distrust of people in general but also self-hatred, low self-esteem and many other mental health problems. This is why we like to be away from most people, and with people who we trust or who are like us.

    What is it that you're terrfied of exactly?

  • haemolysis on 03/08/2024 - 14:41

    If you listen to older people tell you about their history, you certainly do hear about “the one DS boy in the village”… but more often than not, if you stop trying to believe a fabricated and embellished version of the past, they also tell you the truth as well. Listen properly and they subtly hint that half the people they know had autism, or perhaps they themselves had it. They say things like “oh so-and-so was a bit of a character” and use other euphemisms to describe people that… nowadays we would say are on the spectrum.

    Indeed, you can even validate the fact that there were LOTS of people on the spectrum in the past by… simply talking to them. Many of them are not dead, lol. Go talk to a few old people and you quickly find out many of them are “quirky” and do activities that we often associated with the spectrum. Stamp collecting, bird watching, etc. Many old people grow up not forming lasting proper social networks because of their behavior. None of them have diagnoses. None of them identify as having autism. Do they have it anyway? Yes, lol.

    There are some other reasons for growing diagnoses: the growing body of knowledge on the topic, less stigma, an ever-loosening definition and widening of the umbrella in the substantive editions of the DSM…

    But overall there’s little cause for concern.

    • James Tabby on 04/08/2024 - 15:07

      Having an obsession alone doesn’t mean someone has autism. People can be intensely focused on things without experiencing any decline in social skills. The stories about grandfathers describing their friends as having obsessions doesn’t match our understanding of autism.

      • haemolysis on 06/08/2024 - 10:27

        Yeah, you’re right, I should have wrote out the entire diagnostic criteria line by line! Nobody would have thought I was just giving a few quick example traits.

    • johnfuller on 03/08/2024 - 14:42
      -1

      currently, 1 in 36 children has autism and in the year 2000, it was 1 in 150 children

        • johnfuller on 03/08/2024 - 14:51
          -1

          these are stats from USA, they arent even from australia so people say its because of NDIS lol

  • freedomofspeech on 03/08/2024 - 16:24
    +1

    Vaccines

  • node modules on 03/08/2024 - 16:58

    What's the scientific consensus? If there isn't one, then there's not much you can do

    • iridiumstem on 05/08/2024 - 11:12

      There is no true one consensus in academia though.

      As with DSM and APA, there are plenty of people in the academia and in the field who have issues with DSM and APA. Evidence based practice also involves clinical expertise as part of it, as field of psychology basically is not clean cut.

      I had once tried to find an unified definition of emotions which sounds simple enough. I couldn't. Some argue that emotions are responses from two dimensional factors (valence and intensity), some argue that there are certain basic emotions that everyone has that are unique in their nature. Some included physiological responses, some didn't so on and so forth. Emotion is like the basic of the basics in human behaviour and I basically had to go with, this is pointless.

  • H3R34TH4C0MM3NTS on 03/08/2024 - 18:29
    +1

    NDIS has a lot to do with higher rates of diagnosis and provider shopping. parents are going around and around finding someone who will say what they want. Many assessments are subjective, especially on the milder end of the spectrum. an assessor acts with independently and with integrity they won't be getting many referrals and will be out of a job quickly.

    • cloudy on 04/08/2024 - 20:37

      ^ under rated comment.

  • EightImmortals on 04/08/2024 - 16:19
    +1

    https://thehighwire.com/ark-videos/top-vaccinologists-fail-t…

    In a recent interview, one of the world’s leading vaccinologists and co-author of what is considered to be the ‘bible of vaccines’, Dr. Paul Offit admitted that studies comparing unvaccinated children to vaccinated children have not been done, claiming they are impossible to do. All the while, lead author of the aforementioned book, Dr. Stanley Plotkin, the ‘godfather of vaccines’, made a recent statement in a published paper revealing the truth about safety trials on vaccines in the US, painting a picture of vaccine safety that falls far short of the safety claims our health agencies make.

    Contains a segment with one of the authors stating in court that NO studies have been done on the vaccine autism link. Safe my butt…..

    • haemolysis on 11/08/2024 - 16:37
      -1

      You must be extremely brainwashed to hear a claim that “no studies have been done” in something that’s been such a big controversy for decades.

      How could that be possible? Tremendous public concern, fear, and hesitancy… and nobody ran a study?

      Generally when you find such a strange outcome, you might try a tool like google to see if it’s true, and search for “studies on vaccines causing autism”. I wonder what we might find?

      Perhaps you’ll see that it’s one of the most studied medical phenomena of all time. And almost every study has reached a similar consensus. Across many institutions, with many populations, many methods.

      In fact, we’ve actually spent TOO MUCH time studying it. Millions of dollars wasted that could go to more productive research. Since we already know there’s no link to autism.

      • EightImmortals on 11/08/2024 - 17:43

        Pity you were too interested in preaching the message instead of looking at the link I posted which included on-oath testimony in court from the people who literally wrote the book on vaccines testifying that they know of NO studies that have been done proving or disproving the vaccine-autism link.. The studies you quickly glance at online have been debunked many times over the years from being very shoddy (for various reasons) and paid for by the vaccine corporations while more independent studies get ignored or buried. Coincidently, uninformed big-mouth John Oliver went on the same rant (again) in the last week or so but was left with egg on his face (again) when the facts are presented. 5 minute link below.

        https://thehighwire.com/ark-videos/john-oliver-recycles-garb…

  • SuperMid on 04/08/2024 - 20:57

    Your neighbour in their 80's didnt have a device in their hand which basically let them communicate in real time with almost every other human being on this planet. Thus their information/view of the world was just based on their local group of friends, which might have been 50 or less.

    • johnfuller on 05/08/2024 - 10:00

      confirmed the village had over 1500 people, if 1 of them had autism they would know about it

      • SuperMid on 05/08/2024 - 12:14

        Understand, but the 'village' is now the whole world, so instead of 1500 people worth of data to compare, we are now comparing against 7 billion, so it looks like there are more autistic people, when the actual % might remain the same.

        But i might be completely wrong. I feel like every kid has a nut allergy now, whereas when i was in school, it was not a thing, no one had it.

        • johnfuller on 05/08/2024 - 12:16

          schools put a blanket ban on all kids having nuts at school, i think the nut allergy has always been the same, not much has changed there but i think kids need exposure to it, to build a resistance

          if village A has 0 kids with autism, but village B has 10 kids with autism, you could say its environmental issues, genetic, hard to say, the problem is proving cause and effect

          • mrdean on 05/08/2024 - 12:22

            @johnfuller: Once upon a time, peanut oil was used as an excipient in the vaccine manufacturing process. Any trace amounts that remained in the vials would most likely sensitize the infants/kids vaccinated to any later exposures to peanuts. It explains the increase in nut allergies in kids.

        • EightImmortals on 06/08/2024 - 10:15

          Well maybe your neighbour in their 80's didn't know about that stuff but the medical and government establishments have the data rates going back decades. There was a HUGE uptick in cases beginning in the 80's and continuing to this day.

          • iridiumstem on 06/08/2024 - 10:32

            @EightImmortals: An intesting fact is that, there has been such a huge push towards adult neurodiversity as well from the public awareness. This is an uncharted territory for many psychologists (new clientelle group that's never been in focus + the crisis of confidence where replicablity is being questioned for many research papers = not many papers that can be relied on for adult neurodiversity presentations).

            Adult female ADHD for example, is very difficult to diagnose as female population tend to be better at masking their symptoms or adapting to their symptoms (and often are successful at work, at the cost of burning out as they use all their energy to mask their symptoms). '

            It is hard to make comments about individuals, with intersectionality being such a huge thing nowadays. I briefly mentioned different cultures complicates comparisons significantly, a good example that's observed many times is that culture has a huge impact on facial recognition. Asian people tend to be better at facial recognition. This normally is attributed to how Asians tend to recognise face holistically instead of focusing on individual features. It's not difficult to imagine that this would interfere with measuring a kid's social skills making it harder to compare data interculturally. Slight side note, congenital prosopagnosia (face blindness at birth) is more common in population on spectrum.

            It is very possible that this new increase is actually the rates getting closer to actual rate that its supposed to be + higher uptake from previous generations that had it hidden (which would gradually decrease). I would be interested to see the estimates of prevalence and comparisons to reported values (which can sometimes lead to discussions around what factors might be at play).

            • EightImmortals on 06/08/2024 - 13:51
              +3

              @iridiumstem: OK cheers, I was actually speaking in regards to childhood autism/adhd etc rates, I should have been clearer on that point. The other issue is the type of nuerodivergence under discussion. It may well that the medical industry has widened the criteria for what constitutes 'neurodivergent' these days, I mean heck, if you look at the DSM 5 there is something wrong with ALL of us. :)

              But what I am referencing is the undeniable and overt type of autism, the type where normally developing kids suddenly 'develop' autism right after they have a vaccine/vaccines in a way that is undeniable. There are MANY testimonies out there from parents who are shouting from the rooftops but are usually denied any audience (apart from the statistical data of course). From first hand experience when our son was 2 we had the same thing happen, about 1hr after his 2 yr old MMR shot he stopped talking, started staring off into the distance and rocking back and forth, all typical signs of neurological damage. Scared the shit out of us but fortunately in our case he came good after a couple of days. That was the last vaccine he ever got (we only need to be warned once) and he is now a perfectly healthy 25 year old who rarely gets sick with anything.

              I'll take measles and chicken pox any day of the week, at least in this country where most kids have decent hygiene and nutrition.

              • iridiumstem on 06/08/2024 - 15:04

                @EightImmortals: True, I remember hearing something about how 50% of the people would meet some criteria for mental health disorders (it was actually a research paper that have randomly tested people on mental health issues).

                Frankly speaking, I would not be surprised if the increase in awareness -> more adults and parents are getting tested -> more kids are getting tested (there is a biological factor here so I don't think it's unreasonable for parents to become more sensitive and go, might as well get tested if say a cousin got ASD diagnosis). It would be something interesting to look into.

                As with the vaccination and ASD relations, eh, not a paediatrician, they get paid more than I do. Everyone's entitled to their opinion (and if I were to be pressed for opinion, probably in line with the conclusion made by Taylor et al., 2014, though I am happy to be corrected). I will mention that I personally raise my eyebrow on observation based speculations, they can be a great starting point, but never a proof (causality is very difficult to establish, even with well-designed tests and statistical analysis). That's kinda why Freud's work holds little water nowadays (he based a lot of his theories on his observations), despite being one of the most well-known and influential person in psychology.

  • Sammy Boi on 04/08/2024 - 22:06
    +1

    my niece has a two-year-old with severe autism that she has abandoned in our home 4 months ago. I believe he has autism because of what she did while she was pregnant. Take it how you want but some people should not be allowed to have children.

    • SuperMid on 05/08/2024 - 21:24

      Wow thats a shitty move on the neices behalf. Will you raise the boy as your own?

    • foursaken on 13/08/2024 - 16:57

      Just your niece, or her relations too?

  • lew380 on 04/08/2024 - 22:43
    +5

    Its definately not vaccines, they are 100% safe. This mesaage has been brought to you by pfizer

    • Ughhh on 06/08/2024 - 12:26
      +1

      Given the amount of people vaccinated, surely at least 80% of people have autism. But is this before or after they drop dead?

  • Shunter86 on 05/08/2024 - 08:57

    OP, may I suggest that autism is not a disease and if you want to learn more about autism in kids and what that's like, look for people with lived experience.

    • johnfuller on 05/08/2024 - 09:57

      never did i suggest it was a disease.

  • johnfuller on 05/08/2024 - 10:01
    +1

    Statistics generally show an increase in the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) year over year. Here are some key points:

    United States: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the prevalence of ASD has increased over the years. For example, in 2000, the prevalence was approximately 1 in 150 children, whereas in 2020, it was about 1 in 36 children.

    Global Trends: Similar trends have been observed in other countries, although the rates can vary due to differences in diagnostic practices, healthcare access, and cultural factors.

    Research Findings: Studies have consistently shown an upward trend in the diagnosis of autism. For example, research published in various medical journals has documented increases in autism diagnoses across different populations and age groups.

    The increase in diagnosed cases is attributed to a combination of factors, including heightened awareness, better diagnostic practices, broader diagnostic criteria, and potentially some environmental influences.

    • mrdean on 11/08/2024 - 07:38
      -1

      Notice how "potentially some environmental influences" is placed last on the list of attribution. In my opinion, this is done deliberately in order to play down vaccines & other poisons as least likely, when the reverse is true, they are the most likely causes, but have major economic interests behind them.

      • johnfuller on 12/08/2024 - 13:25

        The problem that I see, is that society consider autism a "difference" in someone's development, just like how some people are left handed. This is done on purpose to hide the fact that this is a growing issue and numbers will increase whether we like it or not, so we need to adapt and accept it because they dont know whats causing it and when you question it, its masked as "increased awareness".

  • Muppet Detector on 11/08/2024 - 00:39

    You will likely find that the prevalence in those with autism has primarily risen because of how it is currently defined in the DSM V. Today's definition of autism is very different to what it was 30-40 years ago.

    Additionally, more of our teachers and health workers are more familiar with recognising traits and referring them to the relevant diagnostic ions who themselves are better at addressing the qualifying diagnostic criteria.

  • ozboygsl on 13/08/2024 - 09:40
    -1

    Autism rates growing continually…gee, wonder what could be causing that? - what else has been getting increased? maybe it's mythical global warming? or non-existent trans "phobia"?

  • acersaurus on 19/08/2024 - 00:41

    There is more of it today, one study says older father's increase the risk in particular E.g a father over 40 has a six fold chance of having a child with autism compared to a father under 30

    https://www.thetransmitter.org/spectrum/fathers-advanced-age…

    And fathers are on average older than mothers, with parents both male and female getting older than in the past.

    It's a concern - bare in mind the condition varies significantly and a lot of them will go onto have relatively normal and self sufficient lives, and many of the others could be partly self sufficient.

    There are also less children being born today in general. I think AI and robots will help us fill gaps in the labour force - we are heading that way anyway, and we are going to need it.

    On the flip side, there are also fewer children being born with the more serious condition of down syndrome due to early screening that is possible nowadays.

  • James Tabby on 26/08/2024 - 10:50

    Guys, I need some help debunking this theory that Marin County with the lowest vaccination rate and therefore the lowest autism rate. Link to X post

    I did find some way to attack it on reddit, but seems to be politically incorrect/sensitive.

    From Sam_Altman_AI_Bot:

    So let me guess, the wealthy whites and asians in Marin County California are basically not autistic while the rest of America is autistic. That's basically what they're getting at. They're also suggesting it's because they didn't vaccinate. Interesting. So all the blacks in urban ghettos or whites in rural poverty must show the same trends too since those are large groups that also generally avoided the vaccine.

    Another factchecker website tries to debunk it by stating the vaccination rate for the vaccine schedule is now higher, but that seems to gloss over the fact that the data is from a period starting around 2013 which is before California decided to change the rules that now have Marin County sitting at around 95% vaccination rate for the childhood schedule.

    How do we explain the coincidence that the data at that time reflects a lower vaccination rate and it is coincidentally met with a lower autism rate?

    My guess is we need a fresh set of data, but if that data shows the autism rate has gone up again then that would be quite a concerning development. I suspect it has gone up since autism rates have been trending upwards for years, but does that mean we lost the argument?

    I also haven't had time to look at the study or whether it looks at a cross-section of black people or whether the data shown are just hispanic and whites as shown in the video. It just seems weird and cherry picked but at the same time I'm hoping someone can debunk it.

    • iridiumstem on 27/08/2024 - 07:26

      5 words. Correlation does not imply causation.

      If you want to argue for causation, it requires more than just trend. It's not a bad starting point, but you cannot imply causation with correlation. People have done interesting comparisons between two statistically similar population before and people have done smart things with experimental design in the past to overcome the ethical dilemma/limitations of the experimental design (i.e. using historical data in the modelling to capture the impact of certain factors). That said, experimental design and statistics are by themselves a field of study and it leads to heated discussions.

      Stats unfortunately was bane of my existence, so I leave statistical analysis to someone who's actually collecting and designing experiments for living.

  • mrdean on 07/09/2024 - 14:13
    +2

    Anyone after the truth should read this & follow the links to the published science quoted within:

    https://jbhandley.substack.com/p/international-scientists-ha…

    Good to see intelligent people joining the dots.

    • Ughhh on 05/12/2024 - 16:02

      Follow the money.
      Chris Exley research was funded by an anti Vax movement.

      Sooo intElligeNt indeed.

      Give me enough money and I'll write one for you.

      • mrdean on 05/12/2024 - 16:44

        Sooo intElligeNt indeed.

        How many of his peer reviewed publications over his entire career were funded by CMSRI? How much did CMSRI meddle with Exley's science to get their desired conclusions?

        Lol, I love how you guys invert the real meaning of "follow the money" & try to tar real scientists like Exley with it.

        • Ughhh on 05/12/2024 - 19:50

          Lmao, everything that you don't agree with is 'fake science' and 'follow the money', but as soon as it's something you like to hear, you eat it up like there's no tomorrow.

          The hypocrisy and double standards is hilarious. You're blind to your own flaws.

          • mrdean on 05/12/2024 - 20:12

            @Ughhh:

            The hypocrisy and double standards is hilarious. You're blind to your own flaws.

            The difference between us is that I can tell real science & real scientists from fake science & incompetent scientists.

  • mrdean on 24/09/2024 - 14:55

    JB Handley demolishes the autism epidemic denialists here:

    https://jbhandley.substack.com/p/the-autism-epidemic-is-real…

    Amazing work, as an example he goes back to the original 1970 epidemiology article by Darold Treffert MD that analysed the incidence of infantile autism in the state of Wisconsin. It was responsible for the oft quoted 1 in 10000 figure for that time period. In 2015, Treffert was convinced there was an increase in the disorder….at least partly due to environmental factors (toxicity).

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