Study Links Autism and Mother's Illnesses

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Expectant mothers suffering from asthma, allergies or a type of skin disease have a higher risk of giving birth to an autistic child, a study said on Monday.

Asthma, allergies and psoriasis symptoms during pregnancy -- especially if diagnosed in the second trimester -- doubled the risk of autism in children compared to children who were not afflicted, researchers from Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, California, said.

Autism is a mysterious condition that strikes roughly six in 1,000 children, mostly boys, and is associated with diminished social skills and an adherence to routines.

The study looked at 88,000 children belonging to the Kaiser Permanente health plan born in Northern California between 1995 and mid-1999, 420 of whom were diagnosed with autism.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=7560399

children a day in California. I doubt it has anything to do with mom having asthma, allergies or psoriasis.

I can tell what absolutely DOES NOT cause Autism and that is vaccinations.


Anyway, here is an interesting theory that MIGHT turn out to be at least part of the story...

The Geek Syndrome
(From Wired Magazine)

Autism - and its milder cousin Asperger's syndrome - is surging among the children of Silicon Valley. Are math-and-tech genes to blame?

By Steve Silberman

Nick is building a universe on his computer. He's already mapped out his first planet: an anvil-shaped world called Denthaim that is home to gnomes and gods, along with a three-gendered race known as kiman. As he tells me about his universe, Nick looks up at the ceiling, humming fragments of a melody over and over. "I'm thinking of making magic a form of quantum physics, but I haven't decided yet, actually," he explains. The music of his speech is pitched high, alternately poetic and pedantic - as if the soul of an Oxford don has been awkwardly reincarnated in the body of a chubby, rosy-cheeked boy from Silicon Valley. Nick is 11 years old.

Nick's father is a software engineer, and his mother is a computer programmer. They've known that Nick was an unusual child for a long time. He's infatuated with fantasy novels, but he has a hard time reading people. Clearly bright and imaginative, he has no friends his own age. His inability to pick up on hidden agendas makes him easy prey to certain cruelties, as when some kids paid him a few dollars to wear a ridiculous outfit to school.

One therapist suggested that Nick was suffering from an anxiety disorder. Another said he had a speech impediment. Then his mother read a book called Asperger's Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals. In it, psychologist Tony Attwood describes children who lack basic social and motor skills, seem unable to decode body language and sense the feelings of others, avoid eye contact, and frequently launch into monologues about narrowly defined - and often highly technical - interests. Even when very young, these children become obsessed with order, arranging their toys in a regimented fashion on the floor and flying into tantrums when their routines are disturbed. As teenagers, they're prone to getting into trouble with teachers and other figures of authority, partly because the subtle cues that define societal hierarchies are invisible to them.

<snip>

In the past decade, there has been a significant surge in the number of kids diagnosed with autism throughout California. In August 1993, there were 4,911 cases of so-called level-one autism logged in the state's Department of Developmental Services client-management system. This figure doesn't include kids with Asperger's syndrome, like Nick, but only those who have received a diagnosis of classic autism. In the mid-'90s, this caseload started spiraling up. In 1999, the number of clients was more than double what it had been six years earlier. Then the curve started spiking. By July 2001, there were 15,441 clients in the DDS database. Now there are more than seven new cases of level-one autism - 85 percent of them children - entering the system every day.

More:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/9.12/aspergers_pr.html

Some say Bill Gates has Asperger Syndrome.

and while pregnant with my second child, I had a severe flare-up of allergies and asthma. My second child has autism.

Could be that whatever makes people genetically susceptible to asthma and allergies, can also make their offspring more susceptible to environmental toxins such as mercury, which can affect brain development. I just pray that they find answers soon. A child is diagnosed with autism every 20 minutes.

http://www.autismlink.com/

I worked in clinical research at UPenn for many yrs and I have felt that autism is most likely the autoimmune response to the administration of vaccinations at the wrong time...I believe that children would be much better off if these vaccinations were given after the age of 2 and once the immune system is more completely developed. I also DO NOT trust the ever increasing # of vaccinations that are pushed upon children.

Merck makes 7 million dollars annually for every year that all of the kindergarten-aged children of OH receive the chickenpox vac.
There is NO REASON that a child needs this vaccination except that it may spare the parents a missed week of work. In fact it may be more beneficial for the child to receive the live chix pox as apposed to the vaccine.

I also believe there are many,many kids with subtle learning disabilities, hearing problems etc. that are secondary to the negative affects of vaccinations on the neurological system- tho these kids would not be considered to be part of the whole picture.
In my mind there are many categories of symptoms with autism obviously being among the most severe.

I also worked for a short while at an Institute outside of Philly where many parents brought there brain-injured children for therapy.
It was not uncommon for these children to have been normal and to have developed brain injuries specifically after receiving a vaccination.

And, now we are even being forced to vaccinate our pets 'to death'!

scrutiny. I took a flu vax late in my first pregnancy because I was due in December, and my doctor said it was recommended. After I got it, I had the strangest gut feeling that I had harmed my child. It came from out of nowhere. He even felt like he was moving differently in me. It makes me physically ill to think about it.

As a result, I have cautioned women about receiving vaxes when pregnant. I asked them to at least request that their shot be drawn from an individual dose vial.

I don't think vaxes per se are the problem, but i think some people are genetically predisposed to not be able to metabolize and process the components as effectively. I also think it is possible that some people are less able to control the immune responses, and that is why they are finding inflammatory responses in the brain of deceased autistic persons.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3222319.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/file_on_4/4016313.stm

"The new legislation, known as Reach (Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals), has been hailed the most important regulation in 20 years.
For the first time chemical companies will have to subject each substance to official screening before it can be licensed for use.

At the moment only 10% of chemicals on the market have undergone such stringent tests, and there is concern that ordinary houshold products may contain harmful substances. "

"According to Labour Euro-MP David Bowe, everyday objects such as computers, fabrics, cleaning products and food containers may "contain cocktails of chemicals, the effects of which are largely unknown."

He added: "The cutting edge of laboratory tests of forty years ago now seem hopelessly out of date." "

business doesnt like this law and neither does the USA but it may throw some light on "modern" diseases

www.hriptc.org

and my wife has no alergies. Whatever the rise is caused by it would have to be something involving the brain and central nervous system. It's probably something environmental that is causing the increase and it will be very difficult to pinpoint IMO. To increase the chances of occurance, I presume it to be something that is affecting the genetic code of people over time.

in our environment and food can't help. Our bodies are under continual assault, no wonder we develop these problems.

When I was a kid, NO ONE HAD ALLERGIES. Not to peanuts, not to pollen, nor dust, not to anything. We'd crawl around in dank basements, up in dusty attics, play outside, roll in pollen, come home covered with it--no problem!!! No one took pills, no one needed them. Every now and again someone's ole granma would sneeze and 'git the hayfever,' but nowadays EVERYONE seems to be allergic to stuff, myself included. It takes a lot out of you to fight them off, and usually people resort to medications, either prescribed or OTC, depending on severity.

I imagine you have a challenging road with your child. That has to be frustrating for you, not having a clear answer as to why.

Why is hayfever getting more widespread at a time when most people on this continent live in urban areas and don't have outdoor jobs that would, in theory, sensitize them to pollen and other "natural" allergens?

I asked my sophomore environmental science class of about 120 students to report on asthma rates in their high school classes. In the early 1980s, the rate in my area was about 10%. The kids say it's more than twice that, now (and this is in a city which is reportedly having fewer asthma cases than my old hometown now is experiencing!). One guy reported that virtually his entire HS hockey team carried inhalers.

I've been seeing increasing numbers of research papers that look at the interaction between pollen and fine particulates (PM10 and PM2.5) generated by burning fossil fuels -- especially the volatile organic compounds which have been found coating the surfaces of those particulates.

And now, a possible relationship between asthma and autism? It just gets worse and worse!

but my mother had allergies as a child, or "skin rashes"
in the 1930's!

so it follows that if asthma and autism are linked, autism rates would also raise over time.

I wish we could really find out what's going on. I work in early intervention, and I have kids who are NOT responding to my speech therapy, and I'm sure they're on the autism spectrum.

The frustrating thing is, as a speech-language pathologist I'm not allowed to say this out loud. The best I can do is say, "If he were my child, I would talk to my pediatrician about the possibility of seeing a pediatric neurologist to rule out any factors that might be impacting his speech and language abilities."

But don't expect any research, because we can't blame corporations that spew toxins into our air and water in an "Ownership Society." Whoever makes the most money owns the air and water.

The environmental pollutants causing the psoriasis, asthma and other allergic reactions are no doubt upping the chances of autism occuring.

Fifteen years ago, we had three cases of Tetralogy of Fallot show up in one month. Tetralogy of Fallot occurs in about 3000 children a year in the US. We had three cases within a twenty mile radius within one month ( if divided evenly, each STATE would have an occurrence of 5 per month- we did some amateur calculations in the ER because we were surprised by this anomaly showing up in this high concentration.)

The waste that Repukes refuse to clean up is hurting the weakest of us.

autism. But there are also costs to society as a whole, if we as a country continue to ignore this issue. Autism costs the federal government $4.5 BILLION dollars a year. I haven't seen any figures for what states are spending.

But consider that most of the people with autism (estimate of 1.5 million Americans) are still children, and live at home with parents. What happens to those costs when we parents start aging and dying and our kids need more support services?

It is not just a moral issue, but a financial one as well.

With most developmental issues it's a combination of genes and stressors in the envionment.

Thanks for you insight.

Salud.

"clear skies" and "healthy forests", along with other ways the government is allowing profiteers and polluters to destroy every part of our environment and play Frankenstein with our foods, simply MUST be the biggest contributing factor. Asthma has skyrocketed only because air pollution and chemical toxins have skyrocketed. In some areas, the rise in the rate of children born with autism is over 600% in the past ten years!

However, I do agree with you that the environment is the most likely culprit - I think it's toxic for those with a genetic predisposition to autism.

because the asthma is triggered by all the garbage the corporations are spewing into the air.

I have a strong feeling autism will eventually be leaked to some chemical that is either agricultural or being spewed out by coal fired electric plants.

More in Texas, where Bush has ravaged air quality to let polluters have free rein.

Molly Ivins Jan 11, 2005
http://www.creators.com/opinion_show.cfm?columnsName=miv

<snip>

Also in the "you can't trust a word they say" category, the Natural Resources Defense Council has just released papers showing that the Defense Department and defense contractors collaborated in a backroom campaign to manipulate a federal report on the health threat of perchlorate, a toxic rocket fuel ingredient, in the water. The National Academy of Sciences is to release the report this week. What the NRDC has is evidence that pressure was put on the Academy of Sciences. Again, what good does it do to misinform people?

more on the subject:
http://www.nrdc.org/media/pressreleases/050110b.asp
http://www.epa.gov/fedfac/documents/perchlorate.htm
<snip>
In children, the thyroid plays a major role in proper development, in addition to metabolism. Impairment of thyroid function in pregnant mothers may impact the fetus and result in such effects as changes in behavior, delayed development and decreased learning capability.

This one seems to promote how wonderful this poison is:
http://www.councilonwaterquality.org

I'm the father of a 3 year old with autism who has no family history on either side, and whose mom does not have any of the conditions mentioned in this study.

The rates here in NC are rising at similar levels to what is being seen in CA. I wouldn't be surprised if prevalence rates are rising at similar levels in lots of places in this country.

What are we doing to our environment to cause this incredibly tragic outcome?

Asthma diagnoses are "up" everywhere in the U.S., most likely due to air pollution. Meanwhile, Bush** is gutting the Clean Air Act and the EPA.

I have to wonder if the rich have a secret hideout -- sort of a huge BioSphere-type complex --where they will all go when the air is unbreathable everywhere else. Some claim these people don't care because they anticipate the Second Coming soon but I don't accept that most of the rich believe that

Poor kids are more likely to develop asthma because of their environment. Cramped living conditions, pollution, exposure to bad stuff like cockroaches that can cause asthma flareups...

Combine this with the fact that asthma accounts for a lot of lost school time and the sad statistic that one-third of U.S. kids do not have health coverage...these kids lose in more ways than one. And the powers that be don't really care.

I wouldn't be a bit surprised if there were something to it. As early as the 80s, I read claims that up to 70 percent of children in the inner city of Los Angeles had asthma. Asthma and allergy is a huge and growing problem that has been a major issue for at least two decades. Naturally, these children are going to grow up and reproduce. You can't have 70 percent of children suffering from respiratory illness from the get-go and expect their children to turn out all fine and dandy.

I don't feel like discussing my experience again but I wouldn't be a bit surprised if asthma, allergy, and skin disease were all linked to the problem. Not seeing the mechanism but I've seen the association. Especially in my case with allergy and skin disease.

The conservation movement is a breeding ground of communists
and other subversives. We intend to clean them out,
even if it means rounding up every birdwatcher in the country.
--John Mitchell, US Attorney General 1969-72

they find thousands of dead people a day in california too. your point has no logical basis.

That make sense, I always thought it has to do with the mothers health. My girlfriend had a normal child after that. so it doesn't happen all the time.

Epilepsy and autism are often comorbid diagnoses, so the child may have some genetic predisposition. Add that to her health at that time and other environmental factors, vs. health and enviro with the second child, and one may find the difference.

Salud.

is aggravated by air pollution. With the numbers of children being diagnosed especially in Silicon Valley...I'll bet they find an environmental link.

I live in one of the worst areas of the country for air quality. we have a lot of very dirty coal burning power plants up wind.

Seems like a study could be done easily enough. Like if people in more polluted areas were getting it more than those in rural-non-polluted areas.

Asperger's isn't always so obvious. So that could skew a study if people didn't know what they were looking for.

I know a woman with an autistic child who does have asthma and psoriasis. I think this may prove to be a very worthy research initiative.

Thanks for the article.

my daughter is asthmatic,and allergic as am i and i so want a grandchild someday.

edited to add that we live in CA, although not in Silicon Valley.

I think a variety of factors, which keep the brain from developing, are the cause of autism. Mercury, lack of oxigen, alergies, all these things prevent the brains proper development.

<snip>

In autism, subtle brain abnormalities are present from birth. Infants and toddlers move their bodies differently. From 6 months to 2 years, their heads grow much too fast. Parts of their brain have too many connections, while other parts are underconnected.

Moreover, their brains show signs of chronic inflammation in the same areas that show excessive growth. The inflammation appears to last a lifetime.

<snip>

Researchers agree that an unknown number of genes interact with unidentified environmental factors to produce the disorder. The new clues focus on brain development and circuitry, and especially on the brain's white matter. White matter contains fibers that connect neurons in separate areas of the brain, whereas gray matter contains the neurons themselves. "You can think of this distinction as analogous to that between cables, or white matter, and circuit boards, or gray matter, inside a computer," said Dr. Matthew Belmonte, an autism researcher at the University of Cambridge in England. "Even though each individual circuit board may be intact, if the cables are disrupted then the computer can't function."

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/08/health/08brai.html?oref=login

Yes, we are more than likely poisoning our children, and yet Bush continues to erode environmental regulations.

to see if they have correctly isolated some gene mutation they think may be involved.

Just FYI.

Does it include immunization history?

LA Times:

A memo from Merck & Co. shows that, nearly a decade before the first public disclosure, senior executives were concerned that infants were getting an elevated dose of mercury in vaccinations containing a widely used sterilizing agent.

The March 1991 memo, obtained by The Times, said that 6-month-old children who received their shots on schedule would get a mercury dose up to 87 times higher than guidelines for the maximum daily consumption of mercury from fish.

"When viewed in this way, the mercury load appears rather large," said the memo from Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman, an internationally renowned vaccinologist. It was written to the president of Merck's vaccine division.

The memo was prepared at a time when U.S. health authorities were
aggressively expanding their immunization schedule by adding five new shots for children in their first six months. Many of these shots, as well as some previously included on the vaccine schedule, contained thimerosal, an antibacterial compound that is nearly 50% ethyl mercury, a neurotoxin.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-vaccine8feb08,0,624328.story?coll=la-home-headlines

Here's the reference to the Journal Article about this:

Croen et al., Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, February, 2005; Vol. 159: pp. 151-157. Lisa Croen, PhD, Division of Research, Kaiser Foundation Research Institute, Oakland, Calif. Andy Shih, PhD, chief science officer, National Alliance for Autism Research.

We must remember that Autism occurred prior to immunizations. While it is possible that immunization may have played an environmental role for some, that is definitely still up for question.

We always look for a single source for things, it seems. You can get to the number ten with the number ten, or five plus five, or seven plus three...if you get what I am trying to say (rather inarticulately, I fear). It could be that there is more than one cause, and heredity plus specific environmental factors are enough to push the child over the edge, so to speak.

In any event, this is a problem that is growing by leaps and bounds. It should be a government priority. I'd be especially interested in knowing if the rate of autism in the US and other developed countries is the same, or if the rates differ in less developed countries, or more agrarian societies.

Again the MSM misinterpret science for the public. This is a first study that must be replicated and the risk related to these noted in this study is small.

From the WebMD coverage:

"...

Investigators caution that the association must be confirmed, and that the increase in risk observed in a study was quite small. The findings are reported in the February issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

"This is a modest effect, and it is the first time, to my knowledge, that it has been reported," lead researcher Lisa A. Croen, PhD, of the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute tells WebMD. "These findings certainly need to be replicated. But this gives us some interesting clues to pursue."

..."