Autism

nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
There's tons of new research in autism (and I found most of it on Science Daily, which is awesome) but it all points to what the medical community has been saying all along: it's genetic, or heritable, and it's NOT caused by mercury or preservatives in immunizations.

In case anyone is interested--I was-- here are a few key stories:

Older men more likely to have autistic children

Sperm mutation linked to autism

New model suggests non-autistic women can be genetic carriers

They've narrowed down the causes to a missing protein and a couple of chromosomal regions--which I think partially explains prevalence in males. They've also found a genetic link between autism and certain gastrointestinal disorders, which explains why gluten- and wheat-free diets are commonly prescribed as homeopathic treatments.
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
from the top linked article

Autism and related conditions, known collectively as autism spectrum disorders, have become increasingly common, affecting 50 in every 10,000 children as compared with five in 10,000 two decades ago. This increase is partially due to higher levels of awareness and changes in diagnosis processes [bold mine], but could also reflect an increase in incidence of autism, according to the authors.

yeh, I mean. A few years ago a cousin was "diagnosed" as having a mild case of autism. which I thought was bollocks & still do (he's just a nerdy, intense dude) - but it gave me a reason to look thru the "symptoms", many of which are so vague as to be utterly meaningless.

this is not to say, of course, that there are not autistic people, that autism does not exist or that it isn't a spectrum. but I do think - & the experience has been repeated - that psychologists are apt to hand out autism diagnoses like candy. it's like ADD was in the late 90s (or still is, I guess), but more damaging. this concept that anyone who is very focused on their work, is socially awkward etc. is at least "a little autistic". it's bollocks, & a disservice to people who really are autistic.

my $0.02, anyway.
 

nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
from the top linked article



yeh, I mean. A few years ago a cousin was "diagnosed" as having a mild case of autism. which I thought was bollocks & still do (he's just a nerdy, intense dude) - but it gave me a reason to look thru the "symptoms", many of which are so vague as to be utterly meaningless.

this is not to say, of course, that there are not autistic people, that autism does not exist or that it isn't a spectrum. but I do think - & the experience has been repeated - that psychologists are apt to hand out autism diagnoses like candy. it's like ADD was in the late 90s (or still is, I guess), but more damaging. this concept that anyone who is very focused on their work, is socially awkward etc. is at least "a little autistic". it's bollocks, & a disservice to people who really are autistic.

my $0.02, anyway.

Well, luckily, there's now a genetic test for autism that can detect it as early as 9 months, so overdiagnosis might cease to be a problem.

Also, psychologists are not necessarily the ones making the diagnosis, although it would be better if they did in all cases--to get the real label (the state-one that follows you through school), you need to go through a whole battery of diagnostic tests and criteria. I think a lot of parents are "self-diagnosing" a child with behavior or social problems using the internet or the media and then never really seeking a medical opinion. Luckily (unlike with ADD/ADHD), there is no medication yet for autism so those who are falsely diagnosed aren't being fed a bunch of meds they don't need.

I like how you use British slang almost exclusively, Padraig, if I didn't see the U.S. next to your name I'd have no idea that you were American.
 

mms

sometimes
from the top linked article



yeh, I mean. A few years ago a cousin was "diagnosed" as having a mild case of autism. which I thought was bollocks & still do (he's just a nerdy, intense dude) - but it gave me a reason to look thru the "symptoms", many of which are so vague as to be utterly meaningless.

this is not to say, of course, that there are not autistic people, that autism does not exist or that it isn't a spectrum. but I do think - & the experience has been repeated - that psychologists are apt to hand out autism diagnoses like candy. it's like ADD was in the late 90s (or still is, I guess), but more damaging. this concept that anyone who is very focused on their work, is socially awkward etc. is at least "a little autistic". it's bollocks, & a disservice to people who really are autistic.

my $0.02, anyway.

Thats true.
diagnosis isn't always the best thing, if a condition is managable anyway. There is a big difference between social awkwardness and austism or even aspergers.
Unfortunatley autism often comes with a whole range of other mental conditions too, or ppl with autisim develop them.
 
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nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
I was just remembering that my cousin with autism is on a couple of medications--although neither is specifically made for autism--but both are antidepressants. They do put a lot of autistic kids on is SSRIs (antidepressants) and of course it's always best to avoid psychotropic medications for people whose brains are still developing, unless they are absolutely necessary. This kid has very severe autism so I don't doubt he needs one medication, but two?
 

padraig (u.s.)

a monkey that will go ape
Well, luckily, there's now a genetic test for autism that can detect it as early as 9 months, so overdiagnosis might cease to be a problem.

so, this test - it indicates that the genetic indicators for autism are present? how specific is it - does it purport to measure how severe the autism is? if you don't know fair play I'm just curious.

yeh self-diagnoses are surely worse - I just mean autism has become this kind of trendy/buzzword disorder - that's why I mentioned ADD. I should probably shut up anyway as I'm not an expert or even remotely well-read on the topic.

I like how you use British slang almost exclusively, Padraig, if I didn't see the U.S. next to your name I'd have no idea that you were American.

oi I reckon it's a Dissensus ting innit? gone native & that. tho I never mess w/"labour" & "colour" & using s instead of z in "realisation" quite mad that is innit. I don't talk like that in real life, that'd be, like, well dodgy & that yeh. bollocks, like. like, well better, innit & that mate yunno like I reckon innit.

I admit my Spanish has a serious Mexico City accent from living with chilangos for years.
 

mms

sometimes
Actually, the new early detection test not a genetic test, it's based on eye direction... not as exciting as a genetic test but that doesn't seem too far off...

yep, that's for very young children, it always has been that, well the first test anyway.

you're right about parents and mental illness, quite often parents exacerbate problems, pass on worries to children, mollycoddle them etc, living with a kid with some undiagnosed problem must be hard, but then when a child might be diagnosed, all sorts of other problems come along too. minefield.
 
D

droid

Guest
This is a great manga about autism. Cheesy shojo style, but quite touching, hard nosed and uncompromising.

withlight.jpg


With%20the%20Light%203.jpg
 

nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
Wow, I like how those people are caucasian.

The old test was a based on language (with a speech pathologist) and then social interaction (withsome kind of child development specialist), I'm pretty sure. It was basically worthless till the kid hit around 3.
 

nochexxx

harco pronting
a friend of mine believes that all men are autistic to a certain degree. the more i think about this the more i'm inclined to agree.
 

nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
There was a story in the NY Times a few years ago, I remember people in my office talking about it and my director (a gay guy) was sorta rolling his eyes about it--the thesis was that autism was a sort of disease where you're born with an "ultramale" brain. It was written by Simon Baron-Cohen.

Here it is.
 

mms

sometimes
There was a story in the NY Times a few years ago, I remember people in my office talking about it and my director (a gay guy) was sorta rolling his eyes about it--the thesis was that autism was a sort of disease where you're born with an "ultramale" brain. It was written by Simon Baron-Cohen.

Here it is.

yes ultramale etc words like that aren't really helpful

women do get autism, often it's not noticed as the effects are less obvious, or expected as it's seen as something that just men get, also things like anorexia, counting calories, severe withdrawing etc, could be seen as a manifestation of autism, same with overeating etc, also might be that women are a little better at learning behavior to mask symptoms etc.
 
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nomadthethird

more issues than Time mag
yes ultramale etc words like that aren't really helpful

women do get autism, often it's not noticed as the effects are less obvious, or expected as it's seen as something that just men get, also things like anorexia, counting calories, severe withdrawing etc, could be seen as a manifestation of autism, same with overeating etc, also might be that women are a little better at learning behavior to mask symptoms etc.

Same with ADD--women are less likely to have ADHD, or manifest hyperactivity as a symptom, so they are diagnosed less often, or frequently misdiagnosed.
 

zhao

there are no accidents
has the link between the music of autechre and autism been scientifically estabished.

THERE IS SOMETHING THERE.


i think listening to it too much puts your self or your offspring at risk.
 

zhao

there are no accidents
ok kidding aside... what i'm more interested in are the more abstract, philosophical, and wider implications and meanings of Autism. sorry if any of this sounds naive or dumb:

1. is it true that there are no physical differences between the brains of aspergers patients who can do rain-man stuff and "normal" brains? if this is true (and i seem to remember that it is), then might aspergers have a profound long term positive effects, in that it might inspire advances in neurological research which might lead us to eventually be able to use more of the "other 95%" of our brains?

2. is it within reason to say that schizophrenia was the quintessential 20th century disorder? in that it became much more than a psychiatric diagnosis, but rather a metaphor for the "modern condition": many theorists and thinkers have used it in this way.

if it is, then might Autism become the disorder of the 21st?

and this is where my silly joke above actually maybe (MAYBE) makes a bit of sense -- in what ways can the following be said to be related to the phenomenon of Autism: over population / social anxiety / withdrawal / Ballardian entropy / otaku culture / electronic media / "isolationist" music / the "look within for truth" rhetoric / etc. / etc. / etc. ?

is it at all useful or intersting to talk about Autism as a social/cultural phenomena with wider and deeper significance than only clinical?
 

msoes

Well-known member
the actual 'rainman' - the guy who the movie is based off, has a very different brain. no corpus callosum, malformed cerebellum. not sure about savants in general.

dont even try the 'we only use 10% of our brain' thing
 
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