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(Reuters Health) - Children born to a parent over age 35 are at greater risk for developing an autism spectrum disorder -- but the risk is the same whether just one or both parents are older, according to a new study of Danish families.
Posted on 2/3/2012 11:24:30 AM
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Ruthsatz said she believes child prodigies may hold the key to understanding the genetic cause of autism and -- just maybe -- how medicine can be developed to treat it.
Ruthsatz has been awarded a $90,000 grant from the Marci and Bill Ingram Comprehensive Center for Autism Spectrum Disorders to collect DNA and explore that theory.
Posted on 2/2/2012 5:58:40 AM
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The Asperger Initiative at Mercyhurst -- Asperger's syndrome is a high-function disorder on the autism spectrum -- began in 2008, and is among the country's most comprehensive. Young Pusateri, a senior majoring in history and anthropology, has a 3.48 grade-point average and is on track to become one of its first graduates this year.
Posted on 1/30/2012 6:48:07 PM
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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control estimates that one in every 110 American children has an autism spectrum disorder, representing a 600 percent increase in prevalence in the nation over the last two decades.
Statistics also show that the number continues to grow at an average rate of about 13.5 percent annually across the nation.
Posted on 1/28/2012 6:06:32 AM
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Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) tend to spend a majority of their free time in front of a screen, but little if any of that time on social activities such as e-mail or chat, according to new research out of Washington University in St. Louis.
Posted on 1/27/2012 12:27:24 PM
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British researchers studied 104 babies at 6 to 10 months and then again at 3-years-old, and found that those who went on to develop autism had unusual patterns of brain activity in response to eye contact with another person.
Posted on 1/26/2012 3:26:43 PM
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Teaching kids with autism to talk things through in their heads could dramatically improve their ability to deal with everyday problems and increase their odds of living independently as adults, new research indicates.
Most children learn to problem solve by talking out loud, but as they age, kids shift to talking in their heads to tackle potential hurdles.
While individuals with autism have the ability to do this, they often don’t, researchers said this week in the journal Development and Psychopathology. And teaching children with autism to use so-called “inner speech” could make a big difference long-term, they said.
Posted on 1/26/2012 11:43:22 AM
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What the new DSM proposes to do is make it harder to meet criteria for autism, so that probably the majority of people who fall on the mild end of what people often call simply “the spectrum” will now be declared non-autistic.
Posted on 1/25/2012 6:08:01 AM
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After examining intestinal biopsies from his patients, Williams found that Sutterella bacteria existed in more than half of the children who had been diagnosed with autism. In comparison, Sutterella was not found in any normally developing children that also had gastrointestinal, or GI, disturbances.
Posted on 1/25/2012 6:06:10 AM
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Even though there were no major differences in what these children ate, those with autism had a lower omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid ratio and lower levels of high density lipoprotein, more commonly known as HDL. For both levels, it’s often believed, the higher the better. HDL is commonly referred to as “good" cholesterol. High levels of HDL seem to protect against heart attacks, while low levels increase the risk of heart disease.
Posted on 1/25/2012 6:05:00 AM
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By focusing the discussion on the question: "what are the diagnostic criteria for autism,", we are failing to see the forest for the trees. The real question is "Why are we as a society willing to give the insurance industry so much control over our children's lives?"
Posted on 1/22/2012 4:02:24 PM
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In a study of twins, lower birth weight more than tripled the risk for autism spectrum disorder in identical pairs, in which one twin had symptoms of the disorder and the other did not.
Posted on 1/20/2012 7:04:09 PM
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Children with low levels of vitamin D are more likely to suffer from depression, claim scientists.
Those with the highest levels of the ‘sunshine vitamin’ have a 10 per cent lower risk of developing the mental health problem.
Posted on 1/20/2012 12:33:44 PM
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Proposed changes in the definition of autism would sharply reduce the skyrocketing rate at which the disorder is diagnosed and may make it harder for many people who would no longer meet the criteria to get health, educational and social services, a new analysis suggests.
Posted on 1/20/2012 5:47:49 AM
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Learning as an adult that I fit the Asperger's profile might have been shocking or unsettling. But it wasn't. It was cathartic and eye-opening. I had always understood that I was different, and I had always felt that I was struggling with things that didn't seem to be a challenge for other people, but I never knew why. With my diagnosis, I was given insight into how I work. I felt empowered and full of hope, which is a great feeling for anyone with such silly-looking thumbs.
Posted on 1/19/2012 7:21:21 PM
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Moshe Weitzberg, director of operations, said Aspiritech has 14 employees, including his 32-year-old son, who has Asperger’s syndrome. His workers have the ability to focus and spot irregularities that other people would miss. They also deal with challenges related to their autism — some do not like noise or bright lights and many have anxiety issues. Aspiritech has an autism specialist who provides support that extends beyond the workplace.
Posted on 1/17/2012 3:58:49 PM
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"There's some indication that in older children and adults with autism, they don't pay the same degree of attention to people as they do to the objects and things in the background," said Mark Strauss, Ph.D., a psychologist.
Scientists also look to see which side of an adult's face babies focus on. Human brains are wired to look to the right. Studies have shown adults with autism don't favor a side.
Posted on 1/17/2012 3:57:38 PM
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Smoking during pregnancy is not directly linked to autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children, according to a large population-based study in Sweden.
Posted on 1/15/2012 5:20:42 PM
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TUESDAY, Jan. 10 (HealthDay News) -- Children with autism have bacteria in their gut that is different from the bacteria seen in kids who do not have the disorder, researchers have found.
Posted on 1/11/2012 5:54:55 AM
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It had been 12 years and never a lie, not one. How many parents can say that about their child? As Dr. House (from the TV show) would say, “Everybody lies.” Autistic children were at one time thought incapable of such stealth and critical thought. I found that was not the truth. Sometimes it takes a bit longer to learn how, but everybody lies - even those with autism. It took 12 years before I actually caught my autistic son, Matt, in a lie.
Posted on 1/8/2012 3:39:34 PM
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Sex is a bit tricky for an undiagnosed autistic with sensory issues. I complained the whole time. “That feels weird … Your perfume is making me woozy … I can’t concentrate—the cat downstairs is eating too loud!” Eventually I gave up, crawled out of bed, and went to make a grilled cheese sandwich. My girlfriend broke up with me before the cheese had time to melt. I could not understand why she was upset. What did I do wrong this time? The whole evening was baffling. The grilled cheese was good though!
Posted on 1/6/2012 8:03:10 AM
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Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism a one-stop resource for carefully curated, evidence-based information from autism parents, autistics, and autism professionals.
The book has only been out for a few weeks and already been declared Book of the Year by Steve Silberman, senior writer for Wired magazine and autism/neurodiversity blogger for the Public Library of Science.
Posted on 1/5/2012 3:18:32 PM
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Researchers document improvements for children with autism
Posted on 1/5/2012 12:10:10 PM
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Mothers of adolescents and adults with autism experience chronic stress comparable to combat soldiers and struggle with frequent fatigue and work interruptions, new research finds. These moms also spend significantly more time caregiving than moms of those without disabilities.
Posted on 1/5/2012 6:11:11 AM
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The school, which has the capacity for 40 students at each location, educates students via a digital learning platform in which each student has an individual laptop. That allows each student to learn at his or her own pace and level. With a 1-to-5 teacher-to-student ratio, teachers are free to give students one-on-one attention when they need it, Black said. When a student finishes with a lesson, regardless of how quickly he does so, the teacher feeds him another lesson.
Posted on 1/4/2012 12:22:35 PM
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In the United States, we've seen a fifteen-fold increase in autism diagnoses over the past two decades. In fact, it's currently estimated that almost 1% of US children have an autism-spectrum disorder (ASD), while the rates in US adults are largely unknown.
Posted on 12/28/2011 11:04:53 AM
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She was the only girl to have ever asked questions about his obsessive interests — chemistry, libertarian politics, the small drone aircraft he was building in his kitchen — as though she actually cared to hear his answer. To Jack, who has a form of autism called Asperger syndrome, her mind was uncannily like his. She was also, he thought, beautiful.
Posted on 12/28/2011 7:52:33 AM
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Psychologists who have worked inside the system describe a culture in which the drugs are used to control the disruptive behavior of the developmentally disabled — people with conditions like autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy — an approach increasingly discredited in the field.
Posted on 12/28/2011 7:16:04 AM
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He starts with a few mellow "Ho, Ho, Ho" greetings, watches for those who are intrigued, and smiles or beckons to them to come closer. Many steer clear but watch him, either curiously or warily, while others remain disinterested.
"You'll see them watch Santa out of the corner of their eye, then little by little they'll come closer, then walk away as if you're not there, and come back in a bit," Lepak said.
"It's really about following their lead and communicating on their terms."
Posted on 12/22/2011 2:52:01 PM
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Holidays are often filled with stress. It takes work to make a beautiful and fun holiday for yourself and those around you. There is a lot of pressure to make the holidays perfect and fun, and to enjoy yourself while you're doing it. This is a tall order in any situation, but when you add to that the stress of having a child with special needs for whom you also want the holidays to be perfect and fun, it can become more overwhelming than ever.
Posted on 12/19/2011 7:06:01 AM
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SOME OF THE finest minds in history, had they lived today, would have been diagnosed as having an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Posted on 12/13/2011 3:04:27 PM
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Being armed with information about Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) helps families feel more comfortable as they face new challenges. Some families need to know where to start when one member of the family has been recently diagnosed. Other families face unexpected difficulties as their loved ones with ASD learn to live effectively in home, school, or community settings. We are dedicated to supporting families by making information and resources more readily available.
Posted on 12/13/2011 7:23:37 AM
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Watching a video, toddlers with autism reacted to action, not emotional content
Posted on 12/13/2011 6:14:12 AM
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Recognizing the tension between honor and duty, Cox resolved to share a hard-earned lesson: It is critical to take care of yourself when you take care of others. So she produced a film entitled “Note to Self” (www.mollyspeaks.com), drawing upon her own experiences and those of other experts.
Posted on 12/10/2011 11:39:04 AM
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The Phony-Genius-Sellout-Spy
Diagnosed just a few months ago, 25-year old John Scott Holman has made a big splash in the autistic community. Likening himself to “a bull in a china closet,” he says, “I’ve broken rules and precedents, been labeled a traitor, the autistic messiah, the autistic anti-Christ, a Nazi sympathizer, a phony, a genius, a spy, a sell-out, a has-been, a rising star… At the end of the day, I’m just an autistic kid who does a bit of writing.” Holman talked about going undiagnosed (and misdiagnosed) through his youth, and, now being deeply involved in the self-advocacy community, the divides he sees within it.
Posted on 12/9/2011 10:57:05 AM
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Since photosensitive epilepsies can be triggered by flickering lights, the self-stimulatory behavior of ASD children, such as hand flapping in front of the face, has the potential to dramatically increase the risk of inducing photosensitive seizures.
Posted on 12/8/2011 4:23:08 PM
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Researchers have found an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder and childhood autism in children born of mothers who are exposed to the anticonvulsant valproate during pregnancy, according to a study presented Monday.
Posted on 12/6/2011 2:21:51 PM
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Barrett says the key to preparing for the inevitable changes that come with the holidays is to provide the child with early cues of what will be taking place. For some, this might require depicting with words or pictures exactly what will and will not occur at each event.
Posted on 12/6/2011 7:14:14 AM
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The antidepressant Prozac may alleviate repetitive behavior and obsessive-compulsive symptoms in adults with autism, reducing these defining symptoms of the disorder, according to new research.
Posted on 12/6/2011 7:13:07 AM
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Imaging of patients with a rare condition associated with autism reveals altered nerve-fiber pathways
Posted on 12/6/2011 7:12:11 AM
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A famous saying indicates the eyes to be the portals of the soul, while a recent study shows the skin to be a useful portal to understanding the brain.
The journal Nature Medicine released a study this week in which they manipulated patients' skin cells into neurons in order to uncover what exactly goes wrong in the brain's exhibiting autistic symptoms.
Posted on 12/3/2011 6:38:55 AM
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The hidden potential of autistic people seems to fall in common areas—tasks that involve pattern recognition, logical reasoning and picking out irregularities in data or arguments. Soulieres describes working with an autistic woman in her lab who can pick out the slightest flaws in logic. "At first, we argue with her," Soulieres laughs, "but almost each time, she's right, and we're wrong."
Recognizing these talents, rather than pushing them aside to focus on the drawbacks of autism, could benefit not just autistic people, but everyone else as well. Mottron chronicles how much better his science got by working with his autistic lab partner. I got far higher marks on my homework than I would have without Alex, even though his corrections were sometimes infuriating. And many think their potential extends beyond science to all professions, if given the right chances.
Posted on 11/30/2011 3:09:31 PM
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"The general concept is that appropriate brain function occurs within a very narrow physiological range that is tightly maintained. If you exceed that range in either direction, you have an impairment that can manifest as this constellation of symptoms, which very frequently go together - autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability and epilepsy."
Posted on 11/29/2011 5:51:37 AM
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A number of recent studies have found a link between brain size and autism, confirming suspicions long held by many autism experts that the disorder is linked to neurological growth and development. But the authors of this latest study, David G. Amaral and Christine Wu Nordahl, say their findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, indicate that the causes of autism may vary among children with different types of the disorder.
Posted on 11/29/2011 5:50:00 AM
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Prof Baron-Cohen’s theory is certainly plausible.
Some of the sharpest increases in autism diagnoses have been found in Silicon Valley, in California – home to perhaps the largest population of successful systemisers on Earth, the tens of thousands of technicians, engineers and programmers who work in the computer industry. Inevitably, many of these people marry each other (there are now plenty of women working in IT, not the case a generation ago) and this is good (although circumstantial) evidence of the systemising-autism link.
But what about other places? Why the rise in autism just about everywhere? One answer could be the changing role of women in general seen in the last 100 years.
Posted on 11/22/2011 3:42:17 PM
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Casanova says in the early 90's, the FDA deregulated ultrasound, allowing seven to eight times more energy to be used in the scans. It's partly because as people got heavier, more energy was needed to produce a quality picture. He says since then, the number of ultrasounds per patient and the number of cases of autism have been climbing.
He says, "I would say ultrasound, just like sound, is an energy wave and it deforms cells -- cells that are especially affected within the brain are the ones that provide for the formation of the cortex, so cortex is not formed correctly. That's what we see in autism, that's what we see in ultrasound."
Posted on 11/22/2011 3:16:00 PM
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The small study found that boys with autism had an average of 67% more brain cells called neurons in the prefrontal cortex region of their brains, when compared with children who did not have autism.
Located in the front of the brain beneath the forehead, the prefrontal cortex is responsible for "higher order" functions such as problem solving, emotions, and complex thought. These are some of the processes that are impaired in autism.
Posted on 11/9/2011 4:58:29 AM
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(Reuters Health) - An autism diagnosis means different things depending on who is doing the diagnosing, suggests a new study.
Posted on 11/8/2011 11:22:07 AM
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"Recent data and my own personal experience suggest it's time to start thinking of autism as an advantage in some spheres, not a cross to bear," author Laurent Mottron, MD, PhD, from the University of Montreal's Centre for Excellence in Pervasive Development Disorders, told Medscape Medical News.
Posted on 11/8/2011 10:44:50 AM
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Many people with autism have qualities and abilities that may exceed those of people who do not have the condition, Canadian researchers say.
Posted on 11/6/2011 3:26:08 PM
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It is becoming more evident that vaccinated children are not healthier than their unvaccinated peers, despite what the public health agencies are telling everyone. What is not clear is all the reasons why vaccinated children appear to be sicker. Although this survey does not establish cause and effect between vaccination and chronic illness, it does raise serious questions about the association.
Posted on 11/6/2011 3:24:06 PM
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People with autism often have exceptional memories, and can remember information they read weeks ago. They are also less likely to misremember something, which comes in handy in a science lab. Dawson can instantly recall the methods used to study face-perception in autism, Mottron said.
Recent research has shown people with autism often outperform others in auditory and visual tasks, and also do better on non-verbal tests of intelligence. In one study by Mottron, on a test that involved completing a visual pattern, people with autism finished 40 percent faster than those without the condition.
In fact, intellectual disability may be over-estimated among people with autism, because researchers use inappropriate tests, Mottron said. "In measuring the intelligence of a person with a hearing impairment, we wouldn't hesitate to eliminate components of the test that can’t be explained using sign language; why shouldn’t we do the same for autistics?" Mottron said.
"I no longer believe that intellectual disability is intrinsic to autism," Mottron said. "To estimate the true rate, scientists should use only those tests that require no verbal explanation."
Posted on 11/2/2011 6:24:56 PM
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Genes involved in autism, schizophrenia may be activated in womb
Posted on 10/28/2011 6:53:46 AM
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People with disabilities are doing worse now than they were at the height of the unemployment crisis brought on by the Great Recession.
Posted on 10/28/2011 6:53:12 AM
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Established as a non-profit in 2007, Erik’s Ranch and Retreats is designed as a self-sustaining, destination-location model Nordberg hopes will be replicated worldwide (www.eriksranch.org). The vision is for two upscale properties featuring private apartments for adults with ASD and guest rooms for visitors and volunteers. Tapping into the growing “voluntourism” trend, residents will have the opportunity to earn money while they develop passions and skills by working with guests and volunteers who make a donation to stay on the property and commit to spending time with the residents.
Posted on 10/28/2011 6:48:12 AM
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According to a fact sheet compiled by Standifer based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and other sources, less than one-third of people with a disability aged 16 to 65 were working in 2010, compared with about two-thirds of people without a disability. And people with autism were only about half as likely to be working as people with disabilities in general (33 percent compared with 59 percent).
Posted on 10/28/2011 6:46:37 AM
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NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 2011 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Following a competitive bidding process earlier this year, the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) has awarded educational technology company Rethink Autism a contract to provide its Web-based educational intervention platform to students identified with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.
DoDEA serves the educational needs of the dependents of military and civilian employees by providing PreK-12 instruction to approximately 87,000 students in seven states, twelve foreign countries, Guam, and Puerto Rico. The number of students varies based on the deployment of military troops worldwide. DoDEA's curriculum, resources, and student achievement scores on standardized assessments compare favorably to high-performing U.S. public schools.
Posted on 10/27/2011 4:33:35 PM
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A new study shows that immature rats given a common antidepressant can exhibit brain abnormalities and behaviors characteristic of autism spectrum disorders.
Researchers believe the findings suggest that taking a certain class of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during pregnancy may be a factor in the rise in childhood developmental disorders.
Posted on 10/26/2011 3:58:32 PM
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Searching for the cause of their coughs, she examined the passages that take air to the lungs by placing a tiny camera down their windpipes, a procedure known as bronchoscopy. In looking at the lungs in this way, she noticed that several patients had divisions in some of their airways, creating double passages, which she calls "doublets."
Then she noticed that these patients all had something else in common: "Every single one has autism, or autism spectrum disorder," she says.
Posted on 10/26/2011 3:57:42 PM
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“The first thing parents can do is talk to their children about fire safety,” says Melanie DuBard, Ph.D., BCBA-D, Vice President of Clinical and Educational Services for May Institute. “Be sure your child understands what fire is and why it is dangerous. You may want to create a special story or booklet that you can use to help explain your family’s safety rules about the stove, the fireplace, and candles. Be sure to include all family members when you are creating and practicing your emergency escape-from-the-house plan, and have an agreed-upon place outside of the home where you will meet.”
Posted on 10/25/2011 7:41:01 AM
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Might autistic individuals have distinctive facial features, as those with Down Syndrome and fetal alcohol syndrome do? A new study comparing facial data from 64 autistic boys aged 8 – 12 with 41 who are not on the spectrum found these characteristics:
a broader upper face, including wider eyes
a shorter middle region of the face, including the cheeks and nose
a broader or wider mouth and philtrum (the part of the face divot below the nose and above the top lip).
Posted on 10/25/2011 7:35:58 AM
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A program in the morning for mainly 16- and 17-year-olds focuses on life skills. They have chores that include preparing snacks, taking out the trash, answering the phone and putting dishes away.
For birthdays, the student having the birthday picks a meal the other students make, such as lasagna, meatloaf or chicken tenders and fries. The students have to create lists and go to the grocery store to buy ingredients, where they compare prices and later do price calculations.
For students who are in their third year of the program or who will be graduating, the focus turns to work. On one recent day, teacher Joan Murphy was helping students memorize their social security numbers - a bit of information they will need when they start filling out job applications.
Posted on 10/25/2011 7:34:08 AM
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Researcher noticed difference in lung structure of children with autism spectrum disorder
Posted on 10/25/2011 7:31:21 AM
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Autistic people whose condition prevents them from speaking are making breakthroughs with the help of tablet computers and special applications that allow them to communicate, some for the first time. Watch Lesley Stahl's Minutes" report on Sunday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
Posted on 10/20/2011 5:45:49 PM
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Study is the first to establish a link between low birth weight and autism
Posted on 10/20/2011 7:06:27 AM
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People with anxiety and autism can learn to slowly become exposed to what they fear, just like those with generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, or obsessive compulsive disorder. They need a large dose of cognitive behavior therapy given by a patient, understanding therapist.
Posted on 10/13/2011 5:10:56 PM
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For scores of people with autism, the iPad has changed a lot that is fundamental. Autism parents came out in droves after news of Jobs' death broke last week to tell stories of how much Apple technology created under his leadership has changed the lives of their children.
The iPad in particular is revolutionary for many kids with autism. Its size and form are large enough for people with motor problems to navigate, yet it is still sleek and hip enough for children to use without standing out as obviously different.
Posted on 10/13/2011 4:55:13 AM
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Health insurance plans will be required to provide coverage for children with autism or other developmental disorders under a bill signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown on Sunday, making California the 28th state to mandate coverage.
Posted on 10/10/2011 12:49:08 PM
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Descriptors like “visionary,” “game-changer” and “innovative” are commonplace in all the tributes being written and posted about Apple guru Steve Jobs. For me personally, the word I choose to describe Steve Job’s life’s work, in relation to me and my family, is possibility. Glorious, wondrous, hopeful possibility.
Posted on 10/9/2011 6:29:49 PM
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In true fashion, Steve Jobs not only showed us how to 'think different' - but also showed us how children with Autism 'think different' as well.
If you have a child with Autism, or even an iPad, just know that Steve Jobs determination has given a voice to those who were unable to speak.
Posted on 10/9/2011 6:28:47 PM
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These frail and fragile bodies don’t always work the way we want them to. Steve Jobs understood that. Steve Jobs succumbed to that. But he also left us things that make that easier, that let us touch people we might not otherwise. That will always touch me.
Posted on 10/7/2011 11:17:57 AM
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Boys with autism also have increased height and weight compared with typically developing controls.
Posted on 10/6/2011 12:27:55 PM
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Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) researchers have developed a mouse model of autism that exhibits many of the symptoms seen in humans with the disorder. The scientists believe the mice will prove critical in pinpointing the genetic basis of autism and for elucidating how these alterations affect the brain. The research might also lead to new ways to diagnose children with autism before they develop the full-blown syndrome as well as to design clinical interventions.
Posted on 10/4/2011 4:06:45 PM
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Researchers discovered Asperger’s individuals’ scores are much higher when they are evaluated by a test called Raven’s Progressive Matrices, which encompasses reasoning, novel problem-solving abilities, and high-level abstraction.
By comparison, scores for non-Asperger’s individuals are much more consistent across different tests. Interestingly, Asperger participants’ performance on Raven’s Matrices was associated with their strongest peaks of performance on the traditional Wechsler.
Posted on 10/3/2011 3:52:17 PM
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The reauthorization Obama signed calls for $231 million annually through 2014 to fund everything from autism research to prevalence tracking, education, early identification and intervention programs.
Posted on 10/3/2011 2:44:14 PM
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About 25,000 people in Pennsylvania are living with autism diagnoses, 3,825 of them adults, state records show. By 2015, the number of autistic adults is expected to increase to 10,140, according to an audit by the University of Pennsylvania for the state Bureau of Autism Services.
Posted on 10/3/2011 2:43:32 PM
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Parents Who Try Special Diets for Autism Should Be Supported, Even Though Evidence Conflicting, Experts say.
Posted on 9/30/2011 6:41:10 PM
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Several years ago, Jimmy’s in-home teacher and her artist friend stumbled upon a life-changing discovery: The young man with limited verbal skills has a talent for drawing and painting. Now 18 and in stable health, Jimmy spends his days working with paintbrushes and colored pencils. Embracing an opportunity to leverage his interest, Jimmy’s parents wove his passion into his educational curriculum. He visits museums; reads art books; and takes art classes. He names his paintings and writes about them.
Posted on 9/30/2011 6:39:24 PM
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Well, it's been about five and a half years. When I started on this site, my son was just a little guy. At that time, I wanted to know all about autism spectrum disorders. And over the years, I have learned! The wealth of information I collected - all I ever wanted to know, and more! - will still be here, on these web pages, for a while to come. That's because any site guide starting out today to cover topics in autism would have to start almost from scratch in just a year and a half, when the new diagnostic manual is published. At that time, much of what I've written about - Asperger syndrome, PDD-NOS, speech issues related to autism and more - will simply be... obsolete.
Posted on 9/28/2011 5:11:49 PM
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The U.S. Senate approved an extension of the country’s primary autism legislation late Monday night after a group of Republicans agreed to lift a hold on the bill.
The reauthorization of the Combating Autism Act now heads to President Barack Obama’s desk.
Posted on 9/28/2011 11:41:52 AM
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"If a child has autism from birth, many times it's because the child inherited an infection from the mother. I do think that Lyme disease, especially congenital Lyme is a cause of autism ," autism specialist Dr. Lynn Mielke told FOX40. "I have had patients in my practice with autism, who when we treated their Lyme disease, their autism improved so much that they were no longer autistic,” Mielke said.
Posted on 9/27/2011 4:04:16 PM
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Congress is sending President Barack Obama a bill to keep the government’s autism research program going. Though the legislation had broad support, it almost didn’t make it out of the Senate.
Posted on 9/27/2011 4:02:27 PM
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But it means more than that for me. When I talk about Jonah, everyone asks, “What is he going to do when he grows up?” And, honestly, I don’t know. He still has five more years of school — he started public high school this year! — and I will not let anyone decide for him what he is capable of, and certainly not when he’s still a teenager. But I dream of a world where people see him on the street and don’t edge away, where society is more accepting of those whose brains are, well, atypical. I don’t know if society will ever find a productive role for lower functioning autistic people. But a society whose citizens put in the bit of effort required to understand the individual autistic people they encounter? That is something we can work toward.
Posted on 9/21/2011 4:27:56 PM
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This is the unusual workforce of a U.S. startup that specializes in finding software bugs by harnessing the talents of young adults with autism.
Traits that make great software testers — intense focus, comfort with repetition, memory for detail — also happen to be characteristics of autism. People with Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism, have normal to high intelligence and often are highly skilled with computers.
Posted on 9/21/2011 4:25:58 PM
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Hewlett-Packard is teaming up with a pair of autism organizations to develop apps to help people with the disorder handle everything from scheduling and communication to bullying.
Posted on 9/21/2011 11:24:22 AM
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Families with autistic children are being given an opportunity to be themselves while taking in a movie at the Mall of America.
Debuting Saturday, the mall in Bloomington will offer a sensory-friendly movie experience. Adjustments include turning down the sound and leaving the lights up.
Also, audience members are welcome to dance, sing and walk around as they wish "without judgment or scrutiny," the mall announced Monday.
Posted on 9/20/2011 9:34:12 AM
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Sometimes I wonder if there is a fine line between autism and certain kinds of genius. Or artistry. Think about it: Anyone who excels at something has to have spent countless hours each day perfecting their craft, art or gift. For instance, if the mother of a young, would-be juggler were to say, "It's inappropriate to toss little balls up and down," no one would ever have the joy of watching an accomplished juggler. Or, think of scientists who spend hours in their laboratories developing cures for all sorts of ills.
Posted on 9/20/2011 6:46:00 AM
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Distinguishing themselves as the leaders in the field of web-based autism treatment, Rethink Autism has been honored in 2011 by a wide range of education, technology and business organizations, including the Arizona State University Education Innovation Summit, the Software & Information Industry Association, the Interactive Media Awards, the American Business Association and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Posted on 9/19/2011 3:54:55 PM
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Detailed, computerized analyses of MRI scans showed a pattern of organization, especially in regions of the brain dedicated to communication and self-awareness, that was particular to children with autism, according to the new research, which was published online in the journal Biological Psychiatry.
Posted on 9/19/2011 3:53:51 PM
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With some 200,000 autistic teenagers set to come of age in the United States over the next five years alone, little is known about their ability to participate fully in public life, or what it would take to accommodate them. Across the country, neighbors, employers, colleagues and strangers are warily interacting with young adults whose neurological condition many associate only with children.
Posted on 9/19/2011 12:22:45 PM
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Upcoming screenings
Sept 20: Space Gallery, Portland, ME
Sept 27: IFC Center, New York, NY
Sept 29-30: Oklahoma City Museum of Art, Oklahoma City, OK
Sept 30: Center for Documentary Studies, Durham, NC
TBD: Columbia College, Chicago, IL
TBD: Austin Film Society,Austin, TX
Posted on 9/19/2011 7:01:24 AM
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MONTCLAIR, N.J. — For weeks, Justin Canha, a high school student with autism, a love of cartoons and a gift for drawing, had rehearsed for the job interview at a local animation studio.
Posted on 9/19/2011 5:16:44 AM
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A new study found no association between how much Utah families earn and their children’s risk of being diagnosed with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorders.
Posted on 9/18/2011 10:21:06 AM
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"The findings are consistent with other research suggesting that autism may be a system-wide disorder, and provide insight into why changes in diet or the use of antibiotics may help alleviate symptoms in some children," added Mady Hornig, MD, Director of Translational Research at the Center for Infection and Immunity.
Posted on 9/16/2011 6:11:52 PM
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The discoveries are similar to those of the first biological subtypes of cancer in the 1960s, which provided access to a better understanding of causes and effective treatments, cure and prevention, in addition to huge changes in public health polices, such as bans on smoking and asbestos. Over 200 biological subtypes of cancer have since been identified, such as breast cancer, lung cancer, skin cancer, colorectal cancer and prostate cancer. Like cancer, genetics, the immune system and the environment are believed to be factors in causes of autism.
Posted on 9/14/2011 3:51:24 PM
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The mouse exhibits not only the repetitive physical behaviors, altered social behaviors, and impaired communication abilities associated with Timothy Syndrome (TS), a severe and rare form of autism, but also mirrors behaviors linked to autism spectrum disorder in general, a surprising and encouraging findings, researchers say.
Posted on 9/13/2011 8:31:21 PM
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The risk of autism doubled in the children of women who used SSRI antidepressants before getting pregnant and jumped four-fold if they were taken during the first trimester of pregnancy, according to researchers who studied mother-child pairs in Northern California.
Posted on 9/13/2011 8:30:28 PM
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Last month Zakari, 10, of Aurora began using the DynaVox Maestro, a hand-held communication device, recommended by speech and language pathologist Laura Czerwinski. In a short time, Zakari is learning to communicate using the device’s buttons to formulate words and sentences.
Posted on 9/13/2011 8:29:44 PM
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Levels of pesticides commonly encountered across the country in food as well as around the home are significantly increasing children's risk of developing attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and could be causing an increase in the number of children living with the condition, according to new research published in the journal Pediatrics.
"It's mainly exposure through food. Diet is the driver," says pediatrician and public health expert Phil Landrigan, MD, professor and chair of the department of community and preventive medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. "For most people, diet is the predominant source. It's been shown that people who switch to an organic diet knock down the levels of pesticide by-products in their urine by 85 to 90 percent."
Posted on 9/13/2011 11:39:40 AM
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Health insurance plans would be required to provide coverage for children with autism or other developmental disorders under a bill sent to Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday.
Posted on 9/12/2011 12:17:03 PM
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A school in Eagan which opened this week claims it can help children with autism in ways no other school in the country can.
Posted on 9/11/2011 5:08:12 PM
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In Infectious Behavior, neurobiologist Paul Patterson examines the involvement of the immune system in autism, schizophrenia, and major depressive disorder. Although genetic approaches to these diseases have garnered the lion’s share of publicity and funding, scientists are uncovering evidence of the important avenues of communication between the brain and the immune system and their involvement in mental illness. Patterson focuses on this brain-immune crosstalk, exploring the possibility that it may help us understand the causes of these common but still mysterious diseases. The heart of this engaging book, accessible to nonscientists, concerns the involvement of the immune systems of the pregnant woman and her fetus, and a consideration of maternal infection as a risk factor for schizophrenia and autism. Patterson reports on research that may shed light on today’s autism epidemic. He also outlines the risks and benefits of both maternal and postnatal vaccinations.
Posted on 9/9/2011 6:43:54 AM
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One group of children -- all boys -- had enlarged brains and most had regressed into autism after 18 months of age; another group appeared to have immune systems that were not functioning properly.
Psychiatry professor David Amaral, who led the MIND Institute's longitudinal study, said the findings could lead to more individualized treatment. "The ultimate goal is when a child comes into the clinic, rather than saying you just have autism, to be able to say you have autism type A, or type B, or type C," Amaral said.
Posted on 9/9/2011 5:40:13 AM
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STANFORD -- The brains of autistic children have a distinctive topography that a team of Stanford scientists was able to capture using new imaging techniques, with the hope of someday creating a template for the autistic brain that could be used to diagnose kids at a very early age.
Posted on 9/3/2011 7:20:11 PM
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McGill doctor explores possible tie; But disorder's connection to assisted reproduction is far from clear: specialists
Posted on 8/31/2011 12:12:40 PM
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Children of older fathers are more likely to be diagnosed with autism, schizophrenia and a number of other neuropsychiatric or developmental disorders, and a new study reveals why this may be.
Posted on 8/30/2011 3:55:37 PM
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Be Wise, Be Aware, but Don’t Worry
Posted on 8/29/2011 4:08:27 PM
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They are amused by his presence, but also inspired. Young Noah, meanwhile, is content, though a little nervous to be taking part in a workshop usually reserved for medical students, not for precocious eighth-graders.
He is here because he was invited, because the director of the summer program at the Indiana University Northwest medical school saw something in this young man – perhaps a bit of the boy he himself once was, a kid who also liked reading and studying more than sports.
Posted on 8/29/2011 12:22:58 PM
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For some students with autism, the idea of operating in the social environment of a college classroom can be so debilitating as to derail the pursuit of higher education at all. For those who do enroll, their condition can make it difficult to succeed in a traditional classroom setting.
But Dana Reinecke, in the department of applied behavior analysis at the Sage Colleges in Albany, N.Y., said she realized that through online learning, students with autism can overcome those barriers. “It allows them to learn from their most comfortable environment, whether it’s home, a library, a friend’s house, a treatment center, their psychiatrist’s office," she said. "It takes away that need to be in a room full of people that they might be uncomfortable with.”
Posted on 8/29/2011 8:29:02 AM
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Now in his third year of community college, Griffin tells professors about his challenges the first day of the term. Most are patient and will repeat instructions for him, he said. But a few professors are slower to reconcile Griffin's brilliance on paper with his "stupid questions" about procedure.
Posted on 8/29/2011 8:28:19 AM
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The number of diagnosed cases of autism is exploding. Children with autism will grow into adults and society is nowhere near ready to support them. In order to prepare for that eventuality, current adults on the autism spectrum need to be studied, but researchers are having a hard time finding them.
Posted on 8/28/2011 12:40:58 PM
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“The M.M.R. vaccine doesn’t cause autism, and the evidence is overwhelming that it doesn’t,” Dr. Ellen Wright Clayton, the chairwoman of the panel, assembled by the Institute of Medicine, said in an interview. She was referring to a combination against measles, mumps and rubella that has long been a focus of concern from some parents’ groups.
Posted on 8/25/2011 6:49:23 PM
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Children will directly interact with the game using both a keyboard and a mouse, while a webcam will capture their facial expressions. An expression analysis component will simultaneously track the facial movements captured by the webcam and analyze the expressions.
Based on the results of this analysis, a virtual character synthesis process will create an avatar, so that the child can see his or her facial expressions reflected on the avatar.
The results of the expression analysis can also be directly rendered to the interface component, so that the child can tell whether he or she is correctly mimicking the virtual avatar’s facial expressions and whether he or she is making a proper facial expression to match a particular social scenario.
Posted on 8/25/2011 6:48:43 PM
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A 4-year-old boy from Maple Grove has won his legal battle to force the state of Minnesota to cover his family's expenses for an intensive form of autism treatment known as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).
But the ruling stops short of requiring the state to routinely cover the treatment, which can cost up to $100,000 a year.
The case has drawn scrutiny from Washington, D.C., to St. Paul because of questions about whether taxpayers should be paying for the treatment.
Posted on 8/18/2011 3:50:14 PM
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NEW YORK -- Families of autistic children have a new place to engage their sons and daughters – Broadway.
The Theatre Development Fund, a nonprofit organization focused on providing access to live theater, announced Wednesday it will present an autism friendly performance of "The Lion King."
Posted on 8/18/2011 6:11:34 AM
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These students "take things very literally, so they need specifics and examples," Martinelli said. "We encourage communication to be done by email. That can be helpful because they get specific information and they can go back and read it again. It can also be easier for them to compose an email than to speak face to face."
Posted on 8/17/2011 4:00:07 PM
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A range of touchscreen devices are helping special needs children communicate. New applications that extend therapies are emerging. A hackathon this fall will bring together autism experts and programmers to develop effective new applications.
Posted on 8/15/2011 5:04:18 PM
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Researchers say there is a 19% chance that a child will have autism if he or she has an older sibling with autism. Older studies had put the risk of recurrence at 3% to 10%.
Posted on 8/15/2011 5:02:54 PM
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CHICAGO — A new study suggests nearly one in five children with an autistic older sibling will develop the disorder too — a rate much higher than previously thought.
Researchers followed 664 infants who had at least one older brother or sister with autism. Overall, 132 infants or about 19 percent ended up with an autism diagnosis, too, by their third birthdays. Previous smaller or less diverse studies reported a prevalence of between 3 percent and 14 percent.
Posted on 8/15/2011 5:19:18 AM
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“When I suspected that my husband had Asperger’s I started to write a journal of what was happening and how I was dealing with the loneliness, meltdowns and misunderstandings,” Louise says.
“I learned through this that letting go of expectations and maintaining my energy are vital keys, I learned to look after myself as a priority before I could even think of understanding or connecting with my husband.”
Posted on 8/15/2011 5:17:52 AM
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The risk of autism is mildly increased in women who experience an intra-amniotic infection during labor, according to a study reported at the annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society for Obstetrics and Gynecology. A separate study, also reported at the meeting, found no such link, however.
Posted on 8/15/2011 5:13:41 AM
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Researchers from Australia have identified an ancestry of Pink Disease (Infantile Acrodynia) as a risk factor for Autism Spectrum Disorders. Pink disease was common in the first half of the 20th century as a mysterious illness affecting children between the ages of eighteen months and three and a half years. The disorder presented with apathy, irritability, and progressive loss of speech, symptoms very similar to those exhibited by children with autism. Nearly fifty years passed before a connection was made between the disease and exposure to mercury in teething powder, worm medications and diaper rinses. The disease developed in approximately 1 in 500 children exposed to the products and experts identified idiosyncratic sensitivity to mercury as the key risk factor.
Posted on 8/10/2011 5:19:39 AM
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“Key Components of an Effective School-Based Autism Program” identified seven important steps that researchers and practitioners agree are necessary to provide effectual support for autistic students:
Individualized assessment
Functional curriculum
Research-based teaching
Low staffing ratios
Family involvement
Data tracking
Training and supervision
Posted on 8/9/2011 11:31:59 AM
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This new twin study supported the importance of genetics, but also the role of environmental exposures — and that is part of a general shift in how autism is being discussed.
Posted on 8/8/2011 3:53:40 PM
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I'm a well seasoned autism mom and am often asked questions about autism. Since autism spectrum disorders are complex, I still stumble over my answers, so have recently turned to a clarifying source: individuals who are on the autism spectrum.
Posted on 8/7/2011 3:56:49 PM
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More recently, Bishop said: "Your speculations have wandered on to my turf and it's starting to get irritating. You mention the rise in autism as evidence for your concerns about the impact of the internet on children's brains... You may not realise just how much illogical garbage and ill-formed speculation parents of these children are exposed to. Over the years they've been told their children's problems are caused by [a] cold style of interaction, inoculations, dental amalgams, faulty diets, allergies, drinking in pregnancy – the list is endless."
Posted on 8/7/2011 7:14:19 AM
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Impaired Communication Between Brain Areas Further Supports Neuroscientist Marcel Just's Theory That Frontal-Posterior Underconnectivity Causes Autism and Disrupts Concept of "Self"
Posted on 8/1/2011 3:52:45 PM
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The findings provide evidence for the theory that autism and brain disorders such as schizophrenia, where social behavior breaks down, may be caused by brain circuits oversensitive to stimulation, the researchers said.
Posted on 7/28/2011 4:42:48 AM
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Social worker and author John Merges joins Marti and Erin with practical examples of ways to help children with ASD be more successful – and have more fun – in social interactions with peers and adults, paving the way for easier, happier experiences in school and, eventually, at work.
Posted on 7/27/2011 5:00:57 AM
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The researchers initially compared the brains of autistic children to children with no family history of autism and found those with autism displayed reduced brain activity in regions involved in responding to other people's emotions. This is not a new finding – a known feature of autism is a difficulty in detecting emotional signals such as body language and facial expressions. However, when the researchers went on to look at the unaffected siblings of the children with autism, they found a very similar pattern of reduced activity in the same brain regions.
Posted on 7/26/2011 9:11:15 AM
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Autism rates among children have jumped significantly since 1994; what are the factors behind this so-called epidemic?
Posted on 7/24/2011 7:33:52 AM
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They have imposed requirements that can't possibly be met. They have defined the education and certification level of qualified providers at an impossible standard, beyond what is customary in this state. The mythical providers of the therapy they have approved are as rare as unicorns.
Posted on 7/21/2011 12:46:32 PM
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Many people with Asperger's -- including the creator of this video -- have gone their entire lives without being diagnosed or understanding what Asperger's Syndrome is. This simple video presents a few questions to determine whether further screening for Asperger's is appropriate for you or someone you love.
Posted on 7/20/2011 3:34:09 PM
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Australian researchers predict that girls with autistic-like traits will likely experience their first menstrual periods later than other girls. New query.
Posted on 7/19/2011 4:45:21 PM
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Autism spectrum disorders now affect 1% of the population of the developed world, with 40 out of 10,000 children afflicted by classic autism, and the number keeps rising. Until recently scientists suspected that as much as 90% of autism cases could be explained by genetic factors. But a new study of 192 pairs of twins published in the Archives of General Psychiatry suggests that environmental exposure to some pesticides, medications, or infections, particularly in the womb, may be at least as important as genes in some cases.
Posted on 7/19/2011 4:37:59 PM
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Under the best circumstances, traveling is stressful, but it is particularly hard on people who have a condition like autism. New experiences and changes to routine are very challenging for them. What might be mildly irritating to a typical passenger, like a weather delay, can seem catastrophic. Some people with autism have strict routines that are impossible to follow with the unpredictability of travel. All of the transitions and waiting involved in travel can also be difficult. Loud noises, long lines and airport security requirements, like removing shoes, can lead to major and very public meltdowns. One of Ross' young patients and the patient's family were even removed from a flight.
Posted on 7/17/2011 6:55:17 AM
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Parents of children with autism are hopeful they have scored a victory this week after Blue Shield of California has agreed to pay for a form of therapy for the developmental disorder that it previously refused to cover.
Posted on 7/14/2011 12:16:33 PM
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I think the most important thing to remember when you are talking to parents of children with autism is that they want you to understand their child. Most of us are willing to explain how autism affects our families and are happy to answer your questions. What we don't want are platitudes or assumptions.
Posted on 7/14/2011 4:42:47 AM
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Experts have long believed that genes play a key role in autism risk, but a U.S. study released last week found that genes appeared to explain a much smaller portion of the risk than previously suggested.
Posted on 7/12/2011 7:18:58 PM
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Burdensome as they may be, guardianship, conservatorship or power of attorney arrangements provide roots and critical protections for an adult child who has limited wingspan. After the 18th birthday, a parent who manages her special-needs child’s medical care would be in the dark absent authority for medical personnel to share information. Moreover, a special needs adult could incur indebtedness or assume contractual obligations without some form of legal protection.
Posted on 7/8/2011 7:09:53 AM
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Previous studies indicated that autism spectrum disorders are due mainly to genes. But the new study suggests that environment — including conditions in the womb, age of parents and other factors — may account for a greater fraction of the risk of developing autism spectrum disorders.
Posted on 7/7/2011 4:01:54 PM
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In a study involving data on more than 1,800 children — fewer than 300 of whom had an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) — and their mothers, the scientists found that women who were prescribed drugs to treat depression in the year before giving birth were twice as likely to have children with an ASD, compared with women who did not take antidepressants. The risk was even greater for women who were prescribed the drugs in the first trimester: their children were nearly four times more likely to develop autism or a related disorder.
Posted on 7/7/2011 1:57:10 PM
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The study, published in Monday's issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, looked at 192 pairs of twins in California and, using a mathematical model, found that genetics account for about 38 percent of the risk of autism, and environmental factors account for about 62 percent.
Posted on 7/6/2011 6:16:40 PM
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Fans are paying attention to the plots, which address everything from Asperger’s syndrome to cancer. “According to our research, more than two-thirds of viewers learn something about health from the shows they watch, and one-third of those viewers take action,” says Buffington, such as scheduling a doctor’s appointment to get their own symptoms checked out. Here, experts point out the most informative and inspiring health-related shows on the tube today, and why you should tune in — or add them to your Netflix queue.
Posted on 7/5/2011 6:44:54 AM
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The analysis, which runs counter to decades of research, says environmental factors may be more important than genes in determining whether a child develops autism. The conclusion is roundly criticized by other autism experts.
Posted on 7/4/2011 6:10:36 PM
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Strong memory, passion for details and ability to think visually are some of the traits that make high-functioning autistic workers currently an untapped talent pool for the IT industry, industry watchers point out.
Posted on 7/1/2011 4:09:22 PM
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"The structure has to do with setting simple limits," he said. "How much work, what they need to do. Without them, they just feel like they're free falling all the time. And for kids with autism that just way doesn't work."
Posted on 6/30/2011 5:35:09 AM
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Researchers in Melbourne working on a long-term study of 1900 children found those with autism used fewer gestures to communicate than other kids.
Posted on 6/28/2011 8:49:43 AM
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The study, conducted in the Netherlands, found more children with autism living in Eindhoven, a region known for its IT sector, than in two other regions with fewer IT businesses.
The findings may apply to other IT-rich regions, including California's Silicon Valley, said study researcher Simon Baron-Cohen, director of the Autism Research Center at the University of Cambridge in England.
The findings are in line with the "hyper-systemizing" theory of autism. This theory proposes that people with autism have a strong desire to understand the workings of systems, the researchers said. Such skills are valued in IT-related fields, including engineering, physics, computing and mathematics.
Posted on 6/23/2011 7:18:08 AM
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Their results showed a specific abnormality in synchronization between two brain areas commonly associated with language and communication in 70 percent of toddlers with autism, but only in a handful of the typically developing toddlers or those with language de
Posted on 6/23/2011 7:17:08 AM
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As a sergeant with the Akron Police Department, he holds classes to teach fellow officers and dispatchers how to recognize and interact with someone who has autism.
The whole experience has made him a better police officer, he said.
''You come in contact with a wide variety of people, and it helps me deal better with all kinds of things,'' he said. ''I've also had to teach myself patience.''
Posted on 6/21/2011 11:50:43 AM
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Autism spectrum conditions are more prevalent in areas that are heavily involved with the information technology industry, according to a new study done at the University of Cambridge. Based on data drawn from three regions in the Netherlands, researchers found that an area with a technology-oriented university and tech-business campus saw two to four times the incidences of autism in schoolchildren as control regions, leading the authors to suggest that autism-related genes may express themselves in first-degree relatives as a talent for system-oriented thinking.
Posted on 6/21/2011 7:32:41 AM
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For employers, service providers and families living with autism. James Emmett provides consultation services to many employers who wish to attract and retain the talents of autism. From opening your doors through Human Resource training, to retention of employees living with autism, to serving a diverse customer base, this workshop details all you need to know to become an autism-friendly company.
Posted on 6/15/2011 8:02:36 PM
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"Before, it was like looking at the map of the United States. There was good enough resolution to tell the states and the big cities," Dr. Christian Schaaf, an assistant professor in the department of molecular and human genetics at the Baylor College of Medicine told HealthDay. "Now, the resolution is so much higher, you can look at individual streets."
Examining these "streets" is what led researchers to discover that boys are more vulnerable to the genetic mutations found in autism.
Posted on 6/10/2011 3:54:05 PM
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According to a report in the Los Angeles Times about the autism study in Islan, a suburb of Seoul, South Korea, a number of families in this middle class town knew that something was different about their child. So getting a diagnosis was something of a confirmation. On the other hand, South Korea has long seen autism as a shameful disease — in its milder forms mothers are blamed for having been cold and unloving. The fact that there may be a genetic component to autism makes it even worse. So other families aren’t so happy with the diagnosis.
Posted on 6/10/2011 3:52:47 PM
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The findings presented Thursday come from a report produced by the World Health Organization and the World Bank. It shows that about 15 percent of the world’s population have disabilities and that number is on the rise due to aging and growth in chronic health conditions.
What’s more, of those living with disabilities, between 110 and 190 million are believed to experience significant functioning difficulties.
Disabilities are more common in poor countries and among women, older individuals and people living in low-income households, the report found.
Posted on 6/10/2011 11:34:57 AM
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Two of the teams of researchers searched for so-called copy number variants -- duplications or deletions in one or more portions of DNA -- in the genes of members of families in which one child was diagnosed with autism but another was not. The researchers compared the DNA from siblings with and without the condition.
Posted on 6/8/2011 7:03:34 PM
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Could household chemicals be causing an increase in autism? The evidence isn’t cut and dried, but a coalition of environmental and health advocates said yesterday that it’s suggestive enough for people to worry.
Posted on 6/8/2011 7:02:18 PM
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A study has found that people with autism may have been capable hunter-gatherers in prehistoric times.
Posted on 6/6/2011 6:06:24 PM
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The Son-Rise Program took the top honor in the BEST THERAPY category that included other treatment programs such as ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis) and RDI (Relationship Development Intervention).
Posted on 6/2/2011 5:05:59 AM
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“This is good news that we are identifying Hispanic children with autism early,” said José Cordero, the vice chairman of the board of directors of the Autism Society.
Posted on 6/2/2011 5:05:09 AM
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The brain scans showed no difference between the groups in brain activity in the region involved in hearing. But researchers noticed significantly greater activity in the language comprehension area in typical children than in kids with autism.
Posted on 6/2/2011 5:03:42 AM
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WOMEN who reported not taking prenatal vitamins immediately before and during pregnancy were twice as likely to have a child with autism, a study has found.
Posted on 5/31/2011 9:16:22 AM
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Seek estate attorneys and financial planners who have past experience working with families with special-needs children. Often, they will have ties to the Academy of Special Needs Planners or other specialized professional organizations.
Posted on 5/31/2011 8:04:13 AM
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Normal brains, they found, are alike in that for about 500 genes, gene expression in the temporal lobes -- which regulate hearing, language, and the processing and interpreting of sounds -- is very different from gene expression in the frontal lobe, which plays a role in judgment, creativity, emotions, and speech.
But in as many as 75% of the autistic brains there was very little difference in gene expression between the temporal and frontal lobes.
In the autistic brains, genes related to synaptic function -- information sharing between neuronal brain cells -- were turned down to low levels of expression.
Posted on 5/26/2011 11:43:30 AM
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Fifteen percent of American children have a developmental disability, including autism and ADHD, according to a new report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Posted on 5/24/2011 12:22:48 PM
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There have been numerous reports of the benefits of therapy dogs for autistic children and some have sung praises for having autistic children swim with dolphins. In Thailand, elephant therapy with, yes, elephants has been found to help some autistic children. Nuntanee Satiansukpong, head of the occupational therapy department at Chiang Mai University, first thought that elephants might be beneficial for the sensory issues that many autistic children struggle with.
Posted on 5/17/2011 4:03:14 AM
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One out of every 38 children in South Korea may have autism, a surprisingly high number based on a new research approach that suggests autism is a global problem that is significantly under diagnosed, researchers said on Monday.
The estimate, which translates into 2.64 percent of children, is far higher than the estimated 1 percent rate seen in studies in the United States and Europe.
Posted on 5/12/2011 5:06:06 PM
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Families with a child with autism spectrum disorder earn 27% less, researchers find
Posted on 5/12/2011 5:05:23 PM
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This month, Dorfman, now 22, will graduate from St. Joseph's University. He's a film major, a former NBC intern, and a paid mentor at the school's Kinney Center for Autism Education and Support.
Posted on 5/12/2011 5:04:52 PM
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NIXA, Mo., May 10, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Despite numerous studies cited repeatedly by federal officials as proof that vaccines do not cause autism, a new study released today in the Pace Environmental Law Review revealed that over the last two decades, the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (NVICP) has been quietly compensating dozens of vaccine injury cases involving a child with autism. The preliminary findings showed approximately 1300 cases of vaccine injury resulted in childhood brain injury, 83 of which had autism. The National Autism Association (NAA) says the study further underscores the need for Congressional hearings and independent scientific research into the autism-vaccine connection.
Posted on 5/12/2011 5:04:11 PM
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The prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in children is more common than previously thought, says a new study from the American Journal of Psychiatry. ASDs were found in every 1 out of 38 kids, much higher than the recent estimate of 1 in 110 kids by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention.
Posted on 5/9/2011 4:30:21 PM
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(CBS) Autistic kids can't succeed at college? Try telling that to the many colleges and universities that have recently established special programs to help students with Asperger syndrome and other autism spectrum disorders.
More than a dozen colleges in the U.S. now have such programs, according to College Autism Spectrum.
"Colleges are seeing more people with autism spectrum disorders, the kinds of people who, in the past, wouldn't have gone on to college," Felicia Hurewitz, director of the autism support program at Drexel University, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We have a lot of diversity. Neurodiversity is the newest."
Posted on 5/9/2011 4:29:19 PM
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South Korea just sent autism prevalence rates surging north. Autism-spectrum disorders affect an estimated 2.64 percent of the nation’s schoolchildren, or about 1 in 38 youngsters, a new study finds
Posted on 5/9/2011 4:28:19 PM
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With the newly implemented Utah Registry of Autism and Developmental Disorders, researchers have found that autism numbers in Utah are on the rise — in fact, they doubled between 2002 and 2008, making it a 1 in 77 chance that an 8-year-old child in Utah is autistic
Posted on 5/8/2011 5:49:47 PM
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‘When I started dancing my tendons just got looser and looser until I never had to wear them any more... It's the feeling of when I dance, I feel free - like I can do anything. Dancing is my life,' he says
Posted on 5/8/2011 5:48:48 PM
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ts findings suggest that environmental factors, for example an exposure to seasonal viruses or a lack of vitamin D - which comes from sunlight - play a role in triggering autism.
Posted on 5/8/2011 5:47:27 PM
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A study has found that most adults, who were identified with autism or asperger's syndrome, did not know they had the condition.
Posted on 5/8/2011 5:45:45 PM
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"The best Home Base is reflected in staffs' deepening, collective understanding of the nature of this disability," Sjostrom wrote. "The resultant insights and strategies that emerge support effective management of those difficult days students on the (autism) spectrum may have from time to time."
Posted on 5/8/2011 5:45:04 PM
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Because children on the autism spectrum struggle with communication, traditional psychotherapy is not a viable option for them, but art therapy is. Art therapists report that children with autism who engage in one-on-one sessions show an improved ability to imagine and think symbolically, enhanced ability to recognize and respond to facial expressions, new ability to manage sensory issues such as a range of texture and greater fine motor skills.
Posted on 5/4/2011 4:20:00 PM
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Posted on 5/4/2011 4:19:38 PM
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MONDAY, May 2 (HealthDay News) -- The brains of 4- and 5-year-old children with autism are larger than the brains of normally developing children, and the difference probably occurs several years earlier, a new study suggests.
The finding is a follow-up to earlier research that found the brains of 2-year-olds with autism are larger than those of similarly aged normally developing kids, researchers said.
Posted on 5/3/2011 12:09:53 PM
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The number of children diagnosed with autism in the Los Alamitos Unified School District has nearly tripled in the last eight years, prompting district officials to hire a behavioral specialist to manage the district’s special-education needs.
Posted on 5/3/2011 12:09:16 PM
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St. Paul, Minn. — Supporters of state-sponsored mental health services say they'll be rallying all week at the Capitol to try to stop budget cuts.
Supporters say health bills in the Senate would cut $40 million for things like school-based mental health care, health care for kids in juvenile detention, and mobile crisis teams that help police in the Twin Cities.
Posted on 5/3/2011 12:08:24 PM
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A national UK survey out Monday found no traces of an "autism epidemic," despite earlier reports that the developmental disorder has been rising quickly in recent decades.
Posted on 5/2/2011 3:53:21 PM
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Valerie Gaus, a clinical psychologist in private practice on Long Island, has worked with adolescents and adults with autism for more than 15 years. Her new book, Living Well on the Spectrum, offers practical advice on coping with the high-functioning form of autism known as Asperger syndrome; affected people typically show passionate intellectual obsessions, oversensitivity to sensory experiences like bright lights and loud noises, and poor social skills.
Posted on 4/30/2011 5:52:58 AM
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Halfway through a Mass in Caldwell College's campus chapel, Chase Keith rose to his feet for one of the most challenging parts of a challenging day. It required the boy from Basking Ridge, N.J., to offer his hand to strangers in the traditional sign of peace. With his mother whispering in his ear and guiding his arm, the 7-year-old stuck out his small hand toward a fellow parishioner. "How you? Peace," Chase said.
Posted on 4/30/2011 5:51:49 AM
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He and his colleagues have been studying the prairie vole for more than 15 years as a model to explore the neurobiology of prosocial behaviors, including cooperation, compassion, bonding and social reciprocity. Now, they are hoping to identify drugs that can enhance social learning in individuals with autism spectrum disorders, and they think the process of pair bonding in the prairie vole may be a useful tool for identifying new therapies.
Posted on 4/28/2011 3:54:00 PM
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But in Thursday's study, UC-San Diego researchers found pediatricians were able to use a five-minute questionnaire to successfully identify potential problems in communication and language skills during a 12-month-old's wellness checkup. Questions included whether parents could tell if their infant was happy or upset, or responsive to certain cues.
Posted on 4/28/2011 11:12:06 AM
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Small Steps, Big Skills is a new video game developed and researched with a grant from the U.S. Department of Education that combines Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) methods of video modeling and least to most prompting to teach 22 skills for independence.
Posted on 4/27/2011 6:24:46 AM
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Self-control and self-awareness may be the most important tools to living successfully with both ASD and anxiety disorders. Because I identified the situation as one that may cause distress I was able to prepare myself for a possible attack and therefore divert it. A few years ago I probably would have crumbled, and it feels good to be able to get past a situation without dwelling upon it as I may have when I was a freshman.
Posted on 4/27/2011 6:23:23 AM
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A young man is not only living with a form of autism, he’s thriving! He says if there were a cure, he wouldn’t want it…
Posted on 4/22/2011 6:14:10 PM
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According to a 2008 Department of Justice report, roughly three fourths of women with developmental disabilities will be sexually assaulted in their lifetime, many repeatedly by the same perpetrator. Yet, victims face considerable hurdles in obtaining justice.
Posted on 4/22/2011 9:04:06 AM
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Autism has been linked to an increased risk of epilepsy, with a reported prevalence between 7% and 46%, and is associated with more profound intellectual impairment and regression in cognitive development.
Posted on 4/20/2011 5:32:21 PM
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The wandering and elopement survey found that approximately half of parents of children with autism report that their child elopes, with the behavior peaking at age four. Among these families, nearly 50% say that their child went missing long enough to cause significant concern about safety.
Posted on 4/20/2011 5:31:25 PM
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As part of our Autism Now series, below is an extended transcript excerpt, edited for length, relevance and clarity, with Dr. Craig Newschaffer, professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at Drexel University, on the causes of autism.
Posted on 4/20/2011 5:30:38 PM
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Once a child turns 18, he or she is legally considered an adult and therefore, permitted to make his own choices. For children who have difficulty managing their emotions, expressing themselves, and executing day-to-day self-care tasks, like many on the autism spectrum, this freedom may not be a safe option
Posted on 4/20/2011 5:18:34 AM
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The rise in the number of reported autism cases has caused a surge in research to find the causes. For the latest thinking, Robert MacNeil speaks with four leading researchers about the issue. It's part three of the Autism Now series of reports.
Posted on 4/20/2011 5:17:26 AM
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A 20 minute, virtual town hall meeting by the Council for Exceptional Children.
Posted on 4/19/2011 12:04:26 PM
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In the second report in his Autism Now series, Robert MacNeil investigates why the number of children with autism is increasing in the U.S. He meets children at different points on the autism spectrum and gets several views on the increase in prevalence -- from better diagnosis to a variety of environmental factors.
Posted on 4/19/2011 5:27:38 AM
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Doctors launch second round of studies after promising results in some kids
Posted on 4/18/2011 11:54:42 AM
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A new study found that people with both autism and epilepsy have a much higher death rate than those with autism alone.
Posted on 4/17/2011 4:19:37 PM
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One of the mysteries of autism is why an infant who seems to be developing normally suddenly regresses after his or her first birthday. This phenomenon, which affects about 25% of children diagnosed with autism, gave rise to the now-discredited hypothesis that immunizations given around the first birthday can cause the disease.
A study published Thursday in mice provides a potential explanation of what happens in the brains of these children.
Posted on 4/17/2011 6:33:43 AM
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An ongoing goal for the team is for all autism teachers and staff to be trained in Applied Behavior Analysis, one of the most well documented and effective strategies for clearly defining and reinforcing expectations for students with autism.
Posted on 4/13/2011 5:13:44 PM
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Based on the results of the online survey, Autism Speaks listed the best places for families with an autistic child to live. Parents in 10 major metropolitan areas -- New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Boston, northern New Jersey, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Seattle and Milwaukee -- tended to report better access to services.
Posted on 4/13/2011 3:57:49 PM
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Opportunities for Postsecondary Success, Colorado State's program for autistic students, was launched earlier this year in reaction to an increase in the number of students with autism and Asperger's who were floundering in class or unable to understand appropriate social behavior.
Posted on 4/13/2011 3:56:27 PM
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Shane, who has autism, is the first person with special needs to be crowned at the school's prom.
"That's the most excited I've ever seen him," said Corey Green, the teen's school case manager. Shane repeatedly shouted, "I won," said Green, who crowned him.
Posted on 4/12/2011 4:02:36 PM
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Ole Ivar Lovaas, a psychologist at the University of California, wanted to see if he could change the way the children behaved, given enough time and effort. So he lavished them with intensive therapy for 40 hours a week for two years or more.
At the end of the experiment, Lovaas reported that nine children - 47 percent - had no visible sign of autism by first grade.
Today, almost 25 years later, therapists are charging up to $100,000 per year for the treatment Lovaas pioneered, and some parents believe it is the answer to their prayers.
Posted on 4/12/2011 4:01:35 PM
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Two high-profile performers are out to prove that being on the spectrum won't get in the way of stardom
Posted on 4/12/2011 2:13:57 PM
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Certain autistic celebrities, artists, authors, scientists and musically-gifted prodigies have met our attention in our communities in recent years. Some of these people with autism are known as advocates, some have been mentioned in the media and some whose stories are on the bookshelves, of those, here are the top ten.
Posted on 4/11/2011 1:45:39 PM
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New York, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Cleveland and Boston among Most-Cited Areas for Best Availability of Services and Resources
Posted on 4/8/2011 4:49:01 AM
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"At the height of rising prevalence, which involved children born between 1992 and 1995, kids whose parents had fewer economic resources simply weren't diagnosed as often as wealthier children -- wealthier kids were 20 to 40 percent more likely than poorer children to be diagnosed," study co-author Marissa D. King, an assistant professor of organizational behavior at Yale University's School of Management, said in a journal news release.
"Among children born in 2000, however, parental wealth alone had no effect on the likelihood that a child would be diagnosed," she added.
Posted on 4/6/2011 5:55:22 PM
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People with autism appear to use their brains differently from those who do not have the condition, and researchers at the University of Montreal have found that the autistic brain seems to have more highly developed areas involved in visual information processing, the BBC reported. But that comes at the expense of brain regions controlling decision-making and planning; there is less capacity for those areas in autistic brains, they found.
Posted on 4/6/2011 5:54:18 PM
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Anti-psychotics may help control disruptive behaviors, but side effects called significant
Posted on 4/6/2011 6:30:53 AM
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This means less activity in areas used for planning and decision making, but the brain adapts, researchers find
Posted on 4/6/2011 6:30:06 AM
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Advocates say intensive therapy helps kids. Skeptics ask whether it's really effective and worth public cost.
Posted on 4/6/2011 6:29:14 AM
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They found good evidence that two antipsychotic drugs, Risperdal and Abilify, decreased “challenging” behaviors like irritability, agitation, crying, hyperactivity, and noncompliance, compared to placebos.
But there were significant side effects reported with the use of these medications, including weight gain, drowsiness, and symptoms such as tremors, involuntary movements, and rigidity.
Posted on 4/4/2011 3:59:03 PM
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It suggests that the brains of autistic people are organised differently from those of other people; the area at the back of the brain, which processes visual information, is more highly developed.
That leaves less brain capacity in areas which deal with decision-making and planning.
Areas where autistic brains are more active
That may be why people with autism can be better than others at carrying out some types of visual tasks.
For example, some are able to draw highly accurate and detailed images from memory.
However, they can find it difficult to interpret things like facial expressions.
Posted on 4/4/2011 3:57:39 PM
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A friend asked whether the book “House Rules” by Jody Picoult reflects my family’s experience with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Picoult not only illuminated some of my life, she also roused a latent fear about what would happen if my adult son encountered the criminal justice system.
Posted on 4/2/2011 4:07:54 PM
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The top place was New York City, closely followed by Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Cleveland and Boston. Other honorable mentions include Northern New Jersey, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Seattle and Milwaukee. The criteria for the survey included the satisfaction of the availability of services and resources, the proximity of services to where they live, flexible employer policies, access to clinical/medical care and recreational opportunities.
Posted on 4/2/2011 4:06:26 PM
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“I was a bit tired of seeing ‘awareness day’ events tied to organizations that are asking for donations,” says Paula Durbin-Westby, 52, who has autism and started a Facebook event called “Autism Acceptance Day” after hearing from others who felt hurt by traditional awareness events that didn’t highlight positive aspects of the developmental disorder.
Posted on 4/2/2011 4:03:30 PM
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The three existing state funding streams support about 398 children, and at least 349 children are on the waiting list. If AB345 passes, all the children on the waiting list will receive services.
Posted on 3/31/2011 2:18:04 PM
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Often sedentary and hard to motivate, this developmentally disabled population can benefit from reward and routine surrounding fitness goals
Posted on 3/30/2011 3:55:57 PM
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In some ways, Jacob Barnett is just like any other 12-year-old kid. He plays Guitar Hero, shoots hoops with his friends, and has a platonic girlfriend.
But in other ways, he's a little different. Jake, who has an IQ of 170, began solving 5,000-piece jigsaw puzzles at the age of 3, not long after he'd been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism. A few years later, he taught himself calculus, algebra, and geometry in two weeks. By 8, he had left high school, and is currently taking college-level advanced astrophysics classes—while tutoring his older classmates. And he's being recruited for a paid researcher job by Indiana University.
Posted on 3/29/2011 11:29:47 AM
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Anyone who uploads Grace App on the day will own it forever and will get all updates free AND It can be shared with up to 30 devices per iTunes account to support Autism Classes and Schools. For more information and to download the Grace App System Manual, please see our website www.graceapp.com
Posted on 3/29/2011 11:24:10 AM
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Just a few weeks shy of his 13th birthday, Jake, as he's often called, is starting to move beyond the level of what his professors can teach.
In fact, his work is so strong and his ideas so original that he's being courted by a top-notch East Coast research center. IUPUI is interested in him moving from the classroom into a funded researcher's position.
Posted on 3/28/2011 3:56:43 PM
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BRAINY Victoria Cowie has discovered she has a higher IQ than genius Albert Einstein - at just 11. The schoolgirl scored 162 on the test, two points higher than the physics legend behind the general theory of relativity.
Posted on 3/28/2011 1:16:45 PM
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For some individuals, autism begins at conception, when an infected sperm cell transmits a virus to the egg: that is the provocative new hypothesis of a group in Italy based on data from brain tissue and semen.
Posted on 3/28/2011 1:15:33 PM
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"My motivation is about changing the general public's perception about people with different abilities," says Wurzburg. "That's what this film does. It challenges people's perceptions about autism and it communicates it through the perspective of people labeled by society.
Posted on 3/27/2011 1:54:05 PM
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Tots who played the least seemed to benefit most from parent-guided autism program, study found
Posted on 3/25/2011 3:50:27 PM
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Many parents have stories of autistic children wandering off, running away unexpectedly
Posted on 3/25/2011 6:01:58 AM
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Temple Grandin — perhaps the most famous autistic person in the world — bristles when a young person with autism dwells on the disorder and not on plans for the future.
"It bothers me when a teen or someone just talks to me about their autism," Grandin said Wednesday. "Talk to me about dinosaurs . . . or your vacation. Too many kids get fixated on autism and not their career."
Posted on 3/24/2011 2:19:16 PM
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Bollar works as a developmental therapist, working with autistic children at Grace Educational Opportunities, a Developmental Disabilities Agency in Soda Springs. His interest in helping autistic children and his need to fulfill an Eagle Scout project came together, and the result was a machine that produces a calming effect on those suffering from sensory disorders, which is typical in autism.
Posted on 3/23/2011 12:27:17 PM
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For the first time, scientists say they’ve recreated common autism traits in mice by mutating a single gene, a finding that bolsters support for the idea that autism has genetic roots and could help develop drugs to treat the disorder.
Posted on 3/23/2011 12:26:36 PM
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A 12-year-old autistic boy functioning at genius levels in mathematics is studying doctorate-level astrophysics at an Indiana university, his parents say.
Posted on 3/20/2011 6:29:15 PM
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Autistic adults who converse with a virtual partner may develop better social interaction skills, U.S. researchers suggest.
Posted on 3/20/2011 6:28:11 PM
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Scientists have shown how a single protein may trigger autistic spectrum disorders by stopping effective communication between brain cells.
Posted on 3/20/2011 6:26:37 PM
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A new study in the journal BMC Medicine may shed some light on why. It shows gluten can set off a distinct reaction in the intestines and the immune system, even in people who don't have celiac disease.
Posted on 3/16/2011 6:05:15 AM
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Paper schedules don’t work for all autistic children. But even when they do work, they’re still just pictures on paper.
The emerging health IT company AutismSphere is working to bring traditional paper methods into an electronic form with added features and functionality. AutismSphere’s software works on smart phones and mobile devices, and it is in a beta test in a small North Carolina school district.
Posted on 3/15/2011 11:43:07 AM
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PLANO -- One of the newest iPad apps might be a little hard to find, but it's a milestone for a small Plano nonprofit trying to set up working futures for adults who have autism and its high-functioning variant, Asperger's syndrome.
Posted on 3/15/2011 11:42:24 AM
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The improbable accomplishments of this remarkable young man bring hope to the uncertainty of living with low-functioning autism. Everyone on the autism spectrum and their loved ones can take heart from this soulful and accomplished young man.
Posted on 3/9/2011 3:13:36 PM
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Recently, Temple Grandin, acclaimed animal behavior specialist who has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), spoke at an Autism and Employment forum about how individuals with ASD can be valuable employees if they are properly prepared. So how are students with ASD – or any other condition considered a disability – preparing for employment?
Posted on 3/8/2011 11:27:52 AM
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In response, at least 23 states, including Indiana, South Carolina, Arizona and Massachusetts, have passed laws in the last few years requiring state-regulated group health plans to include autism coverage, according to the National Council of State Legislatures, though many states have caps on the mandates. Most other states and Washington, D.C., have similar bills pending, according to Autism Speaks, an advocacy group. Only Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming don't have bills requiring autism coverage on their agendas.
In addition, federal law now prohibits insurance companies from refusing to issue or renew health-insurance coverage for children because of pre-existing conditions, including autism.
Posted on 3/7/2011 12:54:13 PM
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A school serving grades 6-12 and specializing in students with Asperger's Syndrome and similar learning disorders will open next fall in Boulder County.
The independent Temple Grandin School, named for the Colorado State University professor, animal scientist and autism advocate, will feature a student-teacher ratio of 6-to-1 and combine social and educational supports with challenging academics.
Posted on 3/6/2011 1:24:06 PM
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Psychology professor Carrie Pritchard is creating a computer game not just for fun, but to help teach autistic children social skills. Pritchard - who received a $20,000 grant for the project - plans to design the educational video game with a focus on interaction and responsibility.
Posted on 3/2/2011 8:31:27 AM
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Proloquo2Go, one of the newest full-featured augmented communication applications for those who have difficulty speaking, is meeting with rave reviews from educators and therapists. While not nearly as comprehensive as high-tech offerings like Dynavox and Prentke Romach devices, which can range in price from $3,000-$10,000, Proloquo2Go ($189) when used with an iTouch or iPad, offers an affordable, less bulky and portable communication tool.
Posted on 3/2/2011 8:30:39 AM
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They tend to judge other people's mistakes harshly, study finds
Posted on 3/1/2011 11:03:04 AM
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Helping a child with autism comprehend the topic of sex is especially tricky,(at least in my experience), so much so that many parents hope it will never become "an issue".
Today, my friend Lindsey Nebeker, a young woman with autism, shares her perspective about love, sex and autism. Her story was recently featured on ABC.
Posted on 3/1/2011 6:08:05 AM
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LYNN - Warning that a “tsunami” of autism is about to swamp public schools and community colleges, North Shore Community College President Wayne Burton plans to tell a state committee about statistics-gathering efforts aimed at combating intellectual disabilities.
Posted on 3/1/2011 6:06:44 AM
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MAPLEWOOD, Minn. — Temple Grandin wants more autistic people in your workplace. If they don’t become part of the work force, your company will lose out.
Posted on 3/1/2011 6:06:14 AM
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A new study from UC Davis has indicated that the number of connections between nerve cells in the brain can be regulated by an immune system molecule.
The research has also revealed a potential link between immunity, infectious disease and conditions such as schizophrenia or autism.
Posted on 3/1/2011 6:05:01 AM
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The mouse model mimics some important autism traits. For example, control mice might groom once an hour. The inbred mice show repetitive tendencies, performing the ritual six times as often. In an experiment, the animals with autistic tendencies will bury more shiny marbles in the cage. And when placed in a social interaction chamber, will tend to ignore other mice.
Posted on 2/26/2011 5:33:24 AM
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The Boston Conservatory is renowned for its intensive training in the performing arts, but on Saturday mornings, this Fenway institution offers a unique program: providing music lessons to children and young adults with autism.
Posted on 2/24/2011 3:02:00 PM
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In the study, a computer program that assists in evaluating brainwave data from an electroencephalogram (EEG) was used to determine the way nerve cells communicate with one another in infants. Using the data generated, researchers were able to predict which 9-month-old infants have a high risk of autism with 80% accuracy.
Posted on 2/23/2011 6:51:11 AM
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A recent study conducted at Duke University illustrated the risk of terbutaline to infants. The study found an increased risk of brain damage and cognitive deficits in babies whose mothers were treated with terbutaline during preterm labor. The study showed that the use of terbutaline may predispose babies to autism and that it may make the brain more vulnerable to toxins.
Posted on 2/23/2011 6:50:13 AM
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If you missed the Dr. Oz autism show, simply watch part 7; it has value. The bottom line; and that is truly what parents of autism crave, is articulated by Mehmet Oz: I think we need to solve this national crisis!
Posted on 2/21/2011 3:55:42 PM
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A fraction of the adults with ASD are currently employed, says Sherrie Kenny, executive director of AuSM (Autism Society of Minnesota), the forum organizer. With the number of adults with ASD increasing, she observed, “If we don’t reach out to employers today, how ready will they be in the future?”
Posted on 2/21/2011 8:05:38 AM
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Forget Rain Man. People on the autism spectrum can make great employees.
Posted on 2/11/2011 12:38:12 PM
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TeachTown®: Social Skills is a unique early prevention video modeling curriculum with fun, animated characters, instruction, music, lessons, worksheets and more to teach students with autism and other special needs essential behavior and social skills, including the prevention of bullying, for optimal classroom learning.
Posted on 2/11/2011 6:44:17 AM
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According to Fred Volkmar, M.D., director of the Child Study Center at Yale University, there are several reasons students with autism spectrum disorders have had such positive reactions to iPads: the devices are portable, visually oriented, relatively affordable and can be customized.
Posted on 2/8/2011 3:05:52 PM
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Significantly fewer young adults with autism are accessing medical and social services once they leave high school, a first-of-its-kind survey finds, and the disparity is particularly exaggerated among those from lower income and minority groups.
Posted on 2/8/2011 11:37:04 AM
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PERTH researchers have uncovered further evidence of a link between testosterone and autism, backing a theory that high testosterone exposure in the womb increases the risk of the disorder.
Posted on 2/6/2011 4:21:15 PM
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Special education students with autism in California have more than tripled in number since 2002, even as overall special education enrollment has remained relatively flat, according to an analysis of state education data released yesterday.
More than 680,000 students – 11 percent of all California public school students – are enrolled in special education. The number of students diagnosed with autism climbed from 17,508 in 2002 to 59,690 in 2010, the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health found.
Students with autism represented 8.8 percent of all special education enrollment last year, up from 2.6 percent in 2002. Other health impairments – defined by the state as "limited strength, vitality or alertness, due to chronic or acute health problems," such as a heart condition, asthma, epilepsy or leukemia – are also on the rise, comprising 7.9 percent of disabilities among special education students.
Posted on 2/4/2011 1:56:15 PM
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New legislation in Virginia would require insurance companies to cover ABA therapy for children 2-6 years old. It caps annual benefits to $35,000 and excludes small businesses of 50 employees or less.
Posted on 2/4/2011 7:37:51 AM
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WEDNESDAY, Feb. 2 (HealthDay News) -- People with high-functioning autism have difficulty understanding others' intentions, new research shows.
This lack of understanding tends to make adults with autism, even those with high IQs, judge others more harshly, which may pose problems in forming and maintaining relationships, the study found.
Posted on 2/2/2011 3:09:28 PM
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With one in 150 children having autism, more and more colleges are beginning to address the needs of high functioning children within the autism spectrum. There are also several organizations that assist young people with ASD wanting to attend a university. One such organization is AHEADD, Achieving in Higher Education with Autism/Developmental Disabilities, www.aheadd.org/about.html. This is a private community organization that provides support for students entering higher education. The organization does charge a fee. It specializes in helping young people with learning disabilities, high functioning autism/Aspergers, Non-Verbal Learning Disorder and Attention Deficit Disorder. College Autism Spectrum, CAS, is another organization that assists families with autism spectrum disorders, www.collegeautismspectrum.com.
Posted on 2/2/2011 9:50:13 AM
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A teenager from Essex with atypical autism has recorded a single, despite being told she would never speak.
Posted on 2/2/2011 9:10:12 AM
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A encouraging article on careers for people on the spectrum and why they prove to be the best, strongest candidates.
Posted on 1/31/2011 1:58:39 PM
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For the most part, Lord said, test scores tended to improve as patients got older — patients were able to converse more easily with others and respond better to voices and commands.
Posted on 1/28/2011 9:04:04 AM
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Autistic West Virginia teen, William Brown, 16, has started his own awareness campaign... with a twist.
Brown said, "I do a lot of research for my high school debate team, and recently I found some research compiled by Kronos.com that indicated that 4.4 million American workers show up late for work on the day after the Superbowl. Similarly 1.5 million American workers don't bother to show up at all on Superbowl Monday."
Posted on 1/28/2011 9:02:38 AM
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"It's an interactive, multi-sensory experience, so the actors are trained to work with kids with autism to get them to participate and to be part of the experience just for that moment in time," said artistic director Jacqueline Russell.
This year's theme is camping and hiking.
"I had a lot of parents tell me that their kids with autism haven't been able to go on a camping trip with their Cub Scout Troop or that maybe there's just too many things that are unknown that would make it not as comfortable or fun so we recreate it in a very controlled environment," Russell said.
Posted on 1/26/2011 11:59:24 AM
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"As a timpanist, he's the best ever," said Doser. "He has a future in music as much as anyone else does. We've all been encouraging him to go this route."
O'Keefe, 18, is no savant. He's got some innate talents, for sure — the most impressive being his ability to identify the music note of any sound that's played for him, a trait commonly called perfect pitch.
Posted on 1/26/2011 11:58:22 AM
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St. Paul, Minn. — Families in 16 Ramsey County neighborhoods have begun receiving letters urging them to take part in the largest and longest study of children's health ever conducted in the United States.
The National Children's Study will look at what factors contribute to autism, asthma, attention deficit disorder and other serious childhood ailments.
Posted on 1/24/2011 3:04:15 PM
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ESCONDIDO — A year ago, Maribel Chavez had to put her severely autistic teenage son on a bus every morning to reach his specialized school some 30 miles away in San Diego.
This school year, Luis Valadez, now a 15-year-old sophomore, still takes a bus, but it’s a quick ride from his home to the Escondido High School campus on North Broadway.
Posted on 1/21/2011 2:07:38 PM
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If the study confirms higher rates of autism among Somali-American children, future research will need to address what factors, such as immigration or nutrition, could account for the increase, project partners say.
The investigation is scheduled to begin later this year, and will likely focus on a select population of children in Minneapolis.
Autism has been a hot topic for many Somali parents in Minnesota.
Posted on 1/19/2011 8:38:09 AM
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New York City - Sunday night at Zankel Hall in Carnegie Hall, the 'Genius of Autism' honored 16 enormously talented autistic youth for their accomplishments in the fields of music, visual arts, poetry and athletics. Actress Laura Linney, along with a host of Broadway's biggest stars and some very talented young adults brought the house down in a unique and dramatic event presented by the McCarton Foundation for Developmental Disabilities.
Posted on 1/19/2011 8:36:59 AM
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While analyzing birth registry information of children born between 1994 and 2004, scientists discovered what they think could be an important determining factor for autism. Of 733,826 babies born during that time, more than 35,766 were jaundice at birth. From those, 577 were diagnosed as autistic and an additional 1,721 children had various psychological disorders. The data shows that jaundice babies born at full-term notice a 56 percent chance of having autism.
Posted on 1/18/2011 10:26:37 AM
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Scientists studied 163 chemicals and found that in a staggering 99 to 100 percent of expectant mothers in the U.S., the following hazardous compounds were detected: PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls); certain "organochlorine" pesticides; phenols; PFCs (perfluorinated compounds); PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; PBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers); perchlorate; and phthalates.
Posted on 1/18/2011 8:33:49 AM
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AutisticDating.net is dedicated to my son, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome. I have learnt from experience that people on the autistic spectrum often have problems finding like-minded partners or friends, and I am hoping that this site will help its members achieve their dreams.
So whether its love and romance, friendship or chat you're looking for, why not sign up today and start connecting with those like-minded people out there - people who will be looking for the same things that you are.
Posted on 1/17/2011 12:47:29 PM
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Apple’s iPad may have been the hot item of 2010, but special education teachers in the Anoka-Hennepin School District saw the technology as more than the latest must-have gadget.
Posted on 1/17/2011 12:28:38 PM
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Gov. Chris Christie has proposed creating additional specialized public schools for educating children with autism in New Jersey, a departure from the current practice in many communities of integrating those children into neighborhood schools.
Posted on 1/17/2011 12:27:18 PM
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What do Keller and Grandin have in common? Both had parents who understood and accepted their daughters' differences, but were unwilling to accept a disability as an excuse for poor behavior, laziness or self-indulgence. Both had teachers who believed in their abilities without whitewashing their challenges. And both, of course, had considerable abilities and ambition - though those qualities were not evident in their earliest years.
Posted on 1/17/2011 8:52:40 AM
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LOS ANGELES – What do Norah Jones, Carly Simon, Scarlett Johannson, Ben Harper, Bob Weir, Steven Stills and Vincent Gallo have in common? All have lent their voices to the soundtrack for a documentary about autism, which will be released Tuesday on iTunes.
Posted on 1/11/2011 2:42:07 PM
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Jan 10, 2011 -- Children born within one year of an older sibling may be three times more likely to be diagnosed with autism, according to a new study in the February issue of Pediatrics.
Posted on 1/10/2011 5:47:00 PM
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An investigation published by the British medical journal BMJ concludes the study's author, Dr. Andrew Wakefield, misrepresented or altered the medical histories of all 12 of the patients whose cases formed the basis of the 1998 study -- and that there was "no doubt" Wakefield was responsible.
Posted on 1/5/2011 4:48:43 PM
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A growing number of schools across the nation are embracing the iPad as the latest tool to teach Kafka in multimedia, history through “Jeopardy”-like games and math with step-by-step animation of complex problems.
Posted on 1/5/2011 4:12:59 PM
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Pearson says autistic kids simply don't accept protein well. Studies show 70 percent have gastro-intestinal problems. Better protein digestion may create amino acids, which could boost brain function. "They'll be able to learn better, they'll be able to, you know, behave better."
Posted on 1/5/2011 4:12:21 PM
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For decades, parents of children with autism have been searching for a drug or diet to treat the disorder. People with autism have impaired feelings of trust and empathy, and early studies show that the hormone oxytocin could help.
Their latest hope is the hormone oxytocin. It's often called the trust hormone or the cuddle hormone.
Posted on 1/3/2011 2:54:31 PM
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Jo Aukes, an Ankeny special education teacher, had seen great success using an audio sedation system with her students, namely those on the autism spectrum or with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. While using the device, designed by retired Cedar Falls dentist Ken Budke and built by Curtis Carroll, an Ankeny mechanical engineer, Aukes's students were able to concentrate on school work or simply enjoy activities, like eating lunch, with their classmates.
Posted on 1/3/2011 2:53:32 PM
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Many autistic children have problems developing social skills, but often have an easier time with games and technology. Autistic children have been taking to Apple's popular devices, poking the screens, which are customized to their needs. Parents started noticing that their autistic children were attracted to the touch screen technology of the iPad, and word spread quickly between parents about this new use for the computer.
Posted on 1/3/2011 2:52:41 PM
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Second, while there are high quality, supported options for adults with autism, they are few and far between. There are none right around the corner from us. And even a good situation can change over time, as staff turns over and residents come and go. By the time our son is in his 20's, there will be more options available; for now, though, the idea of a group home or similar setting is a bit anxiety provoking.
Posted on 1/2/2011 5:00:16 PM
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Zanny – Born to Run is the story of a young boy who never stops moving. From eating Cheerios to running around on the playground, Zanny stays busy all day long and you will too as you move through the pages of this book. Each page has interactive elements that engage kids as they touch pictures or tilt the iPad. Listen to background music, tap objects to hear sounds or move your iPad to watch items slide across a page.
Posted on 1/1/2011 6:11:16 PM
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A Ft. Lauderdale preschool program for children with autism has raised enough money to buy an iPad for each of its 18 classrooms. As United Press International reports, the tablets are loaded with applications such as Proloquo2Go, a communication app that allows users to select phrases and words to make sentences. The school raised the money for the iPads in an ൚ iPads in 18 Days" donation initiative.
Posted on 12/29/2010 11:27:20 AM
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Jackson High student Phil Woodard is every retail store manager’s dream. He is a reliable and witty 18-year-old who is blessed with a keen sense of humor.
Posted on 12/28/2010 3:01:13 PM
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The results were surprising, the researchers said, because previous work had shown that autistic individuals are often superior to others at searching for visual cues in a small-scale environment, such as a table top or a computer screen.
But the new study suggested that when the scale is larger, autistic individuals have impairments. The findings may explain part of the reason why some autistic individuals have trouble living independently, the researchers said
Posted on 12/20/2010 4:02:42 PM
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VARANASI: While psychologists and experts in cognitive science are fast accepting the social dimension of autistic children who have impaired social interaction and communication and often exhibit restricted and repetitive behaviour, most of them also believe that autism should be accepted as a 'difference' and not treated as a 'disorder'.
Posted on 12/20/2010 4:01:22 PM
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Results from the Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment (CHARGE) Study published in Environmental Health Perspectives recently, found an association between living near a freeway and autism for subjects living in the Los Angeles area.
Posted on 12/18/2010 7:24:50 PM
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Raising a child with Asperger’s syndrome is a challenge above and beyond traditional parenting, especially for fathers, who until recently have been a minority among caretakers who attend meetings and support groups.
The ASPEN Father’s Group offers a place where they can come together and discuss their problems and triumphs.
Posted on 12/16/2010 12:52:08 PM
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A few weeks ago I shared a list of 21 things not to say to a person on the autism spectrum, and promised to suggest alternatives. Obviously the list of 21 things not to say are things that we ALL say out of frustration, and in the HEAT OF THE MOMENT AND WE JUST WANT TO SCREAM, and who can blame us? But here are some alternatives that I propose. Feel free to share your ideas:
Posted on 12/11/2010 2:50:06 PM
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Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) struggle with handwriting skills and are unlikely to outgrow this difficulty as they move into their teen years, according to a Kennedy Krieger Institute study.
Posted on 12/9/2010 3:16:01 PM
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Stop Bullying: Speak Up
Posted on 12/9/2010 3:15:08 PM
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Oakwood Court College has helped to enhance the education and lives of its students through the use of innovative practices and technology. The College has successfully used webcams with avatars to breakdown the communication barriers between tutors and students with autism.
Posted on 12/9/2010 11:47:02 AM
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"Going hat-in-hand may not come naturally to you," says Shannon "but consider that you can ask as many or as few people as you like, that any contribution will make a difference -- and that you may actually be helping out all those relatives who wrestle with what to get your child for Christmas, Hanukkah, or birthdays."
Posted on 12/7/2010 4:08:27 PM
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All this week the BBC has been highlighting issues affecting disabled people as part of a campaign called Access All Areas.
Among the topics covered have been technology, job rights and how stigmatised many disabled people can feel.
Hidden disabilities affect millions of peoples lives with on a daily basis, among them are bipolar disorder and autism.
Posted on 12/3/2010 5:11:27 PM
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CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. researchers are closing in on an accurate test for autism, a finding that could lead to earlier diagnosis and treatment.
The test, which uses conventional magnetic resonance imaging or MRI machines, detected 94 percent of individuals with a high-functioning form of autism, they reported on Thursday.
Posted on 12/2/2010 5:15:17 PM
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Legos may be an important learning tool for children with autism. University of Rochester Medical Center researchers discovered that the use of legos may be vital in helping children with autism tap into their ability to think creatively.
Posted on 12/1/2010 3:02:48 PM
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The holiday season is full of hopes, dreams, and disappointment for parents of children with special needs. Here are 8 things to remember as we stumble into December:
Posted on 12/1/2010 12:06:45 PM
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Autistic children have a high incidence of defects in mitochondria, the "powerhouses" of cells, but it is not yet clear if those defects are a cause of the disorder or a byproduct of some more fundamental defect, UC Davis researchers said Tuesday.
Posted on 12/1/2010 12:04:18 PM
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"We are targeting the symptoms of autism," said Dr. Joan Fallon, founder of Curemark LLC., a drug-research and development company located in Rye, N.Y. The company is testing its new product at 13 locations nationwide.
Posted on 11/24/2010 3:49:17 PM
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10)"No matter the level of his or her challenges," says's Lindsey Nebeker, a pianist/songwriter and autism advocate who herself is on the autism spectrum, "your child has a place in this world. Your child has a voice."
Posted on 11/22/2010 2:59:25 PM
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Newborn babies who have jaundice may be at higher risk of developing autism later on, new research suggests, but other experts said far more research needs to be done before a cause-and-effect relationship is proven.
Posted on 11/22/2010 2:57:53 PM
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Researchers at MU shared a new autistic curriculum today that teaches students how to behave both in and out of the classroom. Researchers are teaching students how to better control their emotions in high stress situations like fire drills.
Posted on 11/19/2010 11:55:01 AM
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The team identified three distinct 'neural signatures': trait markers — brain regions with reduced activity in children with ASD and their unaffected siblings; state markers — brain areas with reduced activity found only in children with autism; and compensatory activity — enhanced activity seen only in unaffected siblings.
Posted on 11/19/2010 11:54:21 AM
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The team identified three distinct 'neural signatures': trait markers — brain regions with reduced activity in children with ASD and their unaffected siblings; state markers — brain areas with reduced activity found only in children with autism; and compensatory activity — enhanced activity seen only in unaffected siblings.
Posted on 11/19/2010 11:54:19 AM
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Improved autism diagnosis and early behavioral interventions have led to more and more children being ranked in the high-functioning range, with average to above average IQs. Up to 70 percent of autistic children are considered high-functioning, though they have significant social communication challenges.
Posted on 11/18/2010 4:24:28 PM
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Capt. Todd Siems said the Boeing airliner was cruising at 37,000 feet. And after he turned off the seat-belt sign, the young passengers were served complimentary Sprite, cranberry-apple juice, and airplane-shaped crackers.
Flight 2149 never left the gate at Philadelphia International Airport, though. It was no ordinary flight, but rather a practice for children with autism and their families to become familiar with travel at the airport - bags, getting boarding passes, going through security, waiting at the gate, and sitting on the plane to experience the lights and sounds.
Posted on 11/17/2010 3:30:35 PM
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Capt. Todd Siems said the Boeing airliner was cruising at 37,000 feet. And after he turned off the seat-belt sign, the young passengers were served complimentary Sprite, cranberry-apple juice, and airplane-shaped crackers.
Flight 2149 never left the gate at Philadelphia International Airport, though. It was no ordinary flight, but rather a practice for children with autism and their families to become familiar with travel at the airport - bags, getting boarding passes, going through security, waiting at the gate, and sitting on the plane to experience the lights and sounds.
Posted on 11/17/2010 3:30:35 PM
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Training the visual, auditory and motor senses together helps develop, retain and expand the ability to take in, understand and use information more effectively, according to Block, an author and physician who specializes in a natural approach to health.
"The brain is really elastic and flexible," she said. "Given the chance, it can do amazing things."
Posted on 11/17/2010 3:29:21 PM
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Deficits in reasoning skills more than motor skills likely to blame, researchers say.
Posted on 11/16/2010 5:19:51 AM
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The pattern of brain activity in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is markedly different from that of children without the condition, according to a new brain-imaging study.
Posted on 11/16/2010 5:19:05 AM
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A recent study by the Autism Society of Edmonton Area projected that by 2012, 60 per cent of children with autism will not qualify for adult funding.
Posted on 11/16/2010 5:18:17 AM
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"We were able to achieve normal functioning for 43 percent of our children — 43 percent are recovered," said Doreen Granpeesheh, founder and executive director of the Center for Autism and Related Disorders (CARD). Without governmental funding, the therapy would run in the neighborhood of $200,000.
Posted on 11/15/2010 11:14:48 AM
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“I think that I want to be a chef,” Daniel announced on the way home from a visit with family one morning.
Posted on 11/15/2010 10:41:48 AM
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Tips for helping children with autism:
Posted on 11/12/2010 3:17:34 PM
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Dr. Granpeesheh stated that, “Today, we know that autism is treatable and recovery is possible with the right services.” This is in contrast to the solution offered by some doctors in the past which involved institutionalization.
Posted on 11/12/2010 3:16:22 PM
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We are creative, we are organized, and we are everywhere.
Posted on 11/10/2010 3:46:00 PM
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A charter school that will serve students with autism-spectrum disorders in grades 6 to 10 is being hailed as a haven for teens with special needs -- and their families.
Posted on 11/10/2010 3:43:15 PM
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Raising a child with classic autism is a challenging, alternately frustrating and rewarding experience. Severe cases pose their own specific set of obstacles, and the course of treatment is often to excuse inappropriate behavior and sequester the child from mainstream activities. But what if the most effective course of action involves normalizing the child as much as possible? It changed one mother's life, and in her new book, Autism - Believe in the Future: From Infancy to Independence (published by iUniverse), Ann Millan shares her story so that others can learn from her experiences.
Posted on 11/4/2010 4:20:08 PM
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Too many connections in the frontal lobe of the brain may help explain some of the learning problems experienced by people with autism, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday. "It doesn't communicate as much with other parts of the brain and lacks long-range connections to the back of the brain," she said.
Posted on 11/4/2010 12:43:20 PM
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The test is similar to that of pregnancy can diagnose with a few drops of urine, write DailyMail. Such psychological tests and numerous visits to hospital, although necessary for diagnosis, can have a traumatic effect on children. Besides this benefit, the new method means starting treatment earlier, increasing chances of a life closer to normal for the child.
Posted on 11/1/2010 6:18:37 PM
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Suddenly schools have more autistic kids. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated last year that autism increased 60 percent among boys and 48 among girls between 2002 and 2006. But a new study of Wisconsin’s schools that has national implications suggests the increase may mostly show that schools and doctors have gotten better at diagnosing the disorder.
Posted on 11/1/2010 5:24:20 PM
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Thousands of people around the globe are switching off their Facebook and Twitter pages today to raise funds and spread awareness of autism, but the initiative has sparked concern from some in the autistic community.
Posted on 11/1/2010 1:19:56 PM
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Here is a list of 21 things NOT to say to a person with an autism spectrum disorder, compiled with the help of members of my facebook autism forum:
Posted on 11/1/2010 6:38:37 AM
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News and Updates from the Autism Support Network.
Posted on 11/1/2010 6:21:49 AM
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Is there a way to eliminate the confusion between autism and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS)?
Posted on 10/29/2010 4:06:08 PM
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A new device developed by Affectiva, based in Waltham, Massachusetts, detects and records physiological signs of stress and excitement by measuring slight electrical changes in the skin. While researchers, doctors, and psychologists have long used this measurement--called skin conductance--in the lab or clinical setting, Affectiva's Q Sensor is worn on a wristband and lets people keep track of stress during everyday activities.
Posted on 10/28/2010 11:54:09 AM
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Dr. Sears says that the questionnaire written by Simon Baron-Cohen is just a screening test and is not meant for diagnosis. Screening tests are meant to catch anyone who may have a problem. According to Sears, "Most people who fail such tests won't actually have autism. They may be a little quirky, but when they move on to full diagnostic testing, most people won't actually be found to have autism." So, just because maybe the author of this article scored a 37 doesn't necessarily mean she has Asperger's, for example. She might just be very good with numbers, have an excellent memory and experience panic attacks at social gatherings. Big whoop.
Posted on 10/27/2010 4:35:44 PM
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Compared to children and teens with other mental disorders, treating autism was more costly. Total healthcare expenditures for autism spectrum disorders per 10,000 grew by 32.8 percent from in 2000 to 2003.
Posted on 10/27/2010 11:33:34 AM
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Autism rates could be leveling off at just above one percent of children, Wisconsin researchers suggest.
Posted on 10/25/2010 11:44:00 AM
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Utah children stricken with autism — from families of any income level — could be eligible for state services if a program proposed Wednesday in the Legislature moves forward. Elected officials made no decision on the Department of Health proposal, however, and will take up the matter again in November.
Posted on 10/21/2010 11:29:32 AM
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On October 8, 2010, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger executed nearly $1 billion in line-item vetoes to the recently approved state budget, including 132 million in funds for AB 3632 Mental Health Services for Students.
Posted on 10/20/2010 5:02:22 PM
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Magicians rely on misdirection—drawing attention to one place while they're carrying out their tricky business somewhere else. It seems like people with autism should be less susceptible to such social manipulation. But a new study in the U.K. finds that people with autism spectrum disorder are actually more likely to be taken in by the vanishing ball trick, where a magician pretends to throw a ball in the air but actually hides it in his hand.
Posted on 10/20/2010 5:00:56 PM
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Here are three of Leo's current faves, apps that engage him for long long stretches. I know that they're helping him with a variety of fine motor, composition, and social skills -- but from his perspective, they're just fun. Which is something he has a hard time finding on his own. Ah, self-direction. Stick around for a while, will you?
Posted on 10/20/2010 8:56:15 AM
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Charlie Bristow, a 13-year old from Stillwater, Minnesota has used the game of golf to overcome struggles. He has supplemented autistic symptoms with a sense of peace and structure by playing.
Posted on 10/20/2010 8:54:50 AM
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It is difficult for doctors to differentiate between the two disorders based on behavioral measures alone, but the new finding may help in efforts to develop diagnostic tests based on both neurological and behavioral markers, the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) researchers said.
Posted on 10/20/2010 8:52:36 AM
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Ms. McCarthy stated, “We’re the ones seeing the real result,” she said. “And until doctors start listening to our anecdotal evidence, which is this is working, it’s going to take so many more years for these kids to get better. Every parent will tell you something different that helped their child, but all we know is that from this community we do see positive changes from this diet.”
Posted on 10/17/2010 4:41:29 PM
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Among autistic patients, the brain scans found less communication among regions associated with facial recognition, language and motor skills.
Posted on 10/17/2010 4:40:44 PM
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Emergency situations can be precarious for anyone involved.
But imagine dealing with someone who doesn't respond to their name or doesn't respond at all. There is a chance he or she is a person with autism. This is an added challenge for emergency responders and professionals who have to answer these types of calls everyday.
Posted on 10/15/2010 11:49:14 AM
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About 80 percent of Americans believe the statement “people with learning disabilities are just as smart as you and me” to be generally accurate.
But a majority also link learning disabilities with mental retardation and autism, and more than 50 percent agree that learning disabilities are “often caused by the home environment children are raised in."
Posted on 10/14/2010 11:59:41 AM
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About 1 in 5 teens in the United States suffer from a mental disorder severe enough to their impact daily activities, either currently or at some point in their lives, according to a startling new study. The research also concludes that a higher percentage have or have had some sort of mental disorder, though less serious in nature.
Posted on 10/14/2010 11:58:43 AM
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Why are Aspies so weird? Why can't we just "get over it" or act normally?
Posted on 10/13/2010 1:15:55 PM
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Before she got an iPad at age two, Caleigh Gray couldn't respond to yes-or-no questions. Now Caleigh, who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, uses a $190 software application that speaks the words associated with pictures she touches on Apple Inc.'s device.
Posted on 10/13/2010 12:52:54 PM
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If you're a parent with a child on the spectrum, you've probably responded to the same annoying remarks and questions a thousand times. Here's a handy list of responses that...you'll probably never use out loud (but are fun to imagine using)!
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:54:07 PM
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Ne’eman’s deliberate use of the phrase “the autistic community” was more subversive than it sounds. The notion that autistic people — often portrayed in the media as pitiable loners — would not only wear their diagnosis proudly, but want to make common cause with other autistic people, is still a radical one. Imagine a world in which most public discussion of homosexuality was devoted to finding a cure for it, rather than on the need to address the social injustices that prevent gay people from living happier lives. Though the metaphor is far from exact (for example, gay people obviously don’t face the impairments that many autistic people do), that’s the kind of world that autistic people live in.
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:52:55 PM
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I know this may be corny, but I was thing of pickup lines that people say and thought of this....
"Hey baby, Once you go Aspie (or Vulcan - like Spock), you'll never go back.." *eye brow raises a few times*
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:50:12 PM
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Oct. 11, 2010 -- As many as 60% of full-term newborns and 80% of babies born prematurely develop jaundice in their first few days of life. Now new research suggests the condition may be linked to a higher risk for autism.
Babies with jaundice develop yellowish skin due to excess of the chemical bilirubin, which is a byproduct of the breakdown of red blood cells. Most cases resolve within a week or two of birth. But in very rare cases, jaundice can result in brain damage, cerebral palsy, and even death.
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:48:57 PM
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Autism charities around the world have joined forces to ask online users to give up social networkingwebsites on Nov. 1 as a way to experience how difficult it is for those with the disorder to communicate socially.
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:34:31 PM
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“Our focus here is on early intervention,” said Foundation School Director Rheatha Miller. The school has 21 students enrolled in its three classes, which consist of one pre-kindergarten class and two kindergarten classes.
Posted on 10/12/2010 12:33:36 PM
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The number of West Virginia students diagnosed as autistic has more than tripled in nine years, and the superintendent of the county with the highest number told state school board members his county is paying as much as $200,000 per child in severe cases.
Posted on 10/7/2010 12:28:24 PM
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DUBLIN, Ohio — A Dublin elementary school is turning to technology to help some children with development disabilities.
Only a few weeks into the school year, and 8-year-old Johann Bast was making short work of his alphabet, with the help of an Apple iPad, 10TV's Andy Hirsch reported on Tuesday.
Posted on 10/7/2010 12:27:51 PM
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"For the first time, there will be objective data about how autistic children respond to each of the communication tools," said Prof Sigafoos, who said the study of children at home and in pre-school or school would help improve the development of communication skills some autistic children.
"By identifying and using their preferred tools and techniques, we may be able to help autistic children become better all round communicators," he said.
Posted on 10/6/2010 4:42:44 PM
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This "scout" program in Spain relies on special video gaming systems like a Nintendo DS. Kids can learn basic tasks, as well as telling teachers what they want to do, all by touching the screen.
A study in 16 Spanish schools found the program decreased outbursts and improved overall behavior.
"They are less aggressive because they can communicate," said Fortiz.
Posted on 10/5/2010 4:08:22 PM
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A learning disorder does not affect a person's intelligence but rather "affects the brain's ability to process, store, and respond to information," according to the National Center for Learning Disabilities.
The report says that 79% of parents and 80% of non-parents incorrectly associate mental retardation with a learning disorder. A majority of Americans also incorrectly associate attention deficit disorder (ADD), emotional disorders and autism with learning disorders, all of which are unrelated to learning disabilities.
Posted on 10/5/2010 4:06:36 PM
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This is neurofeedback, a kind of biofeedback for the brain, which practitioners say can address a host of neurological ills — among them attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, depression and anxiety — by allowing patients to alter their own brain waves through practice and repetition.
Posted on 10/5/2010 12:47:18 PM
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A new study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has revealed that siblings of autistic children have more frequent language delays.
Posted on 10/3/2010 6:50:54 PM
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For centuries the human adult brain has been thought to be incapable of fundamental change. Now the discovery and growing awareness of neuroplasticity has revolutionized our understanding of the brain – and has opened the door to new treatments and potential cures for many diseases and disorders once thought incurable.
Posted on 10/1/2010 7:34:16 PM
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Welcome to App Friday, our weekly link exchange of family-friendly apps. This week we are featuring two apps for special needs, which also have attributes for children of various learning levels and interests. We begin with Story Builder for iPad that encourages storytelling in a child’s own voice. We follow with ArtikPix (universal app for iPhone and iPad) which has vibrant flashcards, a matching game, and audio recorder for practicing word sounds.
Posted on 10/1/2010 8:53:27 AM
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Compelling new research released Thursday shows that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- ADHD -- may have genetic underpinnings. Reporting in the British medical journal The Lancet, scientists at Cardiff University in Wales found that people with certain genetic makeups may be more likely to have the disorder.
Posted on 10/1/2010 8:12:55 AM
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St. Louis, MO, September 27, 2010 --(PR.com)-- US Autism & Asperger Association (USAAA) will broadcast the first ever Autism/Asperger conference in its entirety live at the USAAA 5th Annual World Conference hosted October 1-3, 2010 in St. Louis, Missouri. Thirty of the world’s leading autism experts will be presenting on new interventions, research and personal experiences. The conference will be held at the Hilton St. Louis Airport Hotel.
Posted on 9/29/2010 6:40:45 AM
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Gucwa's studio is the first in Pennsylvania to offer Autism Movement Therapy (AMT), a sensory integration technique that promotes communication between the brain's right and left hemispheres, improving behavior, communication and social skills.
Dance involves both sides of the brain, marshaling the left side to remember the patterns and the right side to visually process the movements and hear the music, according to Gucwa.
Posted on 9/28/2010 11:46:53 AM
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To recreate that, Dr. Strauss and his colleagues recently completed the first study that tested the ability of high-functioning autistic people to interpret dynamic video clips of expressions, where faces would go from a neutral expression to happiness, anger, surprise, fear, sadness or disgust in a third of a second.
Posted on 9/28/2010 11:45:20 AM
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Lauren knew that these children could have a better experience. With a background in child psychology, education and art, she decided to do something about it.
Today Lauren is the Founder and President of With a Brush of Love, an organization that transforms the lives of children diagnosed with autism and other special needs through their surroundings. Through the conscious use of color and various sensory elements, Lauren designs environments that improve both the emotional and physical well being of these children and their families. "In addition to helping directly, our methods also increase the effectiveness of other therapies and treatments," says Lauren.
Posted on 9/28/2010 11:06:12 AM
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In a few hours, I will be teaching a course at a local college about ASDs, an ASD 101 of sorts. I have decided that my pre-class warm-up won’t be to review my slides again. It will be to revel in all the reasons I am so blessed to know and work with individuals with ASDs.
Posted on 9/27/2010 12:53:37 PM
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As it turned out, the children with autism who took the tests showed normal ability at recognizing cars and superior skill at recognizing houses.
But they had significant problems identifying faces when they were shown from different angles or when some of the features were covered.
Posted on 9/27/2010 12:00:46 PM
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"Take off the mandates for coverage in the state of Nevada and all over the United States," she charged in making remarks that were captured on camera and now are being circulated by the Nevada State Democratic Party. "You know what I'm talking about. You're paying for things that you don't even need. They just passed the latest one, is everything that they want to throw at us now is covered under 'autism'."
Posted on 9/27/2010 8:42:13 AM
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All the footage shot over the years has now been put together for Mia's documentary, which follows her life before the vaccines and after.
Posted on 9/27/2010 8:41:10 AM
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Is your child at risk for autism? Here are nine red flags to watch for, from top autism researcher Dr. Rebecca Landa, director of the Center for Autism & Related Disorders at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore.
Posted on 9/27/2010 8:40:17 AM
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While experts knew they'd be popular, the company probably didn't predict how this device would turn out to be a miracle for families who have loved ones who either can't or have trouble speaking.
Posted on 9/24/2010 8:33:00 AM
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ReacTickles provides a series of interactive “Tickles” through which young children, those pupils on the autistic spectrum and other learning disabilities are encouraged to use technology. Pupils can develop mouse, keyboard, whiteboard, switch and screen skills whilst being encouraged to communicate, to use fine motor skills and to work together. The software also works well within mainstream early years settings enabling very young children to interact and learn to communicate as individuals and within small groups.
Posted on 9/21/2010 1:47:10 PM
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Autism Oasis for Kids opened in a small house right off Main Street on Aug. 23, just in time for the 2010-11 school year. While seven children currently attend the school, three more are expected to join in the coming months.
Marie Trempe and her husband, Rob Cecil, founded the school. The couple's inspiration: their 10-year-old son, Narottam, who has autism.
Posted on 9/21/2010 1:45:46 PM
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A study led by a team of Toronto scientists has discovered that males who carry specific genetic alterations on their X-chromosome have an elevated risk for developing autism spectrum disorder, or ASD.
"The male gender bias in autism has intrigued us for years and now we have an indicator that starts to explain why this may be," said co-principal investigator Stephen Scherer, director of the Centre for Applied Genomics at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children.
Posted on 9/20/2010 4:55:39 PM
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Parker attributed the success to the district's efforts in training employees on autism so they can better communicate with students.
"I feel the staff is getting the proper training they need," Parker said.
Posted on 9/20/2010 11:39:29 AM
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Children with autism think differently, and that thinking changes over time—for the better. That first statement might not seem like news: Of course their brains are different, they have autism! But children with autism do improve their thinking skills over time, according to new research. That's encouraging, particularly because most research has focused on whether communication skills and behavior can change, rather than on cognitive skills.
Posted on 9/19/2010 9:53:56 AM
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UK scientists, writing in Science, looked at how brain size varied depending on how much people thought about decisions. But a nationwide survey recently found that some people think too much about life. These people have poorer memories, and they may also be depressed.
Posted on 9/19/2010 9:52:56 AM
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Last fall my friend Jody shared a piece of advice I could not ignore. As the mother of a now-adult male with autism, she counseled, you must read Nancy Perry’s book, “Adults on the Autism Spectrum Leave the Nest: Achieving Supported Independence.” It was great and timely advice.
Posted on 9/18/2010 7:36:28 AM
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Since the iPad was launched in April, teachers and doctors who work with autistic children and adults have been raving about the device. Apps such as Proloquo2Go and Grace are being praised for their ability to help students with autism and other disabilities build communication skills.
Posted on 9/16/2010 5:40:05 PM
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Research Shows Cognitive Skills Vary in Children With Autism, and Sometimes Improve Over Time
Posted on 9/15/2010 6:33:51 PM
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The new drug, Arbaclofen, is intended to rebalance the brain chemistry of those with autism. It was tested on 25 children with the condition aged between six and 17, over eight weeks. They suffered few side effects and by the end of the trial were calmer and more sociable. ‘We observed marked improvement in the majority of patients treated in the study, including reductions in agitation and tantrums'. They made eye contact more easily and were less anxious than at the start.
Posted on 9/15/2010 6:33:13 PM
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Donald was the first child ever diagnosed with autism. Identified in the annals of autism as “Case 1 … Donald T,” he is the initial subject described in a 1943 medical article that announced the discovery of a condition unlike “anything reported so far,” the complex neurological ailment now most often called an autism spectrum disorder, or ASD. At the time, the condition was considered exceedingly rare, limited to Donald and 10 other children—Cases 2 through 11—also cited in that first article.
That was 67 years ago.
Posted on 9/14/2010 3:51:37 PM
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Sept. 13, 2010 -- Exposure to thimerosal-containing vaccines in infancy or in the womb is not associated with an increased risk for developing autism, according to a new study from the CDC.
Children in the study who developed autism spectrum disorder (ASD) actually had less exposure to vaccines with the mercury-containing preservative than children who developed normally.
The study is the latest of almost 20 studies to find no link between childhood vaccinations and autism.
Posted on 9/14/2010 1:20:27 PM
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Genetic misfolding of neuroligins is thought to prevent normal formation and function of neuronal synapses. The gene mutation has been documented in patients with autism.
Posted on 9/14/2010 1:19:26 PM
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Scream at Home, Kid.
by Jessica Samakow
Posted on 9/14/2010 1:18:37 PM
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A few months ago the Apple iPad hit stores touted as the newest tech gadget. Now we have learned, it's more than just another gadget. It is changing lives for autistic children. Autism is a developmental disability that affects a child's ability to communicate and interact.
Posted on 9/8/2010 1:58:47 PM
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All of the children who showed the strongest preference for the geometric pattern -- that is, they gazed at it more than 69 percent of the time -- had autism, according to the study.
Posted on 9/6/2010 4:12:49 PM
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Priory Coleg Wales in Pontypool, Torfaen, will cater for students aged between 16 and 25.
Its courses aim to boost pupils' independence and improve their chances of getting a job and enjoying a better quality of life.
Posted on 9/6/2010 7:42:30 AM
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Scientists report that they may have detected signs of autism in 6-month-old babies, but it's too early to know if the findings could lead to earlier diagnosis of the condition.
Posted on 9/6/2010 7:41:51 AM
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Movie theaters, restaurants and theme parks are offering the parents of autistic children family activities in social settings tailored to their special sensory circumstances.
Posted on 9/6/2010 7:41:13 AM
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"To us, (group homes) were isolating," Sue Wilson says. "This is more freedom, because they can come out of their house and walk around. There's lots to do right here."
Posted on 9/6/2010 7:40:37 AM
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Researchers found that, like the low-risk group, the high-risk siblings exhibited typical levels of social gazing when their caregivers actively engaged them, such as pointing at the toy and expressing excitement. However, high-risk sibs spent less time looking to their caregivers and more time fixated on the non-social stimuli (toy or joystick) when the caregiver was not engaging them, which could indicate a disruption in development related to joint attention. Joint attention is often a core deficit for children with autism.
Posted on 9/1/2010 3:55:45 PM
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Experts agree that the primary explanation for the dramatic increase in autism is toxic environmental exposure and gene-environment interactions. New research shows that even low-dose, multiple toxic and infectious exposures may be a key factor to the onset of autism.
Posted on 8/30/2010 3:56:59 PM
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On Sunday night's Emmy broadcast, viewers heard the same name over and over again as the awards were announced: Temple Grandin.
Posted on 8/30/2010 7:15:15 AM
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Socialization is among the hardest of tasks for individuals with autism, but now those with the developmental disorder are the very people helping scientists understand exactly how complex the process of interacting with others really is.
Posted on 8/29/2010 6:35:20 AM
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Professor Michael Fitzgerald is one of the leading researchers who is attempting to posthumously diagnose famous thinkers, backed up by the idea that the genes responsible for originality and creativity are also attributed to autism and Asperger’s. Take a look at some of the more controversial cases here.
Posted on 8/26/2010 5:16:05 AM
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A new study found that kids with autism were slower to integrate stimuli from different senses, providing possible explanations for behavioral differences
Posted on 8/22/2010 4:51:05 AM
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Nolan's mom created a list of fun iPad apps that are also useful for learning social skills, fine motor skills, language and communication skills, sensory skills and others.
Posted on 8/18/2010 4:11:36 PM
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In this post, I hope to show how simple acts of kindness can make a world of difference for families who have children with autism. I will highlight seven easy, free (or inexpensive) ways that you can do to help:
Posted on 8/17/2010 7:26:54 PM
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A new book highlights the number of women who suffer from Asperger's syndrome without knowing it.
Posted on 8/16/2010 5:09:11 PM
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Teachers and doctors are using iPads as a tool to reach out to children with Autism or Asperger Syndrome and the results are remarkably great. Autistic children are showing tremendous improvement after playing fun-filled exercises on iPad which is less stressful and more fun for both the teachers and the students. Below is the list of 10 best iPad applications to give Autism a voice.
Posted on 8/16/2010 8:05:15 AM
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Through the devices, some of these children have been able to communicate their thoughts to adults for the first time. Others have learned life skills that had eluded them for years,” Harrell wrote. In addition it looks like the iPad works much better than computers designed specifically for children with autism.
Posted on 8/16/2010 8:03:55 AM
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Parents of children suffering from autism are turning to the iPad to help their kids. Experts don’t know what causes autism, but parents of autistic children know too well how hard it is to reach through the disease and communicate with them. Help in making contact has come in an unexpected form: the Apple iPad.
Posted on 8/16/2010 8:02:48 AM
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Scientists from the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) at King's College London have developed a pioneering new method of diagnosing autism in adults. For the first time, a quick brain scan that takes just 15 minutes can identify adults with autism with over 90 per cent accuracy. The method could lead to the screening for autism spectrum disorders in children in the future.
Posted on 8/11/2010 10:15:25 AM
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“There is no evidence of the effect of SSRIs in children and emerging evidence of harm,” researchers warned in their conclusion.
Posted on 8/11/2010 6:03:10 AM
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(Reuters) - A 15-minute brain scan could in future be used to test for autism, helping doctors diagnose the complex condition more cheaply and accurately.
Posted on 8/11/2010 6:01:54 AM
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"When you look at the percent of cases which have these genetic malfunctions, for each gene, it's less than 1 percent and no greater than 20 percent," Pessah said. "There is a large fraction of autism that hasn't been attributed to genetic contribution."
More than 80,000 chemicals in use today are consistent with the neurological disorders found in autism.
Posted on 8/7/2010 4:20:29 PM
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Results indicated that the music intervention was more effective than the non-music intervention in increasing all three social responsive behaviours in both Phases B and C. Furthermore, no avoidant behaviours were observed during the music condition. It is suggested that the music condition was more motivating for the participant than the non-music condition, resulting in more social responsive behaviours.
Posted on 8/4/2010 3:59:20 PM
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The researchers, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Georgia State University and Boston University, said they weren't surprised that parents of ASD children were nearly twice as likely to divorce. Their results were in line with another study that found couples raising a child with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder were about twice as likely to split up compared to other couples.
But they should hardly despair -- after all, more than 75% of such marriages remain intact. "It may be reassuring for parents to know that most marriages survive and thus their marriage is not destined for divorce, as is often incorrectly presented in the media," they concluded.
Posted on 8/4/2010 3:55:22 PM
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Thorkil Sonne, founder of Specialisterne and Specialist People Foundation, said: "With the opening of Specialisterne Scotland we have set a very important milestone in making society welcome people with autism spectrum disorder as valuable and worthy citizens.
Posted on 8/4/2010 3:52:04 PM
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To help school administrators and special education directors address that challenge, Rethink Autism and eSchool News are offering a webinar - "How to Serve More Students on the Autism Spectrum with Shrinking Budgets" - on Wednesday, August 11, 2010 at 2pm (EDT)/ 1pm (CDT). The webinar will show how schools can save costs (while still providing a quality evidence-based education for students with autism) by utilizing remote support services and low-cost web-based technology that offers curriculum planning, staff training and data tracking & reporting. To learn more or register for the webinar at no cost, visit http://rethinkautism2.eventbrite.com/.
Posted on 8/3/2010 6:23:49 AM
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The theory behind person first language ("person with autism") is that it recognizes the person before the disability and stresses that there is more to a person than just autism. I asked my blog readers and my twitter followers which they preferred and the majority, mostly parents of children with autism, reported that they prefer the person first terminology.
Posted on 8/3/2010 6:22:21 AM
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MONDAY, Aug. 2 (HealthDay News) -- In another sign that autism is at least partly inherited, a new study reveals that close relatives of people with the disorder share something in common: their eyes are much more likely than those of other people to function abnormally.
Posted on 8/3/2010 6:21:24 AM
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Death and bereavement are subjects we do not not find easy to discuss. This natural reluctance means that we avoid discussing death until it is too late, especially with someone who has ASD. Clearly every child is different, and their level of understanding will differ, too. Therefore you may have to make some adjustments for your individual child, and adults with ASD as well.
Posted on 8/2/2010 7:47:47 AM
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Researchers at The Ohio State University’s Nisonger Center are using a drug normally prescribed for Alzheimer’s patients to determine if it will improve the communication skills of children with autism.
Posted on 8/2/2010 7:45:38 AM
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If you observe the families of children with autism, sooner rather than later you'll encounter parents who are noticeably quirky -- they'll be a little too interested in model trains, uncompromisingly logical and rigid thinkers, or oblivious to social cues -- like me, they'll share several but not all the autism traits of their children.
Posted on 7/29/2010 6:14:26 AM
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A new study will spread greater awareness of the public health benefits of wider immunization.
Posted on 7/29/2010 6:13:23 AM
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On first blush, it may seem as though individuals with autism spectrum condition (ASC), who are typically characterized by social, communicative, and motor impairments, would have deficits in implicit learning mechanisms that would cause such overt impairments. Research recent suggests this isn't the case, however. In fact, research is converging on the fascinating conclusion that children with autism can actually do a superb job implicitly learning things.
Posted on 7/27/2010 6:16:24 AM
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Casanova published a report earlier this year in the journal “Medical Hypothesis,” spelling out his concerns of ultrasounds. In it, he noted rising rates of autism coincident with the increased use of ultrasound in obstetrics, and demanded further research.
Posted on 7/27/2010 6:11:49 AM
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(CNN) -- It's there on the 911 tape.
"Why did you do this? "the operator asked the woman who said she had killed her two kids.
"They are autistic," replied the mother. "Both are autistic. I don't want my kids to be like that."
Posted on 7/24/2010 5:33:03 AM
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The researchers said early speech of infants with autism - in particular how they produce well-formed syllables with rapid movements of the jaw and tongue during vocalisation - are distinct from those of typically developing children. This can be picked up by a new automated vocal analysis system.
Posted on 7/24/2010 5:31:13 AM
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Upper class parents are likelier to have children with autism, according to a University of Wisconsin-Madison study. The findings suggest either the genetics or the lifestyles of wealthier people predispose their children to autism.
Posted on 7/24/2010 5:30:17 AM
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A trio of professionals who work with autistic children – board certified behavior analyst Kelly McKinnon of Laguna Niguel, preschool teacher Joan Hersh of Newport Beach and child neuropsychologist Christine Majors of Mission Viejo – has teamed up to help children deal with everyday situations. The film is available at everyopportunityproductions.com.
Posted on 7/24/2010 5:29:19 AM
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...A short time later, she received a call from one of Zimmer's vice presidents, informing her that Men's Warehouse had decided to fly the two of them to San Francisco for a photo shoot of Cole and was going to put them up in a hotel for several days. In addition to paying their airfare and hotel room, Karen Emory said the company also purchased tickets for them to see the play "Wicked" during their visit, as well as admission to Alcatraz Island and dinner at a restaurant at Fisherman's Wharf. Her husband, Mark, and other son Will, 17, decided to fly out to San Francisco with them.
Posted on 7/22/2010 5:22:16 PM
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New research on the finicky eating habits of children with autism finds that while autistic children do tend to eat a less varied diet than other kids, their feeding preferences have little negative effect on their height, weight and growth.
Posted on 7/19/2010 5:10:27 AM
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The higher rates of diagnosed autism among the wealthy has long been thought to be a result of higher rates of diagnosis (or “diagnostic ascertainment bias”) – i.e., wealthier families having better access to those who diagnose autism. However, a new paper argues that the disease itself might actually be more common at the higher end of the income spectrum.
Posted on 7/18/2010 6:44:44 PM
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Now researchers want to know the “whys” behind the good and less than favorable outcomes, which will entail tracking down as many of the original 400 as possible.
Posted on 7/18/2010 6:44:02 PM
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The actress Claire Danes, usually so expressive and radiant, looks blank and awkward. The scene is an HBO movie in which Danes plays Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who became an acclaimed animal behavior expert and cattle-chute designer. In real life, Grandin says that autism makes social interactions difficult, but gives her special abilities that make her better at her job.
Posted on 7/18/2010 6:43:00 PM
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Abnormal brain growth and function are features of autism, an increasingly common developmental disorder that now affects 1 in 60 boys in the US. Now researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and Thoughtful House Center for Children in Austin, Texas, have found remarkably similar brain changes to those seen in autism in infant monkeys receiving the vaccine schedule used in the 1990’s that contained the mercury-based preservative thimerosal.
Posted on 7/16/2010 6:05:13 AM
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MADRID (Reuters) - Award-winning Spanish illustrator Miguel Gallardo has overcome the limitations imposed by his daughter's autism by doing what he does best -- drawing.
Gallardo's sketches over 12 years led to a beautifully etched comic book, "Maria and I" (Maria y Yo), explaining everyday life with his daughter and its challenges.
Posted on 7/16/2010 6:04:30 AM
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The concept of training people with autism to be valued employees is a growing trend in business. Last year, the Chicago non-profit company Aspiritech began training people with autism to be software testers, based on their exceptional ability to perform repetitive tasks without losing focus. "People on the autism spectrum have a variety of skills, depending on the individual," says Schreck. "However, in general, people with Asperger Syndrome have normal to above normal intelligence; are able to communicate; and have strengths in completing concrete, logical tasks. People with more severe autism would probably be more successful with clearly delineated tasks and routines. Many of the autistic adolescents that I have worked with could complete assembly, sorting, and organizational tasks."
Posted on 7/16/2010 6:03:40 AM
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The researchers are interested in how children with autism develop language skills, and if there's some markers that parents and doctors could look for that would help in making a diagnosis.
Posted on 7/16/2010 6:02:49 AM
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This year Sydney and her mother, Lisa Edmond, collected the poems and Sydney's story in a book, "The Purple Tree and other poems," that they had printed at the Grace Mellman Community Library in Temecula. The teen has presenting her work at "open mic" nights at Eclectic Books in Murrieta.
Posted on 7/13/2010 6:05:45 AM
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When and how autism at first develops in a pretentious child appears to offer clues to later outcome. In addition, IQ measures upon early diagnoses provide a signal of what to see in the approaching times.
Posted on 7/12/2010 4:13:09 PM
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Employment help often lacking for applicants facing difficulties with interviews, workplace interactions
Posted on 7/12/2010 4:12:00 PM
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Well Dr. Stephen Shore is apt to be anywhere in the world, but almost always performing the same service: “Improving life for people on the autism spectrum... one trip at a time!”
Posted on 7/12/2010 5:35:41 AM
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FORT COLLINS — The Autism Society of Larimer County has started an initiative to reach more low-income and Latino families throughout the county, trying to educate disadvantaged families about the symptoms of autism and the resources available to help them get the treatment needed, said Phyllis Zimmerman, president of the Autism Society of Larimer County.
Posted on 7/12/2010 5:34:17 AM
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The hormone oxytocin, which helps mother and baby bonding and creates feelings of trust between lovers, is known to play a crucial role in face recognition, social bonding and interpreting gestures -- tasks with which autistic people typically struggle.
Posted on 7/5/2010 4:22:17 PM
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Studies suggest the illness may be under-diagnosed or misdiagnosed in Latino families. In California, the percent of all autistic people that are Latinos, 28 percent, is below the total percentage of Latinos in the state, 36 percent. Yet, the population of Latino children is growing in Santa Cruz County, meaning the autism diagnosis might rise, as will the need for services in Spanish and providers who speak Spanish.
Posted on 7/5/2010 4:21:28 PM
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A project in Scotland to train up to 60 people with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) for IT jobs has been awarded Ł407,036 from the Big Lottery Fund.
Posted on 7/1/2010 11:22:09 AM
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The prevalence of an ASD diagnosis among children has certainly risen in the past decade (although even the claim of an "explosion" of diagnosed cases turns out to be bogus - we'll get to that a few posts down the road). An epidemic, however, is defined as a sudden increase in incidence. There is simply no evidence to support the claim that there has been a change in incidence. And until someone figures out how to stand in the delivery room and count autistic-to-be babies as they are born, we are not likely to have such evidence.
Posted on 7/1/2010 6:10:43 AM
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While using the Dynavox, Logan began to try and speak, a small word here a small word there. For the most part though, very little verbalization was happening. Every day, the boy would sit with the group on the floor during circle time listening to songs. All the children, but not Logan, sang songs about animals, days, months, and math. Not a word was uttered. Then, it happened. In fifth grade, all of sudden a tiny voice came out shocking the whole class. He began to sing the words that he had heard for the last several years.
Posted on 6/28/2010 4:35:44 PM
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A center offering an intensive approach to autism disorders started by treating two children and has grown by leaps. It now serves more than 100 clients at three sites.
Posted on 6/28/2010 6:25:00 AM
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Susan K. Delaine has struggled for years with her autistic son’s food sensitivities and health discomforts. After painstaking trial and error, she found that a gluten-free and dairy-free diet, combined with healing arts, positively affected his dietary health, as well as his emotional and mental health. In The Autism Cookbook: 101 Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Recipes, Delaine offers to everyone a strong case for how a nutritious diet, free of dairy and gluten, combined with a spiritual living can enhance the health of an autistic child and adult.
Posted on 6/28/2010 6:19:00 AM
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Here are five tips on how to help develop friendships for your child with autism.
Posted on 6/28/2010 6:08:47 AM
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OSR#1 is not a dietary supplement but a toxic, unapproved drug with serious potential side effects, FDA warns.
Posted on 6/25/2010 6:34:55 AM
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My son Leo's life was transformed when a five-dollar raffle ticket turned into a brand-new iPad. I'm not exaggerating. Before the iPad, Leo's autism made him dependent on others for entertainment, play, learning, and communication. With the iPad, Leo electrifies the air around him with independence and daily new skills. People who know Leo are amazed when they see this new boy rocking that iPad. I'm impressed, too, especially when our aggressively food-obsessed boy chooses to play with his iPad rather than eat. I don't usually dabble in miracle-speak, but I may erect a tiny altar to Steve Jobs in the corner of our living room.
Posted on 6/23/2010 5:31:16 PM
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Mothers of children with autism frequently forgo promotions, work fewer hours and decline new job offers as a result of their caregiving responsibilities, new research indicates.
Posted on 6/23/2010 4:00:51 PM
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For the last 15 years, geneticists have tried and failed to find a common structural genetic abnormality in autism. What they have found is evidence of genetic damage; the genetic code is not properly regulated in autism, with multiple genes not being expressed, probably due to an environmental injury. As Dr. Kinney reports, vitamin D's mechanism of action is protection of the genome with direct regulation more than 1,000 human genes.
Posted on 6/23/2010 3:59:59 PM
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Local pediatric and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Tim Valko treats over 500 patients affected with the disorder. He says the studies indicate the cause of autism is coming down to genetics. Much like families who carry a pre-disposition to a disease like diabetes, autism appears to be follow a similar pattern. "There are little, tiny chromosomal changes that if you follow these over generations, you're going to see that there's a pattern," said Dr. Valko.
Posted on 6/23/2010 3:59:24 PM
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Karen Sherod, Performing Arts Director at Leftovers, etc in St. Charles, offers her thoughts on how to teach children on the autism spectrum how to play the guitar.
Posted on 6/21/2010 5:46:01 PM
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Based on that she says there are some things mothers can do to reduce their risk of having a child develop autism.
“I think it’s a good idea to have some nutritional testing prior to conception. Things like vitamin D levels, protein levels.
Schneider recommends families that have allergies; auto immune disease and asthma take precautions.
Posted on 6/21/2010 3:55:13 PM
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"Through the typing we have discovered he knows all sorts of things.
"He is completely on the ball, his sense of humour is completely all there. He has beautiful poetry, his feelings and emotions are all perfectly normal and above average for his age."
Posted on 6/21/2010 9:05:54 AM
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The P.E.I. government released a new strategy for the diagnosis and treatment of autism Tuesday, but the Autism Society says concrete results are a ways off.
Posted on 6/16/2010 7:28:19 PM
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A Wyndham Hotel in Austin, Texas recently opened five rooms that are specially equipped for guests with autistic children. These rooms offer features such as an alarm to alert adults when the door is open, which could prevent an autistic child from wandering away.
Posted on 6/16/2010 7:27:33 PM
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The 18-year-old Duquette, who couldn't say a word until age five, gave the commencement speech at his high school graduation ceremony Tuesday night in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
"My parents were told I would most likely end up in an institution," said Duquette. "I stand before you accepted into every institution of higher learning I applied to."
He stood at the podium wearing a green cap and gown and a big grin on his face. His speech, funny and touching, was met with enthusiastic applause from his peers.
Posted on 6/16/2010 7:26:52 PM
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When the six Henrico County students with autism started job-training internships last fall at St. Mary's Hospital, most wouldn't make eye contact with each other or the hospital staff.
Yesterday marked a milestone for the students -- they not only completed the internships with more job skills and greater confidence, but they also got job offers to work at St. Mary's.
Posted on 6/16/2010 7:00:28 AM
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There exists a strong link between in vitro fertilization (IVF) and mild to moderate cases of autism, according to a researcher at Tel Aviv University.
Posted on 6/16/2010 6:59:08 AM
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People with autism often have a hard time finding and keeping jobs, so more schools are creating programs to help students with autism get prepared for the workplace. One of those programs helped change the life of Kevin Sargeant.
Posted on 6/14/2010 3:32:47 PM
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Nono Njongwe, who has worked as a speech therapist in a rural South African school and clinic, says autism is sometimes left undiagnosed because strange behaviour is often kept hidden.
Posted on 6/14/2010 7:25:22 AM
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Children with autism have unusual sensory systems--many don't sense the need to use the bathroom, and is commonly on the TOP TEN list of problems that parents of children on the spectrum struggle with.
Posted on 6/14/2010 7:24:42 AM
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Too many, too few copies a hallmark of autistic people's genomes, study finds.
Posted on 6/10/2010 3:04:56 PM
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"For 80 percent of the common chemicals in everyday use in this country we know almost nothing about whether or not they can damage the brains of children, the immune system, the reproductive system, and the other developing organs," said Dr. Phil Landrigan, a pediatrician and director of the Children's Environmental Health Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. "It's really a terrible mess we've gotten ourselves into."
Posted on 6/9/2010 9:31:29 AM
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(Reuters) - Babies born just 1 or 2 weeks before their 40-week gestation due date are more likely to develop learning difficulties such as autism or dyslexia, according to a British study published on Tuesday.
Posted on 6/8/2010 4:39:51 PM
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The lines between virtual and real world seem to be increasingly blurred especially for this generation of kids. However, researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) have developed a robot Bandit that is helping autistic children connect with the real world.
Posted on 6/8/2010 4:34:05 PM
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As a child, Emily would get pain and nausea from something so seemingly simple as putting on shoes and socks.
And although she was always dancing around the house and moving to music, Emily had to miss out on ballet lessons with other young girls because putting on tights was so physically traumatizing.
Posted on 6/7/2010 6:44:03 AM
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Heather McCracken developed autism demystification programs out of necessity for her son, who did not have friends when he was younger. Considering the need for friendship of children like hers, McCracken founded the Friend to Friend Social Learning Society (F2F), which has one mandate: “to foster mutual friendships between children on the autism spectrum (CWA) and their peers, siblings, and classmates.” To meet their mandate, F2F developed and delivered autism demystification and educational programs for children/teens aged 3-18 years old.
Posted on 6/7/2010 6:25:06 AM
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For young adults with special needs in institutions of higher learning such as the universities, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education, the ARC will advocate that they receive support services in the form of allied educators and autism-trained counsellors in the next 10 years.
Posted on 6/7/2010 6:22:34 AM
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They have found that children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) also suffer from disorders in their gut and that this can be detected with a simple urine test.
That would mean that intensive behavioural and social treatment could begin before the disease has caused any permanent psychological damage.
Posted on 6/3/2010 5:35:56 PM
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If you haven't seen the photos or read the story on A Chance for Bliss, I hope you'll find time. The animal sanctuary is a forever home for older and special need pets run by David and Deanna Bartley in Penryn, Calif. This amazing couple not only helps animals in need but also brings in people with special needs to help out with the animals and to share the joy.
Posted on 6/2/2010 3:56:46 PM
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If you haven't seen the photos or read the story on A Chance for Bliss, I hope you'll find time. The animal sanctuary is a forever home for older and special need pets run by David and Deanna Bartley in Penryn, Calif. This amazing couple not only helps animals in need but also brings in people with special needs to help out with the animals and to share the joy.
Posted on 6/2/2010 3:56:46 PM
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Even in Beijing, there were no special schools for young children suffering for autism six years ago. Long Jianyou, the president of Anhua, says "We only realized recently that the earlier autism is diagnosed and treated, the better people fare later in life, so we started this autistic nursery."
Posted on 6/1/2010 6:21:54 AM
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Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, to peer at images of the children's brains, researchers from the University of California, San Diego, found that autistic children as young as 14 months use different brain regions than youngsters with more typical development when hearing bedtime stories.
Posted on 5/25/2010 4:19:11 PM
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New research, says the director of the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge who has spent more than two decades studying autism spectrum disorders, might also link prenatal sex hormone differences in the brain to autistic traits.
Posted on 5/25/2010 4:18:36 PM
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While a 1999 study counted about 100,000 autism Web sites, entering the term "autism" into the three major search engines today yields more than 17.4 million results, according to new research.
So how can parents know how to weed out fact from fiction when faced with so much information? It's not easy, experts say, but there are some steps parents can take to determine if the information they are getting is from a reputable source.
Posted on 5/25/2010 2:59:04 PM
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YPSILANTI — When Ann Breznai of Lambertville received her medical bill she was shocked that it cost $8,000 just to have her son diagnosed with autism.
Posted on 5/25/2010 2:58:04 PM
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Freedman and his team found that 64 percent of children with an autism spectrum disorder have two married biological or adoptive parents, while 65 percent of children who do not have an autism spectrum disorder had two parents.
Posted on 5/24/2010 1:58:08 PM
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Thorkil Sonne, a Danish entrepreneur who also has an autistic son, had succeeded at building a firm employing high-functioning autistic adults who perform repetitive software tests and data entry. Suzuki began writing a business plan.
Posted on 5/24/2010 1:56:41 PM
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But it did enhance parent-child interaction, study found
Posted on 5/24/2010 1:55:07 PM
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Shadows normally help individuals figure out the presence, number, relative position and the nature of different objects; as for autistic children, they obscure other details, the new study found.
Posted on 5/24/2010 1:54:29 PM
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Some children with autism have a special affinity for music. It seems to calm them down and give them an easier way to express themselves. So music therapy has become popular for many autistic kids. But one music program at the Boston Conservatory is specifically for kids with autism — and it has nothing to do with therapy.
Posted on 5/21/2010 8:38:51 AM
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When Gabby Abramowitz was younger, she was cautious about inviting new friends to the house. She wasn't sure how they would react to her younger brother, Ben, who is autistic.
Posted on 5/19/2010 9:02:37 PM
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Brain scans of sleeping toddlers show differences in response to bedtime stories
Posted on 5/19/2010 9:01:02 PM
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WEDNESDAY, May 19 (HealthDay News) -- Children whose mothers took fertility drugs were almost twice as likely to have autism as other children, new research finds. Being conceived by in vitro fertilization (IVF) or born prematurely also seemed to up the risk of autism, according to another study.
Posted on 5/19/2010 9:00:05 PM
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A popular autism diet free of cereal grains and dairy products did not improve symptoms in children, shows a small study to be reported Saturday.
Posted on 5/19/2010 8:58:48 PM
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JACKSON — Learning social skills is the master key to success for children with autism spectrum disorder, according to the clinical director of Autism New Jersey.
Posted on 5/19/2010 6:44:52 AM
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Although the Chinese government statistics state that one in 250 children have autism, many other non-governmental autism professionals beg to differ. Rough estimates from several different reports, state that the incidence rate could be as high as one in 100 children for both sexes, and one in 68 for boys [boys stats in the U.S are 1 in 58]. By simple math alone, using the numbers of the non-government studies, it is easy to see how when China’s immense population (at least four times the size of the U.S.) is factored in, there are more individuals in China that suffer from autism.
Posted on 5/19/2010 6:42:26 AM
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The wave of aging "baby boomers" needing public health services in Northern Virginia -- once thought to be the greatest healthcare and fiscal threat facing local governments in the coming decades -- will be far outnumbered by the skyrocketing percentage of young adults with autism diagnoses, Fairfax County human services officials said Tuesday.
According to statistics compiled by the Fairfax County Public Schools, 1 in 83 enrolled students are now diagnosed with some form of autism, an 846 percent growth since 1997.
Posted on 5/18/2010 3:06:55 PM
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MONDAY, May 17 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that exposure to high levels of organophosphate pesticides, commonly found on berries, celery and other produce, could raise the odds for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children.
Certainly parents and children shouldn't swear off fruits and veggies, said study lead author Maryse Bouchard, an adjunct researcher in the department of environmental and occupational health at the University of Montreal and at Sainte-Justine University Hospital Centre. However, "I think it's safe to say that we should as much as possible reduce our exposure to pesticides," she said.
That would meaning going organic, buying at farmers' markets and washing fruits and vegetables thoroughly before consuming them, she said.
Posted on 5/17/2010 1:34:28 PM
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As a toddler he spent most of his time lining up his favorite toys in order or spinning himself in circles — over and over again. When the Xu family went to an air show, his mother pointed to the planes roaring overhead, saying, “Christopher, look at that! Look up!” but the little boy just spun around and around, oblivious to the noise or the world surrounding him.
Now Christopher is 11, and he will soon graduate from the fifth grade at Madison’s John Muir Elementary to head off to middle school. Thanks to the love and persistence of his family, powerful early training, insightful teachers and accepting classmates, his story has changed dramatically, and his remarkable abilities are increasingly apparent.
He is among Wisconsin’s most gifted math students, recently earning top state honors among 1,477 students in the American Mathematics Competition for grades 8 and under. In another math competition, he placed third against high school students. He is his school’s chess champion, and his recreational reading includes such books as “Freakanomics” and “The Mathematical Universe.” He is an excellent musician with perfect pitch who’s composing his own work with the help of a UW music school doctoral candidate. And he’s a top city speller.
Posted on 5/15/2010 11:18:42 AM
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WEDNESDAY, May 12 (HealthDay News) -- A new study counters an influential theory that people with autism have trouble communicating with others because of problems in something called the mirror neuron system, which is crucial to human communication skills.
Posted on 5/12/2010 7:05:47 PM
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Schizophrenia involves some of the same genetic variations as autism and attention deficit disorders, a new whole-genome analysis study has confirmed.
Posted on 5/10/2010 3:06:03 PM
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - An Ohio woman has set out to see what would happen if she took a typical school environment and taught children with and without autism together.
Rebecca Morrison didn't want just one or two children with autism in class, and she also didn't want them to be singled out for one-on-one lessons.
Morrison started Oakstone Academy in central Ohio a decade ago and has watched it grow to serve more than 500 children in preschool through 12th grade.
Posted on 5/10/2010 10:39:39 AM
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HERE IN THE PHILIPPINES, WE HAVE HOME
Autism Society Philippines recently launched the H.O.M.E. Life Program. HOME stands for Harnessing Options in Managing Everyday Life.
The objectives of the H.O.M.E. Life Program are (1) to assess the residential abilities of youths and adults with autism, as well as other developmental disabilities and (2) to explore possibilities in living/residential arrangements in an enabling community.
Posted on 5/10/2010 10:38:50 AM
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Ellis gave the children pictures to color with the background shaped like jigsaw puzzle pieces, the symbol of autism used by the Autism Society. Each child came up with a way to illustrate autism on that background. Madison's had two children together, symbolizing friends because, like her brother, kids with autism often don't have many friends. Hers wasn't the only one like that: Several of the pictures had similar themes.
Clark is the author of "Jackson Whole Wyoming" and "Ann Drew Jackson," books about children with Asperger's syndrome and works at Hope as a speech language pathologist. Several of Hope's students have autism spectrum disorders, and her hope was that the other children would be moved to befriend those kids instead of being put off by their behavior.
Posted on 5/10/2010 10:37:36 AM
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A Bay Area researcher has found more clues to help treat children with "Fragile X syndrome," the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability and autism.
Posted on 5/10/2010 10:36:34 AM
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The study found that children who were admitted to the hospital for an infectious disease, either bacterial or viral, were more likely to receive a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.
However, children admitted to the hospital for non-infectious diseases were also more likely to be diagnosed with autism than kids who were never hospitalized, the study found.
Posted on 5/7/2010 4:01:37 PM
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Some health insurers would be required to cover up to $45,000 annually of intensive therapy for autistic children under legislation passed Thursday by the Missouri Senate.
Posted on 5/6/2010 3:23:56 PM
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If you have a child on the autism spectrum between the ages of three and eight, you'll want to know about an exciting study that starts in a few weeks.
Posted on 5/5/2010 4:17:55 PM
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A new study conducted by Autism Speaks' Autism Treatment Network (ATN) shows that GI symptoms occur in nearly half of children with ASD, and the prevalence increases as children get older.
Posted on 5/5/2010 12:41:15 PM
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A gluten-free, casein-free diet is not an effective treatment for autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to a review of more than a dozen major studies investigating the approach.
Posted on 5/4/2010 3:30:58 PM
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HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government should set up a network of regional centres to provide a wide range of care for people living with autism, a team of advisers recommends in a report released Monday.
Posted on 5/4/2010 3:30:02 PM
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HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government should set up a network of regional centres to provide a wide range of care for people living with autism, a team of advisers recommends in a report released Monday.
Posted on 5/4/2010 3:30:02 PM
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Flynn's story feels familiar, for dyslexia and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have many similarities.
Posted on 5/2/2010 7:54:57 PM
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SUNDAY, May 2 (HealthDay News) -- About one in five children with autism uses alternative treatments to help with the neurodevelopmental disorder, most often a special diet, a new study finds.
Posted on 5/2/2010 7:48:04 PM
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"These results help the public understand that autism is a very complex disorder, much like cancer," Dr. Lei said, "and no single gene or gene environment is likely to be causative in most cases."
Posted on 5/2/2010 7:47:29 PM
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"The amazing thing is what an incredible asset grandparents are for children with autism and their parents," said Dr. Paul Law, director of the Interactive Autism Network (IAN) at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore. "They have resources and time they can offer, but they also have their own needs, and they're impacted by their grandchild's autism, too. We shouldn't ignore them when we think about the impact of autism on society."
Posted on 5/1/2010 5:17:26 AM
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While the search continues for a cause -- and for a cure -- autism in general has become part of the mainstream. But while children's programs like PBS's Arthur are encouraging acceptance and understanding about autism spectrum disorders, controversey is what's making headlines in the news.
Posted on 4/30/2010 6:47:52 AM
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When the iPad was released earlier this month, reviewers were quick to tout its advantages for reading books, watching movies and browsing the Web. What they overlooked, though, was its potential to change the lives of people with autism.
Posted on 4/30/2010 6:47:16 AM
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AUSTIN, Texas — The use of gluten-free and/or casein-free (GFCF) diets in the treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is not supported by current research, says a team of scientists with The University of Texas at Austin's Meadows Center Autism Spectrum Disorders Institute.
Posted on 4/30/2010 6:46:43 AM
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Greenspan, the founder of Floortime and the Developmental, Individual Differences, Relationship-based model (DIR) for autism, died yesterday.
Posted on 4/28/2010 9:37:56 PM
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One of the most important aspects of autism has to do with sensory processing disorder. In fact, I have yet to meet a person on the autism spectrum who does not have sensory issues. In this video I talk about how sensory overload can result in self-abusive behaviors.
Posted on 4/28/2010 6:27:35 AM
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A new study by researchers at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences’ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology raises hope that autism may be more easily diagnosed and that its effects may be more reversible than previously thought.
Posted on 4/22/2010 6:32:30 AM
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Evidence suggests these are different types of autism, and new research supports that idea. Researchers at Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore found in a new study that children with early symptoms may actually be at lower risk for poorer outcomes than children who develop normally and then experience a loss of skills.
Posted on 4/22/2010 6:31:21 AM
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Evidence suggests these are different types of autism, and new research supports that idea. Researchers at Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore found in a new study that children with early symptoms may actually be at lower risk for poorer outcomes than children who develop normally and then experience a loss of skills.
Posted on 4/22/2010 6:31:21 AM
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The editorial affirmed that past Wakefield's report, the proof of any association between bowel disease and autism is slight.
Posted on 4/19/2010 6:03:52 AM
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A study by Dr. David Mandell in October 2005 reported that, on average, the diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) was delayed by almost two years among African American children – to 7.5 years old – as compared to their Caucasian counterparts, whose autism is diagnosed at an average 5.5 years old.
Posted on 4/19/2010 6:02:32 AM
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CHILDREN with autism who attend weekly playgroups have improved development and social skills, a study has found, supporting the inclusion of children with autism into mainstream education.
Posted on 4/19/2010 6:01:47 AM
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Autism Hangout is a popular Autism web site known for it's up to date information on the latest research and findings regarding the Autism Spectrum, it's well monitored forums, and easy access to communication.
Posted on 4/17/2010 5:49:02 AM
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Children with autism are often calmed by riding on a swing; some do it for hours every day. But doctors are warning of a serious hazard that can occur when wear and tear causes small metal fragments to peel from the suspension apparatus and fall into children’s eyes.
Posted on 4/15/2010 4:40:07 PM
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Dr. Martha Herbert is a pediatric neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital. She's directing a large research study on toxic chemicals in the environment and their impact on brain development, including autism. "The genes load the gun," she said. "But the environment pulls the trigger."
Posted on 4/15/2010 4:39:15 PM
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Autism numbers among school children in Queensland have hit an all-time high. The incidence of the problem is higher among the farming and mining communities.
Almost 10,000 government school students, which amounts to about 2% of the total state school students, were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. According to Education Queensland, the figures are the highest ever, in regards to autism spectrum disorder in state schools.
Posted on 4/10/2010 7:52:27 PM
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It is a 10 minute webinar that touches on some introductory points about Music Therapy as it relates to ASD treatment. Craig and I have discussed plans for expansion of this, and look forward to creating a series of webinars under Music Therapy and Autism. These future webinars will give a little more in depth look at the use of music therapy techniques to support specific needs of a person on the spectrum (i.e. speech, development, supporting cognitive skill/concepts, sensory input/integration, social skill development, etc).
Posted on 4/8/2010 9:12:42 AM
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Many people throughout history had the signs of autism; people such as Mark Twain, Thomas Edison, Mozart, Beethoven, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates and many more. So I have created a list of people in the TV and movie world that have autism or showed signs of autism before we knew what it was.
Posted on 4/7/2010 4:17:03 PM
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Easter Seals believes every individual with autism should have access to effective services and support, and guidance at every life stage. That is how its Act for Autism campaign came about – to make sure these critical services become a reality for families living with autism and to help turn parents' dreams for their child's future from fearful to hopeful.
Posted on 4/5/2010 3:52:45 PM
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And it is low: less than one quarter of one percent of the 25 to 29 year olds in the study had an autistic child, and while the odds increased by 51 percent for women 40 and over, that meant that less than one half of one percent of the older women had autistic kids. As Janie Shelton the study's lead author put it, though they have a very slightly greater chance than younger women, "older women have a dramatically small chance of having a child with autism." But that was not the takeaway for most readers.
Posted on 4/5/2010 3:51:37 PM
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We found few group differences in current presentation and cognitive function, but many early history differences. The Asperger syndrome group generally demonstrated less severe early symptoms, a milder developmental course and better out-come than the high-functioning autism group.
Posted on 4/5/2010 3:49:45 PM
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From published and some previously unpublished data it is concluded that if there is a relationship between play and language in children with autism it is weak, if it exists at all.
Posted on 4/5/2010 3:48:51 PM
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Approximately 68 percent of clients found employment. Of the 192 jobs, the majority were permanent contracts and most involved administrative, technical or computing work.
Posted on 4/5/2010 3:47:59 PM
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"They have a good memory, they have very strong attention to details, they are persistent…within their area of motivation and they follow instructions," he said.
And these skills are all very important, considering Specilisterne employees test software. It's a tedious click by click process where most of us would lose focus and make mistakes – but not these employees.
Posted on 4/2/2010 6:48:17 PM
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The Kentucky Senate has given final passage to a bill that would require private insurance companies to cover services for autistic children.
Posted on 4/2/2010 6:47:07 PM
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As many as one third of children suspended from British schools for displaying disruptive or aggressive behaviors could actually be exhibiting signs of undiagnosed autism, new research indicates
Posted on 4/1/2010 4:47:57 PM
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At first glance, Specilisterne looks just like any other thriving software company. However, these colleagues had to meet a certain job requirement in order to get hired -- they must have autism.
Posted on 4/1/2010 4:47:17 PM
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This week, in honor of World Autism Awareness Day on April 2, the Empowered Patient has asked experts and parents their thoughts on the best Web sites for autism information.
Posted on 4/1/2010 10:33:47 AM
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One of the very last things Kansas lawmakers did early this morning before adjourning for three weeks was to pass legislation requiring the state's employee health plan to cover treatments for autism.
Posted on 4/1/2010 10:14:44 AM
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"I want people to know what autism is so they don't get a whole weird idea. Kids with autism are exceptional human beings," Peete said.
Posted on 4/1/2010 10:13:47 AM
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The genes in question encode proteins that are connected to brain development. One appears to influence the development of the nervous system, and the other is linked to the organization of connections between synapses
Posted on 3/30/2010 7:06:13 PM
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“At each dosage level, KM-391 demonstrated significant improvements in the test animals when compared to both the ‘no treatment’ group and the ‘active control’ (fluoxetine) group on the parameters of brain plasticity, serotonin levels and behavioral function.”
Posted on 3/29/2010 4:14:47 PM
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Larry Chestnut is an artist possessed of great confidence and amazing technical skill. He is also autistic, which causes Chestnut to revisit particular subjects with obsessive regularity. The daytime drama "General Hospital" figures prominently in his work, just as it occupies a significant role in his everyday life. The works on display reflect Chestnut's quirky, multi-dimensional take on the medical show, from dramatic views of the hospital's architecture to studies of nurses and doctors on duty -- including the artist himself in hospital scrubs. April is Autism Awareness Month, and Larry Chestnut's work will be on view as part of Project Onward's commitment to autism advocacy.
Posted on 3/24/2010 6:32:16 PM
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In response to the therapist's interpersonal demands, `compliant (positive) responses' were observed more in music therapy than in toy play sessions, and `no responses' were twice as frequent in toy play sessions as in music therapy. The results of this exploratory study found significant evidence supporting the value of music therapy in promoting social, emotional and motivational development in children with autism.
Posted on 3/24/2010 6:26:03 PM
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It found that the number of such individuals has increased by more than 121 percent from 2002 to 2006. Moreover, though adults with autism were employed at higher rates than most disability groups investigated, they tended to work far fewer hours and earn less in wages per week. The study also found that adults with autism were among the most costly individuals to serve.
Posted on 3/24/2010 6:24:53 PM
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Results demonstrated that parents acquired the strategies by the fifth to sixth hour and children demonstrated sustained change and growth in social communication behaviors. Findings are discussed in relation to providing parents with the necessary tools to engage, communicate with, and teach their young children with autism beginning immediately after the diagnosis.
Posted on 3/24/2010 6:24:07 PM
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A study has revealed that many children who have autistic traits are never diagnosed clinically, leading to them not receiving the support they need through educational or health services.
Posted on 3/24/2010 7:52:25 AM
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I have an 86 year-old Dad who has survived a series of strokes. I am the mother of a teenage son who has autism. I have a loving husband, who is a fantastic cook. I have incredible supportive friends, work that I love, and thank you, God, I am in good health.
Why did I lead with the two things that might be construed as "bad luck"? Wouldn't it seem that my Dad's strokes and my son's autism are unlucky things? And what do autism and strokes have in common?
Posted on 3/22/2010 3:15:55 PM
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Music is an amazing communication tool. No matter what language you speak or whether you can communicate verbally at all, music is a fundamental way through which to reach out and to be reached out to. That is pretty powerful. And for me personally, it’s proved to be a primary connection resource.
Posted on 3/22/2010 5:38:31 AM
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It is projected that as many as 500,000 autistic children will reach adulthood in the next 15 years. These adults will have varying levels of independence, and will outlive their parents. Where will they go? This is the question that a collaborative report by the Urban Land Institute Arizona (ULI), the Southwest Autism Research & Resource Center (SARRC), and Arizona State University (ASU) tries to answer.
Posted on 3/21/2010 4:20:47 PM
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I'd love to see more media focus on how ridiculously expensive it is to treat a child with autism. You can counsel folks all day long to get early intervention, but who in the world can pay for it? Therapies can average over $100-$150 an hour - many require up to 14 or more hours a week. With insurance companies still not covering the vast amount of therapies needed, too many families are forced to pay out of pocket for much of these expenses. A 2006 Harvard study puts the average cost of services for an individual with autism is $3.2 million over his/her lifetime! A total of $35 billion a year is spent on services for individuals with autism in the U.S. The numbers have climbed since then...
Posted on 3/17/2010 6:40:32 AM
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Cutting Edge Therapies for Autism is a newly released book outlining over eighty therapies written by experts in their fields. Ken Siri and Tony Lyons, both parents of children with autism and New Yorkers, have recently released what will be an annually updated book disclosing cutting-edge, hands on therapies that go beyond what is traditionally offered for individuals diagnosed with autism.
Posted on 3/16/2010 4:03:08 PM
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The chemicals known to cause harm to the developing fetal and infant brain are part of a larger family of 200 chemicals known from workplace studies to cause neurological harm in humans, according to a a recent review article by Philip J. Landrigan of the Children's Environmental Health Center at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine published in Current Opinion in Pediatrics. Children are exposed to roughly 3,000 chemicals in personal care products, building materials, cleaning products and motor vehicle fuels, yet fewer than 20 percent of these chemicals have been tested thoroughly to see if they harm the developing brain.
"We've created a situation where we are exposing our children and grandchildren every day to new chemicals that didn't exist [until recently]," says Landrigan. "We've never tested them, and we don't have a clue what these chemicals do to early development."
Posted on 3/16/2010 4:01:52 PM
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But it shouldn't affect mental health overall, study finds.
Posted on 3/15/2010 5:23:02 PM
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Stepping Stone House will give residents the opportunity to learn how to live on their own while still providing them with 24-hour support.
Posted on 3/14/2010 1:47:25 PM
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You've heard me (read) mention of my new friend, Craig Evans, in the web autism communicty. Craig hosts a wonderful site dedicated to the world of autism: http://www.autismhangout.com/. Craig is also a fellow musician (see past blog posting for more info on his wonderful CD that I use often in therapy!)
Posted on 3/12/2010 5:12:20 PM
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“Have you and your kids on the spectrum felt restricted from eating out because of food allergies? Well you’re far from being alone. With the unexplained increases of significant food allergies in the general population, some of us need to be VERY careful what we put in our mouths. Well after an exciting eating experience at a national restaurant chain, I’ve got great news for those of us with food allergies!”
Posted on 3/12/2010 5:10:42 PM
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According to a new study, siblings of children suffering from autism may develop hyperactivity. It also revealed that mothers of autistic children are more prone to depression and stress in contrast to mothers of normal kids.
Posted on 3/12/2010 3:59:58 PM
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The girls in the study with greater testosterone exposure - measured from samples of umbilical cord blood stored when they were born - were more likely to show deficiencies in female traits considered positive, such as empathy and social awareness.
Posted on 3/11/2010 3:11:52 PM
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Children with autism were rounded up and placed in a "pen" during playtime at a Sydney school sparking anger from politicians and parents.
Posted on 3/11/2010 3:10:55 PM
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Previous research projects have netted mixed findings, but many suggest that families dealing with autism -- especially brothers and sisters of an autistic child -- also experience symptoms similar to autism: widespread abnormalities of social interactions, communication and behavior.
Posted on 3/8/2010 2:22:43 PM
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The report, published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report illustrates a 57-percent increase in autism cases between 2002 and 2006. A staggering 600-percent increase in the disease has occurred over the past two decades, plaguing boys more often than girls. Roughly one out of every 70 boys currently has some form of autism.
Posted on 3/7/2010 3:07:16 PM
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The report, published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report illustrates a 57-percent increase in autism cases between 2002 and 2006. A staggering 600-percent increase in the disease has occurred over the past two decades, plaguing boys more often than girls. Roughly one out of every 70 boys currently has some form of autism.
Posted on 3/7/2010 3:07:15 PM
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"These guys can sing and play at a really high level,'' said Anderson, who is also a wildly popular music teacher at Buchser School in Santa Clara, where he started a dancing group for kids with special needs 10 years ago. "The singers have perfect pitch. The musicians give 100 percent effort even if they don't look or talk to each other much.''
Posted on 3/7/2010 3:06:04 PM
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The five-minute screening targets attention, reciprocity and communication in children ages 15 to 17 months. Once it's complete, a software program computes a score. If autism is suspected, the child will undergo further testing.
Posted on 3/3/2010 5:03:28 PM
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Editors of the British medical journal Lancet announced they would retract a controversial 1998 study which sought to establish a connection between child vaccinations and autism in the wake of findings the primary author fabricated data.
Posted on 3/3/2010 5:02:44 PM
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The latest autism prevalence rates were published at the end of last year, and the numbers were shocking. One in every 110 kids -- and 1 in every 70 boys -- in the U.S. is living with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the report showed. That's up from 1 in 150 -- and 1 in 94 boys -- only two years ago. But there is plenty of hopeful news, too:
Posted on 3/3/2010 5:01:55 PM
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Take it from an autistic animal behaviorist who thinks in pictures, not words: Cows are afraid of shadows. Dogs read human facial expressions and posture. Chimpanzees can recognize 200 different jungle plants.
Posted on 3/3/2010 6:26:53 AM
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While doctors typically caught early signs of autism, the declines were more subtle than previously suggested and most parents (83%) did not report regression in the social behaviors and skills.
Posted on 3/3/2010 6:24:30 AM
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"The crux of this is brain development," he said. "If babies are exposed in the womb or shortly after birth to chemicals that interfere with brain development, the consequences last a lifetime."
Posted on 3/1/2010 5:10:06 PM
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Ryan wouldn't talk. He'd grunt or if he became emotionally upset, he'd have what his parents called "meltdowns" and would start screeching. His parents didn't know what to do or how to handle him. Fortunately, when doctors told them Ryan had autism, they immediately got him into speech and occupational therapy.
Posted on 3/1/2010 5:08:44 PM
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"Evan couldn't talk -- now he talks. Evan couldn't make eye contact -- now he makes eye contact. Evan was antisocial -- now he makes friends. It was amazing to watch, over the course of doing this, how certain therapies work for certain kids and they completely don't work for others ... When something didn't work for Evan, I didn't stop. I stopped that treatment, but I didn't stop."
Posted on 2/25/2010 2:53:52 PM
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Health insurance policies for state employees would have to provide up to $36,000 a year in care for autism spectrum disorders, under a bill the Iowa Senate approved this afternoon.
The treatment coverage would be only for state workers with family members who are under age 21.
Posted on 2/23/2010 5:06:40 PM
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"Very nasty, very foul odor and full of undigested food particles," said Houston resident Michelle Groogan of her then 18-month-old son's bowel movement. "It was the classic autism poop."
Posted on 2/23/2010 5:05:38 PM
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DALLAS – Feb. 23, 2010 – When a gene implicated in human autism is disabled in mice, the rodents show learning problems and obsessive, repetitive behaviors, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.
Posted on 2/23/2010 5:04:54 PM
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We may think it only affects boys. But the female variant is often much harder to spot – and that means thousands of girls may be going undiagnosed.
Posted on 2/23/2010 11:13:49 AM
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NEW YORK, Feb. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- In the past, parents of children with autism worldwide had little hope of finding effective and affordable treatment services for their child. Today, parents are discovering that they can now easily apply the latest research to help their child learn at home. Evidence-based research suggests that a key to effective learning is the use of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to teach children with autism. A company making ABA best-practice treatment tools accessible to parents around the world through the Internet is Rethink Autism (http://www.rethinkautism.com).
Posted on 2/22/2010 3:26:26 PM
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The designers had long heard that the software held autistic children rapt for hours. So they connected with the local autism community in Boulder, Colo., and started hearing about how 3D software might appeal to autistic kids.
Posted on 2/22/2010 3:25:09 PM
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'Who do you think made the first stone spear?" asks Temple Grandin. "That wasn't the yakkity yaks sitting around the campfire. It was some Aspberger sitting in the back of a cave figuring out how to chip rocks into spearheads. Without some autistic traits you wouldn't even have a recording device to record this conversation on."
Posted on 2/22/2010 1:47:13 PM
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“Very nasty, very foul odor and full of undigested food particles,” said Houston resident Michelle Groogan of her then 18-month-old son's bowel movement. “It was the classic autism poop.”
Garrett was diagnosed with autism when he was 2, and Michelle Groogan began researching ways to ease her son's digestive issues, which she felt were autism-related. It wasn't long before she came across the Gluten Free Casein Free, or GFCF, diet.
Posted on 2/17/2010 1:35:00 PM
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New Brunswick, NJ — February 04, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Children’s Specialized Hospital, New Jersey’s preeminent provider of pediatric rehabilitation services and the largest comprehensive children’s rehabilitation system in the country, has created and launched Make Friends with Autism. This brand new multilevel program is the first of its kind anywhere in the country. Make Friends with Autism is designed to educate our business partners and communities about autism and provide the tools necessary to support positive community partnerships. This program is made possible by the Kohl’s KidsAbilities program at Children’s Specialized Hospital through the generosity of the Kohl’s Cares for Kids® program.
Posted on 2/16/2010 2:32:00 PM
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A lack of eye contact, smiling or babbling are signs of autism, and researchers focused on those developmental markers during examinations in a five-year period. They concluded that autism's symptoms are not evident in children under 6 months.
Posted on 2/16/2010 2:30:50 PM
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Researchers found that of 219 children born before the 26th week of pregnancy, 8 percent met the criteria for an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) at age 11. That compared with none of 153 classmates who were born full-term and included in a comparison group.
The ASD rate was far higher than that in the general population, which experts estimate to be somewhere between one and nine cases per 1,000 children, depending on how strictly the disorders are defined.
Posted on 2/15/2010 6:56:14 AM
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DELAYED BRAIN DEVELOPMENT LINKED TO 'HUG-AVOIDANCE'
Posted on 2/14/2010 4:20:59 PM
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A nasal spray containing the 'cuddle hormone' oxytocin can ease some of the symptoms of autism, research shows.
People with autism who used the spray became more sociable and trusting.
Posted on 2/14/2010 4:19:19 PM
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That notion has encouraged many parents of autistic children to believe their children's condition may be managed, treated or even cured through diet. Specifically, many believe that a gluten-free, casein-free diet protects autistic children against food proteins (gluten, found in wheat, barley and rye, and casein, found in dairy products) that may trigger symptoms or worsen the severity of their autism.
This approach has famously been adopted by actor Jenny McCarthy, who claims a special diet has virtually reversed her son's autism.
The problem is, reputable, solid science hasn't established a connection between diet and autism.
Posted on 2/10/2010 6:27:36 AM
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WAYNE, N.J., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Toys"R"Us, Inc. and the Toys"R"Us Children's Fund announced they have expanded their support of Autism Speaks to include a fundraising campaign in all of the company's stores in North America. This is the fourth consecutive year the company has partnered with Autism Speaks, an organization dedicated to funding global biomedical research for autism and raising public awareness about the disorder and its effects on individuals, families and society. This year, Toys"R"Us, Canada will join the partnership, increasing the company's ongoing support for Autism Speaks. This campaign marks the first time in the company's extensive philanthropic history that its store networks across North America have joined forces to support a unified philanthropic endeavor.
Posted on 2/10/2010 6:26:46 AM
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Women who give birth after age 40 are nearly twice as likely to have a child with autism as those under 25, California researchers reported Monday.
Surprisingly, the age of the father plays little role in the likelihood of the disorder unless the mother is younger than 30 and the father is over 40, according to the analysis of all births in California in the 1990s.
Posted on 2/8/2010 1:25:29 PM
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I have come to the conclusion that the real culprit here is the term “it worked for my child.” Just what in the world does “it worked for my child” really mean? If the new process/alternative treatment really worked, then where is the spontaneous expressive and receptive language? If it really worked, then where is the compliance to both naturalistic cues and subtle social cues?
Posted on 2/8/2010 5:58:59 AM
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Autism and related conditions are being underdiagnosed in women and teenage girls, with many cases being confused with eating disorders or other problems, researchers say.
Posted on 2/5/2010 3:37:46 PM
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The Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative (LDDI) released the first-ever biomonitoring report identifying toxic chemical pollution in people from the learning and developmental disability community. Mind, Disrupted: How toxic chemicals may affect how we think and who we are examines 61 toxic chemicals present in project participants in the context of rising rates of autism, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and other learning and developmental disabilities.
Posted on 2/5/2010 1:34:05 PM
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Here we offer our perspective on 2009's top 10 scientific achievements in autism research. With input from Autism Speaks' Scientific Advisory Committee, Autism Speaks science staff culled through thousands of publications to arrive at our choices. While many of these may not have achieved a large amount of publicity, each of them advanced the way we think about autism in some important way.
Posted on 2/5/2010 10:23:24 AM
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Children’s Specialized Hospital and Kohl’s Department Stores Collaborate to Launch This New Comprehensive Autism Awareness Campaign
Posted on 2/4/2010 2:55:40 PM
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Lil' ol' me is a clothing company that sells organic onesies, clothes and accessories for kids. But the company is closely tied to Kelly's foundation that raises money for scholarships and therapy for children with autism.
Posted on 2/4/2010 8:26:27 AM
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Around the U.S.
Nine out of every 1,000 8-year-olds were diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder as of 2006. But rates vary widely in the survey areas, located in 11 states, that the CDC monitors. (Prevalence per 1,000):
Alabama 6.0
Arizona 12.1
Colorado 7.5
Florida 4.2
Georgia 10.2
Maryland 9.2
Missouri 12.1
North Carolina 10.4
Pennsylvania 8.4
South Carolina 8.6
Wisconsin 7.6
Source: CDC's Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network
Posted on 2/3/2010 6:58:02 AM
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It seems that the closer I follow these 10 little tips...Life flows a little easier, and the world seems a little brighter. The more I read them and keep these tips formost in my mind...I seem to be able to muster up more Hope in my heart, along with Courage and Strength.
Posted on 2/3/2010 6:08:25 AM
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Feb. 1 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama proposed increasing the National Institutes of Health budget by $1 billion, or 3.2 percent, in fiscal 2011, earmarking $6 billion for cancer research and $222 million for work in autism.
Posted on 2/1/2010 3:13:30 PM
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The law requires a minimum of $50,000 a year for intensive evidence-based treatment, and $25,000 annually for non-intensive services.
Posted on 2/1/2010 3:12:50 PM
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Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC (February 1, 2010) — Through the use of instructional DVDs, parents of children with autism can learn how to teach their child to communicate and improve their behavior, according to research published in the January 2010 issue of The Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions (published by the Hammill Institute on Disabilities and SAGE).
Family members play a central role in the education and treatment of children with autism. However, training parents in appropriate techniques can provide unique challenges.
Posted on 2/1/2010 3:11:57 PM
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“Why tell my child about their diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder?” will probably be the first question parents ask themselves. Parents go through a range of emotions when given their child’s diagnosis and hopefully find support as they begin their journey with this new information about their child.
Posted on 2/1/2010 12:06:44 PM
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Parental involvement was key in the ESDM model. While 10 hours of treatment per week may seem like a lot, the children were still in the care of others 158 hours per week. Parents were taught and expected to use the principles of ESDM with their children.
After two years of treatment, the ESDM group showed substantial improvement over the children treated in traditional programs. ESDM children were able to learn key motor skills, relate better with others and acquire eating, dressing and other milestones of normally developing children.
Posted on 1/29/2010 3:43:52 PM
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Children with autism were more likely than children without autism to have two types of gastrointestinal problems: constipation and "picky eating." These findings reinforce the importance of treating gastrointestinal problems in children with autism just as we do in children without autism. However, there is currently no evidence that children with autism are more likely to have gastrointestinal problems in general or that they have unique gastrointestinal problems.
Posted on 1/29/2010 3:42:47 PM
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The doctor who first suggested a link between MMR vaccinations and autism acted unethically, the official medical regulator has found.
Posted on 1/28/2010 1:33:28 PM
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Chicago, IL (PRWEB) January 27, 2010 -- Healing Thresholds has been redesigned and relaunched to make it even easier for parents to find detailed information on more than 1,000 autism therapy topics.
Posted on 1/27/2010 2:52:45 PM
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Craig Evans, who lives in Rosemount, founded a new website with a wealth of information for families dealing with Autism. www.autismhangout.com, provides families with children on the spectrum the "how tos" of day to day life. Evans has met with well-known researchers, doctors and authors on the subject of autism, to be able to give the most accurate and useful information. The site encourages people to create their own homepage and share their stories and pictures. A sort of support system online, a place where others can find comfort in the knowledge that someone else is struggling with the same issues.
Posted on 1/27/2010 12:09:08 PM
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Los Angeles, CA—Families in eastern Los Angeles County have filed a class-action lawsuit after state-funded services for autistic children were discontinued. The lawsuit was filed on Thursday, January 14, 2010 on behalf of the affected families in the Los Angles County Superior Court, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
Posted on 1/22/2010 1:02:12 PM
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Despite nearly a year of negotiations, big differences remain between insurers and advocates for autistic children who are urging Missouri to mandate coverage of a costly but promising behavioral therapy.
Posted on 1/20/2010 3:15:50 PM
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Nearly two-thirds of the children with Autistic Spectrum Disorders recorded in the National Birth Defect Registry (NBDR) also suffer from structural birth defects, according the national nonprofit, Birth Defect Research for Children (BDRC). The group reported that most of the defects affect the face, head and central nervous systems of newborns.
Posted on 1/20/2010 2:27:57 PM
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Maturation disorders of nerve terminals may trigger autism; researchers in Heidelberg publish in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Posted on 1/20/2010 2:27:12 PM
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TALLAHASSEE - For a third straight year, Florida parents and special-education advocates are trying to get a law passed that would prevent school employees from holding students with disabilities facedown or shutting them in rooms to try to control behaviors associated with their conditions.
"These are not isolated incidents," state Rep. Dorothy Hukill, the bill's sponsor, said during a news conference last week in Tallahassee.
Posted on 1/18/2010 10:25:52 AM
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Sahin said: “People have started to look at autism as a developmental disconnection syndrome – there are either too many connections or too few connections between different parts of the brain.
Posted on 1/18/2010 10:24:47 AM
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A FOUR-MONTH-OLD baby is one of the first to take part in new research to discover how autism develops.
Matai Reid was monitored by scientists at Durham University to see how his brain responded to moving images.
The Durham-born youngster is one of 15 babies to have been studied since August last year.
Posted on 1/18/2010 10:22:36 AM
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The first of the new laws -- which takes effect immediately -- expands New Jersey's antidiscrimination law, to ensure that no one who has autism and related neurological disorders is denied access to libraries, restaurants, gyms, pools, theaters and other public places. It also guarantees equal access to housing and jobs.
Posted on 1/17/2010 11:54:33 AM
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An industrial chemical developed to help separate heavy metals from polluted soil and mining drainage is being sold as a dietary supplement by a luminary in the world of alternative autism treatments.
Called OSR#1, the supplement is described on its Web site as an antioxidant not meant to treat any disease. But the site lists pharmacies and doctors who sell it to parents of children with autism, and the compound has been promoted to parents on popular autism Web sites.
Posted on 1/17/2010 11:53:40 AM
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Danes emulates Grandin’s quirky mannerisms and speech patterns down to a T in what will probably garner her a few nominations, based on the trailer. We listened to the actual Temple Grandin speak about this project, and it’s uncanny how close Danes was able to mimic Grandin. Even though the film is set in the 1960s, Danes’ portrayal is spot-on to the real-life Grandin. According to Danes the biggest challenge was being able to “see the world as an autistic does, even if it was in a sort of limited fashion.”
Posted on 1/17/2010 11:52:55 AM
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LOS ANGELES, Jan. 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, attorneys with Public Counsel and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP filed a class action law suit and preliminary injunction on behalf of children with autism against the Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center (ELARC) for unlawfully terminating the most effective treatment for their condition. ELARC, a nonprofit agency through which the state provides statutorily-required services to people with disabilities, suddenly and illegally eliminated funding for the treatment, known as "DIR," after more than 10 years of providing it to hundreds, if not thousands, of mostly low-income children with autism.
Posted on 1/14/2010 2:57:08 PM
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Autism and schizophrenia may be associated with the over-expression of paternally or maternally derived genes and influences, a hypothesis advanced by Bernard Crespi of Simon Fraser University.
Maternal and paternal genes engage in a subtle tug-of-war well into childhood with consequences for childhood development, as posited by David Haig, George Putnam Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard.
Humans may be susceptible to allergies, asthma, and autoimmune diseases because of increased hygiene, according to Kathleen Barnes of Johns Hopkins University. Without being exposed to intestinal worms and parasites, as our ancestors were, our immune systems are hypersensitive.
Natural selection still influences our biology, despite advances in modern culture and medicine. Stearns found that natural selection favors heavier women and reduces the age at which a woman has her first child.
Posted on 1/12/2010 3:09:01 PM
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MONDAY, Jan. 11 (HealthDay News) -- A new study adds to growing evidence that autism is caused by a miswiring of connections in a child's developing brain, resulting in impaired information flow.
According to researchers at Children's Hospital Boston, it may be possible to one day treat the problem with drugs that target the molecular pathways that cause the miswiring.
Posted on 1/12/2010 6:59:44 AM
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London, Jan 11 (IANS) Children suffering from autism spectrum disorder (ASD) process sound and language a fraction of a second slower than normal children. Measuring magnetic signals that mark this delay may become a standardised way to diagnose autism, say researchers.
Posted on 1/12/2010 6:58:49 AM
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Today, DeBlois, 36, plays 22 instruments, and has been performing professionally since he was 9. He leads an improvisational jazz ensemble, and he has made six CDs.
He is the subject of a CBS movie of the week, “Journey to the Heart.” He performs nationally as well as internationally, and has entertained at the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.
Posted on 1/12/2010 6:56:43 AM
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Findings of the study suggest that autistic children process language and sound a fraction of second slower than the unaffected kids. However, brain imaging can detect the condition in early infancy.
Posted on 1/10/2010 4:22:33 PM
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ScienceDaily (Jan. 10, 2010) — Studying a rare disorder known as tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), researchers at Children's Hospital Boston add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that autism spectrum disorders, which affect 25 to 50 percent of TSC patients, result from a miswiring of connections in the developing brain, leading to improper information flow. The finding may also help explain why many people with TSC have seizures and intellectual disabilities.
Posted on 1/10/2010 4:21:47 PM
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In his latest video report, Autism Hangout’s Craig Evans interviewed author Mary Calhoun Brown. Mary is a recent contributor to The Omni Intelligencer and we were pleased to see her receiving much deserved attention for her recent book, ‘There are No Words’, the story of a young girl on the autism spectrum. Here is what Feathered Quills Book Reviews has to say about ‘There Are No Words’:
Posted on 1/7/2010 3:52:56 PM
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The Jan. 4 Associated Press article "Study: No evidence diets help autistic kids" was very misleading. The major thrust of the panels and researcher Dr. Timothy Buie's conclusion is that autistic children should have increased gastrointestinal evaluation and that gastrointestinal difficulties may be a primary cause of the behavioral problems. There is no one-diet-fits-all but rather the medical treatment should be specific to each child.
Posted on 1/7/2010 3:52:14 PM
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NORWALK, Conn., Jan. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- As many as one in 90 children are today being diagnosed with autism--and autism research continues to focus almost exclusively on genetics. In its January/February 2010 issue (posted now at: www.emagazine.com), E-The Environmental Magazine looks at another factor that may be driving up autism rates--environmental toxicity.
Posted on 1/6/2010 2:59:56 PM
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Today, after a swift and sometimes bumpy ascent in the realm of national autism politics, he is the first person with autism to be nominated for a seat on the National Council on Disability. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, he also will be the youngest person to serve on the board in at least 20 years, council spokesman Mark Quigley said.
Posted on 1/6/2010 6:57:01 AM
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The study finds that the areas, called clusters, are in places where parents have above average levels of education, or are also places located near large autism treatment facilities.
The research, conducted by scientists at UC Davis, showed that the clusters appear in highly populated areas of Southern California and the Bay Area.
Posted on 1/6/2010 6:53:03 AM
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The findings confirmed that although children with high-functioning autism or Asperger's disorder are often socially isolated relative to their typically developing peers, they are capable of spontaneously engaging socially with other children. The results were supportive of the hypothesis that Asperger's disorder is on a continuum with autistic disorder.
Posted on 1/6/2010 6:49:44 AM
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Probably 90 percent of parents of children with autism try dietary intervention," said Dr. Fred Volkmar, Director of the Child Study Center at Yale University.
"The sad reality of it is that with any complementary alternative treatment -- there is no evidence. It's what makes it complimentary alternative treatment," said Volkmar.
Posted on 1/4/2010 4:41:38 PM
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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study provides further evidence that the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine is not associated with an increased risk of autism.
Posted on 1/4/2010 4:39:56 PM
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In her theoretical model, Dr. Ben Shalom recommends a uniform way to think about these four types of difficulties, which she believes are linked by a common brain structure/brain function connection involving the medial prefrontal cortex. This approach makes it easier to understand both commonalities and differences between ASD and other conditions, such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This approach will make it possible to test predictions about the location of these brain networks, how they function differently in people with ASD and how to use this knowledge to design interventions and compensatory strategies.
Posted on 1/4/2010 4:39:23 PM
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Each Sunday morning 13-year-old Matthew Del Monte of Jersey City wakes at 5 a.m., eager to get on with his day handing out food and clothing to the needy.
Rain, snow, or shine, Matthew and his father, Robert Del Monte load a van with donated bagels, cakes, bread, water bottles and hats and gloves, and head to Newark Avenue and Grove Street, where at 9:30 a.m., they hand out food.
Posted on 1/4/2010 4:37:57 PM
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“In the U.S., the children of older, white and highly educated parents are more likely to receive a diagnosis of autism or autism spectrum disorder. For this reason, the clusters we found are probably not a result of a common environmental exposure. Instead, the differences in education, age and ethnicity of parents comparing births in the cluster versus those outside the cluster were striking enough to explain the clusters of autism cases,” said senior author Irva Hertz-Picciotto.
Posted on 1/3/2010 2:53:46 PM
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CHICAGO (AP) -- An expert panel says there's no rigorous evidence that digestive problems are more common in children with autism compared to other children, or that special diets work.
Posted on 1/3/2010 2:52:44 PM
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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Hispanic kids are less likely than their non-Hispanic white counterparts to be diagnosed with autism, and socioeconomic factors don't seem to explain the difference, according to a new study in Texas schoolchildren.
Posted on 12/30/2009 6:19:24 PM
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Over the years chelation has been repackaged over and over again. The latest round of easy marks for chelation vendors are parents of children with autism. Some parents are convinced autism is caused by mercury in vaccines, despite many studies to the contrary. Several hundred doctors offer chelation in the autism market, many of them certified by a trade group called the American College for Advancement in Medicine. A 1998 consent decree the group signed with the Federal Trade Commission, in which it agreed to stop making claims about chelation's safety and effectiveness, evidently doesn't get in the doctors' way.
Posted on 12/30/2009 3:06:05 PM
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A study from researchers at the University of California, Davis tracked the rates of autism diagnoses among children born in California between 1996 and 2000, and the findings aren't necessarily surprising.
"What we found with these clusters was that they correlated with neighborhoods of high education or neighborhoods that were near a major treatment center for autism," professor of public health sciences Irva Hertz-Picciotto said in an email statement.
Posted on 12/30/2009 3:04:39 PM
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NEW YORK, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- The "love hormone," released at childbirth and during sex, is being used in a U.S. trial of young adults with autism spectrum disorders, researchers say.
Dr. Eric Hollander, the center's advisory board chairman and chairman of the psychiatry at the Mt. Sinai School of Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, says giving oxytocin may improve social functioning and repetitive behaviors -- irrespective of the age of the patient.
Posted on 12/29/2009 6:02:24 AM
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Everybody, especially family members and helpers, should know that autistic children have the capability to learn.
Posted on 12/29/2009 6:00:35 AM
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The severity of a child's autism coincided with the levels of toxic metals excreted in their urine after treatment with a metals removal therapy, finds a study published in the Journal of Toxicology. The higher the levels of lead, antimony and other metals excreted, the more severe was the child's autism. The findings hold true across four independent tools used to assess autism severity.
The results suggest to researchers that these metals may contribute to the degree of autism symptoms in the children. Because these children had autism before the toxic metals were measured, the study does not address whether the metals cause autism or the sources of the metals.
Posted on 12/29/2009 5:59:15 AM
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Kim Peek, the autistic savant whose extraordinary genius for mental retention inspired the Oscar-winning film Rain Man, has died, his parents have confirmed.
Posted on 12/23/2009 7:26:02 AM
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Two decades ago one in 5000 children were known to have the disorder. I remember I had a friend back in the 70’s that had a little boy with autism……….I had never heard of it before. Now, it seems we all know familes with someone who is living with this disorder.
Posted on 12/20/2009 7:41:35 PM
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The estimate is the highest to date of so-called autism spectrum disorders from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which tracks health trends. The spectrum includes a range of disorders, from severe autism to milder forms like Asperger’s to “pervasive developmental disorder,” a nonspecific diagnosis given to many children with social difficulties or some kinds of learning and sensory problems.
The finding is based an analysis of medical and school records of some 400,000 children around the country; the researchers did not meet or interview the children.
Prevalence estimates for these disorders have increased so sharply in recent years — to 1 in 150 in 2007, from 1 in 300 in the early 2000s — that scientists have debated whether in fact the disorder is more common, or diagnosed more often as a result of higher awareness.
Posted on 12/18/2009 3:40:45 PM
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ATLANTA – Health officials now estimate that 1 in 110 children have autism.
Posted on 12/18/2009 10:21:02 AM
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Peishi Wang, a professor of educational and community programs who grew up in China, spearheaded the partnership between the center in Beijing and Queens College and said school officials plan to help the center evaluate its programs, train Chinese teachers at Queens College and conduct online staff training for the individuals working in the center’s three sites in China’s capital.
Posted on 12/17/2009 1:23:56 PM
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Scientists at the University of Cambridge have discovered that the brains of individuals with autism are less active when engaged in self-reflective thought. The study published in the journal Brain provides new evidence for the neural correlates of self-awareness and a new window into understanding social difficulties in autism spectrum conditions.
Posted on 12/14/2009 12:57:55 PM
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I have an 8-year old Aspie son mainstreamed in a high-performing public school who is, according to IQ, Raven's and state tests, gifted, but he only performs above average in class, unlike his typical gifted peers who get selected for GATE programs because of their superior classroom performance. At home, he does amazing things, but not in class. Is it a lack of motivation -- his own or the teacher's? Is it simply a "Hidden Curriculum" issue?
Posted on 12/14/2009 7:06:32 AM
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Students in the Bloomington CIP range in age from 18 to 26, and many have had unsuccessful experiences in higher education prior to enrolling in the CIP. Amy Breyer, from Nashville, Tenn., said she regularly "sabotaged myself" in school, often doing assignments but not turning them in, for reasons she still doesn't completely understand.
Posted on 12/12/2009 4:04:57 PM
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While the UW Autism Center has worked on a variety of studies related to autism, the Early Start study is at the forefront due to its success in early intervention, with some of the toddlers in the study being as young as 18 months. The method, which was deemed the “Early Start Denver Model” (ESDM), was measured against a community-based autism program and, in the end, was found to improve children’s IQ scores by an average of 17.6 points, while the community intervention only improved by seven points.
Posted on 12/10/2009 5:13:45 PM
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December 10, 2009 (CHICAGO) (WLS) -- In the late 1970s, two Dutch Therapists developed a sensory tent filled with a variety of items that are used to stimulate people with autism. Last year, Seguin Services in Cicero created their own sensory room.
Posted on 12/10/2009 1:01:49 PM
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For most pupils the school bell is a familiar sound, but for autistic 15-year-old Luke Tiller it is the very thing he fears - so much so that he doesn't want to go to school any more.
Posted on 12/10/2009 12:59:33 PM
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Although both groups made significant gains on the two outcome measures, LEGO© participants improved significantly more than the comparison subjects.
Posted on 12/8/2009 12:53:34 PM
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A new movement helps hone unique traits of disorder into valuable skills
Posted on 12/8/2009 12:22:54 PM
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Chelation's popularity as a treatment for autism is driven by the unproved idea that the disorder is tied to accumulation of heavy metals in the body. Mercury, once common in vaccines as part of a preservative called thimerosal, is often pegged as the culprit.
Posted on 12/7/2009 2:57:08 PM
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•Employment: "They don't interview well," Swindler said. "If they do get hired, often there is some social issue, a misunderstanding in communication, and some people don't know they can ask for help."
High-functioning individuals aren't eligible under Medicaid for waivers for access to vocational rehabilitation, sheltered workshops or job coaches, a situation advocates would like to change. Advocates also believe more people need training on how to manage and work with autistic individuals.
Posted on 12/7/2009 2:55:39 PM
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For the first time, inherited disruption of gene expression in a brain system for social behavior has been implicated in autism. NIMH grantee Margaret Pericak-Vance, Ph.D., at the University of Miami and Simon Gregory, Ph.D., at Duke University, and a multinational team of researchers found evidence for such epigenetic effects on the gene for the oxytocin receptor –– part of a brain system that mediates social behaviors disturbed in autism. The findings suggest a potential genetic biomarker for the disorder.
Posted on 12/4/2009 12:55:33 PM
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The CQC's assessment of social care services for adults includes measuring their performance against seven outcomes set by the Government. These are improved health and emotional well being, improved quality of life, making a positive contribution, choice and control, freedom from discrimination, economic well being and personal dignity. It is evident from NAS research that for most adults with autism these remain a wish list.
- 63% do not have enough support to meet their needs
- 1 in 3 are experiencing serious mental health difficulties due to a lack of help
- 72% would like to spend more time in the company of other people
- Only 15% are in full time paid employment
- 56% have been bullied or harassed in adult life*
Posted on 12/4/2009 12:53:59 PM
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Researchers at Boston Children's Hospital use sophisticated eye-tracking technology, along with an advanced monitor, to study electrical currents in the brains of babies. Researchers show the babies images of different faces mixed in with other distracting shapes and colors.
Posted on 12/4/2009 12:52:54 PM
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Elliott was first enrolled at a treatment facility, but Kramer switched to home-based treatment when she found out it was covered by her insurance.
Within three months, Elliott went from using five or six words to testing at an age-appropriate level. A month later he was potty-trained. His aggressions dropped from more than 100 per day to six per week.
“I, at that point, quit everything and said, ‘This is the way to go for us,’ ” Kramer said.
Posted on 12/2/2009 3:50:25 PM
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A look at the numbers shows how variable the diagnosis can be. The odds that a person between 3 and 22 years old has autism are 1 in 273.9, but the odds someone the same age has an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are higher—one in 90.9 for all children, and one in 57.8 for boys. Additionally, white and Hispanic children are about twice as likely to have an ASD as black and multiracial children. Autism Spectrum Disorders cover many different medical and social problems, from Asperger syndrome to severe developmental disorders. The criteria for ASD have recently been expanded, and now the diagnosis includes many highly functioning individuals who might not have been identified as autistic in the past. The most recent statistical information came from a phone survey of parents, leading some researchers to question if the high numbers came from worry or fact.
Posted on 12/2/2009 3:47:09 PM
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"For success in science and art a dash of autism is essential" Hans Asperger -
Just when I think the content at www.AutismHangout.com cannot get any better…I’m proven incorrect. The latest webinar from Craig’s “Thriving with Autism” series is: StephenShore and Donna Williams: Autism as strengths. What an excellent title and what an excellent concept! Here is what Craig Evans had to say about his webinar guests:
Everyday, more and more people on the spectrum demonstrate gifting through their contributions to society. Two of these "poster people" are Dr. Stephen Shore and Donna Williams. Each has formidable gifts... and great stories for how parents, caregivers and professionals can reach and develop others like them.
In this "Thriving with Autism" Webinar, Stephen and Donna talk about their individual strengths and how autism helped them become who they are today."
Posted on 12/2/2009 6:39:12 AM
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Just when we were trying to get used to the autism rates of 1 in 100 kids, the American Academy of Pediatrics found that the parent-reported autism rate in US is one in every 91 children, including one in 58 boys.
Autism rates are rising faster than the water levels after global warming. Only five years ago 1 in 10 000 kids were diagnosed with autism. And (as in the case of global warming) scientists are bickering over the issue: do we have real rise in autism or the cases of this spectrum disorder were always somewhere out there and we just now decided to recognize it.
Posted on 12/1/2009 4:52:33 PM
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Robert Schrum made up his own language as a child. Now he crafts poetry to express himself, raise money for college and show others with autism that they don't have to sit on the sidelines of life.
Schrum, 22, self-published his first book, "The Big Picture's Worth 250 Poems, Vol. 1," this fall. With more than 600 poems scribbled in notebooks and a goal of writing at least 750, Schrum said he is confident he will publish volume two and more.
Posted on 11/30/2009 4:06:35 PM
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As they moved through the family room, Carol began to put all of Michaela’s DVD’s into one area. She then took a picture of Michaela holding a DVD and placed it next to the child’s shelf area. The two women then created a specific section in the room for Michaela to sit in. The section included a bean bag chair and pillow to help the child with her deep pressure needs. The toys went back to the child’s bedroom, in the defined toy shelf. The mother did dedicate a space for one or two toys. A toy icon of the actual items was placed in a small space under the TV console. Everything else was labeled in the room with icons including the TV, the remote, the pillow and the bean bag. This way, the child could let her mother know if she wanted to watch the TV and that she preferred her sitting area to the rest of the living room.
Posted on 11/30/2009 4:05:49 PM
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The therapy is similar to other types of autism behavior treatment. It focused on social interaction and communication — which are both difficult for many autistic children. For example, therapists or parents would repeatedly hold a toy near a child's face to encourage the child to have eye contact — a common problem in autism. Or they'd reward children when they used words to ask for toys.
Children in the specialized group had four hours of therapist-led treatment five days a week, plus at least five hours weekly from parents.
After two years, IQ increased an average of almost 18 points in the specialized group, versus seven points in the others. Language skills also improved more in the specialized group. Almost 30 percent in the specialized group were re-diagnosed with a less severe form of autism after two years, versus 5 percent of the others. No children were considered "cured."
Posted on 11/29/2009 7:33:23 PM
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That the band Flame achieved the dream is remarkable in and of itself. But the band is extraordinary in another respect: Each musician has a physical or mental disability.
Indeed, Flame is the only touring band in the world to be wholly composed of disabled members.
Posted on 11/27/2009 3:04:40 PM
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That the band Flame achieved the dream is remarkable in and of itself. But the band is extraordinary in another respect: Each musician has a physical or mental disability.
Indeed, Flame is the only touring band in the world to be wholly composed of disabled members.
Posted on 11/27/2009 3:04:40 PM
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Vicki Obee-Hilty is executive director of Bittersweet Farms in Whitehouse where the focus is on adults with autism.
"It is not an institution. It's not where you've just taken a group of people and isolated them. This is a viable farm."
Posted on 11/24/2009 3:10:36 PM
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bilify is Bristol-Myers' second-biggest revenue generator, with $2.2 billion in 2008 sales.
The FDA's latest approval allows the drug to be used to treat symptoms associated with autism such as aggression toward others, deliberate infliction of self-injury, tempter tantrums and moodiness.
Posted on 11/23/2009 1:05:24 PM
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ScienceDaily (Nov. 23, 2009) — Treatment that includes medication plus a structured training program for parents reduces serious behavioral problems in children with autism and related conditions, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The study, which was part of the NIMH Research Units on Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP) Autism Network, was published in the December 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Posted on 11/23/2009 1:04:03 PM
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This video from Howcast outlines some early detection signs for infants and toddlers on the autism spectrum
Posted on 11/23/2009 7:25:36 AM
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There are many types of bullying. Some can be using cruel words, physically harming someone, shunning, and educational bullying. Kids might gossip, exclude someone from sitting with them during lunch, and trip others. Educational bullying is when a teacher or a principal bullies students.
Posted on 11/23/2009 7:24:48 AM
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Apparently within the autism community, the eyes have it. Peruse 10 different IEPs and you'll probably find goals or objectives involving eye contact on every one.
Posted on 11/23/2009 7:22:49 AM
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Now, researchers at the University of Missouri at Columbia report some early results that point to a potential testing method involving the pupil of the eye.
Using changes in light, the researchers compared the pupil response times of children with autism to a control group of other children.
The pupils of young people who had previously been diagnosed with autism were slower to constrict when presented with a flash of light.
The test was 92.5 percent accurate in predicting which children had autism, researchers said.
Posted on 11/19/2009 2:57:46 PM
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The 2005 census showed 20,000 cases. By 2010, that number is expected to hit 25,000 with nearly 4,000 adult cases.
Posted on 11/19/2009 2:56:02 PM
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The boy with his name in lights on his school's electronic sign wishing him well on at state, has lived most of life defined by a word in a report: autism. "He was not actually diagnosed with autism until the summer after third grade," says Andrew's mother.
Posted on 11/18/2009 2:59:09 PM
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This fall, Caldwell College began a Ph. D. program in ABA, the first of its kind in New Jersey, that will train students to develop new programs or refine existing ones to meet the high demand. Eleven students have enrolled.
New Jersey’s autism rate is higher than the national average.
Posted on 11/18/2009 2:56:38 PM
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A third of the 18,000 people with autism in Wales have no job and no benefits and are forced to rely on family and friends, says a charity.
Posted on 11/18/2009 2:55:07 PM
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It has been 16 years since we learned our son has autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Since that time, I have traveled a very confusing and circuitous route. At the beginning, I stubbornly resisted one professional's opinion that the ASD would endure. But recently, I sought confirmation that our 18-year-old still has ASD. That diagnosis is his passport to financial support and services, which he will need for his lifelong condition.
In 1969, Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross penned the book "On Death and Dying," in which she described five stages of grief: denial and isolation; anger; bargaining; depression; and acceptance. Dictionaries define grief as "great sadness, especially as a result of death" and "keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss."
Posted on 11/16/2009 7:13:35 AM
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But a new way to reach those children and parents has just been launched. Rethink Autism, a Web site designed for the treatment of autism, offers video tutorials and teaching methods in Applied Behavioral Analysis, or ABA techniques.
Posted on 11/13/2009 3:10:37 PM
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Nobody involved in creating The Horse Boy seems to be expecting miracles and there's nothing of that nature in the set-up of the story. However, Rowan makes important advances in the course of his family's journey, and they are captured by the camera.
The most interesting aspect of The Horse Boy is hearing how other cultures regard certain ailments and how they define 'normal' -- if such a state exists.
The most engaging aspect of the film is spending time with Rowan and his parents.
The Horse Boy is a fascinating documentary for most viewers; what it might contribute to the topic of autism and change -- over and above the mysterious (but documented) healing power of hanging around horses -- appears to be hope.
That's worth the price of admission.
Posted on 11/13/2009 3:09:02 PM
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A shocking new online survey has found that nearly 90 percent of autistic children in the Bay State have been targeted by bullying so violent and ruthless that a state lawmaker says teachers and school systems must be held accountable.
Posted on 11/13/2009 1:42:45 PM
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One website that strongly promotes the positive aspects of life in the midst of autism spectrum is www.ICare4Autism.org (International Center for Autism Research and Education). The positive trend in the collective consciousness of the general public, is summed up in the following video which is posted on the website www.ICare4Autism.org and was the product of the Illinois autism website www.autismillinois.com
Posted on 11/12/2009 5:17:27 PM
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The "Randomized Trial of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for Children with Autism" study reveals that HBOT, consisting of 24% oxygen delivered at 1.3 atmospheres of pressure, does not have a significant effect on symptoms of autism.
Posted on 11/11/2009 12:51:02 PM
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For many children with autism, though -- even those with higher IQs than most -- handwriting becomes an arduous chore, because the very act of writing letters takes them so long to do.
A new study out this week in the journal Neurology explains some of the reasons for that phenomenon -- and why bad handwriting might even lead to nonverbal communication problems.
Posted on 11/11/2009 12:50:16 PM
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When organizing your home for a child with autism, first start with the child’s bedroom. Always keep in mind that the room needs to be simple and well defined.
Posted on 11/9/2009 3:10:02 PM
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New York, NY (MMD Newswire) November 9, 2009 -- Rethink Autism today launched the Expert Access Webinar Series where parents of children with autism spectrum disorders can communicate directly with autism experts on subjects like problem behavior and increasing the quality of life for adolescents with autism and their families. For the first time, families once limited by financial and geographical constraints can now access expert advice from anywhere through Rethink Autism's online Expert Access webinars.
Posted on 11/9/2009 3:08:57 PM
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New York, NY (MMD Newswire) November 9, 2009 -- Rethink Autism today launched the Expert Access Webinar Series where parents of children with autism spectrum disorders can communicate directly with autism experts on subjects like problem behavior and increasing the quality of life for adolescents with autism and their families. For the first time, families once limited by financial and geographical constraints can now access expert advice from anywhere through Rethink Autism's online Expert Access webinars.
Posted on 11/9/2009 3:08:56 PM
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When asked why Moran is so popular, Daley said quickly, "I don't know!"
His mother had a theory, though.
"He's not shy," said Gonzalez. "He introduces himself and talks to people."
She also mentioned that once Moran has met someone, he never forgets their name. "If he sees you 10 years later, he'll remember you and call you by name," she said.
Posted on 11/9/2009 1:19:12 PM
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Whatever way he meant it, "autistic" is often used as an insult and it's insensitive to use a term that describes a disability or a condition in this way, says the National Autistic Society.
Posted on 11/6/2009 12:49:51 PM
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The Horse Boy intelligently and sympathetically addresses the reality of autism and how little we actually understand the condition, and there's no doubting that Rowan's parents have the best intentions. But the line between documentation and exploitation gets awfully blurred as we realize that part of this intimate family adventure is an intrusive camera crew in Rowan's face.
Posted on 11/5/2009 3:25:03 PM
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Asperger's is a high-functioning form of autism. Those who are diagnosed with it are typically intelligent and often display superior skills in memory or focus. Yet they often fail to comprehend social subtleties or the intentions of others. It is also an increasingly common diagnosis.
Posted on 11/5/2009 3:22:15 PM
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In the investigations, DMSA was given to 65 children with autism (ages 3 -8
years) to determine its effects. The researchers found that DMSA dramatically
increased excretion of several toxic metals, including a 10-fold increase in
excretion of lead. In terms of safety, the study found that there was no
adverse effect on standard safety tests, including no effect on kidney or
liver function.
Posted on 11/5/2009 3:21:01 PM
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Yet most parents polled in recent surveys say they are not planning to get their children vaccinated.
Posted on 11/3/2009 3:14:33 PM
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“The general public has either a neutral or fairly positive view of the term Asperger’s syndrome,” said Tony Attwood, a psychologist based in Australia who wrote “The Complete Guide to Asperger’s Syndrome” (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2006). But if people are told they should be evaluated for autism, he went on, “they will say: ‘No, no, no. I can talk. I have a friend. What a ridiculous suggestion!’ So we will miss the opportunity to assess people.”
Posted on 11/3/2009 1:28:33 PM
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Boys whose mothers smoked heavily throughout pregnancy were almost twice as likely to display behavioural problems. And the sons of light smokers (fewer than 10 cigarettes a day during pregnancy) were almost 80% more likely to have hyperactivity-attention deficit disorders.
The daughters of both light and heavy smokers were significantly more likely to display behavioural problems by the time they were three years old than girls whose mums did not smoke.
Posted on 11/3/2009 1:24:11 PM
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In an inspiring embrace of acceptance on a mass scale, students at Ellison High School elected Jesse McKenzie their homecoming king, a young man with autism and an infectious outgoing attitude.
Posted on 11/2/2009 5:01:36 PM
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The single-dose versions of seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccines do not contain preservatives (again as a precaution in case there is any potential risk) and may be offered to children ages 6 months to 3 years. However, if a preservative-free option is not available, it is still recommended that children in this age group receive the multidose vaccine to protect them against complications from either type of the flu.
Posted on 11/2/2009 5:00:39 PM
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Dr. Partington states that, "Maximum Potential is the answer to finally providing affordable and effective staff development for teachers who work with students with autism. Maximum Potential's ABA course enables a school district to not only train special education staff, but also helps all teachers improve their knowledge and outcomes for their students with autism. After taking the course, a staff member will have learned important skills such as reinforcement, prompting, Natural Environment Teaching and Behavior management. All are invaluable skills for a teacher working with a student
with autism."
Posted on 11/2/2009 4:58:42 PM
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"I've been involved with football for a very long time, and I have never been as inspired by a player as much as I have been by Daniel," Griffin said. "He has courage that isn't even developed yet. It inspires me that he is probably the smallest person on our team, but he has the biggest and most important muscle -- the heart; he has such heart."
Posted on 10/31/2009 6:20:16 AM
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"We are witnessing a roll-out of the largest, most expensive mass vaccination campaign in the history of our nation. A rollout that is bigger than even the polio vaccine campaigns of the 1950's."
"If you or your child are injured from getting a flu swine flu shot, you are on your own," Fisher warns.
"Because Congress shielded the vaccine manufacturers and any person giving swine flu shots from lawsuits if people get hurt," she says. "There is no funded government vaccine injury compensation program for swine flu vaccine."
Posted on 10/31/2009 6:18:52 AM
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Software tester finds niche for those with the disorder.
Posted on 10/29/2009 9:57:16 AM
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After researchers adjusted for the lower fish consumption of autistic children, they found no differences between their mercury levels and those in other children.
Posted on 10/26/2009 5:32:57 PM
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20-minute flyover is all Stephen Wiltshire needs to create a stunningly detailed skyline drawing from memory. Now, the artist who has autism is taking on New York City.
Wiltshire, 35, was diagnosed with severe autism at age 3. But his amazing talent emerged when Wiltshire took a school trip to London’s Albert Hall and he returned to draw an exact replica of the building. Since then, Wiltshire has drawn panoramas of London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Rome, Madrid, Frankfurt, Dubai and Jerusalem. He says New York will be his finale.
Posted on 10/26/2009 5:32:02 PM
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Doctors say there are not nearly enough services to help the growing number of American children affected by autism. NY1’s Cheryl Wills filed the following report.
Posted on 10/26/2009 5:31:25 PM
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Just the mention of H1N1 stirs extreme responses. Two prevailing thoughts are that one must vaccinate and the other is no way, no how. To look at some of the reasoning behind the feelings are the following two video reports. One from Mark Wirbel, contributing reporter for www.AutismHangout.com, the premier autism awareness website, and another compliments of www.Mercola.com, a great resource for natural wellness information.
Posted on 10/22/2009 11:28:14 AM
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Autism Hangout is a video news website that reports up-to-the-minute findings about autism treatments, research, and best practices in the U.S and around the world. And the concept is working.
Every week, 17,000 people visit the site to view over 200 video and Webinar reports. Using free Autism Hangout tools, some leave blogs and videos documenting experiences of their own. "I would like Autism Hangout to be a CNN to the autism community," smiled Craig. "I want those touched by autism to learn and share in the abundance of hope that's out there. Everyday there's something new, even "cool," being discovered about autism. It's not always easy to see it as a blessing... but that option is there.
New technologies, educational tools and innovative thinking can help us connect our kids. But the chance to help them find their special gifts - and possibly share them with the world - is an rare opportunity to be pursued. I'm building a place where we can share our journeys - the challenges and the joys. And I'm thrilled to find the encouragement of like-minded, positive-thinking people. We didn't choose this path, but there's amazement and wonder along the route. Autism Hangout is here to help us 'learn, share and thrive' with autism."
Posted on 10/21/2009 12:25:59 PM
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(NaturalNews) The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) states, "Genetically Modified foods have not been properly tested and pose a serious health risk. There is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects. There is causation." The AAEM also called for a moratorium on GMO's in food and for physicians to advise their patients to avoid GM foods. Since the massive invasion of GMO's into the food supply from 1996, chronic diseases and food allergies have doubled.
Posted on 10/21/2009 10:10:44 AM
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About 1 in 100 of America's 8-year-olds have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers, who will be releasing details of their study later this year.
That's a 50% increase from two years ago, when the government estimated the rate at 1 in 150.
Posted on 10/19/2009 3:17:43 PM
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It has recently been confirmed that Swine flu vaccines contain thimerosal, a mercury based preservative. In fact, one study suggest that the amount of thimerosal in each vaccine is equal to one full dose of mercury. In addition to the mercury risk, it has also been confirmed that the nasal spray will contain live virus which has led to fears that you could be exposed to the airborne live virus at clinics around the country.
Posted on 10/16/2009 3:55:11 PM
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I have recently met a friend via the internet who not only hosts an autism resource website, but is a fellow musician as well. Craig Evans hosts http://www.autismhangout.com. I mentioned in a recent blog posting a 'webinar' that I viewed on Autism Hangout which featured Lindsey Beil and her book, Raising a Sensory Smart Child. Since then, I have revisited the Autism Hangout website as it is a wonderful resource! In my recent visit I stumbled upon mention of Craig's wonderful CD entitled Frailin' With Friends.
Posted on 10/13/2009 4:17:50 PM
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I have been quite intrigued over the past 12-15 years about autism, especially because of its very high incidences or prevalence in America's children. The old ratio for children with autism was 1 in 150.
This ratio is stagerringly high all by itself, but a newer ratio just recently released by the U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that the more current ratio may be even worse.
For example, writing in the journal Pediatrics last Sunday, researchers from the CDC and Harvard Medical School have developed new figures that show an alarming increase in the ratio for children with autism. Specifically, their more current numbers show that the current ratio appears now to affect about one in 91 U. S. children, and about one in 58 boys.
Posted on 10/13/2009 3:53:12 PM
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This useful, accessible guide offers teachers and parents a better understanding
of children on the autism spectrum and provides them with the kinds of support
and intervention they need. Written in an easy-to-read checklist format, the
book is filled with up-to-date research, practical advice, and helpful resources
on a wide range of topics. The book covers five areas: basic information on
autism, checklists for parents, checklists for teachers, effective support
strategies, and helpful resources.
Posted on 10/13/2009 3:52:35 PM
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One of the hallmarks of autism is a need to find order, or to try to create it, in a world that can often seem chaotic and disorganized.
But for researchers trying to understand the disorder, which can affect perception, cognition, social and motor skills, communication and other domains, autism itself can seem incoherent and enigmatic.
Matthew Belmonte, assistant professor of human development and a 2009 recipient of the National Science Foundation's Faculty Early Career Development Award, is using a novel tool -- a suite of science-fiction-themed video games he developed with collaborators in computer sciences -- to find order behind the range of autism's manifestations
Posted on 10/13/2009 3:51:42 PM
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The Lena Foundation says its new service, released last month, is 91 percent accurate for children 24 to 48 months old, according to its own research. Nationwide, children typically are not diagnosed with autism until almost 6 years old.
Posted on 10/13/2009 3:50:20 PM
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RESULTS The weighted current ASD point-prevalence was 110 per 10,000. We estimate that 673,000 US children have ASD. Odds of having ASD were 4 times as large for boys than girls. Non-Hispanic (NH) black and multiracial children had lower odds of ASD than NH white children. Nearly 40% of those ever diagnosed with ASD did not currently have the condition; NH black children were more likely than NH white children to not have current ASD. Children in both ASD groups were less likely than children without ASD to receive care within a medical home.
CONCLUSIONS The observed point-prevalence is higher than previous US estimates.
Posted on 10/9/2009 10:44:45 AM
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However, healing autism is not only about what one puts into the body, it is also about what one takes out. It makes sense that if many of the causes of autism can be related to excess toxins (pesticides, mercury, vaccines, gluten, lactose) that a personal program of detoxification and natural medicine would be part of that cure.
It does not make sense that a disease possibly caused by toxicity would respond to more toxic treatment, as is the case with many conventional pharmaceutical drugs - especially considering the high sensitivity found in autistic children.
Some herbs that can help clear toxins from the body are: alfalfa, dandelion, licorice root, psyllium, and marshmallow. Some herbs that help the autistic child feel more balanced are: chamomile, hops, fennel, catnip, valerian and skullcap. For a child that does not want to take herbal tea or herbal juices one can use essential oils.
Posted on 10/8/2009 5:03:06 PM
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Shocking new statistics show that 1 in 91 children have autism. This is alarming. Two years ago the number was 1 in 150 and twenty years ago it was 1 in 10,000. And since four times as many boys as girls are diagnosed with autism, this means that autism is now found in 1 out of every 58 boys. This newly released study published in the journal Pediatrics is supported by the CDC’s soon to be released study of 8 year olds that puts the number at 1 in 100 and an earlier study done by Cambridge University in the UK with similar numbers.
Posted on 10/8/2009 4:56:57 PM
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A study also published this week in the journal Pediatrics revealed that as many as one in 91 children have the neurodevelopmental disorder, up from previous estimates of 1 in 150.
Posted on 10/8/2009 4:56:02 PM
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Some Long Island experts say the new survey that puts the number of children with an autism spectrum disorder at 1 in every 91 needs a rigorous follow-up study, but advocates say the shocking statistic is not unexpected and they've labeled it a wake-up call to the nation.
Posted on 10/6/2009 4:03:10 PM
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Reporting from Chicago - About 1 in 100 of America's 8-year-olds have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers, who will be releasing details of their study later this year.
That's a 50% increase from two years ago, when the government estimated the rate at 1 in 150.
Posted on 10/6/2009 4:02:11 PM
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From New York to Oregon, and from Fiji to Dar es Salaam, parents and professionals trying to help "autistic-like" children will watch the film and discuss the issues.
Posted on 10/5/2009 12:26:00 PM
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BETHESDA, Md.--President Barack Obama announced $5 billion in new government grants Wednesday to fight cancer, autism and heart disease.
Posted on 10/4/2009 3:51:00 PM
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In a conference call, the government just confirmed that 1 in 100 American children has an autistic spectrum diagnosis. They're still saying they don't know why, or whether the increase is real.
Posted on 10/2/2009 4:22:33 PM
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Scientists have now found that male babies vaccinated with the hepatitis B vaccine have triple the risk of developing autism when compared to unvaccinated boys and those vaccinated at an older age.
The risk of autism increases` with administration of the hepatitis B shot and is greatest for non-Caucasians.
Posted on 10/1/2009 3:54:13 PM
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Israel's Society for Autistic Children (ALUT) has developed diagnostic, educational, housing and employment programs that span the lifetime of an individual with autism. In a recent webinar interview, Rachel Rosenman, the Director of ALUT, provided these highlights for how ALUT's tackles the challenges of autism:
Posted on 9/27/2009 12:25:20 PM
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According to data from the 2007 telephone survey of parents of nearly 82,000 US children, the odds of a parent being told that their child has an ASD are one in 63. If it is a boy, the chances climb to a science fiction-like level of one in 38, or 2.6% of all male children in America.
A pair of federally funded studies on autism rates is about to make news -- big news -- and it isn't good: It would appear that somewhere around one percent of all US children currently have an autism spectrum disorder. The rate is even higher among six to 11 year olds and among boys, according to data from at least one of the new studies.
Posted on 9/27/2009 5:58:48 AM
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For more than 25 years, the company has partnered with Eden Autism Services of Princeton to provide work for dozens of adults diagnosed with autism, a developmental disability affecting social interaction and communication skills.
"They do a fantastic job for us,’ Kitchens said of the eight young men who rotate three-hour shifts at the store each workday. "They’re very happy to be here. They do great work."
Posted on 9/27/2009 5:52:56 AM
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John Travolta took the stand in a Bahamian court Wednesday to testify in an extortion case where, for the first time, he publically acknowledged that his 16-year-old son Jett suffered from autism, People reports.
Posted on 9/23/2009 3:53:26 PM
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Parents of children or adults with autism or ASD must often make tough decisions regarding their careers. Not only is respite care expensive or difficult to locate, but there are many hours of the day that must be covered, even after a school program.
Posted on 9/15/2009 11:28:40 AM
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An autism diagnosis turns a family's life upside down. The complex disorder may not manifest uniformly, but the accompanying heartache is universal, whether families struggle to accept that a child or sibling may never speak, write his name, have a friend, sleep through the night, or toilet independently. Yet, receiving a heartfelt hug or making eye contact can engender poignant moments of joy or twinges of possibility, striking a balance between optimism and despair.
Posted on 9/15/2009 11:13:15 AM
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Autism Hangout free autism webinars are actually here! On Wednesday, September 16th from 9:00am-10:00am CDT, Rachel Rosenman, director from ALUT…the Israel National Autism Association, will be Craig Evans’ first guest on the hangout’s new webinar series which will be hosted on the new 24 hour a day autism hangout ‘livestream’ channel. To my knowledge this is the first time that Rachel has shared her knowledge, regarding autism programming, in this country, on an internet platform. This will prove to be an extremely enlightening exchange that you will not want to miss.
Posted on 9/14/2009 8:28:28 AM
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Autism affects up to 16 children per 10,000, with wider spectrum disorders affecting up to 60 children per 10,000. The assessments measured a wide range of developmental areas, including traits associated with autism such as responding to people, sensory perceptions and pictures. During her assessments, Ms Robson used toys, pictures, noises and other items to gauge the child's attention and watch how they responded.
Differences between the groups included noticeable autism-related behaviours such as their ability to pay attention, respond to their own name, early language development and cognitive abilities, temperament and sensory processing.
Posted on 9/14/2009 8:27:36 AM
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Autism websites that 'point fingers' are a dime a dozen. Autism websites that are peddling the ‘cure of the moment’ are also. Finding autism websites that help with the everyday needs of the autism community aren’t so easy to come by. In this article I will point out a list of 5 autism websites that do just that.
Posted on 9/11/2009 6:17:04 AM
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After tests showed Daniel is autistic, Rolen said a friend recommended the Minnesota Autism Center. The nonprofit organization provides therapeutic support for children and families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorders. It runs a center-based program in Minnetonka, but also provides in-home and in-school therapy in 28 counties throughout the state.
Posted on 9/9/2009 6:23:47 AM
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After tests showed Daniel is autistic, Rolen said a friend recommended the Minnesota Autism Center. The nonprofit organization provides therapeutic support for children and families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorders. It runs a center-based program in Minnetonka, but also provides in-home and in-school therapy in 28 counties throughout the state.
Posted on 9/9/2009 6:23:46 AM
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For fathers coming home from work and find it impossible to connect with their autistic child, it can typically be the straw that breaks the family's back. Now an autism expert and parent shares tips of how to develop affection in autistic children.
Posted on 9/9/2009 6:21:42 AM
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For fathers coming home from work and find it impossible to connect with their autistic child, it can typically be the straw that breaks the family's back. Now an autism expert and parent shares tips of how to develop affection in autistic children.
Posted on 9/9/2009 6:21:40 AM
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There are a lot of theories out there on how to treat autistic spectrum kids. Unfortunately, a lot of them sound a little too out there or the results are just not conclusive. There is a lot of snake oil out there and I recommend a good healthy dose of skepticism for parents. But don't let it shut out good, new studies, information and different strategies to try for your own child.
I recently ran across this article by Dr. Mark Hyman in The Huffington Post, titled Why Current Thinking About Autism is Completely Wrong.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:48:18 AM
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By countless scientific accounts, far more dangerous to human health than any reported incidences of Swine Flu are the dangers of severe health issues including paralysis, brain damage and even death arising from what is added to vaccines by virtually every major vaccine maker. Almost without exception, all commercial vaccines today contain various substances known as adjuvants designed to make the vaccine “work.” These adjuvants are the source of horrendous and sometimes deadly damage.
It has been speculated for some time that there might be a link in the alarming rise in cases of autism among tiny infants and children and massive multiple vaccinations today given routinely to infants and children from the first hours of birth. There is clear and shocking evidence of the link between the two. If you do not have a strong constitution, you are advised not to read further.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:46:29 AM
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“I tell parents new to autism that you have to advocate for your child all the time.”
More and more parents have been learning that lesson in recent years as the number of students with autism has exploded. One in every 150 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder; 14 years ago only one in 10,000 children was thought to have it. In Colorado, the number jumped from 246 students in 1998 to 2,416 in 2008.
Faced with this dramatic increase, public school systems are struggling to give autistic students the best education they can in the least restrictive environment, as required by federal law. But finding money and trained workers to get the job done makes it difficult.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:45:11 AM
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The National Autism Association has officially named September 9 "How Much Longer Day." On that day, they are encouraging parents and other members of the autism community to get in touch with their federal representatives in support of a whole raft of issues in areas including health care, education, insurance, and more.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:39:53 AM
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And yet nothing could be less ordinary or more special than this group of bar and bat mitzva boys and girls and their families. This is Thursday morning at Camp Yofi: Family Camp for Jewish Families with Children with Autism, and for many of these families, this ceremony marks something that some thought was impossible: public celebration of the life of a child with autism in the Jewish community.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:39:10 AM
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n a world where it feels everyone has to be so cautious in their political correctness, attempting to say the right thing in the right way frequently creates unintentionally precarious situations. For example, the sensitivity of referring to an individual on the Autism Spectrum as Autistic versus having Autism. Those living outside the influence of the Autism Spectrum may not see a difference and may not think it matters, after all, it is just semantics, right? In many cases, perhaps. In others, wrong. A woman with Autism explained the difference between having Autism and being Autistic quite succinctly by sharing that she has Autism, but it is not the entirety of who she is, therefore she has never referred to herself as Autistic.
Posted on 9/7/2009 5:36:54 AM
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Most parents are aware that the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) is a United States federal law that governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services to children with disabilities. IDEA entitles students with educational diagnoses of autism and other disabilities to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment with accommodations and therapies as deemed necessary to support the student’s success in the classroom. Accommodations, therapies and placement are all determined through an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). (For those who might be a bit rusty or unfamiliar with the basics, please click on the links for a refresher course). But what some parents don’t realize is that:
Posted on 9/4/2009 10:27:18 AM
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With the increased awareness of autism in the last few years, we have also seen an increase in the number of charities working to help families with ASD. One charity focused specifically toward autism is located in Toledo, OH and is called Project iAm.
Posted on 9/3/2009 11:38:58 AM
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Those who enjoyed J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Series, will love The Society of Sylphs by Lea M. Hill. One needs only think, ‘autism whisperer’, to fully understand what Lea brings to this new branch of fantasy literature. Lea has a deep affinity for children on the autism spectrum and is highly in tune with them. Heretofore unknown author, Lea M. Hill, brings her very special talent as an intuitive to the world of autism awareness and fantasy literature.
Posted on 9/2/2009 1:49:07 PM
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Lisa Witte is zipping through old sweatshirts, turning them into rags, like a meat cutter slicing swiftly through hunks of roast beef.
"She loves it," said Lisa's mom, Phyllis Witte, of her deft daughter. "She can produce 100 pounds of rags in three hours -- she's so fast."
It's all part of a day's work at Lisa's Quality Rags, the remarkable -- and profitable -- business owned and operated by the 29-year-old woman with special needs. Diagnosed at age 2 with autism, Witte can't read, write or talk beyond saying, "Hi, I'm Lisa," and sometimes parroting what others say.
"It's amazing she can be a productive member of society," Phyllis Witte said. She and Lisa's father, Teunis, used to think, "'There's so much she can do, yet then again, how will she ever find a real occupation?' God opened all the doors."
Posted on 8/31/2009 4:00:14 PM
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In a perhaps unprecedented treatment of the topic, Sunday on Dateline, Matt Lauer did an in depth story about the still raging debate about the link between autism and vaccines. The story focused to a large extent on Andrew Wakefield -- the now infamous British Doctor who is credited with igniting the debate about the link between autism and vaccines via the publication of an article over a decade ago in the medical journal Lancet.
Posted on 8/31/2009 3:58:01 PM
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Consider what it does to the senses when you're in a kayak on the Colorado River and you hit white water. You can't hear anything but the water. There's spray in your face. Violent drops. Wicked turns. And fear -- moments when the river seems to be in control, not you. In short, it's total sensory overload, a total adrenaline rush.
But if you have autism -- like most kids at the Extreme Sports Camp near Aspen, Colo. -- it's overload times 20, or times 100. And that's the point: to take kids to their limits, and beyond.
"It's got to be visceral," said Doug Gilstrap, 47, who has run the camp since it launched in 2001. "It's stimulating, it's super-intense. And, actually, the more intense it is, the better they are on the other end."
Posted on 8/31/2009 3:56:52 PM
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I am concerned that advice dispensed in the Aug. 21 Family Almanac column, "Diagnosing Autism is Never an Easy Process," could expose children to risk and harm.
Anyone suspecting a young child may have a developmental delay should urge the child's parents to discuss the matter with their pediatrician.
Posted on 8/29/2009 7:05:54 PM
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Stop eating dangerous genetically modified (GM) foods! That's the upshot of the Lyme Induced Autism (LIA) Foundation's position paper released today.
The patient advocacy group is not willing to wait around until research studies prove that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) cause or worsen the many diseases that are on the rise since gene-spliced foods were introduced in 1996. Like the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) earlier this year, the LIA Foundation says there is more than enough evidence of harm in GM animal feeding studies for them to "urge doctors to prescribe non-GMO diets" and for "individuals, especially those with autism, Lyme disease, and associated conditions, to avoid" GM foods.
Posted on 8/26/2009 9:58:20 AM
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After hearing the warnings about the mercury we ingest when eating fish and how toxic heavy metals are, it might seem like a bad idea to use mercury in vaccines that are injected into the human body.
But scientists say that the mercury used with some vaccines -- known as ethyl mercury or thimerosal -- is much different than the methyl mercury that comes from fish.
Methyl mercury can accumulate in body tissues. At high levels it has been shown to cause such mercury poisoning symptoms as tremors, muscle weakness, memory loss and hypersensitivity to light.
Posted on 8/23/2009 6:33:53 PM
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One of the most difficult issues parents of a child with autism may face on a regular basis are environmental changes. These can be as small as going from the house to the car, or larger changes like coming home from school back into the home. Because there are both lack of understanding by the child as to why these events are occurring and countless sensory issues that they are experiencing, behaviors may become a real challenge.
Posted on 8/23/2009 6:32:56 PM
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When Suzanne Painter mentions that Arizona State University is launching a master's program this fall to train educators and service providers to teach students with autism, the response is almost always the same: "I have a relative or friend with autism."
Posted on 8/23/2009 6:32:28 PM
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ALLEGAN -- He wears his sash proudly, 24 badges strong.
His khaki shirt, adorned with various pins, ribbons and patches, signifies a decade of dedication.
This is a Boy Scout of the highest order -- an Eagle Scout.
Jeremy Combs, from Allegan's Troop 91.
Courtesy of the Combs familyJeremy Combs is autistic, but he hasn't let that prevent him from earning the rank of Eagle Scout.
The rigorous requirements to become an Eagle Scout include tough tests, and the majority of scouts do not make the grade.
Posted on 8/23/2009 6:31:18 PM
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In June of 2009, I unofficially “adopted” the Autism Hangout website and have become extremely fond of the community of parents, friends, educators and adults on the spectrum who frequent there. This is not only a website that provides informational content, but provides a platform for sharing and community by like minded and caring individuals. I have made references in the following articles regarding Autism Hangout and the work it does:
Posted on 8/23/2009 6:29:44 PM
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TODDLERS who later go on to be diagnosed with autism use fewer gestures, such as pointing, Victorian researchers have discovered, in findings that may ultimately become part of an autism screening test.
Early identification and treatment of the disorder is thought to be a key to reducing its severity, but the wide spectrum of normal childhood development means it has been considered impossible to distinguish babies with autism from others without the condition.
Posted on 8/21/2009 7:26:00 AM
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UNDATED -- (08/20/09) -- One of the biggest challenges for parents and therapists is predicting and understanding the emotions and feelings of a child with autism. Now, robots may be able to "understand what humans can't.
Posted on 8/21/2009 7:24:39 AM
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When Karen Griffin Roberts set out to return to school to get her bachelor’s degree, she simply wanted to jump the gun and meet future federal requirements for preschool teachers. Instead, she became the creator of an award-winning educational manual and provided hope for millions of children with autism at the same time.
Posted on 8/21/2009 7:23:42 AM
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BRATTLEBORO -- An Australian artist has given a new voice to the students at a school for autistic children.
Garry Jones recently completed his musical installation, "Wind Song Dreaming," on the campus of INSPIRE for Autism, a private school for autistic children that opened last year.
"Music is a pure form of communication," Jones said, as the wind blew up through the valley and created haunting tones from the sculpture. "For people with disabilities, this gives them a way to make music and experience music."
Jones, who moved to Brattleboro recently, has worked in the past with people with disabilities.
Posted on 8/21/2009 7:23:02 AM
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New York, NY - We've heard the numbers. One out of 150 children will be diagnosed with autism.
Treatment and education can help these kids deal with challenges that they may face, but the treatment is expensive and most often not covered by insurance.
But now there's a way parents can help a their child improve their ability to learn at home.
Posted on 8/19/2009 7:44:44 AM
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Peter Griffin is 29, he has an IQ of 159, a degree in astrophysics, and a gallows humour about his Asperger’s syndrome, an autistic-spectrum disorder that makes social interaction so difficult that his longest — indeed his only — stretch of paid work has been a Saturday job in Tesco, which he has had since he was 16. He is so wired after his shift that he is awake until 4am and it takes him the rest of the week to recover: “At the end of a day trying to be ‘normal’, acting the part, wearing the mask and reining myself in, I’m like a pressure cooker.”
Posted on 8/18/2009 9:03:44 AM
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Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed into law new rules requiring insurers to cover the screening and therapeutic treatment of autism, making it the 15th state in the U.S. to require such coverage.
Corzine signed the measure (A-2238/S-1651) into law Aug. 14, requiring coverage for diagnostic and therapeutic services, including any medically necessary occupational, physical and speech therapy.
Corzine said the state has made the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders “a top priority.”
Posted on 8/18/2009 9:02:59 AM
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For those of us who can remember at least 30 years ago, the knowledge and recognition of autism has really changed. From just a word or an occasional "rare case" in the news to daily exposure with stories involving nearly everyone through friends or family.
You can't go anywhere without seeing a magazine, newspaper, (which are also becoming things of the past I'm afraid) and endless internet sources reporting on autism. For those of us raising a child with and ASD, this is actually a good thing. We get the latest ideas, products, treatments and great stories from real people that live with autism every day. This does help parents as the daily news seems to reflect that autism is here to stay, the world has recognized it, accepted it and is responding to it.
Posted on 8/16/2009 7:38:28 AM
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There are many theories and suppositions regarding the apparent increase in incidences of autism. One, which I am inclined to agree with, is that there are simply too many toxic substances permeating our environment which has caused a tipping point, a critical mass, for many. This concept of environmental toxicity was brought back to mind after watching the newest video report from Autism Hangout, "Better Living through Autism" - An Autism Hangout Special Report.
Posted on 8/13/2009 8:02:21 PM
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In PlanoTexas there is a very special place. A place where dreams come true…..no it’s not Disney, that’s in my backyard…OrlandoFlorida. This is a place where autistic adults who are finished with their formal education can enroll in a program that transitions them into the “real world”. This is where they can excel, have mutual respect and be productive in a highly competitive industry. This very special place is called “nonPareil Institute”.
Posted on 8/13/2009 6:52:03 AM
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A pair of federally funded studies on autism rates is about to make news -- big news -- and it isn't good: It would appear that somewhere around one percent of all US children currently have an autism spectrum disorder. The rate is even higher among six to 11 year olds and among boys, according to data from at least one of the new studies.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:48:58 AM
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Alex, who has Asperger's syndrome - a form of autism that can make it difficult to form relationships - talks to his mum about trying to find himself a girlfriend.
The 24-year-old's story is told in The Autistic Me - a documentary looking at three young men trying to manage their condition and make their way in the world.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:47:36 AM
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Here's a peek at the top social networking sites for the autism community. Moms and dads around the world visit these sites to discuss everything from how to teach social skills to how to handle repetitive questioning to how to solve IEP issues.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:46:26 AM
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Immunologist Judy Van de Water and her colleagues isolated a form of antibody called "immunoglobulin G," or IgG, from 61 mothers of autistic children and found that in seven cases, it bound to two proteins in fetal brain tissue.
Regressive autism
Six of those mothers had children with regressive autism, in which children appear to develop normally for the first year or two before developing symptoms such as loss of social or language skills.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:45:23 AM
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Hollywood movies rarely deal with disability - except for autism, when characters are typically shown as having special intelligence. Why do we like to think everyone with autism is especially gifted?
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:44:00 AM
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As if toilet training were not difficult enough for parents, training a child on the autism spectrum to use the toilet presents additional challenges. Higher functioning children may have only a slight delay, while lower functioning children may not have success for many years, if at all. The positive thing is that parents can work on different strategies to eventually, step-by-step, get their child to a point where minimal supervision is needed and the child is able to independently perform these functions.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:41:26 AM
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Some children who appear to be gifted in certain areas such as math may be held back by problems in language and reading. Parents can do something at home to prepare (or repair) their child’s brain for normal signal processing.
Turning off the TV and teaching phonics to your child early, the right way, may prevent dyslexia (and even autism).
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:38:14 AM
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A five year old Canadian boy, diagnosed with severe autism, was cured when the true cause of his mental disorder was found to be celiac disease and he was treated with a gluten-free diet and nutritional supplements.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:37:17 AM
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Her words may never have been found if not for the relentless determination of her family, who never gave up on her. Carly's story is how one child found her way out of the dense forest that is autism, and how her experience may unlock the mysteries of this baffling disorder.
Posted on 8/12/2009 6:36:08 AM
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They looked at the incidence of 5 groups of gastrointestinal symptoms, including constipation, diarrhoea, abdominal bloating/discomfort, reflux or vomiting, and feeding issues/food selectivity.
No significant difference was found in overall incidence of gastrointestinal symptoms between the children with autism and the control group of children without autism.
Posted on 8/5/2009 7:03:53 PM
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Autism is an extremely complex disorder but for purposes of this one article, we can distill its myriad characteristics into four fundamental areas: sensory processing challenges, speech/language delays and impairments, the elusive social interaction skills and whole child/self-esteem issues. And though these four elements may be common to many children, keep front-of-mind the fact that autism is a spectrum disorder: no two (or ten or twenty) children with autism will be completely alike. Every child will be at a different point on the spectrum. And, just as importantly – every parent, teacher and caregiver will be at a different point on the spectrum. Child or adult, each will have a unique set of needs.
Here are ten things every child with autism wishes you knew:
Posted on 8/5/2009 7:02:18 PM
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WEDNESDAY, Aug. 5 (HealthDay News) -- Autism may hinder a person's ability to see and read body language, making it difficult to gauge other people's feelings, a British study finds.
Posted on 8/5/2009 7:01:30 PM
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Right now it's an occasion to rejoice with ALUT of Israel who is celebrating the end of a long hard five year struggle to have ALL therapies for children on the autism spectrum paid for by the National Insurance Institute of Israel, regardless of the severity of the diagnosis.Rachel Rosenman director of ALUT, the Israeli Autism Association, gives the account of the supreme court victory in her current newsletter. The following is an excerpt which gives the details of this historic decision:
Posted on 8/5/2009 12:58:04 PM
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But about a year ago, Pederson, a psychologist, and her colleagues at the Fraser Child & Family Center in Minneapolis found a new way to reach these students -- right through their headphones.
They're using iPods, which play music and videos, to teach them how to fit in.
Posted on 8/5/2009 12:55:46 PM
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The California State University East Bay campus in the Hayward hills is the site of an unusual experiment in higher education for people with autism. Starting in the fall quarter, college-age autistics will be encouraged to attend and build an educational community; one that draws on the autistics' unusual academic strengths. The experiment will test the possibilities for autistics in a university setting, and more generally the possibilities for a range of students with disabilities.
Posted on 8/5/2009 6:48:36 AM
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In this edition of expert corner, Dr. Esther Hess, Los Angeles developmental psychiatrist, discusses Floor Time, a play therapy method for treating children with significant developmental delays such as autism.
Posted on 8/5/2009 6:47:31 AM
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One of the more pressing issues in the autism awareness community seems to be the question of Independent Living for adults on the autism spectrum. After investing all of the time, effort, passion and resources into therapies which provide the highest level of functioning for a loved one….then what? Well, I have a new friend, Ann Millan, who has traveled this road with her daughter Robin.
Posted on 8/4/2009 1:56:41 PM
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Autism Hangout, brainchild of Craig Evans and co-founder Frank Gustafson, is ready to move up to an entirely new level of service. This fall Craig introduces Autism Hangout's Webinar series. These Webinars, mentioned in a previous article, are designed to assist families who deal with the multitude of issues that present themselves while on their paths to thriving with autism. In the following video segment, Craig outlines the five proposed Webinar categories. They consist of...
Posted on 8/4/2009 5:56:41 AM
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It has been projected that, at the rate we're going, by the year 2035 most of our world's population will be autistic.
Posted on 8/4/2009 5:53:42 AM
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Thomas Baker said his early years in school were a bit rougher than most students’. Socially, he described himself as a quiet pupil who perpetually sat in the corner and had trouble grasping certain concepts.
“Academic wise, I had trouble with reading comprehension. I’m the type who is open minded and can never give a straight answer to anything,” Baker, 18, said when describing his struggles with standardized tests. “My mindset is a whole lot different than the test-makers’.”
Baker, who was diagnosed with autisum when he was 18 months old, thinks the disease proglonged his adjustment period when it came to school. The recent Bradwell Institute graduate also suffers from epilepsy and both health issues can make it hard for Baker to feel at ease around his peers.
Posted on 8/4/2009 5:52:17 AM
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The three new movies would seem to have little in common: a romantic comedy about Upper West Side singles, a biopic about a noted animal science professor, and an animated film about an extended pen-pal relationship.
But all three revolve around Asperger’s syndrome, the complex and mysterious neurological disorder linked to autism. Their nearly simultaneous appearance — two open this summer, and the third is planned for next year — underscores how much Asperger’s and high-functioning autism have expanded in the public consciousness since Dustin Hoffman’s portrayal of an autistic savant in “Rain Man” 21 years ago.
Posted on 8/4/2009 5:51:13 AM
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NonPareil does not have a typical website. The look isn't typical... The style isn't typical...The navigation doesn't feel typical either. But then again, Dan Selec, NonPareil creator and visionary is NOT a typical guy.
Posted on 8/4/2009 5:49:48 AM
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The longing to be recognized on the level of “being” is inherently part of the human experience. Creativity is fundamental to who we are. This creativity finds expression through various media and is it any wonder that music and art seem to be two of the most effective therapy tools. The process of creating and expressing is hooked into the very energy of our 'being-ness'.
Posted on 7/31/2009 8:27:36 PM
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In one of the latest video reports on Autism Hangout, Mark Wirbel gives one father's tried and true 'Back to School' checklist for families with children on the autism spectrum. Proper preparation can make the transition back to school much smoother, enjoyable and productive.
Posted on 7/31/2009 6:43:13 PM
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My belief is that we are all seekers. We may not always be aware of the path, but I believe it is so. In the process of my own seeking I came across the yoga videos first, and then the yoga/ayurvedic website of Yogi Cameron. Here I found a wealth of mental, emotional, medical and spiritual material that I have not seen in many free access websites. How newly acquired information can assist the autism awareness community is a main focus for me, so as I was reading one of Yogi Cameron’s blog entries, I was suddenly intrigued to understand the way yogi’s, and ayurvedic practitioners, view the treatment of autism and autistic-like symptoms. My request was submitted for a set of interviews with the Yogi and was graciously accepted, for which I am truly grateful.
Posted on 7/31/2009 7:58:47 AM
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What is ABA therapy? Well there are many expert explanations, three of which can be found here, here and here that outline the basic premise of Applied Behavior Analysis. Autism Hangout’s Craig Evans recently had a video interview with Jamie Pagliaro, Executive Vice President of ReThink Autism. Apparently ReThink Autism has an ‘at home’ ABA program which uses video demonstrations and is a much more affordable route to take in implementing ABA. In Craig’s words:
“Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) has been proven effective in the development of kids with autism. But for some families, ABA may be difficult to find, schedule and afford. Rethink Autism is breaking down these barriers making it possible for more kids to receive this life-altering treatment. In this Autism Hangout Report, EVP Jamie Pagliaro talks about their web-based treatment platform for parents, caregivers and professionals."
Posted on 7/31/2009 6:53:44 AM
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A study in the April 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine showed that over-the-counter melatonin can decrease how long it takes for children with autism spectrum disorder, Fragile X syndrome or both to fall asleep at night. In fact, children who received over-the-counter melatonin had improved total night sleep durations, sleep latency times, and sleep-onset times. Mean times for sleep onset was 42 minutes faster for kids on melatonin than those on placebo, and these children also slept 21 mintues longer.
Posted on 7/31/2009 6:51:26 AM
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f there's a problem with the way American movies depict people with Asperger's syndrome and other autism-spectrum disorders, it certainly doesn't stem from a lack of sympathy or from bad intentions. If anything, it's the other way around: Movies like the new indie drama "Adam," which stars Hugh Dancy as a newly orphaned adult man with Asperger's embarking on a tentative love affair with a non-Asperger's or NT ("neurotypical") woman, walk so gingerly through the minefield of representational politics, and take their educational function so seriously, that they don't have any time or energy left to be, you know, movies.
Posted on 7/31/2009 6:50:44 AM
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With increased longevity comes increased reproduction at later ages and research now shows clearly that men over the age of 34 have a higher likelihood of fathering a child with an autism or schizophrenia spectrum disorder or Down syndrome. It is well known that these brain disorders affect cognitive function, social and verbal skills, and emotional development.
Posted on 7/28/2009 2:54:46 PM
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Last week I did a book review for a book by Jenna Lumbard. Jenna Lumbard is the fresh new author of children's book, Worried Wendy Goes to School. Jenna is an accomplished author of stories and poetry, and Jenna is a non-verbal adult with autism. After corresponding with Jenna my first impression was, “Wow! What an impressive young woman”.
Posted on 7/28/2009 1:52:23 PM
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Many parents of autistic children have put their children on strict gluten-free or dairy-free diets, convinced that gastrointestinal problems are an underlying cause of the disorder. But a new study suggests the complicated food regimens may not be warranted.
Posted on 7/27/2009 3:51:09 PM
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Music constantly comes into any serious conversation regarding how young children learn. Whether the population has sensory processing disorders such as autism or aspergers, is neuro-typical, or a combination, music (and in particular music combined with movement) just gives the whole “information assimilation” process a boost.
Posted on 7/27/2009 6:57:22 AM
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The resources that parents of autistic children, counselors, healthcare providers, caregivers, and teachers look for in books on autism and diets are concise guides to all aspects of dietary invention in children with autism. The directory emphasizes books that include resources and research on how to help implement a safe and healthy diet for an autistic child.
Posted on 7/27/2009 6:55:34 AM
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A rather dapper young man, of newly turned 7 years of age entered the altar in a bit of a scurry from the side door, known as one of the "Deacons' Doors." He was wearing a freshly pressed blue Oxford shirt, a nicely ironed pair of khaki pants with brown shoes; his hair being very neatly slicked down and parted to the side. With his big blue eyes he looked up at me from the very side of the altar table, just minutes before the Great Entrance was to take place with the bread and the wine to be offered to God Himself, and he, the boy, with a quivering voice and worrisome eyes said, "Baba, I'm late!"
Posted on 7/27/2009 6:54:35 AM
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Miri Silvert, 16, of Valparaiso said her favorite type of music is country, and her favorite performer is Reba McEntire. Silvert won a first-place trophy last year at the Porter County Fair and competed in the Indiana Idol contest last fall in Valparaiso. She said, "I'd like to sing at a (Gary SouthShore) RailCats (baseball) game."
Posted on 7/27/2009 6:53:06 AM
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A little over a year ago, Autism Hangout co-founder and moderator, Craig Evans, began a video series called ‘Moving Out’. In this series, Autism Hangout explores residential options for young adults on the autism spectrum who are ready to transition into a phase of independent, yet supported, living.
Posted on 7/24/2009 6:09:15 AM
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In the previous article, Summer fun: Have Autism will travel!, Nicole Beurkens gave us a little taste of her wisdom regarding children on the autism spectrum. In her new book, Learning as We Grow: Enriching Education for Students With Autism and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders, she shares in detail how she and her two co-authors, Erin Roon, MA, CCC-SLP, and Courtney Kowalczyk, M.Ed. came to acquire this wisdom. Remaining open to an “evolving strategy” is one of the key elements discussed in the book, and gives clarification to ‘Learning as We Grow’, informing the reader that it is the educators who are learning and growing in this particular instance.
Posted on 7/23/2009 2:32:25 PM
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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Despite some reports to the contrary, children with autistic spectrum disorders do not have bowel movement patterns that suggest gastrointestinal problems, UK researchers report.
Posted on 7/23/2009 6:05:13 AM
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I read your post “The Unvarnished Reality of Autism” today, and was extremely disappointed to see The New York Times promote such frankly harmful viewpoints about autistic people. While you quote the mother of an autistic child at length, you do not make any attempt to show the perspective of autistic people themselves. As an adult with a diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome who was quite similar to the boy described as a child, I feel personally quite hurt by the choice to publish such hateful speech about raising an autistic child.
Posted on 7/23/2009 6:03:25 AM
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When Justin Etherton reached the end of the pool, he didn't execute a flip turn like the other boys in his 14-and-under 50-meter freestyle race. Instead, he lifted his body from the water and pushed himself back in the other direction, resuming his clumsy, determined strokes.
Posted on 7/22/2009 7:41:34 AM
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The new edition of 'Raising a Sensory Smart Child' is available for preorder and hits the book stores August 25!This invaluable tool for parents, therapists and educators is well worth reading, having and utilizing. This is not a resource that will sit on your shelf keeping many other autism books company. This is a resource that parents, therapists and educators will refer to on a daily basis for sensory integration techniques, tips, and tools
Posted on 7/22/2009 6:30:44 AM
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DARTMOUTH — Violin music filled the living room of the Melo home as 11-year-old Lindsey played the instrument with the confidence of a young virtuoso.
Clearly, the music both transported and absorbed her.
"I don't know. I just wanted to play it," she said, reflecting on what drew her to the violin. "I signed up in school."
What she especially likes about the violin, Lindsey said, is its "Austrian sound."
For a girl who did not speak for the first five years of her life, such words are music to her mother's ears.
Lindsey is autistic, and autism remains one of the great mysteries of medicine. Its cause is unknown.
Posted on 7/17/2009 4:06:30 PM
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A computer company in Denmark which has made huge strides in employing workers with autism is expecting to begin work in the UK soon.
Posted on 7/17/2009 4:04:36 PM
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FRIDAY, July 17 (HealthDay News) -- Anyone who has tried to quell a 3-year-old's temper tantrum knows that dealing with small children can be stressful, but add an autism spectrum disorder to the mix and the likelihood of parental stress significantly increases.
But a new study in the July issue of the journal Autism suggests that it's not the additional daily caretaking tasks that add stress, but the behavioral issues common in children with autism.
Posted on 7/17/2009 4:01:28 PM
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Well, Mark Wirbel does it again with his reporting of content that concerns the autism awareness community. In his latest video presentation, Transitioning to a Higher Education, Mark returns to share more information and insights that he picked up while attending the Autism One conference. At Autism Hangout, the site where Mark’s video is posted, it says:
Posted on 7/16/2009 5:11:45 PM
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Nothing could have prepared Nicole Kalkowski for the agony of seeing her once-bubbly and affectionate son, Ryan, slowly slip away from her into the grip of autism -- a complicated and hotly debated condition that takes a heavy toll on every family it touches. Meet Nicole, her husband, and their children as they struggle to cope with one of the nation's fastest-growing developmental disorders.
Posted on 7/16/2009 3:58:52 PM
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California's sevenfold increase in autism cannot be explained by changes in doctors' diagnoses and most likely is due to environmental exposures, University of California scientists reported Thursday.
Posted on 7/16/2009 3:57:05 PM
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Nicole Kalkowski knows that beyond the stress, fear, and family turmoil that come with learning that your child has this devastating disorder, there is also a devastating aloneness. In our second installment of Living With Autism, we follow this mother of three as she struggles to save her son and finds help -- for her children and for herself -- in unexpected places. In part one of REDBOOK's series about raising a child with autism, Nicole Kalkowski and her family were overcome with shock and confusion when their outgoing and vivacious toddler, Ryan, began to lose his language and social skills; his sudden problems with speech and disinterest in hugs from his sisters were just the start of his perplexing symptoms. After an agonizing search for answers, Nicole and her husband, Tim, discovered that Ryan, now 3, has what many call regressive autism -- he appeared to be developing normally, but began to backslide at 17 months. In this installment, we witness the painful toll Ryan's condition has taken on Nicole and follow her and her Las Vegas family as they navigate the murky waters of treatment.
Posted on 7/16/2009 3:56:07 PM
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Broke California will begin the new decade with crushing debt and wholesale elimination of human services. Meanwhile, President Obama has rankled Congressional Democrats with plans to earmark millions of dollars in NIH funds to find the causes and cures of autism.
Posted on 7/16/2009 3:21:27 PM
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When an adult with autism becomes a published author, it is wonderful to be able to acknowledge that accomplishment. The notability of that accomplishment is augmented when we factor in that she is non-verbal, and with computer screen as her canvas, she paints pictures of her view from the inside of the autism spectrum.
Posted on 7/16/2009 2:51:06 PM
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HILLSBOROUGH -- Nicole and Arran McWhirter didn't know they would spend so much of their first year back in the United States in court.
The couple moved from Argentina, where they worked, to Hillsborough after their son, Owen, 3 at the time, was diagnosed with high-functioning autism. They chose the Chapel Hill area because of its medical programs and many families with autistic children.
What they didn't anticipate was fighting the school district in an expensive legal battle for special education services.
Posted on 7/15/2009 6:37:08 PM
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ScienceDaily (July 15, 2009) — Scientists from the University of Cambridge have identified 27 genes that are associated with either Asperger Syndrome (AS) and/or autistic traits and/or empathy. The research will be published July 16 in the journal Autism Research. This is the first candidate gene study of its kind.
Posted on 7/15/2009 6:34:59 PM
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WEDNESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- By the time children are 6 years old, the parts of their brain involved in social cognition may be in place, a finding that may have implications for children with autism, according to U.S. researchers.
Posted on 7/15/2009 6:34:20 PM
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"'Worried Wendy Goes To School' is a very special children's story by a very special young woman," says Amazon's editorial review. "Charming and sweet… rhyming and lyric with bold illustrations, thinking about going to school just became fun."
Posted on 7/15/2009 6:50:35 AM
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Raising a child with any developmental disability or behavior problem is difficult. But is there something uniquely stressful about autism? That is the question researchers at the University of Washington Autism Center tried to answer in a study of mothers of children with developmental disabilities.
Posted on 7/15/2009 5:03:37 AM
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This is the year we became successful with our son discovering that misbehavior at school will cause him to lose privileges when he gets home. At first we weren’t sure if it was an issue of memory or an issue of comprehension. It turned out to be neither. It was the link between the two concepts that had been elusive to him.
Posted on 7/15/2009 5:02:49 AM
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Earlier this week I offered an introduction to a revolutionary program being implemented in the nation of Israel. This program is, however, not a new one. It has been in existence for 35 years, has 62 locations (I had reported 18, but that was the number for HOMES FOR LIFE alone) and is planning more! ALUT is the Israeli Society for Autistic Children which has a multi-focus program with one objective: “To ensure the well-being, rehabilitation, future and economic status of persons with autism in Israel.” In the pursuit of this objective, ALUT provides educational, residential, vocational and leisure time services to people with autism and works to advance their rights and improve the services available to them and their families.
Posted on 7/14/2009 1:12:45 PM
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Just last month, our son Matthew celebrated his 18th birthday and our family celebrated the progress he has worked so hard to achieve as he courageously and tirelessly wrestles with autism.
While Matt has made substantial advancements over the years, he enters adulthood eating just a handful of different foods, sneaking into his parents' bed three to four nights a week, and entertaining himself with toddler-level movies and computer programs.
Posted on 7/12/2009 6:55:59 PM
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The world has spent years learning how to help autistic children. Now, those children are growing up.
Posted on 7/12/2009 6:47:56 PM
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In a study of children born in Denmark from 1993 to 2004, doctors found that many children with autism or related disorders also had a family history of autoimmune diseases. Autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, develop when antibodies that normally fight infectious organisms instead attack the body itself.
Posted on 7/12/2009 6:46:30 PM
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A new study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, examined patterns of movement as children diagnosed with autism and those without autism learned how to use a new tool.
The researchers, who were from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medical, wanted to see if children with autism learn new actions differently than do children not diagnosed with autism.
The findings of this study suggests that children with autism relied more on their internal sense of body position (referred to as proprioception), whereas the children not diagnosed with autism relied more on visual information from the world around them to learn new movement.
Posted on 7/11/2009 7:08:30 PM
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Fathers may have to approach teaching a certain skill to their autistic son or daughter in a different manner, according to new research from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
The study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, suggests that autistic children learn new skill sets slightly differently than typical children.
In short, children with special needs took into account their body position as opposed to the visual information they were receiving from a father or educator.
Posted on 7/11/2009 7:07:46 PM
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On of the most misunderstood autistic behaviors is the meltdown. Frequently, it is the result of some sort of overwhelming stimulation of which cause is often a mystery to parents and teachers. They can come on suddenly and catch everyone by surprise. Autistic children tend to suffer from sensory overload issues that can create meltdowns. Children who have neurological disorders other than autism can suffer from meltdowns. Unlike temper tantrums, these children are expressing a need to withdraw and slowly collect themselves at their own pace.
Posted on 7/11/2009 7:06:51 PM
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Autism knows neither race nor ethnicity. Autism knows no bank account. It is no respecter of stature and it increasingly falls on the just and the unjust, just like the rains from above. Addressing the issues that align themselves with autism, to no surprise, prompts solidarity and promotes understanding. This could be one of the few positive outcomes from such a devastating condition that has afflicted so many individuals and families. (Certainly there are 'differences of opinion' on inner workings and details, some extremely important and some peripheral, but the ultimate intent to decode and make sense of the autism spectrum situation is core).
Posted on 7/9/2009 4:51:09 PM
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Autism, asperger’s and SPD are often in the news…but what about tourette syndrome? What is it exactly and what is it like?
Well, what would it be like to have a perpetual “itch that just needed to be, but couldn’t be scratched”? What would it be like to have the feeling of an “oncoming barrage of something…..but you didn’t know what?” These are descriptions I have by individuals with a condition that has been the focus of some media attention as of late, Tourrette Syndrome. This attention is in no small part due to the fascinating story of Matt Giordano of Drum Echoes, Inc. which was spotlighted on the June 30th episode of Nova Science Now: ‘Musical Minds’. To my delight, Matt is an incredibly sensitive, kind hearted and gifted young musician.
Posted on 7/9/2009 6:47:53 AM
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One of the major concerns for parents of children with autism as their children grow older is, "What do we do as our child becomes an adult and how do we prepare for their situation when we are no longer here." This is quite a perplexing consideration given the lack of options currently found in this country. The United States is unquestionably the greatest country in the world, but has very little to offer in terms of Group home settings for autistic adults. So where should we look for a model for future group homes? We obviously need to start preparing for these children whose numbers are escalating day by day. May I suggest examining a country who may have developed a prodigious prototype? ISRAEL.
Posted on 7/8/2009 10:21:30 AM
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MONDAY, July 6 (HealthDay News) -- Children of mothers who have autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and celiac disease have up to a three times greater risk for autism, a new study finds.
Posted on 7/6/2009 4:38:00 PM
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Researchers from Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine collaborated on a new study, published in Nature Neuroscience, examining patterns of movement as children with autism and typically developing children learned to control a novel tool. Findings suggest children with autism appear to learn new actions differently than typically developing children.
Posted on 7/6/2009 3:55:39 PM
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July 4th marks the one year anniversary of Autism Hangout. Founder and operator Craig Evans voices appreciation and gratitude to the autism community who have supported the efforts of Autism Hangout over the past year. He acknowledges that through continued and consistent efforts of parents, educators and experts in the field of Autism research, the manifested dream of Autism Hangout has succeeded in supplying the autism community with updates and valuable information far beyond what he visualized at its inception. He also took the anniversary of Autism Hangout as an excellent opportunity to announce the next phase of Autism Hangout efforts.
Posted on 7/4/2009 7:05:01 AM
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Children born to older parents or whose mother suffered complications during pregnancy are at increased risk of developing autism, a review of research has found.
Posted on 7/1/2009 4:08:45 PM
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Finding good info on autism is hard when you're new at the game.There are a lot of groups “helping” autistic communities right now. There is one though that while the loudest, is NOT representing the communities best interest. The “voice of Autism” should only be provided by autistics. Hype and rhetoric and money going to spreading more hype really aren’t helping. It’s actually hurting the autistic community. When reading about groups, make sure to check that there are autistic adults involved. They do exist, can “speak” for themselves, and should be a part of the group since they understand the disorder.
Posted on 7/1/2009 4:07:56 PM
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“There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come”. I know of no better place for that Victor Hugo quote, than right here as we begin our discussion with veteran film maker, Graham Streeter, regarding ‘Imperative Pictures’.
Posted on 7/1/2009 2:25:57 PM
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It is difficult to express what a wonderful experience it was to spend time talking with Dr. Mary Zurn of the Primrose schools a little over a week ago. Dr. Zurn has the highest levels of intelligence, caring and genuine empathy, all of which are so important when working with the early childhood community in general, and even more so when working with the autism spectrum community.
Posted on 7/1/2009 7:23:05 AM
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The histories of autism and Asperger’s Disorder (AD), based on original contributions by Kanner and Asperger, are reviewed in relation to DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. Their original articles appear to have influenced the distinction between AD and autism made in the DSM-IV. Based on up-to-date empirical research, however, it appears that AD and autism are not qualitatively distinct disorders, but are different quantitative manifestations of the same disorder. The differences between AD and autism may be a function of individual variability in these areas, not the manifestation of qualitatively distinct disorders. The DSM-IV criteria for AD and autism need to be considered with their historical developments, and based on empirical evidence, the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria may be subject to critical review.
Posted on 7/1/2009 6:09:04 AM
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Mice with an extra chromosome region inherited from their fathers display many behaviors seen in people with autism, a finding that suggests that the same chromosome abnormality in humans is one cause of autism, according to Japanese scientists.
Posted on 7/1/2009 6:08:07 AM
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We have on our state Division of Developmental Disabilities waiting list approximately 4,600 people. They are waiting for community-based housing -- group homes and supervised apartments. The individuals at the top of the list are no longer young and are at home with parents who are in there 70s and 80s.
The recent publication stated only 23 people came off the list in 2007-2008. At that rate, it would take 100 years to move half the people off today's priority list. The article also states the federal Department of Health and Human Services estimates 283,000 Americans with disabilities are wait-listed for services.
Posted on 7/1/2009 6:06:24 AM
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TORONTO — Critics say the backlog of autistic children waiting for crucial therapy in Ontario is growing at an alarming rate and in some cases leaving parents to pick up the tab for costly treatment.
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath says as of March 31, there were 1,513 children waiting for treatment -- up 450 from December.
Posted on 7/1/2009 6:04:38 AM
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Over the past 30 years, toxic chemicals, like Teflon, plastics, and formaldehyde have increasingly invaded our homes. We used to think these substances were harmless, but a rising tide of evidence has turned the spotlight on chemical exposures as a possible poison to our children's developing brains.
Posted on 7/1/2009 5:58:28 AM
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A Minnesota study using frozen blood samples taken from Air Force recruits 50 years ago has found that intolerance of wheat gluten, a debilitating digestive condition, is four times more common today than it was in the 1950s.
Posted on 7/1/2009 5:30:41 AM
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I was certainly excited earlier this evening to see the following posted on LinkedIn! "Nova will be airing the program Musical Minds' with Dr. Oliver Sacks, neurologist and acclaimed author, whose book Awakenings was made into a Oscar-nominated feature film starring Robin Williams and Robert De Niro, has encountered myriad patients who are struggling to cope with debilitating medical conditions. While their ailments vary, many have one thing in common: an appreciation for the therapeutic effects of music."
Posted on 6/29/2009 7:56:23 AM
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According to a recent article written in TheTimesOfIndia , children with autism have only one type of laughter. The article goes on to state that neuro-typical, or children without autism, have two types of laughter.
Posted on 6/29/2009 7:52:15 AM
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A new study has used a large number of families with multiple autistic children to explore the role of genes in the disorder. The results reinforce other findings that suggest the disorder may be the result of the cumulative impact of many minor genetic problems.
Posted on 6/29/2009 7:51:13 AM
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There is a fun little commercial I’ve seen on the internet, and on some cable channels, whose caption line is, ‘Our rock stars aren’t like your rock stars.’ I am so happy to bring you an interview with one of MY rock stars, Dr. Mary Zurn. The conversation I had with Dr. Zurn was so insightful and full of information, that I have left it quite long and in its entirety….I wanted to leave nothing out! To illustrate why Dr. Zurn has become one of my early childhood education ‘rock stars’… here is her biography from the Primrose school website. It is indeed impressive:
Posted on 6/28/2009 9:23:13 AM
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The following video trailer is for the soon to be released movie,‘I Am an Artist.’ The art teacher in this video is absolutely the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. Just look at her as she looks at her special needs students. It’s breathtaking. Many times I have observed people who have true compassion for spectrum kids and they are very helpful and very caring, but I get the feeling that still they are not really SEEING them. This woman absolutely, sees who these people are, sees through their eyes and in doing so understands the essence of who they are and the potential of their futures.
Posted on 6/25/2009 5:53:50 AM
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ensory processing (sometimes called "sensory integration" or SI) is a term that refers to the way the nervous system receives messages from the senses and turns them into appropriate motor and behavioral responses. Whether you are biting into a hamburger, riding a bicycle, or reading a book, your successful completion of the activity requires processing sensation or "sensory integration."
Posted on 6/25/2009 5:52:35 AM
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LOUISVILLE, Ky., June 24 (UPI) -- A neuroscientist says a project he is working on at the University of Louisville in Kentucky uses magnetism to treat individuals with autism.
Posted on 6/25/2009 5:51:36 AM
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The total cost for treating a child with autism can reach $5 million, but insurance companies rarely cover autism therapy and few states mandate it. CBS News reports that "an estimated one in every 150 children in America has autism and the number of reported cases is growing" while "parents are increasingly demanding that insurance companies cover the newest treatment."
Posted on 6/22/2009 4:31:08 PM
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I helped my son beat autism by making him give up Weetabix
By Sally Beck
Last updated at 11:59 PM on 22nd June 2009
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A few weeks ago, a one-woman campaign culminated in Polly Tommey meeting the Prime Minister to improve support for the families of children with autism.
She was fighting for the sake of thousands of other parents around the country, having become an unofficial 'Good Samaritan' for the desperate parents of autistic children.
Here, Polly, 42, the mother of an autistic child, tells her extraordinary story . . . months that was the case with Billy.
Posted on 6/22/2009 4:30:19 PM
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Hearing that your child has autism is one of the scariest things a parent can hear. Your heart is breaking, your mind is reeling with so many questions, and you wonder if you will make it to your car, much less all the way home. Though you may have been wondering for some time if it is autism, the actual diagnosis of autism can still hit like a ton of bricks. It's hard to know what to do next. Here's a list to get you started:
Posted on 6/22/2009 2:26:17 PM
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It's a disease with unknown causes, no known cure and treatments as varied as the minds forced to live with it.
Success for a person with autism can be measured by something as simple as being able to sit quietly through dinner at a restaurant - something it may take years for that person to learn.
Posted on 6/22/2009 2:25:28 PM
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Mark Wirbel, video reporter for Autism Hangout, had the super opportunity to attend the May 2009 AutismOne conference. While there, Mark landed an extremely informative interview with Dr. David Holmes, chairman and CEO of Lifespan Services, LLC. I was so intrigued by this interview that I decided to research Dr. Holmes a bit further. I went to the Lifespan Services website and upon further investigation found that:
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:32:44 AM
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Nourishing Hope for Autism, a holistic book that promotes diet as an effective way to help reduce the symptoms of autism, has been named the Most Progressive Health Book of 2009 as part of the Independent Publishers Book Awards.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:27:44 AM
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In the world of special needs education, parents can sometimes get lost. They can actually be over looked, undervalued and sadly enough…. even belittled by educators who do not understand that (in the words of Glenn Doman, founder of the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential),” Parents are not the problem. Parents are the biggest part of any solution, and their child's best teacher." Parents will do virtually anything for their children. The trick is to supply them with the appropriate information as to how to move forward. As one who knows this to be true, imagine my joy to have early childhood professionals and authors contacting me, and voicing that same exact philosophy.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:26:38 AM
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The best of intentions can become a ‘wisp of a notion’ when a practical, tactical, game plan isn’t put in place. In my estimation, Occupational Therapists are the ones who lay the ‘tactical ground work’ when a teacher has her intentions set on successful inclusion of a special needs student in her classroom.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:25:55 AM
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The roar of the ocean surf lures thrill-seekers and adrenaline junkies to ride the waves. But many autistic children, like 8-year-old Alex Acebal of North Las Vegas, find the crashing waves a calming serenity to their normally jangled restlessness.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:10:53 AM
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It's not food allergies or mercury in vaccines this time. It's the phthalates in vinyl flooring and vinyl shower curtains. Phthalates are one of the ingredients put in soft plastic that have been studied due to the connection between phthalates and allergies, including asthma.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:09:38 AM
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Where I grew up in Northern Kentucky, there is a saying, "You don't get nothin' for nothin'." An alternate translation would be,"You get what you pay for." Fortunately I have observed many occasions where this is not necessarily so. Case in point is a newsletter that I received from Nicole Beurkens of Horizons Developmental Remediation Center. In this FREE newsletter Nicole gives 12 concepts that education professionals and parents of children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders can benefit from. Please enjoy, as I did, this insightful presentation and commentary by Nicole Beurkens, M.Ed.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:07:30 AM
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FRIDAY, June 19 (HealthDay News) -- The most commonly used test to measure intelligence is underestimating the intellectual potential of autistic people, new research suggests.
People with autism often struggle with the verbal portions of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, the test most often used to measure IQ, researchers said.
But when given another test of abstract reasoning abilities, the Raven's Standard Progressive Matrices, autistic people not only had scores equal to those of their non-autistic counterparts, but they answered the questions, on average, as much as 42 percent more quickly.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:03:24 AM
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At the Eating Disorders Unit at the Maudsley Hospital in London, anorexia is not seen as a social disorder — or even primarily a psychological one. While most American treatment providers blame perfection-seeking parents and the media's idealization of hollow-cheeked actresses for eating disorders (among other dysfunctional behaviors), researchers at Maudsley believe the root cause has little to do with social pressure. Rather, they think anorexia is better explained by heredity — perhaps by some of the same genes associated with autism.
Posted on 6/22/2009 6:01:46 AM
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There are a few basic truths that have been brought to the forefront by public speakers of new age thought.
• Energy set in motion, whether positive or negative, is not easy to break.
• That which we put our attention on flourishes.
• Contemplate yourself surrounded by the conditions you wish to produce.
• When we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change.
Posted on 6/22/2009 5:53:19 AM
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A protein called neuroligin that is implicated in some forms of autism is critical to the construction of a working synapse, locking neurons together like "molecular Velcro," a study lead by a team of UC Davis researchers has found.
Posted on 6/22/2009 5:50:25 AM
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Dear Leanna: My 7-year-old son is diagnosed with autism. He's prone to outbursts and it's hard for him to be calm. I recently heard that a therapy dog might help him. Where can we learn more before we get a dog?
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Answer: Therapy dogs can make a difference in the life of a vulnerable child, but do your homework.
Posted on 6/18/2009 7:44:09 AM
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(NaturalNews) Despite the fact the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved any prescription medications to treat the symptoms of autism and related disorders, drugs are frequently -- and increasingly -- being given to autistic children, according to a study in the June issue of Archives of General Psychiatry. An especially popular medication for autistic kids is the antidepressant citalopram, sold under the brand name Celexa, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), which interferes with the way the brain regulates the neurotransmitter serotonin.
Posted on 6/18/2009 7:43:18 AM
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Sufferers of autism solve problems faster than those who do not have the condition, new research shows.
Posted on 6/18/2009 7:39:56 AM
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(WTOL) - These are the new faces of autism: Children born into a world they can't touch, but a world that at least knows what autism is. It's a world at least trying to reach out.
There is another lost generation. Adults with autism who live at Bittersweet Farms. They are carefully protected on the grounds of a world renowned facility. It is still one of the only of it's kind in the world.
Posted on 6/18/2009 7:38:33 AM
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Autism traps a child inside a maze of thoughts and fears, one who's been inside the trap told educators Friday in Sioux Falls.
"Fear is the main emotion in autism," Temple Grandin told a conference audience at Augustana College.
Grandin, 61, an author and associate professor at Colorado State University, explained her own difficulties with autism since childhood as she spoke to 370 people.
Posted on 6/14/2009 6:53:13 AM
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Personal attention helps autistic children advance in school and in social settings where they otherwise would feel awkward, a specialist told a Sioux Falls audience today.
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“Develop the child’s individual areas of strength,” said Temple Grandin in a conference at Augustana College.
Posted on 6/13/2009 6:12:03 AM
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Case in point: In May 2008, a Florida kindergarten teacher of 12 years, Wendy Portillo, allowed her students to “vote” 5-year old Alex Barton, who has autism, out of their classroom after the boy exhibited behavior problems. As a result, Portillo was suspended from teaching for one year without pay and her tenure was revoked. Justice served. But wait. As it turns out, yesterday the board of education reversed its decision. Now, come November, they’re to reinstate Portillo’s tenure where she is guaranteed a teaching position within the school district.
Posted on 6/13/2009 6:11:08 AM
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If we don't wake up soon, we will be building thousands of residential homes for disabled adults who were called autistic and never were treated for their true condition.
Posted on 6/13/2009 6:10:03 AM
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This video segment from Autism Hangout caused me to think about the grading issue and children on the spectrum. It seems this particular issue is not about people, personalities or necessarily teacher attitude. It’s about standardization of a population that defies traditional standardization. Rather than pummeling at the teaching community…how can we start a dialogue regarding portfolio method. It seems a method of collecting examples of real progress and aptitude is a very real need in the evaluation method, even more than for the neuro-typical population.
Posted on 6/10/2009 5:46:44 PM
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Researchers at Johns Hopkins University and Kennedy Krieger Institute will take part in what's being called one of the largest studies to examine the early causes of autism.
While other studies have asked if autism is caused solely by genetics or only by one's environment, this four-year study will examine both questions about the puzzling neurobiological disorder that affects 1 in 150 children nationwide.
Investigators here will be among researchers in three cities who will recruit 1,200 pregnant women who already have a child with autism and study them over the course of their pregnancy and their baby's first three years.
"This is a great opportunity to put gene and environmental hypotheses together," said Daniele Fallin, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and one of the study's principle investigators. "The great thing about this new study is we are able to do things in real time."
Posted on 6/10/2009 5:21:47 PM
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LANSING, Mich. -- A Michigan House committee has voted to require better insurance coverage for autistic children.
Legislation approved 19-0 Tuesday by the House Health Policy Committee next heads to the Democratic-led House.
Posted on 6/10/2009 5:20:42 PM
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The word “spectrum” is definitely accurate when it comes to autism. Using the example contained in the following video, the more you look at the light of a prism and the closer you look at the refracted rays…the more complex the colors and blends of colors become. So it is within the autism spectrum.
Posted on 6/10/2009 12:40:18 PM
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Once in a blue moon you come across something that makes you think, “This is the find of the century!” Okay, this particular thing may not be the find of the century, but it certainly is my best find of 2009 and it is ‘Autism Hangout’ created and hosted by Craig Evans.
Posted on 6/10/2009 5:55:00 AM
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LAKE CHARLES, LA (KPLC) - Three people who have autism have a brand new home. A ribbon cutting ceremony was held to commemorate the opening. One by one, people from the community filed in to get a closer look at the brand new, fully furnished home, ready to go for when its new tenants are ready to move in.
Posted on 6/8/2009 5:47:11 PM
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It's estimated that 1 in every 166 children will be diagnosed with autism, but new research shows that a small percentage of kids who once had the condition have actually recovered from it and are no longer considered autistic. That's what evidently happened to one Rockland County boy.
Posted on 6/7/2009 5:34:59 PM
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Women who tend to teens, young adults with autism at home display unusually low levels of critical stress hormone
Posted on 6/7/2009 5:31:04 PM
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This may be the most important article about autism I’ve ever written. But first I need you to do a little work. I need you to go to this site (HERE) and watch the approximately five minute long video comparing the blood of six autistic children put together by Mark Squibb.
I’ll wait.
Good. You’re back. Maybe you’ve watched it several times. I’ve probably watched it close to twenty times. I keep wondering if what I’m seeing on the screen is autism. Not in the way I know that when my child was born she was healthy and after those shots she wasn’t, but seeing what’s different in my beautiful daughter at this very moment from a normally-developing child.
My daughter has bad blood.
Posted on 6/3/2009 6:29:02 PM
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The cases of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have risen dramatically over the past 30 years, so much so that there may be 50 percent more cases than previously suspected.
Up to 250,000 children have autism or a related condition on the autistic spectrum, but have not been diagnosed, researchers say. They are in addition to the 500,000 children who are known to be affected.
Posted on 6/3/2009 6:27:04 PM
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A special U. S. court has ruled against three families who claimed vaccines caused their children's autism.
The Vaccine Court Omnibus Autism Proceeding ruled against the parents of Michelle Cedillo, Colten Snyder and William Yates Hazlehurst, who had claimed that a measles, mumps and rubella vaccine had combined with other vaccine ingredients to damage the three children.
Posted on 6/3/2009 6:24:46 PM
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According to a new report, autism affects more than 29,000 children in New York State.
An estimated 1,800 children have autism in the Rochester/Finger Lakes region.
Now, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is working to make autism treatment more affordable for families. She says thousands of families are being pushed toward bankruptcy because of the high cost of providing treatment for autistic children. In many cases, parents have to pay out of pocket for treatments and therapies – some, as much as $6,000 a week.
Posted on 6/3/2009 6:23:50 PM
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When Simon Baron-Cohen first worked with children with autism, the disorder was found in 4 out of 10,000. Today, not quite three decades on, the rate of diagnosis is 100 in 10,000. In a study published this month in the British Journal of Psychiatry, Baron-Cohen and colleagues estimate that the true incidence is 156.
Posted on 6/3/2009 6:22:58 PM
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By Katie Wright
Simon Baron Cohen recently released a study in which he found that 1 in 64 Cambridgeshire children have autism. Any reasonable person would find such a result both astonishing and alarming. Has 1 in 64 British children ever had the same horrible disorder at the same time? If one broke down these numbers for boys I imagine it would be something like 1 in 25 UK boys affected with autism.! And yet Baron Cohen insists that there is no need to be “alarmist” and that this catastrophic increase is due to “better awareness and detection.” Right.
Posted on 6/2/2009 4:26:16 PM
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Seattle, WA (AHN) - An antidepressant often prescribed to autistic children to stop repetitive behavior is no more effective than a placebo, according to a recent study.
Posted on 6/2/2009 4:24:51 PM
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By now, practically everyone must know that health care costs are a terrible burden on families and employers. They are straining budgets at every level of government. This year, in CalPERS, the large health-benefits sponsor for state and other public employees, the premiums of the two largest insurance plans in the Bay Area and Sacramento exceed $15,000 per family per year. Our society must focus on ways of slowing health expenditure growth.
Posted on 6/1/2009 7:29:45 AM
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By Anne Dachel - It seems that the Chicago Tribune can't say enough about the dangerous and far-reaching effect of those in the autism community trying to sound an alarm over the horrific toll this disorder is taking on families everywhere. Doctors using biomedical treatments and diet were repeatedly slammed along with the Autism One Conference held in Chicago last week. SEE: 'Miracle drug' called junk science (HERE) Chicago Tribune and from the Los Angeles Times (HERE).
Jenny McCarthy is a specific target in the sights of the Tribune right now. They had to tell us twice on both May 27 and a few hours later on May 28 on Google News that Oprah is crossing the line in letting McCarthy air her views on TV.
Posted on 6/1/2009 7:22:08 AM
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Hot on the heels of Sarah Kliff's insanely entertaining article on why medical myths endure, health blogger Scott Hensley points us toward a new analysis behind one of the most divisive and persistent medical myths of the modern age: that childhood vaccines can lead to autism. (Send angry e-mails c/o NEWSWEEK.)
The article is published in the online journal PLoS Biology. It should be noted that PLoS, an open-access—meaning free to read—peer-reviewed journal from the Public LIbrary of Science, is on fire this week, having also published the study about scientists who make stuff up.
Posted on 6/1/2009 7:20:17 AM
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Two more links in the scientific chain detailing a genetic predisposition for autism have been found by an international team of researchers, three of whom are at the University of Utah.
In two studies published in today's edition of the journal Nature, researchers describe a common gene variant that occurs 20 percent more often in autistic children and new "susceptibility genes" not previously linked to autism spectrum disorders.
Posted on 6/1/2009 7:10:25 AM
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ScienceDaily (May 27, 2009) — Researchers long ago rejected the theory that vaccines cause autism, yet many parents don't believe them. Can scientists bridge the gap between evidence and doubt?
Posted on 5/28/2009 6:52:04 AM
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Raising a developmentally different child is a challenge for most parents. The challenge begins when parents first learn that their child is not “normal.” For some parents, this occurs at or before the child’s birth. For others, their child, who appeared “typical” at birth and even for several months or years thereafter, suddenly develops problems that are not so “typical.”
Posted on 5/28/2009 6:50:32 AM
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A young man turned down not one, but two jobs, just so he had enough time to do something very few young men will ever do -- become an Eagle Scout.
Lucas Brown received his special award just last weekend, but what's even more amazing is just how much he had to overcome to get it.
Posted on 5/27/2009 2:09:48 PM
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or Lucas Brown of Apple Valley being autistic is just another aspect that makes him unique.
The spectrum disorder has presented many challenges, but the Rosemount High School senior never lets it get in the way of achieving his goals, including his most recent achievement of becoming an Eagle Scout.
Posted on 5/25/2009 6:34:20 PM
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Published today! Autism is marked by abnormal development of social behavior. The cause of this syndrome remains unknown, but the apparent increase of children diagnosed as having autism has prompted investigators to search for both its causes and any brain abnormalities that might explain its clinical manifestations. According to a new study,1 toddlers with autism are more likely to have bilateral enlargement of the amygdala. This brain area is associated such functions as the processing of faces and emotion, and it also appears to be associated with the ability to share attention with others, a fundamental ability thought to predict later social and language function in children with autism.
Posted on 5/25/2009 3:54:03 PM
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For those of you who are coming along with me on the SPD discovery experience, I have received an exciting video preview titled, Autistic-like. I was very excited to receive this compilation of anecdotal documentation and therapist/parent feedback in the form of a case study of a young man named Graham.
Please be sure to visit the web site after viewing this clip where you can access information regarding screenings of the movie, who the filmmakers are, news releases about the movie and how you can actually buy the DVD.
This movie by Erik Linthorst is a "must watch" by any parent struggling with sensory issues. The reviews are rave, and it is sure to touch your heart and potentially give you hope.
Posted on 5/25/2009 3:51:46 PM
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For families who deal with autism, a vacation is not just a luxury, it is something seldom attempted. Departure from routines as well as less-than-understanding bystanders can combine to form a situation that is far from relaxing.
Autism On The Seas understands this and has created a cruise, just for those with autism and their families. Departing from Los Angeles with stops in Cabo San Lucas, Puerta Vallarta and Mazatlan, Autism On The Seas provides a full-service cruise with all the programs you would expect to find on a first class cruise. With a twist. Child care is available, with or without toilet training. Kids' club accepts all kids, with a beeper for the parents. Mealtimes are flexible, and dress code is optional. There is a full array of GFCF (gluten free casein free) items for those on special diets. In short, it is a place for those who deal with autism on a day to day basis to go and... relax.
Posted on 5/25/2009 8:00:32 AM
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By Anne Dachel. I was looking through the recent stories put out by the Chicago Tribune and was amazed at the exposes denouncing Dr. Mayer Eisenstein and Dr. Mark Geier and his son David.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:59:14 AM
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COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - If it seems you are hearing about more children being diagnosed with autism, you're right.
The South Carolina Autism Society says one in every 150 people have the disability. That's about 28,000 people in our state.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:56:55 AM
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A congressional investigator Tuesday said he found hundreds of allegations of abuse, including 20 deaths, resulting from use of restraints and seclusion of special needs children at public and private schools.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:54:38 AM
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May 19 (Bloomberg) -- A common variant of a gene may increase autism risk and explain why boys face a fourfold increase of having the developmental disorder compared with girls, scientists reported.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:53:07 AM
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Monday May 18, 2009, 2:21 PM
TRENTON -- New Jersey lawmakers have advanced legislation that would force state-chartered health care providers to cover certain autism treatments.
The treatments include physical, speech and occupational therapy, as well as behavioral intervention, which advocates said is more expensive than the other three. Both the Assembly Appropriations and Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens committees approved the measure today.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:50:11 AM
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LENOIR CITY, Tenn. -- Melanie and Tim Smith had been in the drugstore only a few minutes when they realized something was missing.
Tanner, their 8-year-old severely autistic son, wasn't his usual hyperactive self. While the couple did their shopping, the Loudon Elementary School pupil remained sprawled on the floor with his toys, his new service dog at his side.
The dog's name is Tug. He's a Newfoundland-collie mix, and at 14 months old, he already weighs 80 pounds - heavy enough to act as a counterweight for Tanner, whose constant movements can be difficult to control.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:48:20 AM
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It's spring in Washington, and Ari Ne'e-man, with his navy suit and leather brief-case on wheels, is in between his usual flurry of meetings. Ne'eman is a master networker, a guy you'd think was born in a campaign office and bred in the halls of the Capitol. He's fluent in policy-speak and interacts seamlessly with high-level officials (he's just had lunch with the acting vice chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) and inquisitive reporters alike. He's formal but sociable and has a well-timed sense of humor. He also has a problem with velvet. I knew this about Ne'eman—he'd mentioned it when we first started talking more than a year ago—but now, in a D.C. coffee shop, he gets into the sensory details. His father used to drive a car that had fuzzy velvet-like cushioning, and it made Ne'eman crazy to sit in it. "I'd wince because I'd think about how it would feel to get that under your fingernails," he says. I think I see him shudder at the memory.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:46:09 AM
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IN mid-2007, I set off to meet with geneticists, epidemiologists and doctors who specialize in researching and treating autism. I was seeking a novel therapy for my 42-year-old autistic younger brother Noah. I was also looking to discover how heightened awareness of autism — it is now among the most financially successful and mediagenic diseases ever, with hundreds of millions of dollars a year going to research, and regular press coverage — might have resulted in new and innovative programs for adult autistics like Noah.
Posted on 5/25/2009 7:43:52 AM
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Summertime is almost here which for parents usually means planning their child's social schedule. But for parents of children with autism, that "social summer" scheduling requires even more planning.
Autistic children can regress and lose social understanding during the summer months if they're not engaged in activities.
Thursday morning on KARE 11 First Edition, Deb Schipper with West Metro Learning Connections discussed how to make summer outings fun and meaningful for children with Autism.
Posted on 5/14/2009 5:49:44 PM
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In the wake of a lawsuit against a health plan insurer pertaining limited coverage for autism therapies, young Michigan children with autism will be covered by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan's new initiative to expand autism coverage, effective July 1.
The new optional benefit, available through group plans, is for children age 2 to 5 who have been prescribed applied behavioral analysis (ABA), an intensive early intervention. The benefit awaits official approval by Michigan's Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation.
Posted on 5/14/2009 5:48:39 PM
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Noah, my younger brother, does not talk. Nor can he dress himself, prepare a meal for himself or wipe himself. He is a 42-year-old man, balding, gaunt, angry and, literally, crazy. And having spent 15 years at the Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa, Calif., a state facility, Noah has picked up the con's trick of lashing out before anyone could take a shot at him.
Posted on 5/14/2009 5:47:19 PM
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In the life of a Larimer County mother, a typical morning begins in the same fashion as most mornings before: she wakes her two children, prepares breakfast for the family, and clears the dishes before dropping her oldest son off at preschool. Upon arriving home, she gathers some paperwork and swoops her 15-month-old son off to the pediatrician to receive his latest round of vaccinations. At 2 am the next morning however, his mother rushes him to the emergency room after she finds him in his crib wracked with a fit of seizures and suffering from a 104-degree fever. Within weeks of the incident, her happy, bubbly, normal child begins to recede into the confines of his own world. He now has difficulty communicating with and showing even simple affection to her and his father, and begins to exhibit unusual behaviors such as verbal and action repetition. This is the nightmare no parent should have to face, yet it is one documented by hundreds of parents of children with Autism across America.
Posted on 5/14/2009 5:45:50 PM
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As a toddler, Ben Adams, now 5, would hide from his family, refusing to be touched - even by his mother. At 18 months, he had not yet spoken his first word. Just before his second birthday, doctors diagnosed him with autism, the developmental disorder that affects a person's ability to communicate with others.
Posted on 5/14/2009 7:18:19 AM
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Six essential tips for preparing young adults on the spectrum for college.
Claire LaZebnik: I cried every day during freshman orientation week when I went to college. Not for any specific reason, mind you -- I just felt overwhelmed. I was 15 minutes away from my hometown but a world away from being home. I didn't know very many people, and it felt like everyone else was making new friends more easily than I was. I couldn't find my way around this strange new place and I didn't think I'd ever feel comfortable there. In the end, of course, I had a perfectly happy college experience, but I remember those early feelings of terror and wonder how much harder the transition will be for my son, who has autism, and who's planning to go to college the year after next.
Posted on 5/14/2009 7:17:33 AM
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Deborah Fein, who presented a study at a conference over the weekend, said approximately 10 percent of children who have autism can be “cured” with intensive behavioral therapy. The majority of children with autism won't recover, said the University of Connecticut psychology professor, but families should know it's a possibility.
Posted on 5/12/2009 5:59:47 PM
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CHICAGO (WBBM) - Studies in recent years have shown consistently that the age of diagnosis and the services provided early on can make all the difference when treating children with autism.
A newly-released study ranks Illinois 16th in the nation.
The study's author, University of Pennsylvania researcher David Mandell, said diagnosing and treating a child with autism even a few months earlier can make a big difference later in life.
Posted on 5/12/2009 7:53:29 AM
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Detroit -- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan announced today it plans to offer coverage beginning July 1 for autism therapies that provide intensive early intervention.
The new benefit option covers children 2 to 5 years old who use a treatment called Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA). The new benefit option, to be offered through group plans only, is subject to approval by the Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Regulation.
Posted on 5/12/2009 7:52:27 AM
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The Department of Managed Health Care has declined five requests for independent medical reviews of insurers' denials for a type of autism treatment, sparking concerns from parents of children with autism and legislative leaders, the Los Angeles Daily Journal reports.
Insurers maintain that applied behavior analysis, also called ABA, is an educational treatment, not a medical service. Health plans have declined to cover the service, which can cost $70,000 annually.
Posted on 5/12/2009 7:51:20 AM
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California saw a twelvefold increase during the past two decades in the number of autistic people receiving services through regional centers, a new state study reveals.
The dramatic rise in autism has broad implications for California families, taxpayers and social service agencies.
"This is a shocking recognition of the challenges we face, today and into the future," said Rick Rollens, the father of an autistic child and a co-founder of the Medical Investigation of Neurological Disorders Institute at UC Davis.
From 1987 to 2007, the number of children and adults with autism served by regional centers rose from 2,701 to 34,656, notes a study released this week by the state Department of Developmental Services.
That is a 1,148 percent increase. By contrast, the state's general population grew by 27 percent during that period.
Posted on 5/9/2009 3:01:39 PM
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CHICAGO (AP) — Leo Lytel was diagnosed with autism as a toddler. But by age 9 he had overcome the disorder. His progress is part of a growing body of research that suggests at least 10 percent of children with autism can "recover" from it — most of them after undergoing years of intensive behavioral therapy. Skeptics question the phenomenon, but University of Connecticut psychology professor Deborah Fein is among those convinced it's real.
Posted on 5/9/2009 2:59:32 PM
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Show the average 14-month-old baby a sealed jar of cookies, and you get some pretty predictable behavior. The child will reach for the treats and, when thwarted, look beseechingly at the nearest adult. The request for help — delivered with eye contact, gestures and often with pleading sounds — is unmistakable. But some babies don't do it. One little boy, captured on video by psychologist Wendy Stone at Vanderbilt University, repeatedly places a researcher's hand on the cookie jar but never once looks at her face to see why she isn't responding. Eventually, tragically, he gives up.
Posted on 5/4/2009 6:50:45 PM
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Where are all the adults with autism?
This question is often tossed out as a way to say, in essence, "if autism has always been around, and there's no autism epidemic, then why aren't there millions of adults with autism? Clearly there AREN'T millions of adults with autism, which proves that there IS a new autism epidemic."
Posted on 5/4/2009 6:49:43 PM
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MONDAY, May 4 (HealthDay News) -- Autistic toddlers seem more likely to have an enlarged amygdala, a brain area linked with facial recognition and emotions, University of North Carolina researchers report.
This brain abnormality appears to be tied to the ability to share attention and experiences with others, the team said.
"This study adds clarification to a potential fundamental brain mechanism underlying social deficits in autism. It provides potential insights into how this behavior develops," said lead researcher Dr. Joseph Piven, a professor of psychiatry.
Posted on 5/4/2009 6:47:49 PM
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A "Mini-Mozart, Also A Mathematical Prodigy"
KTXA 21 News, First in Prime
On July 24, 2008 Tracy Kornet featured Magnus on the KTXA 21 News, First in Prime program. The music and the interview were recorded at Steinway Hall in Fort Worth, Texas. (We would like to offer our special thanks to Michael Inman of Steinway and Sons for making a fabulous piano available on such short notice.)
For more information about Magnus LaDue please visit his MusicDoLove channel.
Please subscribe and be among the first to see his upcoming videos in 2009.
Posted on 4/30/2009 10:49:59 AM
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ScienceDaily (Apr. 29, 2009) — In the first neuroimaging study to examine motor execution in children with autism, researchers at the Kennedy Krieger Institute have uncovered important new insight into the neurological basis of autism.
Posted on 4/29/2009 3:53:23 PM
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While researchers have long suspected that genes play a role in autism, they still haven't figured out how much. New research out today, however, suggests that it may be greater than expected. A set of gene variants that occur up to 20 percent more often in autistic children may be responsible for about 12 to 18 percent of cases of autism, according to a study published today in the journal Nature. This altered piece of DNA lies near a gene that's responsible for the transmission of signals between the brain's nerve cells.
Posted on 4/28/2009 3:53:25 PM
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A newly released study says children most likely to develop autism are firstborns, breech, or those born to mothers age 35 or older.
Researchers at the University of Utah School of Medicine have come up with those startling revelations.
After examining the records of 132 autistic eight-year-old Utah children and comparing their records to unaffected kids, they've found women giving birth after the age of 34 are one-point-seven-times more likely to have a child who develops autism than women aged 20 to 34.
Youngsters born with autism spectrum disorder are also nearly one-point-eight-times more likely to be the firstborn child of a woman of any age.
Posted on 4/27/2009 6:13:53 PM
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April 27 (Bloomberg) -- Children born in a breech position or to older moms were more likely to be diagnosed with autism by age 8 in the latest study to examine the role of environment and genes in developmental disorders.
Psychiatrists from the University of Utah School of Medicine in Salt Lake City compared medical records for 132 children with autism with those of 13,200 children without the disorder who were also born in 1994. They found that autism was twice as common in babies who weren’t born head-first and 68 percent more common in those born to mothers older than age 34.
Posted on 4/27/2009 6:12:19 PM
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The other day on the Today Show, Dr. Nancy Snyderman presented a story of a family whose boy has "recovered" from autism.
[Watch it here.]
I sat watching with my mouth open. I was stunned not because the boy made such progress over a disorder that pretty much every pediatrician will tell you is incurable, but because Dr. Nancy Snyderman was actually reporting on it on a major network news program. I had never seen such a thing!
Posted on 4/26/2009 3:27:59 PM
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No one really knows what causes autism. A recent article in Science Direct indicates that children living near toxic waste seem more likely to have autism. Though the thimerosal/MMR vaccine theory has been debunked, many parents feel that the mercury-laced preservative is linked to their children's autism by triggering a toxic tipping point or otherwise damaging the immune system. Last year, some studies showed a possible link between autism and certain metabolic dieases can be sensitive to vaccine toxicity, leading to some autism-like symptoms. And of course, there's the genetic link: “Autism is probably caused by many, many things, most of them genetic, and this is one of them,” mitochondrial expert Salvatore DiMauro of Columbia University and the author of a study of autistic individuals with mitochondrial disease, tells the Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative.
Posted on 4/26/2009 3:26:56 PM
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(CNN) -- When 3-year-old Rowan Isaacson darted away from his father and dived into a herd of grazing horses, it easily could have been the end of the small autistic boy. He was babbling under the hooves of a boss mare.
Posted on 4/26/2009 3:26:01 PM
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Could autism be caused by low levels of vitamin D? That’s a new idea that’s just starting to emerge, sparked by the large number of autism cases among children of Somali immigrants living in Sweden and Minnesota.
Posted on 4/26/2009 3:20:03 PM
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Recently, I was amazed to hear a commentary by CNN's Campbell Brown on the controversial vaccine issue. After a ruling by the 'special vaccine court' saying the Measles, Mumps, Rubella shot wasn't found to be responsible for the plaintiffs' autism, she and others in the media began making assertions that the judgment was in, and vaccines had been proven safe. No one would be more relieved than Jenny and I if that were true.
Posted on 4/23/2009 7:05:50 AM
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A local organization is dedicating itself to helping adolescents and adults living with autism. NY1's Kafi Drexel filed the following report.
Jessica Wang once held a steady job in JP Morgan's cafeteria. But after the September 11th terrorist attacks, she was out of work.
Posted on 4/23/2009 6:57:29 AM
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April 23, 2009 - After finding out about a promising discovery in the treatment of autistic children, Dr. Jon Ahrendsen at the Wright Medical Center has now applied that to a couple of local children with successful results.
Posted on 4/23/2009 6:56:23 AM
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It was a horse named Betsy, after all, that Isaacson credits with helping to heal his son Rowan, who was diagnosed with autism just after his second birthday in 2004. The toddler's uncommunicative, tantrum-ridden state devastated his concerned parents.
Posted on 4/19/2009 11:43:38 AM
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Last year, a group of researchers from Johns Hopkins Children's Center published research suggesting that maternal immune response to the fetus may be a factor that leads to autism. Now, they have further proof to validate their theory—that immune cells can cross the placenta wall that normally protects the fetus.
In their initial study, the scientists found that mothers of children who were later diagnosed with autism had fetal brain antibodies. This means that those mothers’ bodies were producing proteins that marked the fetal brain as a “foreign object” to be attacked by the immune system.
Posted on 4/19/2009 11:36:12 AM
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DUNCAN — Having a child diagnosed with autism is somewhat like a traveler who plans a fabulous vacation in Italy, only to hear the flight attendant say upon landing, “Welcome to Holland.”
Edee Girod, whose son, Rusty, is autistic, treasures a yellowed newspaper clipping she found years ago that expresses what many parents of autistic children feel:
“Holland? What do you mean, Holland? I signed up for Italy! I’m supposed to be in Italy. All my life, I’ve dreamed of going to Italy.
“But there’s been a change in the flight plan,” the flight attendant explains. “You’ve landed in Holland, and there you must stay. The important thing is they haven’t taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place full of pestilence, famine and disease. It’s just a different place.
Posted on 4/19/2009 11:33:59 AM
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Anthony Gustafson ambles down the stairs of his Chaska home without making eye contact. He passes right by the guest in the dining room, retreating to the kitchen to find refuge in the walk-in pantry.
Posted on 4/17/2009 8:01:52 AM
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MassMutual introduces guide for parents in time for Autism Awareness Month
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., April 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Once a child with autism reaches the age of majority (typically at age 18 or 21, depending on the state in which you live), he or she is legally considered an adult, and eligibility for some government benefits may change. But just because the government has declared your son or daughter to be an adult doesn't mean he or she can necessarily function as one independently.
Posted on 4/16/2009 6:56:34 AM
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he state Senate has amended a House bill to require the Oklahoma High Risk Health Insurance Pool to cover autism spectrum disorders.
Sen. Jay Paul Gumm offered the amendment, which was adopted Tuesday on a voice vote.
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Gumm, D-Durant, called his amendment a reasonable compromise to "Nick's Law," which would have required private insurance companies to pay for autism treatment up to $75,000 a year.
Posted on 4/16/2009 6:52:53 AM
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Teenage social life can be frustrating in the best of circumstances, and it's even harder for teenagers with autism, who report feeling lonelier and having poorer-quality friendships than their typically developing classmates. But social skills can be learned, according to researchers at the University of California-Los Angeles. They have created a new class that lets autistic teenagers practice key social skills, from asking someone to get together to brushing off teasing with a "That's so lame."
Posted on 4/13/2009 8:32:05 PM
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I will always remember that day. It was late August and summer weather was still trying to hang on. It was sunny and mild but very windy. I blamed the wind for the chill I was feeling; but in hindsight, it probably was not the wind that was making me shiver.
My husband and I drove in complete silence the entire 30 minutes it took to get from our home to the University at Buffalo Center for Children and Families. Both of us were lost in our own thoughts about what lay ahead.
Posted on 4/12/2009 10:59:24 AM
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Kudos and congratulations to AOL!They are supplementing coverage for ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis) for children diagnosed with autism. It is a special moment when an employer recognizes the essential medical needs for their workers and families.
Posted on 4/12/2009 10:58:43 AM
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FITCHBURG (WKOW) -- A film festival in Fitchburg puts autism awareness on the big screen.
The Autism Society of Greater Madison organized a film event featuring documentaries about autism on Saturday morning. Most of the people in attendance where parents of autistic children, who know first hand the challenges the disorder presents.
Jenny Williams' son, Austin, is about to turn five. "He's an escape artist. He runs out of our house. He doesn't communicate. He doesn't talk, and he's learning to communicate with goat talk, which has little buttons he can press and tell us what he wants," she said.
Posted on 4/12/2009 10:58:03 AM
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Watching how a toddler responds to animations could help diagnose autism, research has suggested.
Babies usually start paying attention to movement soon after birth, and pick up information from the cues they see but children with autism often do not.
Posted on 4/12/2009 10:57:09 AM
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Experts have been stunned with the amazing memories and mathematical skills that certain autistic individuals possess.
The finding from a study on autism among 378 Cambridge University students, discovered the condition was up to seven times more common among mathematicians than students in other disciplines. It was also five times more common in the siblings of mathematicians.
In the case of Andrew Lane, (please read past articles listed at the end of this article to learn about him), he was assessed with an overall IQ of less than 90, but in the area of mathematical thinking, he exhibited the potential of having an IQ around 170 at an early age.
Posted on 4/10/2009 7:10:51 PM
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GAINES TOWNSHIP, Michigan — The first sign that Ethan Mihailoff, 7, had autism was that he would only say a couple words at a time when he was 2.
Posted on 4/10/2009 7:09:02 PM
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April 12, 2009 (WLS) -- Children with autism have exceptional talents. A northwest suburban 10-year-old's artistic talent was discovered when he was 7.
Posted on 4/10/2009 7:07:34 PM
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(NAPSI)-As doctors, families and schools learn more about autism, people living with autism have overcome obstacles to lead healthful, meaningful and productive lives.
However, a recent Easter Seals study found that parents of children with autism face a number of unique challenges. Nearly 80 percent are extremely or very concerned about their child's independence as an adult, compared to only 32 percent of parents of typically developing children. These parents also report they're "financially drowning," with 74 percent fearing their child will not have enough financial support when they die. Only 18 percent of parents with typically developing children share this same fear.
Posted on 4/10/2009 6:58:11 AM
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(HealthNewsDigest.com) - Few conditions are as mysterious and as heart wrenching as autism, and parents of autistic children are understandably anxious about the best ways to help their children grow. But some of the most difficult transitions for the person with autism don’t come during childhood, they come as they prepare to leave it.
Just like everyone else, children with autistic spectrum disorder go through the changes that come along with the tween and teen years, changes that are both physical and emotional. Parents need to know how to best approach these difficult years. The Autism Partnership provides a wide range of services for children and their families as well training for professionals who are involved in the treatment and education of children with autism. Their directors are leaders in the treatment of autism and would be happy to speak with you about dealing with the approach of adolescence in autistic children.
Posted on 4/9/2009 4:07:26 PM
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While most of their friends were playing basketball or video games after school and on weekends, four budding South Side inventors spent the time developing a way to help people cope with autism.
For nearly six months, 10-year-olds Terry Smith, Ryan Turner and Jeremy Johnson, students at Burnside Academy, along with Derrick McAllister, 11, of Poe Classical School worked on ALBERT, the automatic location of the brain's electronic reception and transmission.
Posted on 4/9/2009 4:06:33 PM
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The autism wars go on and on, and the debates go round and round. Is the number of afflicted kids climbing or are we just overdiagnosing the condition? If mercury in vaccines isn't the culprit (the metal has been removed from nearly all of them), then it must be environmental toxins. But if that's so, why aren't we all showing symptoms?
Posted on 4/8/2009 11:07:04 AM
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One notable example of social interaction deficits involves the ability to recognize "biological movement." It turns out that, from a very young age, most people can distinguish movements associated with living things. But autistic people have difficulty distinguishing biological movement from the random movements of nonliving objects, a property they don't share with those suffering from other behavioral disorders. As a result, their attentive gaze seems to randomly focus on things. Now, with a little bit of luck, researchers have discovered a clue as to the attentional cues that attract autistic people.
Posted on 4/8/2009 11:05:11 AM
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Teaching an autistic child can be extremely challenging and rewarding. Each child responds differently. I believe it is possible to reach even low functioning autistic kids; it is up to you to find their connection.
Posted on 4/5/2009 6:47:19 PM
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Autism has increased exponentially since the 1970s, with the prevalence rate going from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 150. For heartbroken parents, a diagnosis can seem like a life sentence.
Healing and Preventing Autism: A Complete Guide (Dutton, $26.95) is a hopeful manual for parents and healthcare providers. The authors are pediatrician Jerry Kartzinel and actress Jenny McCarthy, whose son was successfully treated by Kartzinel.
Kartzinel blames autism on environmental and dietary triggers. That seems to be circumstantially correct. Pesticide and chemical use has risen dramatically, as has food processing, in the past three decades. Kartzinel calls it "toxic overload."
Posted on 4/5/2009 12:31:34 PM
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The 150 strollers lined up in Central Park dramatized the ravages of a disease that has no cure. The 150 strollers were symbolic -- designed to drive home the impact of autism on America as we observed World Autism Day.
Autism afflicts one out of every 150 children in this country and both children and parents have to find ways to cope with this brain disorder.
Posted on 4/5/2009 12:30:50 PM
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Question: What coming social expenditure will cost more than a third of this year's budget for the Department of Health and Human Services and be larger than the entire current budget of the Energy Department?
Answer: The bill for the tide of autistic children entering adulthood over the next 15 years, an estimated $27 billion annually in current, non-inflation-adjusted dollars by the end of that period. The number of autistic children expected to need extensive adult services by 2023 -- more than 380,000 people -- is roughly equal to the population of Minneapolis. If a town were created to house this group of people and their caregivers -- for you can't separate the two -- it would exceed the population of all but six U.S. cities. If they formed a state, it would have four electoral votes.
But most of these cognitively impaired citizens don't vote. Most of them can't live alone or work in public places. Many can't even take public transportation by themselves.
Posted on 4/5/2009 12:30:02 PM
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State Sen. Tupac Hunter
Nearly everyone knows a family that has been affected by autism. Last year, a constituent of mine, Daniel Meyers wrote me about his 4-year-old son who had been diagnosed with autism. He expressed his frustrations of being denied coverage for the necessary therapy and his difficulties in having to choose between what was best for his child and what he could afford.
Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. Thousands of families across the state are running out of options because of the current insurance system.
Posted on 4/5/2009 12:28:47 PM
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Joe Steffy is off to Overland Park, Kan., this week to do a PowerPoint presentation on his business, Poppin' Joe's Kettle Korn. He's a 23-year-old small-business man with a goal of $100,000 in sales by 2012. Joe also has autism and Down syndrome and is nonverbal. When he gives his talk, he will push buttons on an augmentative speech device to deliver the words. His audience will be parents who fervently hope their own special-needs children will be able to work, too.
Posted on 4/5/2009 12:27:31 PM
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Spring and early summer is the nation's season of risk for conceiving a child with birth defects, the leading cause of infant mortality in the United States, a new study finds.
The reason appears to be that the pesticide load is highest in the air, water and elsewhere from April through July, due to the agricultural growing season and increased pest control efforts in urban areas at that time, the researchers say.
They found that the birth defect rate was 3 percent higher for babies conceived in the April to June period than the other months of the year.
Posted on 4/1/2009 10:46:37 AM
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NEW HAVEN, Conn., March 29 -- Toddlers with autism spectrum disorder are often attracted to combinations of motion and sound that typical kids ignore, researchers here said.
Action Points
* Explain to interested patients that the early stages of autism are difficult to study because the diagnosis is often delayed.
* Note that this study, however, found a marked difference between autistic and typical children in how they respond to human motion -- a finding that may lead to better diagnosis as well as greater understanding of the disorder.
The serendipitous finding may open the door to earlier diagnosis and better understanding of the pathogenesis of autism, according to Ami Klin, Ph.D., and colleagues at Yale University School of Medicine.
Posted on 3/29/2009 4:06:13 PM
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"For the first time, this study has pinpointed what grabs the attention of toddlers with ASDs [ autism spectrum disorders]," Insel says in a news release. "In addition to the potential uses in screening for early diagnosis, this line of research holds promise for the development of new therapies based on redirecting visual attention in children with these disorders."
Posted on 3/29/2009 4:05:21 PM
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LOS ANGELES—A growing number of California parents are choosing not to give their children routine vaccinations before they start kindergarten, increasing the risk of childhood disease outbreaks at hundreds of elementary schools, according to a published report.
Much of the increase is coming from parents who send their children to schools in affluent areas and fear vaccinations can contribute to autism, according to a Los Angeles Times story published Saturday. Such a concern has been discounted by medical research.
Posted on 3/28/2009 7:13:14 PM
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Zachary Halisky, 13, has a brother and cousin with autism. So he dedicated his Eagle Scout service project to raise awareness about the disease.
Posted on 3/28/2009 7:09:30 PM
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When you meet a child who you know has autism, or who you think might have autism, just treat them like any other child, says Mary Locicero, whose 11-year-old son Danny has high-functioning autism.
Posted on 3/28/2009 7:08:40 PM
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DALLAS (CBS) - It was devastating news for the Scott family. At 18 months of age, their son, Roman was diagnosed with Autism. But mother Elizabeth Scott said she applied occupational therapy techniques and her own 'home therapy' to help her child overcome autism.
Posted on 3/26/2009 7:55:44 PM
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HELENA - The Senate approved a bill that would require insurance companies to cover a range of treatments for children diagnosed with autism. The vote was 36-14.
Posted on 3/26/2009 7:54:39 PM
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Today, Norm Goldman Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com is pleased to have as our guest Gayle Nobel, one of the co-authors of It´s All About Attitude: Loving and Living Well with Autism.
Gayle Nobel has over 20 years hands on experience loving and living well with autism. She has a BA in Special Education/Elementary Education and Special Education resource room teaching experience. Gayle has a lifelong connection to autism through her brother, her teaching, and her son.
Posted on 3/26/2009 7:50:07 PM
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People are beginning to use music therapy in dealing with autistic children. It has proved to be a form of communication that includes getting things done.
Posted on 3/25/2009 6:37:11 PM
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New research by the Autism Research Centre in Cambridge has found that more children than previously thought may have a form of autism, with figures at one in 60.
Although many have not been diagnosed, it is thought that 216,000 children could suffer from the learning disability - nearly twice the figure accepted by the National Autistic Society (NAS), which is at one in 100, according to the Daily Mail.
Posted on 3/24/2009 3:51:09 PM
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SALT LAKE CITY, March 23 (UPI) -- Twenty years after being assessed in an autism study, 41 people with autism in Utah had higher social outcomes and some had higher IQs, researchers said.
First author Megan A. Farley of the University of Utah Health Sciences said the researchers can't explain why the follow-up study showed the Utah group fared better overall in living independently, but it may be related to early intervention and strong social and family networks.
"This is an amazing group of people who, in many cases, did a lot more than their parents were told they would ever do," Farley said in a statement. "This gives a lot of hope for younger people with autism and average-range IQs."
Posted on 3/23/2009 4:46:36 PM
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(Detroit, MI) -- Parents with autistic children in Michigan could soon see some relief to their pocketbooks.
A lawsuit which could require insurance companies to pay for autism treatments is moving forward in Federal Court.
Within the last two years, eight states have pushed legislation that would require insurance companies to cover autism treatments.
Posted on 3/23/2009 4:45:44 PM
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BATON ROUGE, LA (WAFB) You may remember a group rallied together to pass a law last legislative session requiring insurance companies to cover autism treatment. They thought they won the fight but Louisiana parents are still trying to get help. There seem to be some serious loopholes in that legislation.
"Every year it's always an ordeal to work with insurance to get services that she needs." Sandra Trammell and her 7 year-old daughter Mila struggle publicly and privately to dance against the limitations of autism. Perhaps their most complicated dance is getting treatment. "Every year that she doesn't have speech therapy I find the regression. She starts to regress back and not use her words as much as she used to."
Posted on 3/23/2009 4:44:54 PM
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Members of New Hanover County’s Gang Task Force helped kids with autism hop on horses for the very first time Saturday.
Horseback riding has proven to be therapeutic for many children with autism, while boosting their self-esteem and trust in others.
Posted on 3/22/2009 4:12:17 PM
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According to an expert in the UK, highly analytical couples such as scientists, engineers, physicists and mathematicians, are more likely to produce children with autism.
Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, of the University of Cambridge, says the impaired ability of people with autism to communicate, recognize emotions and socialize is linked with the same genes that enable a person to systemize, that is to find the laws that determines how a system works.
Posted on 3/22/2009 4:10:42 PM
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A new study shows a surprising percentage of Utah adults who were diagnosed as autistic as children are leading what researchers call fulfilling lives: About half of them have jobs, are largely independent and have at least some meaningful relationships.
And the LDS Church community may play a role in their success, researchers suggest.
"We wouldn't be surprised if a lot of what contributed to those folks' better outcomes is the unique social structures in Utah," said Megan Farley, research associate at the Utah Autism Research Program and lead author of the study, published online Wednesday in Autism Research journal.
Posted on 3/20/2009 11:34:09 AM
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This is fascinating, and thanks to the Big Blog's Scott Sunde for bringing it up: UW researchers have discovered that people with autism have a more intense response to looking at faces than the average Joe. The more social impairment, in fact, the more intense the response to someone's face.
The UW Autism Center's Natalia Kleinhans says, "What we are seeing is hyperexcitability or overarousal of the amygdala, which suggests that neurons in the amygdala are firing more than expected."
Posted on 3/19/2009 3:56:25 PM
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MONTPELIER, Vt. —
A new report says the state of Vermont spent almost $60 million on autism services in 2007.
The report, by the state auditor's office, says that works out to about $60,000 per individual since there's about 1,000 Vermonters with an autism spectrum disorder.
Posted on 3/19/2009 3:55:01 PM
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WASHINGTON: An Indian-origin researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has shed some light on why autistic people fail to recognise faces as effectively as their normal counterparts, by studying why they often fail to recognise faces in photographic negatives.
Posted on 3/19/2009 3:54:11 PM
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Kids with autism, by nature, have a tougher-than-average time processing and expressing ideas verbally.
This doesn't mean they haven't learned anything! What it does mean is that standard testing tools are unlikely to tell parents or teachers what kids with autism really know.
Posted on 3/18/2009 4:01:45 PM
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Increasing autism diagnoses among the Somali community in Minneapolis, Minn., have public health experts wondering "whether the apparent surge of cases is an actual outbreak, with a cause that can be addressed, or just a statistical fluke," the New York Times reports. An estimated 30,000 to 60,000 Somalis live in Minneapolis. The group began to arrive in the city in 1993 after fleeing civil war. In the last 10 years, there have been a "tremendous number" of Somali children born in the city who have more severe forms of autism, according to Anne Harrington, who worked in special education in the Minneapolis school system for 21 years. In 2008, 25% of Minneapolis preschool children receiving the most intensive treatment for autism were from the Somali community, Harrington said. Somali children represent 6% of preschool enrollment in Minneapolis.
Posted on 3/18/2009 4:00:40 PM
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AutismPro is a web-based package divided into two sections: Workshops and Resources. The Workshops section is designed for general education teachers to learn and apply teaching strategies and instructional techniques that have proved effective in dealing with challenges posed by students with a variety of autism-related disabilities. The Resources section gives special education teachers, support staff, and administrators access to a database of more than 5,000 lesson plans, teaching strategies, and behavioral supports that can be used to apply techniques and target learning objectives to meet the individual student's needs.
Posted on 3/17/2009 5:47:22 PM
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A new mural by Yoko Ono titled “Promise” will be auctioned for charity at the UN’s headquarters next month.
The artist hopes the sale, which falls on the second World Autism Awareness Day, will raise money into research into the disease.
Posted on 3/17/2009 5:46:27 PM
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Officials don’t know whether the numbers are symptomatic of an outbreak or just a statistical fluke. And now the Minnesota Department of Health is conducting a study in coordination with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in hopes of finding out more.
Posted on 3/17/2009 5:45:30 PM
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A 12-year-old boy with autism is profoundly deaf. The music therapist instructs him to rest his chin atop the body of a cello, his face inclined toward the instrument's neck. As the therapist guides him in moving the bow across the strings, the vibrations travel up his jawbone to the inner ear, and the boy "hears" music for the first time.
A 4-year-old boy with autism does not use speech to communicate. He points at objects to express his needs. His music therapist ends all the sessions by singing "Happy Trails," directing the nonverbal children to pantomime riding a horse. They make "clucking" sounds with their tongues to imitate the sound of the horse's hooves. Soon, the boy starts making the sound to "request" the song. The teachers and aides point out that this is the first time he has used a speech sound to express a need.
Months later, the boy is saying, "One, two, three" and "ball game" to request another favorite song.
Posted on 3/16/2009 5:00:44 PM
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Twelve years ago, Curtin was told by doctors that her son had autism. In subsequent years, while attending conferences, she heard about treatment in a hyperbaric chamber, where pressure is increased in an attempt to boost the amount of oxygen in the child's brain.
Posted on 3/14/2009 11:37:21 AM
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I could never explain with perfect clarity, the ultimate success of ABA (applied behavioral analysis) for children with autism. It is a slippery slope with peaks and valleys, but when it works....how sweet it is!
Yes, ABA is essential utilizing language prompts. I do believe it works, in conjunction with the ultimate goal of social relatedness. Whether your enlist RDI (relationship development intervention) or another social goal orientation, the exquisite concert joining both methodologies is often a key to success.
Posted on 3/14/2009 11:35:32 AM
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FRIDAY, March 13 (HealthDay News) -- Musical training enhances the ability to recognize emotion in speech and other sounds, a finding that suggests that musical training might benefit people with language problems and impaired emotional perception.
Posted on 3/13/2009 10:04:14 AM
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A significant proportion of people with autism have some form of gastrointestinal distress. A gene that affects how neurons communicate in the brain and the way the digestive system defends itself may be the common root of these ills, according to a study in the March Pediatrics.
Posted on 3/10/2009 4:01:48 PM
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Autism advocates say parents can spend about 50 thousand dollars on treatment and therapy for a child with autism every year.
Posted on 3/10/2009 4:01:01 PM
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There are parents who believe that autism is caused by vaccinations containing a mercury compound which 'stabilises' that vaccine.
Exposure to mercury can cause immune, sensory, neurological, motor, and behavioral dysfunctions similar to traits associated with autism.
Posted on 3/9/2009 4:25:50 PM
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According to a current article in Pediatrics, “Medical Homes for Children With Autism: A Physician Survey” (HERE), most pediatricians report a “lack of self-perceived competency” in treating children with autism; yet ironically, the premise of the article states “primary care physicians can enhance the health and quality of life of children with autism by providing high-quality and comprehensive primary care.” [Question: How the hell can that be possible if they don’t know what they’re doing?]
Posted on 3/9/2009 9:33:15 AM
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One of the most comprehensive talks about sexuality for people with autism was given by Peter Gerhardt. It is an honest and stunning account of the essential need for parents of autism to be pro -active for their children.
Peter Gerhardt has lectured about the paramount importance of social repertoire skills for individuals on the autism spectrum. This is merely a segue into the context of personal relationships. The task ahead is to reinforce and promote development of social skills, while educating about sexuality. Otherwise, Gerhardt emphasizes that ignoring this need is a disservice to the entire community.
Posted on 3/4/2009 4:05:40 PM
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More parents and educators eager to reach students with autism are embracing music therapy, but little research backs the approach. "We know that music-therapy treatment is associated with improvement, but we don't know what the cause of that improvement is," said University of Michigan psychology professor Catherine Lord, who specializes in autism research.
Posted on 3/4/2009 4:04:31 PM
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An autism gene variant has been found by researchers in California which, when present, increases the risk of the learning disability as well as gastrointestinal conditions associated with it.
Posted on 3/4/2009 4:03:58 PM
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UC Irvine scientists garnered a five-year, $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to research the brain region connected to language abilities. The results could stem clinical research and treatment of developmental and psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and autism.
Posted on 3/4/2009 7:06:15 AM
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HUNTINGTON — A newly formed Autism Spectrum Disorders Task Force is seeking input from parents and caregivers of people with autism spectrum disorders.
The task force is sponsoring two forums so caregivers can network and explore early intervention and other services for children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.
Posted on 3/4/2009 7:05:34 AM
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U.S. researchers found that a mutation in the MET gene could play a role in the development of autism and gastrointestinal disorders. However, they did not find a link between the gene variant and autism patients who lacked gastrointestinal problems. The findings suggest the gene mutation might cause autism in a certain group of people but might not be linked to other types of autism, the study's author said.
Posted on 3/4/2009 7:05:00 AM
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The families of children with autism hope legislators will pass a bill requiring insurance companies to cover autism diagnoses and treatment after a similar bill failed last year. "We are drowning," said Rhonda Jenkins, whose 4-year-old son has autism. "We're definitely living paycheck to paycheck and robbing Peter to pay Paul sometimes."
Posted on 3/4/2009 7:03:37 AM
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Playing Mozart to children with autism can rapidly boost their progress, a therapist has claimed.
The Lift music therapy programme, using the Austrian composer's symphonies, can accelerate development by up to three years in one month, according to speech and language therapist Karen O'Connor.
Posted on 3/3/2009 10:48:49 AM
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Evidence Is Slim, but Experts Say Therapy Is Valuable
Posted on 3/3/2009 10:46:17 AM
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COLUMBUS — The Jenkins family of Clayton has good medical insurance, but last year paid nearly $18,000 out of pocket for prescription drugs, therapies and other treatment for their 4-year-old son.
Posted on 2/28/2009 3:03:53 PM
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Through his artwork, Scott Washington has found his voice.
Scott, 21, was diagnosed at age 3 with mild autism, said his parents, Sylvester and Peggy Washington. He didn't talk and make eye contact like other children, and really didn't speak until age 5. Even now he has difficulty carrying on conversations with strangers.
Posted on 2/28/2009 3:02:57 PM
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But last week, the parents of yet another child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were awarded a lump sum of more than $810,000 (plus an estimated $30-40,000 per year for autism services and care) in compensation by the Court, which ruled that the measels-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine had caused acute brain damage that led to his autism spectrum disorder.
Posted on 2/26/2009 7:48:30 AM
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This ad from our sponsor Generation Rescue is running in USA Today, today, February 25, 2009. Click the photo to see a larger size. Click HERE for a .pdf of the ad.
Thank you to Generation Rescue, Jenny McCarthy, Jim Carrey, Stan Kurtz and GR co-founder J.B. Handley for always putting our children first. Always.
Posted on 2/26/2009 7:46:12 AM
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CEC SmartBrief | 02/24/2009
Despite a special federal court's rejection of claims that vaccines cause autism, thousands of parents believe that thimerosal, a mercury-based preservative, in some vaccines or the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccine itself caused their children's autism. The 5,500 U.S. families seeking compensation through the court may appeal.
Posted on 2/26/2009 7:44:03 AM
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My son Christian, is PDD-NOS, 8-years-old and has never had any serious medical problems. So, we were horrified when he suffered from a seizure in December 2008. According to WebMD.com, “one in four autistic children can develop epileptic seizures, typically during adolescence. It is believed that the seizures are triggered by hormonal changes. The seizures may be noticeable, with clear symptoms such as convulsions, blacking out, or odd body movements. However for some, the seizures are not quite so obvious.
Posted on 2/24/2009 3:02:32 PM
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Three weeks into the Oklahoma legislative session, local law makers said the defeat of Nick’s Law was a great disappointment.
Nick’s Law, a proposed bill which also failed last year, would have mandated insurance coverage for autism.
Posted on 2/24/2009 3:01:36 PM
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"The majority of my artwork is about the relationship between the mundane and the surreal, and how it relates to changing contemporary notions of childhood," Miller said. "I'm interested in things that look like they may be scenes from every day, but when taken out of context they seem very odd or abnormal."
She is active in the autistic rights movement.
Posted on 2/24/2009 3:00:38 PM
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According to recent research, people with autism who accept the neurodiversity platform have more self-esteem, and have more academic and career ambition that those who see autism as a medical condition with its array of disadvantages. In one study, students with autism who held the latter view more often applied for special assistance and monetary allowance through disabled students programs. Not surprisingly, most neurodiversity advocates with autism are high functioning, with little to no significant intellectual impairment.
Posted on 2/23/2009 2:54:08 PM
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Awareness and detection have grown over the years, but is that the whole story? It’s an issue made timely by insurance debate
Posted on 2/22/2009 5:21:16 PM
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SILVER VALLEY | Four days a week, Chad Norman arrives at Silver Valley Elementary School with a smile, eager to offer his help. And though his autism causes him to see and hear things in a different way, his extra ears and eyes are a big help to students, teachers and staff.
For the past two school years, Chad and his mother, Linda Norman, have been the most loyal - and often only - volunteers at the elementary school. Chad sorts papers, empties trash cans, provides the day's lunch count to the cafeteria for a classroom and operates a stopwatch for a "math lab" program timing students on how fast they can finish arithmetic problems.
Posted on 2/22/2009 5:20:19 PM
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US boffins say they have developed a method for treating children with autism - the condition characterised by repetitive behaviour, difficulties understanding human language and/or lack of imagination - by having them spend time with robots.
Posted on 2/19/2009 7:54:00 PM
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Recent reports have shown that Minnesota has the highest rate of autism in the United States. Nationally, 1 in 150 children is diagnosed with autism, but Minnesota's rate is nearly twice this amount at 1 in 81 children. After seeing these statistics, the Senate took the needed steps to understand autism, and ensure that Minnesota children and their families have appropriate services.
Posted on 2/19/2009 7:52:40 PM
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WASHINGTON – Bitter feuding over a possible link between vaccines and autism won't go away despite a strong rejection of that theory by a special federal court.
Thousands of families were hoping to win compensation and vindication through three test cases presented to the court. They contended that a combination of the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine plus other shots triggered autism.
Posted on 2/13/2009 9:41:33 AM
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The Original Vaccine/Autism Study Debunked
Eleven years ago, a study appeared in The Lancet that linked the Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccine to autism. On Sunday, The Times of London ran an investigative story saying that altered data was behind the study all along.
Posted on 2/12/2009 11:20:37 AM
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Parents wearing red T-shirts emblazoned "Support Brandon's bill for every 1 in 150 Montana children" crowded a hearing of the Senate Business, Labor and Economic Affairs Committee on Wednesday. About 30 people who couldn't squeeze into the hearing watched on a television in the hallway.
Posted on 2/6/2009 3:17:33 PM
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CALDWELL, N.J. — Religious congregations in North Jersey should take steps to include people with autism and other developmental disabilities in their worship and activities — even if they can’t say “amen,” participants at a conference recently were told.
Posted on 2/6/2009 3:16:41 PM
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SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) – One out of every 133 Utah children is Autistic. Utah ranks third in the nation for the number of families living with Autism. There are several forms of therapy available; the most common is Applied Behavioral Analysis, or ABA. Barbara Kalmanson, a Clinical Psychologist says "The goal of ABA is to get the child to comply with adults' wishes or adults' demands.”
Posted on 2/6/2009 3:15:52 PM
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CALDWELL, N.J. — Religious congregations in North Jersey should take steps to include people with autism and other developmental disabilities in their worship and activities — even if they can't say "amen," participants at a conference recently were told.
Posted on 2/5/2009 3:00:29 PM
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The odds of being diagnosed with autism are one in 150. Here in Connecticut, the number of cases grows each year.
Due to the high need for services for autistic children, a Hartford school launched a unique program for kids with autism nine years ago called the River Street School.
Posted on 2/5/2009 2:59:26 PM
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(CNN) -- Until recently, the Bilson household was under siege. Thirteen-year-old daughter Marissa, who has autism, ruled the roost, screaming shrilly until she got her way and enjoying special privileges that didn't extend to her siblings, Brittany, 15, and Brendan, 6.
Posted on 2/5/2009 7:26:05 AM
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Heather Nichols of Lawrence said she considers herself lucky.
Once a stay-at-home mom, she said she was able to return to work as a financial analyst to help pay for the $1,000 per month for treatment of her 3-year-old son Josh’s high-functioning autism.
Posted on 1/30/2009 11:55:12 AM
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For those of you watching developments in the autism-vaccination connection, another study was released this week to support the growing body of evidence that vaccines do not contribute to autism.
Posted on 1/30/2009 11:54:07 AM
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1 in 5 Toddlers Showed Autism Signs in New Study
By Salynn Boyles
Jan. 29, 2009 -- There is growing evidence linking very premature birth to a dramatic increase in autism risk, but more study is needed to confirm the association.
Posted on 1/30/2009 11:52:40 AM
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When Gatorade set out to re-brand itself as “G,” the company did more than give itself a new name.
New commercials for the product feature professional athletes like Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods alongside Jason McElwain, a man with autism.
Posted on 1/28/2009 3:16:39 PM
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Beginning on Sunday, we ran a three-part series on our front page on autism and the affects on parents and families. I recommend it for your reading. Our reporter Alyson Martin did an outstanding job.
I also recommend taking some time to look at the companion video that was done by Alex Nunes, Jeff Fehder and Martin. The video is quite a bit longer than most of our stories. This one runs around eight minutes but it is well worth the time.
It is a moving account of the lives of families who have autistic children. This showed us how much a long-form multimedia piece could help in telling the story that we began in print.
Part One: Giving their all, twice
Part Two: Uncertainty of autism
Part Three: Home full of hope
- Ken Tingley
Posted on 1/28/2009 3:15:42 PM
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Until six months ago, helping prepare dinner or taking out the garbage were monumental challenges for Joey Rosenbloom, who would become overwhelmed and frustrated by simple tasks.
But things changed for the bright, friendly 21-year-old after he enrolled in a program at Elim Christian Services in Palos Heights for adults with autism that nurtures social, leisure and vocational skills.
Posted on 1/28/2009 7:17:51 AM
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A diverse group of students -- from children with autism to their academically gifted schoolmates -- gained a better understanding of one another by creating art that will be featured in the exhibit "Building Friendships: Fostering Acceptance and Understanding of Others Through the Arts."
Posted on 1/27/2009 3:43:10 PM
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Even as the evidence connecting America's autism epidemic to vaccines mounts, dead-enders at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) -- many of whom promoted the current vaccine schedule and others with strong ties to the vaccine industry -- are trying to delay the day of reckoning by creating questionable studies designed to discredit any potential vaccine-autism link and by derailing authentic studies.
Posted on 1/27/2009 3:18:06 PM
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Larry and Beth Markin have a 22-year-old son, Eric, who is autistic. Two years ago, because of his aggressive behavior and the problems involved in caring for him, Eric was declared a crisis case by the state. The Markins knew he could no longer live with them in their Buffalo Grove home. But neither of their options was acceptable in their eyes.
Posted on 1/27/2009 3:17:07 PM
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Kansas, Massachusetts, Missouri, Mississippi, Utah and Washington have kicked off their 2009 legislative sessions with the introduction of autism insurance reform bills, joining New Jersey, Michigan and Virginia, which currently have active bills making their way through their respective state legislatures.
Posted on 1/23/2009 6:36:19 AM
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Saying autism should be treated like other childhood illnesses such as cancer and diabetes, two lawmakers and 30 community supporters promoted a bill Thursday that would require insurance companies to cover up to $50,000 a year in autism therapy.
Posted on 1/22/2009 3:19:37 PM
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Autism tops Barack Obama's medical to-do list, according to the new president's website. Whitehouse.gov launched at 12:01 pm yesterday, even before the new president had taken his oath of office on the Capitol's West Front. Autism is the only disorder or disease mentioned explicitly in Obama's 24-point agenda. Heart disease and cancer don't get the call. Neither does diabetes, or other chronic diseases. But there are four hefty bullet points addressing autism.
Posted on 1/22/2009 7:05:25 AM
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Our son has autism. When people we know discover this there are wide ranges of reaction, most frequently, one of pity "Oh, I'm so sorry!" I’ll admit that when we first received his diagnosis some years ago, and searched for support wherever we could find it, this sentence was a frequent conversation opener. Yes, we got some sympathy, but it often times was a dual conversation opener…and closer.
Posted on 1/21/2009 8:25:49 AM
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Many children have mild autistic "symptoms" without ever having enough problems to attract specialist attention, say UK researchers.
Posted on 1/21/2009 8:24:39 AM
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Casey Yankwitt, who has autism, has improved only marginally with six years of behavioral therapy, but like many parents, his mother hasn't given up hope for a cure and is increasingly exploring alternative therapies without scientific backing. The Yankwitts have attempted dietary changes, chelation therapy and hyperbaric oxygen treatments although a British doctor has called those therapies a return to "medicine's dark ages."
Posted on 1/20/2009 3:00:31 PM
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Many parents in our community have recently been discussing autism and bullying in school. In some cases a parent’s child has been relentlessly teased by a peer, in other more severe cases the child has been the victim of physical abuse at the hands of another student.
Posted on 1/16/2009 4:43:01 PM
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First of all, I'm a GeekMom. A web designing mom and preschool teacher with 3 GeekKids (and an equally geeky husband). My kids get amped when we talk electronics, especially my almost 8 year old son. You see, my son has Autism. He is most at home when it comes to computers and his school has even started integrating computers into his everyday curriculum. He has a lot of sensory issues that make writing assignments nearly impossible for him. When it comes to retaining information it works best if he can type it, and same for reading. I've been looking at assistive communication devices for children with Autsim, but none quite fit what we need. The school has one that would allow him to type his work and print on the teachers computer, but only displays one line at a time.
Posted on 1/15/2009 4:33:51 PM
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The prospect of a screening test on a pregnant woman predicting her child's autism is not far away, and Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, leader of the Cambridge University research team that developed the test, has called for an ethical debate on its desirability. My first reaction was puzzlement. Why a debate? We have had the test for Down's syndrome for many years. It seems to be generally accepted without controversy. No expectant mothers are obliged to have it, and many, even those at some risk because of their age, choose not to. Those that do take it have the choice, if it proves positive for Down's, between terminating the pregnancy or bearing the child. It is, of course, an agonising decision, but I'm not sure it raises special ethical issues.
Posted on 1/15/2009 7:32:51 AM
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At least four times as many males as females develop autistic disorders. For Asperger's syndrome, the ratio is nine to one1.
Simon Baron-Cohen, a developmental psychologist at the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, UK, believes that this is because traits associated with autism — such as a difficulty in empathizing and enhanced abilities to analyse, explore and extract the rules that underlie complex systems — are extreme manifestations of normal male behaviour.
Posted on 1/14/2009 7:34:04 AM
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In recent years, the debate over vaccines and autism, which began in fear and confusion, has hardened into anger. As Offit's book details, numerous studies of thimerosal, measles virus and other alleged autism triggers in vaccines have been conducted, and hundreds of children with diagnoses of autism have undergone what he considers sham treatments and been "cured." Both sides insist that the medical evidence backs them.
Posted on 1/14/2009 7:32:02 AM
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Why are we asking this now?
A pre-natal test for autism moved a step closer yesterday with the announcement by scientists at the University of Cambridge that high levels of the male hormone testosterone in the amniotic fluid surrounding the foetus in the womb may serve as an early warning signal of the condition.
Researchers led by Prof Simon Baron-Cohen, the autism expert, say the discovery raises the possibility that an amniocentesis test similar to that performed for Down's syndrome could be offered to mothers in the future.
Posted on 1/14/2009 7:30:17 AM
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Keaton loves the Pelican Pete children's books written by Frances Keiser and illustrated by her husband, Hugh. They also live in St. Augustine on Crescent Beach.
Keaton has written a movie script for the stories of Pelican Pete.
Posted on 1/12/2009 11:52:36 AM
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Two-thirds of the children with autism had abnormal proteins in their saliva.
It's unclear whether that could be caused by autism, or may be used as a marker to help test for the condition in some cases.
Posted on 1/12/2009 11:51:15 AM
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A Dakota County report found that autism has more than doubled among students since 2002, a spike that has officials grappling with how best to provide services to these students as they grow older.
Posted on 1/12/2009 11:49:02 AM
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As the number of disorders identifiable by prenatal testing grows, the debate about how to handle them is intensifying
Posted on 1/12/2009 11:39:35 AM
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According to a latest study, chemicals and infectious microbes and not genetics might be the cause of autism. The research underlines the role of pesticides, viruses and household chemical products that can lead to neurological defects in the growing fetus.
Posted on 1/12/2009 11:36:45 AM
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The religion the Travoltas choose is their business. Their child’s diagnosis was their business. The way they raise their children is their business. Their privacy, and their choices for public discussion, are their business.
But my point was this: If Jett did indeed have autism, how sad that religion might have prevented the Travoltas from adding their powerful voice to fighting this insidious childhood disorder that is robbing more and more of our children of their inner light.
Posted on 1/7/2009 3:33:30 PM
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Autism United, a national group representing more than 15,000 parents of children with autism, is reaching out to grieving parents John Travolta and Kelly Preston.
They'd like the couple to join a nationwide public-awareness campaign about autism.
Whether their son Jett's death was autism-related or not, Travolta's support would send a powerful message because he is one of the most recognized stars around.
Posted on 1/7/2009 6:15:09 AM
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Still weeks away from the voyage, we began to script what would happen on the trip. “We are going to get into a car and go to the airport; there are lots of planes there to see. There will many people there rushing around, you will hold our hands and will be safe” and so on. We repeated this every day, sometimes several times a day - and always right before bedtime. Obviously, we couldn’t account for every detail, but we did continue to add more information into the “daily travel script” as it became known.
Posted on 1/7/2009 6:13:25 AM
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Although older parents are more likely to have a child with autism, children with older siblings are less likely to be diagnosed with the disorder, according to a study from University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers involving more than 1,200 autism cases. Lead researcher Maureen Durkin, an epidemiologist, says a woman's first child can be more vulnerable to toxins built up in the mother's body or less likely to develop normal childhood infections that trigger important autoimmune responses. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (01/03)
Posted on 1/7/2009 6:10:36 AM
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As the number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder has doubled in the past decade - and grown by an even higher percentage in other parts of the Bay Area and statewide - parents like Lawson and Chris Allen are pushing for greater cooperation among the various agencies that provide services for children with autism, as well as help for parents trying to navigate the system.
"As a parent, it comes as such a shock. Suddenly your kid has a disability," said Allen, an adviser with the Matrix Parent Network in Novato. "It's not a life you would pick for yourself. And it's not likely that you'll get much in terms of direction. Nobody hands you a diagnosis and says 'you'd better get these services.'"
Posted on 1/5/2009 6:10:26 AM
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Autism has been splashed across headlines lately. If it's not Jenny McCarthy on the cover of People magazine, talking about how she cured her son of a disorder that affects more than a half-million American children, it's TV plots, or Michael Savage and Denis Leary mouthing off.
But Shumaker's much-praised new memoir, "A Regular Guy: Growing Up With Autism - A Family's Story of Love and Acceptance," dials down the rhetoric to reveal the realities of life with an autistic child, from Matthew's toddler days to manhood.
Posted on 1/5/2009 6:08:23 AM
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John didn’t believe his condition was autism, a condition not recognized by Scientology. Brother Joey believed Jett suffered from autism.
Posted on 1/5/2009 6:06:53 AM
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Jett recently died in the Bahamas, and was reported to have had a seizure, something that is frequent with autistic children and with those with Kawasaki syndrome. The Travoltas claimed their son had the latter malady.
Posted on 1/3/2009 4:19:15 PM
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With more than twice as many South Carolina children diagnosed with autism in 2007 as were in 2003, schools are struggling to train enough teachers and provide specialized services, special educators say. Autism specialists are becoming more common as schools adjust education plans to the widely divergent needs of children with autism.
Posted on 1/2/2009 2:29:27 PM
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TULSA, Okla., Dec. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma announced today the addition of an autism benefit to insured groups effective their next policy year. This change will not in any way affect the current medical coverage that has always been available to children with autism. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma is responding to market interests in the benefits and coverage of certain autism-related medically necessary services.
Posted on 12/29/2008 3:03:29 PM
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Debate over the causes of autism continued to rage after a court decided to compensate a family whose daughter developed the disorder after receiving childhood vaccinations.
Posted on 12/29/2008 12:38:16 PM
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The results of a new study show that parents of children with autism are significantly more anxious about their children's future well-being than parents of children developing typically.
Posted on 12/29/2008 12:36:10 PM
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Researchers found a 20% increased risk of autism with each 10-year increase in parents’ age after 25 years. The highest risk was seen in fathers over 40 years (40%) and in mothers over 35 years (30%), compared to 25-29 years.
The risk was also highest for firstborn children and went down with birth order. Fourth born children were half as likely to have autism.
Posted on 12/24/2008 2:58:28 PM
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Computer scientists have devised two tools to help people interact with autistic children. Videotaping interactions allows teachers or parents to replay situations and evaluate the cause of particularly good or bad behavior. Cataloging actual data, rather relying on memory or interpretation, proves to be a more accurate measure of a situation.
Posted on 12/22/2008 11:44:29 AM
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The research follows the observation that many physical abnormalities of autistics are also prevalent in schizophrenics. For example, both people with autism and people with schizophrenia sometimes have protruding ears and peculiar toes.
Posted on 12/20/2008 3:40:51 PM
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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Insurance companies, HMOs and employers must determine whether they will sign a new compact to extend benefits for persons with autism to those with other developmental disabilities.
Posted on 12/17/2008 2:55:13 PM
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(Washington, December 16, 2008) -- Parents of children with autism are struggling with a host of worries that impact every aspect of their lives, and are particularly fearful that their family will lack the life-long supports needed to address the significant challenges of autism, according to a new study released today by Easter Seals and made possible by MassMutual Financial Group.
Posted on 12/16/2008 4:50:19 PM
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Having a special needs child pretty much guarantees financial stress, whether it stems from paying for therapy that insurance doesn't cover or from quitting work to provide care and drive children to therapy. "But every time we look at autism versus other disabilities, the disparity is greater," says Patricia Williams, national director of autism services for Easter Seals, a Chicago-based organization that provides services for people with disabilities. She came by U.S. News's offices today to talk about why autism feels different than other disabilities.
Posted on 12/16/2008 4:47:36 PM
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At holiday time, parents may find it hard to buy gifts for autistic children
Posted on 12/15/2008 7:44:08 AM
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Why is the incidence of autism mushrooming? The Autism Society of America states, “Autism is growing at a startling rate of 10-17 percent per year. At this rate…the prevalence of autism could reach four million Americans in the next decade.” The steady upswing in the number of cases in the last 20 years has brought us to today's count of one in every 150 children being somewhere on the spectrum.
Posted on 12/15/2008 7:42:18 AM
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Advanced parental age, of both the mother and father, may boost the risk of autism in their children, according to new study.
Posted on 12/14/2008 4:02:04 PM
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Researchers uncovered a protein in mice that may be linked to autism and obsessive-compulsive disorders.
Posted on 12/12/2008 8:35:30 AM
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Experimental drugs aimed at correcting three rare conditions linked with autism are beginning early-stage human trials. These therapies are targeted at Rett syndrome, fragile X, and tuberous sclerosis complex. And the scientists involved in these programs say that they have data that suggests the treatments could reverse the damage wrought by the ailments, according to a report in MIT Technology Review.
Posted on 12/9/2008 4:25:36 PM
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That could soon change. Democratic State Senator Pat Kreitlow says he's optimistic a bill will be passed in the coming legislative session requring insurance companies to cover the costs of autism treatments.
"It has widespread support among democrats and among republicans who understand that health insurance dollars should be used to provide health care services." Says Sen. Kreitlow.
Posted on 12/9/2008 4:23:56 PM
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Pediatric Therapist Aviva Weiss Offers Ten Tips to Prepare for Good Times Together This Holiday Season.
Posted on 12/9/2008 2:57:35 PM
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The NAS I Exist campaign, launched in February this year, revealed a desperate reality for adults with autism where two thirds do not have enough support to meet their needs and at least one in three are experiencing severe mental health difficulties as a result.
Posted on 12/9/2008 11:23:08 AM
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One program that is excellent for teens who need to develop social skills as well as job training capabilities is the Botvin Lifeskills Training Program. Generally used to curb substance abuse among teens, the program is also highly effective at developing a teen’s sense of self worth and personal responsibility. This program can be extremely effective in motivating teens with autism to succeed in school and allows them to adjust and even thrive in a workplace environment.
Posted on 12/8/2008 5:34:26 AM
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The January Lecture will feature Temple Grandin, Ph.D. with her lecture, "Autism Is No Obstacle" on Tuesday, January 27, 2009 at 6:30 pm. The most accomplished and best-known adult with autism, Temple Grandin, Ph.D. is the author of best-selling books like Thinking in Pictures and Other Reports From My Life With Autism and Animals in Translation: Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior. She invented a series of innovative livestock handling devices and has authored more than 300 articles in both scientific journals and livestock periodicals. During her presentation, she will offer personal insight into autism and offer strategies for overcoming this increasingly common condition of our society.
Posted on 12/8/2008 5:32:49 AM
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For families coping with autism and Asperger Syndrome, we just want for someone to believe. Preferably, someone who can be instrumental in helping us cope. This is not always easy or timely. After 43 years of living with Asperger's Syndrome, on December 4, 2008, I, Michael Buckholtz, a platinum record producer, was "officially" diagnosed with Asperger's and OCD. This, actually, is no surprise to me, but, it took many months for my Vocational Rehab Counselor, Shirley Swinney and Psychiatrist, Dr. Phillips to conclude this through their tedious technical testing and probing oral interviews.
Posted on 12/6/2008 6:06:47 AM
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Alan Kwan wasn't looking for a job when he wandered into Randy Nyquist's classroom in the fall of 2000. He just wanted a place to watch his favorite TV show.
Nyquist, then in his second year of coaching at West Albany High School, was watching video with the football team when Kwan, who has autism, walked in.
Posted on 12/6/2008 6:05:26 AM
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For those who wondered if Magi Klages, 8, had a future in Girl Scouts, there's news.
She's the Oconomowoc girl with autism whose parents were told by troop leaders that she couldn't join the small special needs troop.
It looks as if she's a Brownie again, thanks to her former troop leader, Dina Johnston, and the Scout organization.
Posted on 12/6/2008 6:04:23 AM
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OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The author of legislation to require health insurers to cover the diagnosis and treatment of autism says public support for the proposal is growing, but it still faces an uphill battle in the Oklahoma House where opponents say an autism mandate would drive up the cost of health insurance.
Posted on 12/5/2008 9:08:08 AM
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CHICAGO, Dec. 1- The speed that an autistic child's brain processes sounds, as gauged by magnetoencephalography, may characterize the severity of the condition, researchers reported here today.
Posted on 12/2/2008 11:46:13 AM
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Jacob Grabe, 13, could sense a storm coming several days out. He would get agitated and make strange noises. Silverware bothered him. He could eat only from plastic forks and spoons. He breezed through complicated algebra but struggled with basic division.
Nearly three months ago, when his father, Allen, allegedly shot and killed him while he was sleeping, Jacob had been exhibiting these and many other symptoms of the mysterious disorder autism for most of his short life.
Posted on 12/2/2008 11:44:56 AM
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CHICAGO - More than half a million U.S. children have autism with costly health care needs that often put an unprecedented financial strain on their families, national data show.
Compared with parents whose youngsters have chronic health care needs but not autism, those with autistic children are three times more likely to have to quit their jobs or reduce work hours to care for their kids. They pay more for their kids' health needs, spend more time providing or arranging for that care, and are more likely to have money difficulties, the study found.
Posted on 11/30/2008 7:14:52 PM
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CHICAGO (AP) -- Unique brain wave patterns, spotted for the first time in autistic children, may help explain why they have so much trouble communicating.
Posted on 11/30/2008 7:13:43 PM
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The only scientifically proved autism treatment, intensive 1:1 Advanced Behavioral Analysis (ABA), is widely unavailable in New York City special ed preschools. ABA is a method of teaching children with autism--who are not natural learners--how to learn. Through repetition of skill-building drills, children with autism create the foundation of neural pathways needed for learning in a general education setting.
Posted on 11/27/2008 8:43:55 AM
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The journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine has this month published a new study by Cornell University researchers that provides evidence of a rainfall-related environmental trigger for autism among genetically vulnerable children. "This analysis is an important first step towards identifying a specific environmental trigger, or triggers, for autism," said the study's lead author Michael Waldman.
Posted on 11/27/2008 8:24:16 AM
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Six keys to helping autistic students prepare for college, as described by a noted expert in an interview podcast from Autism Hangout, an online community for those with autism, their parents and professionals.
Posted on 11/26/2008 7:13:37 AM
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For two years, Magi Klages, despite having autism, thrived in the Girl Scouts -- an organization that pledges to "help people at all times" and to be "honest and fair, considerate and caring."
Posted on 11/26/2008 6:55:52 AM
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Epidemiologists at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. (Medical Investigation of Neurodevelopmental Disorders) Institute believe the Bell family, and others like them, may provide answers.
Using a special vacuum, researchers have collected dust hidden deep in the home's carpets, crannies and cracks.
They have compiled detailed reports on the household cleaners the family uses, their soaps and beauty products, electronics and types of paint.
Posted on 11/24/2008 6:18:32 AM
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CHICAGO (CBS) ― Chances are you know parents struggling to care for a child with autism.
Now, Illinois has passed a new law granting coverage for treatment up to $36,000.
Posted on 11/21/2008 5:39:40 AM
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Children who have autism may not do well in school is because educators often emphasize using a normal development model when teaching. Comparing the child with autism to the typical child is not realistic or educationally appropriate. Presently, whatever the autistic child cannot do at a specific stage becomes the focus of teaching, since the normal developmental model is the learning standard. This model has not been helpful in determining what or how to teach children with autism.
Posted on 11/20/2008 3:18:05 PM
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Today it is estimated that 50% of Hispanic and African-American children will develop diabetes, that 1 in 90 boys has autism, and that 1 in 4 children has asthma. Pediatrics just reported that from 2002-2005, there was a 103% increase in diabetes medication for children, a 47% increase in asthma medication, a 41% increase in ADHD medication and a 15% increase in high cholesterol medicine.
How did our children get so sick?
Posted on 11/20/2008 3:16:24 PM
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I’ve been hearing lately that Sensory Integration Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder are now being included in Autism Spectrum Disorders.
I don’t know who would make such a decision, and the CDC’s Web site says nothing of the kind, but I certainly hope it isn’t true.
Posted on 11/20/2008 5:39:54 AM
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Dogs for the Deaf in Central Point has begun an autism assistance dog training program, the first of its kind in the country. The goal is to provide an autistic child with both a calming effect and safety in public.
Posted on 11/19/2008 11:01:03 AM
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The Star Tribune's numbers, published in the Huffington Post, are shocking:
Among Somali students in the district, 3.6 percent had autism - a rate of 360-per-10,000, (or 1 in 28). The paper said this was about twice as high as the already burgeoning district average of some 180-per-100,000 kids (or 1 in 56), and more than five times the national rate of 66-per-10,000 (1 in 150).
The community is calling it the "Minnesota Disease" and it's gaining national attention as a potential example of genes and the environment creating a sort of phenomenon.
Posted on 11/17/2008 12:10:59 PM
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EAST STROUDSBURG — Imagine playing a game of Simon Says for an entire day while, all around you, lights flicker on and off and the drone of static blasts at odd times.
Posted on 11/17/2008 11:37:50 AM
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ScienceDaily (Nov. 17, 2008) — Scientists have identified a relationship between two proteins in the brain that has links to both nicotine addiction and autism. The finding has led to speculation that existing drugs used to curb nicotine addiction might serve as the basis for potential therapies to alleviate the symptoms of autism.
Posted on 11/17/2008 11:36:02 AM
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Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago are taking part in an international effort to gather DNA samples from 2,000 autism patients and their families over the next three years.
Posted on 11/17/2008 5:35:10 AM
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Tomorrow, a few hundred very concerned citizens of Minnesota will gather to discuss a baffling and heartbreaking riddle: Why is the reported rate of autism among children of Somali refugees so alarmingly high (now an estimated 1-in-28 schoolchildren)?
Posted on 11/14/2008 3:07:26 PM
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"Children with autism don't learn the same way as other children," said president and founder Cynthia Howroyd.
"They learn in little steps and they get frustrated more easily because each of those steps can be such a challenge. So the teaching strategy for children with autism has to be different."
Virtual Expert Clinics has created AustismPro, an Internet database of more than 5,000 lesson plans for teachers who work with autistic children.
Posted on 11/13/2008 3:16:14 PM
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For Ty, loud noises were crippling, and his former school couldn't handle his outbursts.
"Everyday moments could be catastrophic to him," said Ty's mother, Judy Martin. "I said, 'There has to be some place for my son. I do not accept that at the age of 9 or 10 that we're just at a dead end. I do not accept that.'"
After years of searching, Martin found the answer to her concerns at the Community School in Decatur, Ga. Founded by Dave Nelson, the specialized school consists of eight male students and 12 faculty members. It has given the handful of boys with varying degrees of autism a way to thrive and improve their communication skills, although it is open to female students, too.
Posted on 11/12/2008 8:09:21 PM
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The following are answers to 10 common myths, that may help us better recognize the range of symptoms we call autism spectrum disorders.
Posted on 11/12/2008 4:08:13 PM
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State lawmakers might take up a bill this week that gives autistic children up to $36,000 a year in health care coverage to pay for diagnosis and treatment.
But there's no guarantee the bill will pass, lawmakers and advocates say.
Posted on 11/12/2008 6:36:28 AM
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Autism might have kept a low profile in the United States, if it hadn't affected Bob Wright's grandson, Christian. The chief executive of NBC Universal - the American television and film company - is not the kind of alpha male to take a problem in the family lying down. He's used to shaking trees, kicking ass, making things happen - and that is exactly what he has done in the five years following his grandson's regression into autism.
Posted on 11/10/2008 11:38:15 AM
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Parents, experts and kids themselves share what works at Web 'Hangout'
Posted on 11/9/2008 12:57:10 PM
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Autism in America: Prospects Hazy for Future Diagnosis, Treatment
Posted on 11/7/2008 3:45:35 PM
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Because autism often comes with sensory challenges such as a hypersensitivity to light or sound, the theaters will lower the sound and raise lights during sensory-friendly films showings. And, there will be no previews or advertisements shown before the movie.
Audience members can also get up and walk, move around, even dance if they want to, said Melanie Bell, vice president of corporate communications at AMC Theaters. And, movie goers can bring their own snacks and drinks to accommodate special diets.
Posted on 11/7/2008 7:42:04 AM
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SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) - Autism hits one in every 150 children. It's the fastest growing developmental disability in the country and the numbers are even higher in Utah.
Posted on 11/7/2008 7:40:26 AM
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FREMONT, CA (KGO) -- Getting a diagnosis of autism is the first step in what can be a very stressful and frustrating process and many families quickly learn when it comes to treatment for their children, their health insurance won't be helping. Here is a closer look at covering the cost of treatments and who really pays.
Posted on 11/7/2008 7:38:36 AM
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ScienceDaily (Nov. 7, 2008) — Researchers at the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute have found that infants later diagnosed with autism exhibited unusual exploration of objects long before being diagnosed. Studying a group of children at high risk for developing autism, the researchers found that those eventually diagnosed with the disorder were more likely to spin, repetitively rotate, stare at and look out of the corners of their eyes at simple objects, including a baby bottle and a rattle, as early as 12 months of age.
Posted on 11/7/2008 7:37:22 AM
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LONDON (Reuters) - A gene linked to autism may also play a role in the most common childhood language disorder, researchers said on Wednesday, perhaps explaining why some children develop language difficulties.
Posted on 11/7/2008 7:36:22 AM
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Interview and Information regarding Easter Seals Metropolitan Chicago's new Therapeutic School and Center for Autism Research
Posted on 11/5/2008 7:04:59 AM
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MONDAY, Nov. 3 (HealthDay News) -- Children who live in areas of the United States that get a lot of precipitation appear to have a higher risk of developing autism, a new study suggests.
Because these children may spend more time indoors or because rain brings chemicals in the atmosphere to the ground, they might be exposed to environmental triggers that can trigger a genetic predisposition to autism, the researchers say.
"There seems to be a strong association between precipitation and autism diagnosis rates," said lead researcher Michael Waldman, a professor of economics at the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University.
Posted on 11/3/2008 1:44:01 PM
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When someone goes missing it seems we all bond together, hoping that person will be found alive. Of course none of us can forget the massive search last summer for Keith Kennedy, lost in the woods of Wisconsin. What you're about to see in this report is a way to spare us all the agony, and quite frankly the cost of those gut wrenching searches. As Fox 9's Trish Van Pilsum shows us, it starts and ends with a little bracelet that has become a 24/7 link to life.
Posted on 11/3/2008 7:17:39 AM
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Autism in America: How Proper Diagnosis Is Elusive for Many Families
Posted on 11/3/2008 7:13:56 AM
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It’s no exaggeration to say that children diagnosed with autism who receive early intensive behavioural intervention often can have their entire lives changed as a result. Instead of individuals whose ability to function remains significantly impaired, thus needing state-funded support over a lifetime, people with autism who get this treatment can often contribute greatly to society.
Posted on 11/3/2008 7:10:33 AM
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A treatment program for Nova Scotia children with autism works well for those who can get it, an independent evaluation says. But the provincial Health Department has no plans to expand the service to accommodate all those children who might benefit.
Posted on 10/31/2008 8:40:37 AM
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Since its beginnings in 2005, Autism Speaks has raised $30m in funding for autism research in the US, making it the nation’s top private fundraiser. Its founders, former NBC chairman Bob Wright and his wife Suzanne, have been campaigning for better awareness and funding since the discovery that their three-year-old grandson had developed the disorder.
Posted on 10/31/2008 8:39:22 AM
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Thirty families selected to take part in the autism two-year pilot project each could spend up to $12,360 a year on services for their autistic child.
Posted on 10/27/2008 9:26:45 AM
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A major US study has provided the strongest evidence yet that older mothers and fathers are more likely to have a child with autism.
Posted on 10/26/2008 12:30:18 PM
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“I was interested in the liberatory, activist aspects of it - to do for neurologically different people what feminism and gay rights had done for their constituencies." This is a quote from an Australian woman, Judy Singer, who first put forward the term neurodiversity as a way of presenting autism as an alternative way of being, rather than a disorder.
Posted on 10/24/2008 8:50:27 AM
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Minneapolis, MN - October 20, 2008: There is no shortage of news regarding autism. However, there is a breakdown in delivering critically needed insights on dealing with the condition to those that need it most; parents of kids with autism, care-givers, educators, medical specialists and community service professionals.
Posted on 10/24/2008 8:48:52 AM
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When our son, Tom, was very small (before his PDD-NOS diagnosis), he was fascinated by the piano. As he got a little older, he was intrigued by musical instruments of all sorts. By the time he was six, he'd been through a music therapy program - and had indicated an interest in learning to play several different instruments, including various woodwinds (he's always loved "Peter and the Wolf!").
Posted on 10/24/2008 8:47:00 AM
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Sen. John McCain may or may not be our next president, but to me he'll always be the first politician who made autism part of the national agenda. It's one of the few things Sen. McCain seems willing to spend money on.
Posted on 10/24/2008 8:45:38 AM
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Dr. Doreen Granpeesheh is scheduled to speak at this year's national Defeat Autism Now conference, this weekend - unveiling proof that recovery from autism is a reality.
San Diego (PRWEB) October 23, 2008 -- Dr. Doreen Granpeesheh, one of the nation's leading autism researchers and psychologists, reveals, "The Child as a Whole: Why Behavioral and Biomedical Interventions are Both Critical to Growth and Recovery," this weekend.
Posted on 10/23/2008 6:22:52 AM
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As the number of Americans diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders climbs, so, too, does the number of questions surrounding this disorder. Namely, what is autism, and what is causing a rise in autism diagnoses among adults and children nationwide?
Posted on 10/23/2008 6:21:03 AM
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At a time when an increasing number of states are requiring health insurers to pay for behavioral therapy for autism, the action group Autism Speaks is pushing for broader adoption of such coverage.
Posted on 10/20/2008 4:45:39 PM
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CHICAGO – In Washington state, Reza and Arzu Forough pay more than $1,000 a week for behavior therapy for their 12-year-old autistic son.
In Indiana, Sean and Michele Trivedi get the same type of therapy for their 11-year-old daughter. But they pay $3,000 a year and their health insurance covers the rest. Two families. Two states. Big difference in out-of-pocket costs. If autism advocates get their way, more states will follow Indiana's lead by requiring health insurers to cover intensive and costly behavior therapy for autism.
Posted on 10/19/2008 6:59:38 PM
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When Dr. Leo Kanner first wrote about autism in 1943, he changed the way many people understood intelligence. The first scientist to clearly define autism, Kanner was working with 11 children who appeared to be mentally retarded. Among his many conclusions was included his belief that despite their massive communication problems, some of his subjects were actually very intelligent - just not in the way that we expected them to be.
Posted on 10/18/2008 7:33:25 PM
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Parents of children with autism often say it's like being on a roller coaster 24 hours a day. And the ticket for the ride is jaw-droppingly expensive.
Posted on 10/18/2008 7:32:05 PM
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Autism was back in the headlines when the two Presidential candidates met in the third and final debate recently. Barack Obama and John McCain both spoke out on autism. A few months ago we urged both candidates to speak out on autism and the need for greater support for parents, cares, children and adults with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome via the Blogger News Network.
Posted on 10/18/2008 7:30:57 PM
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Denis Leary is looking to rescue himself—not to mention his sales figures—from a firestorm of criticism.
Posted on 10/16/2008 11:13:18 AM
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People with autism-related disorders are less likely to make irrational decisions, and are less influenced by gut instincts, according to research funded by the Wellcome Trust. The study adds to the growing body of research implicating altered emotional processing in autism.
Posted on 10/16/2008 11:12:09 AM
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The media may be transfixed on "Joe the Plumber" today, but the real winner of last night's debate was autism.
I cannot recall a single disorder ever becoming so prominent in a national election as autism has been in 2008: Not cancer, not AIDS, not heart disease.
Posted on 10/16/2008 11:09:16 AM
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DENIS Leary should brace himself for hate mail from the parents of kids diagnosed with autism.
In his new book, "Why We Suck: A Feel-Good Guide to Staying Fat, Loud, Lazy and Stupid," the joke-slinging "Rescue Me" star writes about the brain disorder:
"There is a huge boom in autism right now because inattentive mothers and competitive dads want an explanation for why their dumb-ass kids can't compete academically, so they throw money into the happy laps of shrinks . . . to get back diagnoses that help explain away the deficiencies of their junior morons. I don't give a [bleep] what these crackerjack whack jobs tell you - yer kid is NOT autistic. He's just stupid. Or lazy. Or both."
Posted on 10/15/2008 5:54:20 AM
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When attempting to make a rational choice, people with high-functioning autism may be less swayed by emotion than most.
Posted on 10/15/2008 5:17:09 AM
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Scientists have found the answer to why children with autism spectrum disorders have trouble in learning new things- because they spend less time looking at a person’s face who’s teaching them different skills.
Posted on 10/13/2008 7:03:50 AM
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Seated at a child-sized table in his family's Lacey living room, the 5-year-old kneads a ball of soft, claylike material. He talks about its colors, shapes and textures.
Posted on 10/13/2008 7:02:06 AM
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According to Kobayashi, a sixth-grade student with autism visited the principal's room to say "Good morning" in English after Sugiyama's class and went on to talk about his daily life in Japanese, although he was relatively passive during the class. The principal believed the English class stimulated the student's sense for languages and encouraged him to communicate with others.
Posted on 10/10/2008 6:58:27 AM
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University of North Carolina professor Gary Mesibov, who is giving master classes in Perth this week in teaching autistic students, said a key to unlocking Cameron's world was understanding that his brain was better wired for pictures than words.
Posted on 10/9/2008 3:38:02 PM
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Unlike other studies which have used static photos alone in testing facial and emotional recognition, Robins and colleagues used videos to test both auditory and visual perception at the same time.
“I was looking for a way to study more realistic social interaction, because individuals with autism have a lot of difficulty in interacting with other people,” said Robins. “So, we thought that taking the first step would be to combine both the face and voice, and to make it dynamic throughout the presentation of the stimulus.”
Posted on 10/8/2008 2:14:06 PM
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"It's very difficult for our people to find jobs in regular settings," he said. Still, some participants are employed in the community, including one who has worked at Wal-Mart for 10 years and another who has been at Sears for 17 years.
Posted on 10/6/2008 6:00:07 AM
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Jenny McCarthy's Autism Organization:
Generation Rescue is an international movement of scientists, physicians and parent-voluteers researching the causes and treatments for autism and mentoring thousands of families in recovering their children from autism.
Posted on 10/6/2008 5:59:02 AM
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CAMBRIDGE, England, Oct. 5 (UPI) -- The genes thought to cause autism may also confer on people without the condition mathematical, musical and other skills, researchers in England say.
Posted on 10/6/2008 5:53:14 AM
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THE NUMBER of Jamaicans living with autism is on the rise. Leading professor in the field in Jamaica, Dr Maureen Samms-Vaughn, confirmed two years ago that the numbers had increased from approximately two diagnoses per year in the 1970s to 40 per year in 2006. She restated this in a recent television interview.
Posted on 10/6/2008 5:52:22 AM
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ScienceDaily (Oct. 4, 2008) — The first national survey of attitudes toward autism reveals that a small but significant percentage of people still believe the disease is caused by childhood vaccines.
Posted on 10/4/2008 6:28:49 AM
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“She has a lot of [nerve] to come forward and be on that side, because there is an angry mob on my side, and I like the fact that I can say she’s completely wrong,” McCarthy stated in this month’s issue of Spectrum magazine.
Posted on 10/1/2008 6:13:41 AM
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London, Oct 1 (PTI) While older women are said to have a higher risk of having babies with birth defects, it has long been presumed that men can have children at any age. But a new study has shown that it's the other way round.
Posted on 10/1/2008 6:11:19 AM
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Matthew Pond memorized Dr. Seuss' Hop on Pop when he was 2, but as he got older he couldn't name the color of Little Red Riding Hood's cape. He could speak, but he often repeated what he heard others say. He avoided eye contact.
Posted on 9/30/2008 5:50:24 AM
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NEWARK, N.J. - The animal-rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals has put up a billboard in Newark claiming there is a link between cow's milk and autism.
Posted on 9/30/2008 5:49:12 AM
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Ben Carroll, 14, was born in Bulgaria in July 1994 and was placed in an orphanage. When he was 18 months old, Manchester residents Ed and Laura-Lee Carroll adopted him.
Posted on 9/29/2008 6:40:28 AM
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A rare genetic disorder called tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is yielding insight into a possible cause of some neurodevelopmental disorders: structural abnormalities in neurons, or brain cells.
Posted on 9/25/2008 5:49:08 AM
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Toy trains bearing pictures of real human faces are being used to help autistic kids understand emotion as part of a radical new program.
Posted on 9/24/2008 6:07:31 AM
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A revolutionary animated DVD is teaching children with autism aged two to eight years to recognise emotions.
Produced by leading scientists and film makers, the DVD features real human faces on animated toy vehicles. The DVD was launched in Australia on Monday 22 September.
Posted on 9/22/2008 6:44:16 AM
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Researchers at North Western University suggest that 'virtual peers' or animated life-sized children that simulate the behavior and conversation of typically developing children, may help prepare children with autism for interactions with real-life children.
Posted on 9/19/2008 6:41:39 AM
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Children who develop autism have "supercharged" brains that are so clever and sensitive that they make everyday experiences utterly overwhelming, new research claims.
Posted on 9/18/2008 6:00:59 AM
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The National Institute of Mental Health said in a statement Wednesday that the study of chelation (kee-LAY'-shun) has been discontinued. The statement says the agency decided the money would be better used testing other potential therapies for autism and related disorders.
Posted on 9/17/2008 1:13:38 PM
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Girls with mild autism are less likely to be identified and diagnosed than boys, according to new research presented at a meeting of the Royal College of Psychiatrists' Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Posted on 9/17/2008 8:43:58 AM
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BOSTON, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- An autism advocacy group says it's planning legislation in 20 U.S. states to force insurance companies to pay for intensive therapies.
Posted on 9/17/2008 8:42:47 AM
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DOVER - Because of his severe autism, the cost of educating 5-year-old Jack Ursitti runs $100,000 a year. But unlike expenses with most medical conditions, the bills for treating him will be borne by Dover schools and the rural town's taxpayers - not his family's medical insurance.
Posted on 9/17/2008 8:41:52 AM
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“The Global Learning Series” announced today that the education-focused television program distributed to individual public television stations in the U.S. and globally to Voice of America U.S. Government television programming, is launching their emotionally gripping public awareness initiative about Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD’s).
Posted on 9/15/2008 6:28:33 AM
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In case you missed it, National Public Radio took a big bite out of the autism apple this week with a four-part series, Autism: Helping Children Connect.
Posted on 9/15/2008 6:26:49 AM
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For some autistic children, the sensation of water is as comforting as a blanket.
Posted on 9/11/2008 6:04:32 AM
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As the number of autistic children continues to rise, the question of who cares for them once their parents have died becomes pressing. One family is striving to provide answers, and hopes to create a village for autistic adults to live and work in.
Posted on 9/6/2008 9:39:04 AM
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Although the alleged link between childhood autism and the vaccine preservative thimerosal still sparks occasional controversy, the good news is that by and large, parents don't seem to be buying into the hype. According to the latest reports available from the CDC, overall childhood immunization rates in the United States continue to steadily increase.
Posted on 9/4/2008 7:16:09 AM
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WASHINGTON (AP) — New research further debunks any link between measles vaccine and autism, work that comes as the nation is experiencing a surge in measles cases fueled by children left unvaccinated.
Posted on 9/4/2008 7:14:21 AM
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“The launch of our program has been a great success,” said Gil Zaharoni, CEO at Symmetry Electronics. “The employees that we hired as a result are extremely talented and bright individuals and have become assets to Symmetry.”
Posted on 9/3/2008 6:33:05 AM
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There are thousands of families in Ohio affected by autism that do not have insurance coverage because insurance companies are allowed to exclude autism treatment. This a la carte discrimination of autistic people and their families needs to be stopped.
Posted on 9/3/2008 6:31:15 AM
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DR CHERYL Dissanayake's office is surprisingly modest for someone who was recently given $2 million.
Posted on 9/2/2008 1:40:11 PM
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Parents rave about hyperbaric oxygen therapy but many doctors and scientists are skeptical.
Posted on 9/2/2008 1:38:57 PM
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MANILA, Philippines—Using crayon, paint and camera, persons with autism (PWAs) are taking us on a personal tour of the world they have created.
Posted on 8/31/2008 7:16:57 AM
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Dr. Bernard Rimland, ARI's Founder, worked exhaustively to identify effective biomedical and behavioral treatments for autism. Decades ago, when most believed children would progress only as far as their innate potential permitted, Dr. Rimland spoke of recovery. And, in Dr. Rimland's lifetime, we went from "no hope" to "hope for many." With hard work and luck, we will meet our ultimate goal: "prevention and recovery for all."
Posted on 8/29/2008 7:36:08 AM
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The new assessment tool has been designed to identify developmental and behavioural issues associated with autism in children less than 12 months old.
Posted on 8/29/2008 7:34:43 AM
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When a 13-year-old Minnesota boy was banned from church after parishioners complained about his behavior, it exposed a painful truth so politically incorrect that some people feel guilty just saying it out loud: Some autistic children can be annoying and disruptive in public.
Posted on 8/26/2008 1:12:05 PM
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The autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are relatively common disorders characterized by profound disturbances in social skills.
Posted on 8/26/2008 1:11:18 PM
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The most recent figures I've seen, from a study released by Yale University last year, indicate the average health-care expenditures for a child with autism or related disorder were almost $6,000 in 2004.
Posted on 8/25/2008 5:56:32 AM
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A cluster of affected kids has sparked an investigation in Minnesota. Health officials are puzzled by the data.
Posted on 8/25/2008 5:53:21 AM
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In the middle of a service, 12-year-old Erich Hoffmann will walk fearlessly down the aisle to sit next to a pastor at Rosemount United Methodist Church.
Posted on 8/24/2008 4:57:08 PM
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SPECIAL NIGHT GIVES KIDS OPPORTUNITY TO CUT LOOSE, PARENTS TO KICK BACK.
Posted on 8/22/2008 6:42:33 AM
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Parents of autistic children have long suspected that what their children eat affects their behavior. Now University of Texas at Houston researchers are taking a first look at whether their suspicions are true.
Posted on 8/22/2008 6:39:35 AM
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More people had measles infections in the first seven months of this year than during any comparable period since 1996, and public health officials blamed growing numbers of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children.
Posted on 8/22/2008 6:37:40 AM
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Oregon’s growing number of cases of autism, and unreliable treatment options have a group of lawmakers and state officials searching for answers this week.
Oregon has at least the third highest incidence of Autism Spectrum Disorder, or ASD, nationally.
Posted on 8/21/2008 9:12:41 AM
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A preliminary study out of California might have uncovered at least one chemical worthy of investigation: pyrenthrin, a type of pesticide found in common products, from pet shampoos to household bug killers.
Posted on 8/18/2008 8:01:11 AM
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Late one night in June, after reading about the second mortgages, overtime hours and general financial hardships that families of autistic children face, a Virginia woman came up with a novel approach to help.
Posted on 8/18/2008 7:59:48 AM
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The Minnesota Autism Center (MAC) opened a new facility in Minnetonka, Minn. on Aug. 4, 2008. The site is unlike anything in the nation and will be used to treat a limited number of children and to serve as central office for MAC's in-home professionals serving children and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).
Posted on 8/15/2008 6:35:07 AM
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A new social networking website is bringing together members of the autism community to compile "hands-on-knowledge" that will help them learn, share and thrive. Membership is free to the public, and the advertise-supported site will help fund autism-related causes.
Posted on 8/13/2008 7:24:19 AM
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Many parents of children with autism say their kids do better when placed on gluten-free or dairy-free diets.
Posted on 8/11/2008 7:34:46 PM
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Hi my name is Jack Ryan. I am 15 years old and I am autistic. I am working on my Eagle Scout project, which is planting a Xeriscape garden at The Arc of Aurora* office.
Posted on 8/11/2008 8:52:08 AM
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The number of children getting diagnosed with autism is rising at an alarming rate. For decades before the 1990s, about 4 to 5 out of every 10,000 children in the United States were believed to be autistic. Today, that number has soared to one in every 150 children, or nearly 67 out of every 10,000.
Posted on 8/11/2008 8:07:33 AM
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A course aimed at parents and professionals interested in working with and teaching children and young adults with autism is to begin at the University of Ulster in September.
Posted on 8/11/2008 8:06:23 AM
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When Dan Hackett started college, he didn't make the grades he knew he could.
Posted on 8/11/2008 8:05:23 AM
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Researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have embarked on one of the first double-blind, clinical studies to determine whether gluten and dairy products play a role in autistic behavior as parents have anecdotally claimed.
Posted on 8/11/2008 8:04:24 AM
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Older American men are sliding into neurological impairment. Have our children been the canaries in the coal mine and now the miners themselves are becoming ill?
Posted on 8/5/2008 9:59:12 AM
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Dear EarthTalk: What’s going on with all the cases of autism cropping up and no one seems to know why?
Posted on 8/5/2008 9:49:24 AM
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Researchers at Cornell University asked the question, “Does television cause autism?” and published their research. They found a high correlation between families who had cable television beginning around 1980 and increased autism diagnoses in the same states at that time.
Posted on 8/5/2008 9:47:13 AM
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WASHINGTON - Parents looking for healthy meal choices for their children are likely to find slim pickings on the menus of the nation's top restaurant chains, according to a report released Monday by a nonprofit public health group.
Posted on 8/4/2008 5:21:39 AM
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Like most young boys, Will Johnson is all about dinosaurs, not necessarily dairy. In fact, he's allergic to milk and eats gluten- and dairy-free. But the lack of dairy in his diet might actually be helping him grow in new ways.
Posted on 7/25/2008 5:27:43 AM
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At Bull Run, Ashkar's autism is a non-issue. He typically works in the packaging department putting stickers on the boxes of coffee and taping them shut.
Posted on 7/23/2008 7:09:49 AM
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It wasn't the fear of having another autistic child that convinced Day to have William participate in a study about infants at risk for the disorder. Her motivation was more about helping doctors learn everything they can about autism.
Posted on 7/22/2008 6:20:50 AM
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As autism organizations and medical professionals alike voice their outrage at inflammatory comments made by controversial talk radio host Michael Savage, about most autistic children simply being "brats," the head of the network that employs him appears to be taking measures to pull out of a public relations tailspin.
Posted on 7/21/2008 8:24:18 PM
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A teenage boy with autism slipped into his mother's car last fall and, acting out his favorite movies, went barreling 100 m.p.h. down a road in Naperville.
Posted on 7/21/2008 7:31:21 AM
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Was the young doctor autistic?
He didn't think so: "I don't walk on tippytoes or get hypnotized by Wheel of Fortune," he explained.
Posted on 7/21/2008 7:30:23 AM
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As an offensive lineman for the Texans, Scott Jackson lines up without fear each day in practice, going head-to-head against 6-foot-4, 322-pound defensive tackles.
Posted on 7/18/2008 8:03:21 AM
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“New Ways to Diagnose Autism Earlier” stated a recent headline in the Wall Street Journal. There’s no question you can diagnose anything as early as you want. The real question is whether the diagnosis will be correct.
Posted on 7/18/2008 8:02:09 AM
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A new study from the University of North Carolina finds that "some parents of children with autism evaluate facial expressions differently than the rest of us – and in a way that is strikingly similar to autistic patients themselves."
Posted on 7/18/2008 8:01:08 AM
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"I'm sure there's some sort of scientific explanation," she says. "But I call it magic."
Posted on 7/17/2008 8:20:56 AM
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26,000 ILLINOIS KIDS AFFECTED. Plan would include diagnosis, treatment...
Posted on 7/14/2008 5:27:55 AM
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Autism is a congenital mental disorder, which is estimated to affect one of 150 births in the United Sates...
Posted on 7/14/2008 5:26:23 AM
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When Jim Bouder decided public schools couldn't provide his son, who has autism, with the best services, he helped create a specialized school...
Posted on 7/12/2008 5:07:07 AM
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It's been an amazing year for discoveries about autism and genes-and it's only July...
Posted on 7/11/2008 7:50:20 PM
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Balancing a full-time job with the demands of taking care of healthy children is certainly challenging...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:20:06 AM
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When Dan Hackett started college, he didn't make the grades he knew he could...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:19:48 AM
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CHICAGO - Pressured by desperate parents, government researchers are pushing to test an unproven treatment on autistic children...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:19:24 AM
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No doubt about it, autism rates have skyrocketed in the U.S. and beyond in recent years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:18:51 AM
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An explosion in the number of children diagnosed has parents, insurers and state and private institutions battling over coverage...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:18:28 AM
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I am always on the lookout for new items and websites that cater to the autism community. I found such a site that was listed as a sponsor in the May Autism Society of America e-newsletter, known as the ASA-Net...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:18:08 AM
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After a decade of denying any possible association between vaccines and autism, the government quietly settled a vaccine-autism case last fall...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:17:42 AM
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Treating autism at a very young age can improve language skills and IQ scores. But the condition can be tough to detect in the very young, and often isn’t diagnosed until age 4 or so...
Posted on 7/11/2008 11:17:13 AM
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