Autism appears to be on the increase, although this may be due to better diagnostic methods and revised definitions of the disease. The cause of autism is not known, but is being actively researched. Some of the areas that are being considered are diet, vaccine sensitivity, and mercury poisoning. Gluten in the diet is being examined as a possible cause of autism. Because children with autism improve when gluten is removed from their diet, some speculate that it may be somehow toxic to some children, causing autism.  Currently no study has confirmed an autism gluten link.

Claims that a link exists between autism and the MMR vaccine have been heavily publicized. This is because the incidences of autism have increased steadily since the vaccine was introduced and children who were developing normally before being given the vaccine begin to show symptoms afterward. Autism symptoms tend to show up for the first time in children of a certain age and the vaccine is typically given at about that age; this may be merely a coincidence.

To date, no major study has shown an autism vaccine link. A related idea suggests that exposure to mercury may cause autism. Mercury has long been known to impair brain function. It is found in flu vaccines deemed safe by respected American medical groups. Unborn babies may be exposed to mercury if their mother consumes fish that contains it. In addition, children can be exposed to mercury from industrial sources such as power plants fired by coal, paper mills, and cement factories.

A recent study has shown that children who live near these types of industries have a higher risk of developing autism, further substantiating the autism mercury link. The slow and difficult course of autism research is frustrating to many parents. Some have banded together to support one another and raise public awareness of autism and its probable causes. Although anecdotal evidence abounds, no scientifically verified cause of autism has yet been established.

Chelation Therapy as Autism Treatment

Many doctors have adamantly gone on record denouncing the use of Chelation therapy as a viable option for autism treatment, calling the treatment both dangerous and radical. Many others, in both the nontraditional medical profession as well as many families of autistic children, are singing the praises of the treatments many successes of improvement, as well as recovery, in many children.

To understand the controversy between mainstream medical providers and those practicing alternative medicine, you first must understand what chelation is, as well as having some insight into autism and the traditional autism treatment regimen. While more nontraditional methods of autism treatment are being used, the traditional methods of treatment is still the option that most doctors most often pursue.

Chelation therapy is a method of releasing the body of harmful metals such as lead, mercury, and even arsenic. Chelating agents create a complex between the chemicals and the metals, rendering the metals less reactive. The complex can then be carried easily through the blood stream and expelled from the body.

While there is no exact known cause of autism, it is believed that there may be a genetic component. Many believe there is a correlation between the mercury that was used in children’s inoculations. The theory is that while we were giving our children shots to protect them, we were actually poisoning them with vaccines laced with mercury. It is a possibility that those children that were genetically at risk for autism were adversely affected by the injection of the mercury.

More traditional treatment plans include an array of psychotic type drugs, such as Ritalin, to modify the behavior of those with autism. Many of the medications in use today are very potent, as well as dangerous, and do not treat the underlying cause of autism.

While some experts claim that the use of chelation as a treatment for autism is dangerous, there have been no known deaths from the treatment’s proper use. In an ongoing rating study conducted by the Autism Research Foundation, and containing over 25,000 responses with 470 of those responses rating chelation, this treatment has received a good results rating of 75%. This is much higher then the other biomedical treatments, including over 50 other drugs that parents had rated. This certainly shows that chelation therapy should be an accepted method of treatment for autism.

What is Autism?

Autism is a developmental neurological disorder affecting people of all ages but is most evident and diagnosable at the prime developmental age of 3-4 in most children. While not everything is known about the disorder and its origins, it is generally believed that this disorder is genetic in nature. Children suffering from this disorder find it difficult to properly communicate and may tend to shy away from social interaction with adults and other children. They do not seem to behave like a normal child should and may look like they are “lost in their own world”.

This disorder is clinically known as autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Parents can recognize the signs of Autism from as early as two years and can help the child tackle his or her problems. Early diagnosis of this disorder is the best way to help the child cope with it.

My Own World

They just seem to be different from other children - lost in their own thoughts and are comfortable to be alone. Most children with ASD seem to have tremendous difficulty learning to engage in everyday human interaction even during the first few years of life, many do not interact at all and totally avoid eye contact.

The parents of an autistic child often feel that their children are not attached to them at all. Autistic children often don’t cuddle, play or enjoy the company of parents and others in the family. They are mostly isolated with thoughts and distant themselves from everybody. They look totally detached from the planet earth at times. They have difficultly controlling their emotions and are very sensitive to sharp light and sounds.

But, Your Autistic Child May Be Gifted

Autism had a wide range of symptoms and it’s impact varies from person to person. For some children there is no speech and interactions are limited by cognitive behavior. For others it is high IQ and very odd interests and they would talk only about it and indulge in monologues about their interests. Some autistic children are also very hyper-active but some appear relatively dull and non-responsive. They usually find it difficult to make friends and so are often lonely and socially outcasted.

Common Symptoms of Autism

• Autistic children often do not speak a word till 16 months
• Does not speak two combined words or sentences for 2 years
• Do not respond when their names a re called
• They display poor eye contact and lack of concentration. They prefer to stay alone.
• They do not show interests in the toys which normal kids do.
• Do not interpret humor and don’t smile.
• Show very poor or no response socially which is normally mistaken as deafness.

Males More Than Females

The symptoms are more likely seen in male kids than on females. The ratio of this disorder in males to females is 4:1. Children with Autism need a lot of support, love and understanding and concern from their near and dear ones. There are specialists and special school for these children where they are taught to lead their life in a more socially responsive manner.

Working Towards A Cure For Autism

The causes of Autism are not known or confirmed. It is still a medical challenge and there is a wide range of research being conducted to find the causes and the cures accordingly. There is no known cure for this problem but you can train the children to handle their daily life and help them become more comfortable socializing with other people.  Some exercise and constant practices are been given to children to cope with this disorder. They are also subjected to herbal treatment to avoid the risks of the side effects. Please see the pages within to understand more about Autism.

Autism is a mental disorder seen in children in the developmental age of 3. The kids show symptoms like repetitive behaviors and lack the social skills. They isolate themselves from other and sit in a corner lost in their own thoughts. They do not respond to the social interaction. This even gives an impression that they are mute or deaf.

Lack of Speech

The autism is a disorder which can be seen in the children. They do not speak a word till they are 16 months old. They do not speak even small sentences till they are 3 and they simply do not smile. They even fail to move their faces or even respond when their names are called out by their parents and the family. They get very irritated when exposed to sharp light or loud sounds. They tend to weep profusely if exposed to these conditions. They do tend to injure themselves when cuddled or hugged. They are hyper sensitive towards the touch. These are sure shot symptoms of the children with autism.

No Smiles, No Laughs

They do not respond to the social communication and do not interpret humor. They do not smile of laugh. These children are not deaf or mute. It is just that that they do not understand how to respond to the social communication. The rate of growth in the autistic kids is very alarming. The increase in the pollution is suspected to growth of the rate of autistic children.

Repetitive Physical Actions

These kids do repetitive physical actions like flapping their arms or running around in circles. They tend to walk on their toes and tend to bang their heads on the floor. They do not have proper body equilibrium and often end up injuring themselves. But they resort to isolation most of the time and will not react to the happenings around them. They fail to empathize when something serious is told to them and they fail to even recognize humor.

Medication Options

The earlier detection of the disorder in the children would be the best thing to happen to these types of kids. They can be diagnosed and introduced to medication or a series of medication. Many parents prefer to give herbal treatments to their kids. This reduces the risks of side effects in the children. There are body massages meant to help these kids. Many medicines like anti depressants or anti anxiety will stabilize the kids in the volatile situations. Most of the medicines introduced are meant to stabilize the condition rather than permanent cure. Proper parenting and affection is a vital ingredient to help the kids cope with their disability.

Other Help

There are special schools and therapies to help these kinds of children to be more confident and understand the social interaction much better. It is better than subjecting these kids to excessive medication. All the medication given to the children has to be strictly with doctor’s prescription and has to be given only in proper dosages.

There are a quite number of ways to see the physical characteristics of Autism in children. The autistic kids do not say a single word till they are 16 months old. They do not say combined words or for small sentences till they are 2 years old. They do not even respond when their names are called by their parents. They do not prefer to be cuddled since they tend to get physically hurt in this process. They do not take interest in toys like the other kids.

The autistic kids do not like to be exposed to bright lights of loud sounds. They get very irritated by it and tend to cry profusely. They just like to sit in a corner and get lost in their own thoughts. They do not want to be interrupted. They could take a object of their own obsession and keep staring at it. They also like to arrange their things in a particular pattern of their choice and would react violently if anyone disturbs their pattern.

The autistic kids like to do repeated physical actions like flapping their hands or repeating some words or sentences. They do not have a proper body balance and like walk on their toes. They sometimes even run in circles. Most of the time they tend to hurt themselves by doing this. They do not appreciate socializing since they are unaware on how to react to the social stimulus. They do not like being touched and would get physically hurt easily.

They look normal like any other people but they react in a way which not natural. They might have good IQ and would excel in their field. They can go on and on about the topic of their interests and would not like it if they are interrupted. Their habit of monologue would normally bore their listeners.

The people with autism are very normal in their appearance but they have the habit of repeating their normal life actions. They would prefer to eat the same type of food every time and even try and wear the same type of cloths. They normal life patterns almost result in become cycles of their lives.

However, we get see a lot of examples where people have learnt to cope up with this disorder and then go on to become famous in their life in their won fields. Proper parenting and understanding these kids and giving them proper medication at the right time is an absolute essential aspect to make this happen.

They normally take interests in some topics and would like to indulge in monologues on those topics. They show clear irritation if they are interrupted in the process of their monologues. They tend to get boring because they do not really appreciate social interactions. They are unable to concentrate and take a lot of information at one stretch. They tend to break down when subjected to focus on certain information for a long time.

In spite of the fact that the patients with high functioning Autism look normal, it is pretty evident that they will need to take some professional help to keep themselves stabilized during the moments of volatile state of mind.

The child with high functioning Autism normally shows interests in certain things and will be persistent that others will need to listen to their interests and accept their point of view. In simple words, they have strong points of interests and yet they have a narrow sense when it comes to accepting external inputs on those interests. They are totally mindset with their beliefs and will not expect or agree someone to contradict them. They give a feeling that they have blocked their mind from any new inputs and will strongly oppose it. This make them totally not accepted socially and also the other way round. They will sound totally unreasonable most of the times.

They would even adopt anti social behaviors like sneering or spitting when it comes to not agreeing to their point of view. Now again it is difficult to interpret this disorder and recognize if the person is abnormal or not with these behaviors since they look and behave normal otherwise.

It is obvious that they have strong interests in various topics but they become very unreasonable when it comes to disusing them. They will go on and on about their interests even if it means that the listener is bored of listening to them. It makes it sound like they are very adamant about their false beliefs at times.

There has been seen a significant increase in the autism effected people in fields which require higher scientific specializations. They look very normal in their appearance. People with high functioning Autism normally complain that the others are not behaving like they want them to behave which leads to poor social skills.

Though some believe that the high functioning Autism is genetic disorder, there hasn’t been substantial proof or family history to show there were disorders.

There are many special school, institutions and therapies that could give the kids more confidence to go on and lead a normal life in the future. The earlier detection of the disorder in the kids can make it happen. The autistic kids do posses a good IQ level. It is sometimes even better than the normal people. There are people who have gone on to become famous in their lives in various fields who had shown autistic traits in their childhood. Thomas Alva Edison and Albert Einstein are the classic examples of these cases. These are the people who have made scientific breakthroughs which have immensely helped the mankind. These are great people and the teachings they have given us is still the base for all the technological developments of the modern day.

Isaac Newton and Alexander Graham Bell are also the all time greats to have shown the autistic traits in their early years. The Laws of Newton are the rule of the thumb to all the people specializing in physics even today. The discovery of telephone by Alexander Graham Bell is one of the most important communication devices to most of the people in this world.

It is not just that the autistic people have ruled the scientific world. There are immensely talented people like Woody Allen and Keanu Reeves who had experienced milder version of Autism in their childhood days. Even huge industrialists like Bill Gates and Henry Ford had overcome autism or learnt to cope with it and made a huge contribution to this world. Microsoft is one of the biggest organizations which rule the information technology today.

There are many authors and actors and lot of people in various fields who have gone on to become famous. The list could go on and on.

This is good news to the autistic people who would want to go on and lead normal lives in their futures. Autism needn’t mean end of the world to them. It would require them to put in lot of efforts with the help of their families and friends and overcome autistic disorders in their lives. Medication with proper prescriptions and proper dosage along with proper therapies and massages can help the people overcome or cope up with the disorders and go on to lead their normal lives.

Autism is a neurological disorder or you can call it a developmental disability which starts from the age three. The reason for it being call neurological disorder is because it has somehow damaged the function of the brain, due to that a child with autism faces many problems like unable to respond to situations, communication problems and so on.

Asperger syndrome is one of the milder autism spectrum disorders (ASD) or pervasive developmental disorders (PDD). It is characterized by psychological abnormalities which normally effect the social interaction with people. However, the disorders affect each individual in a different manner. They do not react to the disorder in the same manner. It could be a baby would have difficulty in expressing things and we could find it difficult to understand what the child is trying to say. In some cases the baby will be totally isolated in its own thoughts and will not react to our communication. I some cases the child wouldn’t simply smile or laugh.

The world is experiencing the increase in autism at an alarming rate and the percentage is increasing at a shocking rate of more than 10% every year. The studies show that boys are more likely to be affected by Autism than the girls. The medications so far are more like mood stabilizing rather than a permanent kind of cure.

Obviously the reaction should by the affected children is almost unique with the challenges they face with this illness. It is rather a difference rather than a disorder since they would look normal yet the behavioral changes will be felt by the ones near them.

If you think that the you kid is different from the other kids in terms of response to normal stimulus or in terms of social interaction, it would be best advisable to seek professional help. There is no specific cure as such for the Asperger syndrome. However, proper treatment can really show some significant improvements in the behaviors.

According to few studies, there could be external influences like pollution and digestive issues which could trigger the disorder in children. There are some medications involved to stabilize the disorder to some extent. However, there are no complete cures and they will give a temporary relief when the situation looks like it could get out of hand. This treatment could prove decisive at that particular moment since more that finding the cause, the primary requirement would be to stabilize the child.

A lot of traditional and herbal cures are advertised to help the child with mood stabilization and to overcome the moments when it would be unbearable for the kid to handle the disorder. The herbal medicines are predicted to have lesser side effects than the modern day medicine in this case like in many others.

There could be violent reactions shown by the children like screaming and kicking which the parents will find it difficult to handle. It would be best to consult a doctor than to brush it aside thinking that the situation could get better on its own.