The Causes of Autism and can it be cured? - Serious discussion.

[ulsterscotsman]

I would actually like to hear your opinions on this.
To be honest seeing low functioning Autistic people really does kill me inside and I have nothing but respect for the parents that go out of their way to look after them for the rest of their lives.
but at the same time the parents won't live forever and their kid will never have a normal life but be totally dependent on them which is really tragic.
There has to be something that causes autism and there has to be some way in which it can be prevented, treated or even cured.

 

[edward viii]

Advanced maternal age is the cause of it

 

[Woodcutting bot]

Advanced maternal age is the cause of it

This^ There's a correlation between the age of the parents when the kid was conceived, and defects such as 'tism and 'tardation.

There has to be something that causes autism and there has to be some way in which it can be prevented, treated or even cured.

If you want to lower your chances of having a tard baby, you need to have kids while you're young. Having kids in the teens and early twenties has been the norm for all of history, but now (in the west and affluent east) it's normal for people to leave having kids until 30+.

 

[The Great Chandler]

Chris being born to mid-aged parents increased his likelihood of having autism. However, considering the broad diagnoses of autism and it's severity, I'd say it's really because his parents kept him shut in more often.

 

[Mariposa Electrique]

I would actually like to hear your opinions on this.
To be honest seeing low functioning Autistic people reall does kill me inside and I have nothing but respect for the parents that go out of their way to look after them for the rest of their lives.
but at the same time the parents won't live forever and their kid will never have a normal life but be totally dependent on them which is really tragic.
There has to be something that causes autism and there has to be some way in which it can be prevented, treated or even cured.

Neurological disorders are very difficult to treat, and I can imagine they're even more difficult to cure. There could be a functional aspect to people with slight Asperger's because they've contributed so much, which means that specific form of autism could be an advantageous genetic mutation. However, everything below that on the spectrum is obviously caused by bad or aging DNA. There are some cool new treatments like Oxytocin and Deep Brain Stimulation, but they don't work for most.

 

[ICametoLurk]

It can be cured, with Bleach Enemas.

 

[melty]

This^ There's a correlation between the age of the parents when the kid was conceived, and defects such as 'tism and 'tardation.

If you want to lower your chances of having a tard baby, you need to have kids while you're young. Having kids in the teens and early twenties has been the norm for all of history, but now (in the west and affluent east) it's normal for people to leave having kids until 30+.

Autism has been linked to teen mothers and advanced paternal age though. Idk about maternal age.

 

[Zarkov]

Stay away from vaccines, they give autism.

 

[Malodorous Merkin]

The leading cause of autism is autistics.

 

[The real Sinterklaas]

I think Autism is also a genetic disorder, so advanced age doesn't even have to do anything with it. Though obviously have a child at an older age is not going to help the situation in anyway.

Autism as I understand is when a person brain is "wired" differently from your average person. I guess it could be counted as a birth defect. Considering doctors can see when a child has down syndrome during the pregnancy. This would mean that when children are conceived they're determined to autistic. So the only way the "cure" would be to prevent the conception of autistic children. Obviously that isn't going to help autistic people who are already alive though.

 

[Y2K Baby]

It's unlikely a neurodevelopmental disorder can be "cured" (unless we somehow develop cyberpunk-esque technology) unless you mean very early prevention/treatment. Imagine anything that could cause a birth defect- most of those are connected to autism including it being partially hereditary. Avoiding those things is one way to prevent it and it's likely we'll be able to treat it much better just as time goes on. There are a ton of medications approved of treating symptoms of autism, that's really their (alongside people with a ton of other disorders) best shot.

I think Autism is also a genetic disorder, so advanced age doesn't even have to do anything with it. Though obviously have a child at an older age is not going to help the situation in anyway.

Autism as I understand is when a person brain is "wired" differently from your average person. I guess it could be counted as a birth defect. Considering doctors can see when a child has down syndrome during the pregnancy. This would mean that when children are conceived they're determined to autistic. So the only way the "cure" would be to prevent the conception of autistic children. Obviously that isn't going to help autistic people who are already alive though.

Lol, don't murder autismal babbus. They're far more useful than Downies have ever been.

 

[The real Sinterklaas]

Lol, don't murder autismal babbus. They're far more useful than Downies have ever been.

At least with Downies you'll know that they'll be useless (not all of them but in general). Unlike the autistic people who could show potential during childhood, but then after high school start doing nothing aside from living off tax payer money.

 

[Y2K Baby]

At least with Downies you'll know that they'll be useless (not all of them but in general). Unlike the autistic people who could show potential during childhood, but then after high school start doing nothing aside from living off tax payer money.

There are easy ways for both people with autism and Down's syndrome to have happy and productive lives, either through relationships or dedicating themselves to a craft or field. Saying that they have a chance of dooming your life is kind of a shitty attitude to me tbh.

 

[The real Sinterklaas]

There are easy ways for both people with autism and Down's syndrome to have happy and productive lives, either through relationships or dedicating themselves to a craft or field. Saying that they have a chance of dooming your life is kind of a shitty attitude to me tbh.

Oh I didn't mean to come over that way. I know plenty of people with autistic kids who actually have a productive life and there are plenty of people with down syndrome who work in the in restaurants or hotels. I was more speaking about the type of autistic people that get mentioned on these forums. Sorry if I came over as a shitty person.

 

[Johnny Bravo]

I don't know if autism can be cured. Prevented? Probably, but we're not there yet.

Honestly, I don't know if preventing neurological disorders entirely is ethical. Having some eccentric personalities keeps societies healthy. On the other hand, there are people born so mentally damaged that they barely function in society at all. I recall a documentary several years ago about a girl born with severe schizophrenia. I think it would be best if people who are born with these disorders could choose to be cured of them as adults, when they can make an informed decision about how it impacts their quality of life, but that may not be scientifically feasible.

 

[Mysterious Capitalist]

It's a genetic disorder, just like Down Syndrome. So it can be cured with genetic therapy when the one suffering it is a fetus or a recently fertilized egg cell.

I've heard that CRISPR will probably help solve this kind of issues in general (finger crossed for actual transhumanism during my lifetime)

 

[Wallace]

Saying that autism is a genetic disorder is an oversimplification, since multiple genes have been implicated in autism, and they all have low penetrance. So, deficiency in one or two genes in question won't automatically make someone autistic.

IMO, while there is some genetic factor to it, I think that the major culprit is lack of socialization at a young age (<6 months), especially since socialization therapy at young ages is the best treatment we have right now. We learn our social cues and rules from observing interactions with other people, and the brains of infants are surprisingly good at this. Too many parents use the TV as a surrogate babysitter; without actual human contact, the infant brain can't develop the skills it needs.

 

[Tartarus Sauce]

Saying that autism is a genetic disorder is an oversimplification, since multiple genes have been implicated in autism, and they all have low penetrance. So, deficiency in one or two genes in question won't automatically make someone autistic.

IMO, while there is some genetic factor to it, I think that the major culprit is lack of socialization at a young age (<6 months), especially since socialization therapy at young ages is the best treatment we have right now. We learn our social cues and rules from observing interactions with other people, and the brains of infants are surprisingly good at this. Too many parents use the TV as a surrogate babysitter; without actual human contact, the infant brain can't develop the skills it needs.

You hit the nail on the head for what I've seen. Just about all the autistics I've encountered grew up as only children and/ore were very sheltered, by the schools are well as parents. The anti bullying campaigns in schools are mostly for good, I'm sure, but as you said, kids learn from their peers and sometimes that means being ignored or teased until they learn to adapt socially. Maybe autistic tendencies have been amplified recently by how coddled children have been.

 

[escapegoat]

I think most of the time it's genetic, and I don't think it can be cured. What people don't seem to get is that is it diagnosed by psychological criterion--it's done via behavioral assessment. So any given cluster of genetic fuck ups can produce a cluster of symptoms. There isn't a single Autism. There are many different genetic variations that result in outcomes that get labeled Autism. Basically, ASD is our catchall for various ways human dna can be fucked up, that generally results in the same KINDS of disabilities and delays. (More, if you are actually interested: https://www.wired.com/2014/11/autism-genetics/)

I also think that it's evolutionary adaptive, and occasionally beneficial, and more easily coped with by females which is why it persists.

I don't know if I believe there are more autistic kids born today. I tend to think that more of them survive infancy. In olden times, if you were only willing or able to eat chicken nuggets, and would literally starve to death if you didn't have them, then your ass starved to death. There are loads of stories about babies and small toddlers that just up and stopped eating. Wasting diseases, failure to thrive, wandering out onto the fjords, "changelings." And just general neglect of anyone who could not pull their own weight.

 

[Jaimas]

Saying that autism is a genetic disorder is an oversimplification, since multiple genes have been implicated in autism, and they all have low penetrance. So, deficiency in one or two genes in question won't automatically make someone autistic.

IMO, while there is some genetic factor to it, I think that the major culprit is lack of socialization at a young age (<6 months), especially since socialization therapy at young ages is the best treatment we have right now. We learn our social cues and rules from observing interactions with other people, and the brains of infants are surprisingly good at this. Too many parents use the TV as a surrogate babysitter; without actual human contact, the infant brain can't develop the skills it needs.

This, plus a massive increase in actual diagnosis numbers due to a broadening of the spectrum.