A firework, a story of Autism

Check out this video about Jodi and her family and how far she has come since she was diagnosed with Autism at age 2.
http://popcrush.com/katy-perry-duet-girl-autism/

Repost: Early Cues to Autism

Because we know that early intervention can help decrease the symptoms of Autism and can help parents interact with their children in ways that improve the child's communication and social behavior, researchers have been looking for early signs that may indicate Autism. Autism does run in families so the siblings of Autistic children have been studied in comparison to children from families without an autistic child. One early indication is that most children respond to their name (or nickname) by the age of 12 months. Children who later are diagnosed with autism do not. Now new research indicates that there are difference in non-verbal communication from as early as 8 months of age. I am posting the link to an article regarding the study. This article will link you to the full study. The important thing is to communicate with your baby and to respond to his or her communication to you. Here is the link:

http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2012/10/19/early-nonverbal-cues-autism-risk

Autism research

Among the blogs I follow is autismspeaks. This article from that blog points to research regarding the risk factor of pesticide poisoning. While it is not a clear cause of autism, there is some evidence that pesticide exposure, coupled with a genetic predispositon, may play a role is the autism epidemic that is present today. The article provides links to other research on risk factors. The article is clear and easy to understand and points to some interesting possibilities.


http://www.autismspeaks.org/blog/2012/07/27/pesticide-exposure-and-risk-autism