Category: Autism

South Australian Labor Party Unveils Autism Strategy for Public Schools

South Australian (SA) Labor Leader Peter Malinauskas has promised to implement a new autism strategy for public schools and pre-schools if he is elected Premier in Saturday’s state election. The dedicated strategy for children on the autism spectrum will focus on specialist teachers and early intervention. Labor would invest $17.15 million (US$12.42 million) to appoint…


Growth Through Friendship and Support

Fifth grade was the first time students were introduced to band in the school where I taught, and I could usually count on about 85 percent of the class signing up to play an instrument. On Fridays, right before recess and lunch, all of these excited band members went to band while the rest of…


Japanese Study Shows ‘Significant Association’ Between Screen Time and Autism in Boys

Research conducted by the University of Yamanashi in Japan indicates a “significant association” between longer screentime for boys at one year of age and being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) when they are three years old. The research team, led by Megumi Kushima encouraged a review of the health effects of screen time on…


Microsculpture Artist Uses Microscope to Carve Unbelievably Tiny Birds, Beasts, Buildings Smaller Than Pinhead

Making a piece of art smaller than a pinhead is a lot like life itself. Just ask microsculpture artist Marie Cohydon, 50, whose miniaturized creations taught her “to avoid believing that you have absolute control of the situation”—especially being the mother of an autistic child. “I had to deal with my son’s autism, an ordeal for…


9-Year-Old Boy’s Autistic Kid Brother Can’t Talk, So Older Boy Codes a New App to Help Him Explain Himself

Boredom during the pandemic was the impetus for one 9-year-old’s learning how to build a new app—one that could help his nonverbal, autistic brother communicate with the world. Sean Porter from Southport, UK, learned how to code from his dad, Liam, who owns a cleaning business but was left idling during the pandemic and decided to…


This Disease Has Soared 28x Since the 1960s, but Why?

In the mid-1960s, the autism rate was 1 in 10,000. By 2012, it had risen to 1 in 88, then 1 in 68 as of 2016, and now, we’re looking at an autism rate of 1 in 44 8-year-olds, although rates vary widely from state to state.4 In California, where incidence is the highest, 1 in 26 8-year-olds…


Autistic Boy Never Spoke a Word or Showed Emotion—Until Parents Got a Cocker Spaniel Best Friend for Life

A 5-year-old boy from the UK who was born with autism never showed any emotion nor spoke a single word until his parents, by happenstance, found him a four-legged best friend for life. Parents Hayley and Karsten Kirby-Bulner, from Andover, Hampshire, never intended for Fern the cocker spaniel to be their son Leon’s dog; it…


Autism Rates Continue to Climb

The autism rate among 8-year-old children in the United States is one in 44, according to a new report. Researchers used a new method to estimate the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) among children of various ages at 11 sites in 2018. The rate of one in 44 among 8-year-olds is the highest estimate…


1 in 44 US Children Have Autism, New Data Indicates

The number of children diagnosed with autism in the United States is continuing to rise, according to a pair of new reports published this week. An analysis of surveillance data from 11 states, researchers found, shows one in 44 children aged 8 years have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder or have received a special education…


The Abortion–Autism Link—An Unconsented Risk

Commentary  For several decades, the incidence of childhood autism has been growing at an alarming rate in North America, and elsewhere around the world. Autism is a hugely expensive mental malady that also causes much stress within families and has led in some cases to parents divorcing. Can anything be done to reduce the risk…