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Spectrum: Autism Research News

Tag: environment

May 2020

Environmental factors unlikely to account for rise in autism prevalence

by  /  18 May 2020

The relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to autism have held steady over multiple decades, according to a large twin study.

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January 2020
stork flying with an alarm clock, dice and a crescent moon

The link between parental age and autism, explained

by  /  28 January 2020

Older men and women are more likely than young ones to have a child with autism, but this connection is not straightforward.

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Teenage girl with headache

Autistic people have increased incidence of neurological problems

by  /  23 January 2020

People with autism have more brain-related health problems, such as headaches and epilepsy, than typical people do.

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Two twin girls wearing blue kneeling down on the ground.

Early life experiences may shift severity of autism

by  /  17 January 2020

A child’s environment exerts a strong influence on the severity of her autism, a study of identical twins suggests.

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Young man in textured space, environmental factors and genes swarm in and around him

Autism heritability: It probably does not mean what you think it means

by  /  7 January 2020

The question of autism’s heritability is compelling for researchers and laypeople alike, but many people in both groups misunderstand its definition.

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December 2019
Illustration shows fetus with molecules interacting inside the mother's belly

In defense of sex steroids’ role in autism

by ,  /  12 December 2019

Multiple independent studies are revealing evidence suggesting that sex steroids are important in autism.

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unsafe behavior in autistic young people

Many young autistic people harm themselves, others

by  /  11 December 2019

Nearly one-third of autistic young people put themselves or others in danger in any given three-month period.

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November 2019

Acetaminophen use in pregnancy linked to autism, attention deficit in children

by  /  28 November 2019

Pregnant women’s use of acetaminophen may increase the odds of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in their children.

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Woman doing yoga on grass field

Vitamin D linked to lowered autism risk in large study

by  /  20 November 2019

Children born with high blood levels of vitamin D have 25 percent decreased odds of autism compared with those born with low levels.

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October 2019
red beating heart, in see-through person

Getting at the heart of autism

by  /  9 October 2019

Cardiac activity could reveal autism’s physiology and confirm a hunch many clinicians share: that people with autism experience great stress.

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