Autism epidemic

Some of you may know that our eldest son, Alex, lives with a number of difficult challenges. One of them is prosopagnosia, which is often a symptom of autism spectrum challenges. What you may not know is that there is an epidemic of autism. New studies out of California, for instance, note the following:

“The California Department of Developmental Services (DDS) reports that during the first 3 months of 2007, 886 children were diagnosed with DSM IV autism. Of 1,570 intakes, 886 (56%) were new autism cases. This represents the second highest number of new autism cases in the 38 year history of the California Department of Developmental Services.

Note: This does not include children diagnosed with PDD, NOS, Asperger’s Syndrome or other autism spectrum disorders.

In the 16 years between 1971 through 1987, California had a caseload of approximately 2,700 persons with autism. During the past nine months, from July 2006 to April 2007, California added roughly 2,700 new cases of autism.

Twenty years ago, 2,700 persons with autism were in the system. Today, nearly 34,000 persons with autism are in the system. Here are some facts about these individuals:

• 92% were born after 1980
• 84% are under age 21
• 78% are under age 18”

This report came to me courtesy of Wright’s Law, which is an excellent legal resource for parents of kids with disabilities. They also have great links to resources about autism spectrum disorders.

There are all sorts of avenues being pursued to figure out the cause of the epidemic (some of the more promising research includes looking at environmental toxins like mercury), but regardless of the cause, the implications of this surge are huge. Living and loving someone who is “on the spectrum” is a very difficult process, and there are very few support mechanisms out there. Religious communities ought to be at the forefront of such support and love, but in my experience they’re often the last place I turn to for understanding, let alone concrete help. (And I’m a “professional” religion person!)

We need to start talking openly and clearly with each other about the challenges our loved ones face, and find ways to integrate all people into our communities of support and love.