School may be out for the summer, but the Oregon-Davis School Corporation is bustling with activities. Superintendent Dr. Don Harman says there are a lot of great programs going on.
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Today is National Autism Awareness Day.
Autism rates have skyrocketed with one in 88 children falling on the autism spectrum. This study comes as a professional group is considering changing the diagnosis criteria, which could bring another overhaul of the statistics related to autism.
A study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention journal, found that one in 88 eight-year-olds in 2008 were diagnosed with autism, a 23 percent increase from 2006.
Experts remain divided on the cause of the increase. Some say it stems from better surveillance and diagnosis. Others point to environmental factors.
Autism Speaks, a national advocacy and research funding agency, said the figures mean the U.S. needs to take immediate action to help families and children on the spectrum and invest in research to help explain why the numbers are rising so rapidly.
To be diagnosed with autism, a child must have deficits in three areas: communication, social skills and the ability to shift focus.
This is Autism Awareness Month and Linda Trent of Toto has been guiding us through the world of autism. She is the grandmother of two autistic grandchildren.
Linda says the thing that parents and autistic children mostly need is help and support.
“If you do know somebody that has autistic children, offer to help because it’s difficult,” explained Trent. “In the case of my daughter, she has a sister and me and that’s about all the help she has. Now that I have my oldest grandson going into high school, I’ve had the sad fact of seeing people drop them as friends because they can’t take a child that’s making a lot of noise or they won’t overlook a quirk or something. We all have quirks and it’s not something the child can help. It’s sad, but sometimes they do recognize that they’re different.”
April is Autism Awareness Month and we have been discussing the disease this week with Linda Trent of Toto who is the grandmother of two autistic grandchildren.
We asked Linda Trent if autistic children can usually develop enough living skills to live on their own, or work as adults.
April is Autism Awareness Month and Linda Trent, who lives near Toto, is the grandmother of two grandsons who have been diagnosed with autism.
Although little is known about the care of autism, it is known that it affects information that is processed in the brain. Signs of the disease usually show up in a child between the ages of two and three, although some children regress into the disease as they get a little older.
Trent says that people have a hard time being around an autistic child.
“A lot of times when people see a child acting up they think, ‘Somebody should do something about that brat’, said Trent. “That brat isn’t a brat. That child can not help the activities they’re doing. Whether it’s clapping their hands or tapping on things, or making odd noises, they cannot help it. They need a lot of help in school. Many of them have a para-pro to assist them through the school system. It’s difficult for them because many of them don’t like to feel certain fabrics or certain sounds, or even smells. They might act up when things bother them. They might not hug you if you have that hair spray or cologne on. It might upset them.”
It’s not known if the disease is diagnosed more readily than in past eras, or if more children are born with a propensity for developing into an autistic child.
“We have one in every 110 children who are diagnosed as autistic,” said Trent. “It’s four times more common in boys. If you have an autistic sibling, you’re four times more likely to be autistic. It’s just growing in numbers. Cases of autism surpasses children that have AIDS, cancer and diabetes combined.”
Tomorrow we’ll explore whether vaccinations have anything to do with autism.
