Pycnogenol could soothe ADHD symptoms

A soon-to-be published study has linked French maritime pine bark ingredient Pycnogenol to balancing stress hormones, in turn diminishing symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.The research, set to be published in an upcoming issue of Nutritional Neuroscience, builds on previous studies linking the antioxidant ingredient to abating a host of conditions.

The present study showed Pycnogenol lowered adrenaline by 26.2 percent and the neurostimulant dopamine by 10.8 percent.These hormones and stimulants affect processes and actions such as learning, cognition, attention and behaviour. Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) have difficulty controlling their behavior and paying attention in the classroom. "The findings of this study demonstrate a significant stress hormone lowering effect for a nutritional supplement for the first time," said Dr. Peter Rohdewald from the Institute of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Germany's University of Munster and one of the authors of the study.

The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that between three and five percent of children have ADHD, or approximately two million children in the US."Pycnogenol's ability to naturally treat symptoms of ADHD is what makes this extract exceptionally pleasing to parents who may be uneasy about medicating their children with stimulant medications," said Dr. Rohdewald.The study sampled 57 ADHD outpatients at an average age of 9.5 years, at the Department of Child Psychology in Slovakia's Children's University Hospital. Researchers measured the children's urine and blood samples.Forty-one patients received branded Pycnogenol and 16 received placebo. The participants were not given any other drugs or dietary supplements. The Pycnogenol group received one mg of the pine bark substance or placebo for every kilogram of their body weight, on a daily basis each morning, for one month. Stress hormones levels were extrapolated from urine samples taken before and after administering Pycnogenol or the placebo for a one-month period.

After a one-month discontinuation of treatment, a third urine sample was taken - revealing ADHD symptoms had recurred and stress hormone levels had again increased. Pycnogenol has been the pioneer branded ingredient in the pine bark category and is made exclusively by Horphag Research in France. The product is extracted from the bark of the Maritime pine that grows on the southern coast of France, and is currently used in over 400 dietary supplements, multi-vitamins and health products.Natural Health Science in Hoboken, New Jersey, is the North American distributor for Pycnogenol.The list of health conditions with symptoms that could be diminished by the pine bark extract includes hypertension, menopause, asthma, chronic venous insufficiency, osteoarthtitis, deep vein thrombosis, diabetes management and diabetic leg ulcers.

New study shows half of children with autism can be accurately diagnosed at close to 1 year of age

In a study published today in the Archives of General Psychiatry, researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore, Maryland found that autism can be diagnosed at close to one year of age, which is the earliest the disorder has ever been diagnosed. The study, which evaluated social and communication development in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) from 14 to 36 months of age, revealed that approximately half of all children with autism can be diagnosed around the first birthday.

The remaining half will be diagnosed later, and their development may unfold very differently than children whose ASD is diagnosable around the first birthday. Early diagnosis of the disorder allows for early intervention, which can make a major difference in helping children with autism reach their full potential.

Researchers examined social and communication development in infants at high and low risk for ASD starting at 14 months of age and ending at 30 or 36 months (a small minority of the children exited the study at 30 months). Half of the children with a final diagnosis of ASD made at 30 or 36 months of age had been diagnosed with the disorder at 14 months, and the other half were diagnosed after 14 months. Through repeated observation and the use of standardized tests of development, researchers identified, for the first time, disruptions in social, communication and play development that were indicative of ASD in 14-month olds. Multiple signs indicating these developmental disruptions appear simultaneously in children with the disorder.

Dr. Rebecca Landa, lead study author and director of Kennedy Krieger's Center for Autism and Related Disorders, and her colleagues identified the following signs of developmental disruptions for which parents and pediatricians should be watching:

-Abnormalities in initiating communication with others: Rather than requesting help to open a jar of bubbles through gestures and vocalizations paired with eye contact, a child with ASD may struggle to open it themselves or fuss, often without looking at the nearby person.

-Compromised ability to initiate and respond to opportunities to share experiences with others: Children with ASD infrequently monitor other people's focus of attention. Therefore, a child with ASD will miss cues that are important for shared engagement with others, and miss opportunities for learning as well as for initiating communication about a shared topic of interest. For example, if a parent looks at a stuffed animal across the room, the child with ASD often does not follow the gaze and also look at the stuffed animal. Nor does this child often initiate communication with others. In contrast, children with typical development would observe the parent's shift in gaze, look at the same object, and share in an exchange with the parent about the object of mutual focus. During engagement, children have many prolonged opportunities to learn new words and new ways to play with toys while having an emotionally satisfying experience with their parent.

-Irregularities when playing with toys: Instead of using a toy as it is meant to be used, such as picking up a toy fork and pretending to eat with it, children with ASD may repeatedly pick the fork up and drop it down, tap it on the table, or perform another unusual act with the toy.

-Significantly reduced variety of sounds, words and gestures used to communicate: Compared to typically developing children, children with ASD have a much smaller inventory of sounds, words and gestures that they use to communicate with others.

"For a toddler with autism, only a limited set of circumstances - like when they see a favorite toy, or when they are tossed in the air - will lead to fleeting social engagement," said Landa. "The fact that we can identify this at such a young age is extremely exciting, because it gives us an opportunity to diagnose children with ASD very early on when intervention may have a great impact on development."

The current study reveals that autism often involves a progression, with the disorder claiming or presenting itself between 14 and 24 months of age. Some children with only mild delays at 14 months of age could go on to be diagnosed with ASD. Landa and her colleagues observed distinct differences in the developmental paths, or trajectories, of children with early versus later diagnosis of ASD. While some children developed very slowly and displayed social and communication abnormalities associated with ASD at 14 months of age, others showed only mild delays with a gradual onset of autism symptoms, culminating in the diagnosis of ASD by 36 months.

If parents suspect something is wrong with their child's development, or that their child is losing skills during their first few years of life, they should talk to their pediatrician or another developmental expert. This and other autism studies suggest that the "wait and see" method, which is often recommended to concerned parents, could lead to missed opportunities for early intervention during this time period.

"What's most exciting about these important advancements in autism diagnosis is that ongoing intervention research leads us to believe it is most effective and least costly when provided to younger children," said Dr. Gary Goldstein, President and CEO of the Kennedy Krieger Institute. "When a child goes undiagnosed until five or six years old, there is a tremendous loss of potential for intervention that can make a marked difference in that child's outcome."

While there are currently no standardized, published criteria for diagnosing children with autism at or around one year of age, Landa's goal is to develop these criteria based on this and other autism studies currently underway at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Landa and her colleagues at the Institute plan on releasing preliminary diagnostic criteria for very young children with autism in an upcoming report.

Participants in the current study included infants at high risk for ASD (siblings of children with autism, n=107) and low risk for ASD (no family history of autism, n=18). Standardized tests of development and play-based assessment tools were used to evaluate social interaction, communication and play behaviors in both groups at 14, 18 and 24 months of age. Researchers assigned diagnostic impressions at every age, indicating whether there were clinically significant signs of delay or impairment. After their last evaluation at 30 or 36 months, each participant was then given a final diagnostic classification of ASD, non-ASD impairment, or no impairment. The ASD group was further divided into an Early ASD diagnosis group and a Later ASD diagnosis group based on whether they were given a diagnosis of.

Autism: It's Not Just in the Head

The devastating derangements of autism also show up in the gut and in the immune system. That unexpected discovery is sparking new treatments that target the body in addition to the brain.by Jill Neimark -->
“There were days I considered shutting the garage door and letting the car run until I was dead,” says Colorado mom Erin Griffin, of the time nine years ago when she learned that both her boys—not just her firstborn—suffered from autism. Brendan, her angular, dark-haired older child, was diagnosed in 1996 at age 4. Kyle, her round-faced, hazel-eyed younger son, was diagnosed in 1998 at age 2½.

But Kyle and Brendan’s story does not have a tragic ending. After interventions that included occupational and speech therapy, as well as dietary change and nutritional supplements, both boys improved significantly. Their tale of slow, steady recovery reflects the changing landscape of autism today. The condition, traditionally seen as genetic and originating in the brain, is starting to be viewed in a broader and very different light, as a possible immune and neuroinflammatory disorder. As a result, autism is beginning to look like a condition that can, in some and perhaps many cases, be successfully treated.

That is astonishing news about a disorder that usually makes headlines because it seems to be growing rapidly more widespread. In the United States, the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders has increased about tenfold over the past two decades, and a 2003 report by the Centers for Disease Control suggests that as many as one in every 166 children is now on the autism spectrum, while another one in six suffers from a neurodevelopmental delay. This explosion of cases has raised countless questions: Is the increase real, is it the result of increased awareness and expanding diagnostic categories, is it due to environmental changes, or all of the above? There may be no single answer. But the public concern about autism has caught the ear of federal lawmakers. The Combating Autism Act, approved last December, authorized nearly $1 billion over the next four years for autism-related research and intervention.

Meanwhile, on the sidelines of that confusing discussion, a disparate group—immunologists, naturopaths, neuroscientists, and toxicologists—is turning up clues that are yielding novel strategies to help autistic patients. New studies are examining contributing factors ranging from vaccine reactions to atypical growth in the placenta, abnormal tissue in the gut, inflamed tissue in the brain, food allergies, and disturbed brain wave synchrony. Some clinicians are using genetic test results to recommend unconventional nutritional therapies, and others employ drugs to fight viruses and quell inflammation.

Above all, there is a new emphasis on the interaction between vulnerable genes and environmental triggers, along with a growing sense that low-dose, multiple toxic and infectious exposures may be a major contributing factor to autism and its related disorders. A vivid analogy is that genes load the gun, but environment pulls the trigger. “Like cancer, autism is a very complex disease,” says Craig Newschaffer, chairman of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Drexel University School of Public Health, “and it’s exciting to start asking questions about the interaction between genes and environment. There’s really a very rich array of potential exposure variables.”

In one way, the field seems like a free-for-all, staggeringly disordered because it is littered with so many possibilities. But one can distill a few revolutionary insights. First, autism may not be rigidly determined but instead may be related to common gene variants, called polymorphisms, that may be derailed by environmental triggers. Second, affected genes may disturb fundamental pathways in the body and lead to chronic inflammation across the brain, immune system, and digestive system. Third, inflammation is treatable.

“I can’t think of it as a coincidence anymore that so many autistic kids have a history of allergies, eczema, or chronic diarrhea.”

“In spite of so many years of assumptions that a brain disorder like this is not treatable, we’re helping kids get better. So it can’t just be genetic, prenatal, hardwired, and hopeless,” says Harvard pediatric neurologist Martha Herbert, author of a 14,000-word paper in the journal Clinical Neuropsychiatry that reconceptualizes the universe of autism, pulling the brain down from its privileged perch as an organ isolated from the rest of the body. Herbert is well suited to this task, a synthetic thinker who wrote her dissertation on the developmental psychologist Jean Piaget and who then went to medical school late, in her early thirties.

“I no longer see autism as a disorder of the brain but as a disorder that affects the brain,” Herbert says. “It also affects the immune system and the gut. One very striking piece of evidence many of us have noticed is that when autistic children go in for certain diagnostic tests and are told not to eat or drink anything ahead of time, parents often report their child’s symptoms improve—until they start eating again after the procedure. If symptoms can improve in such a short time frame simply by avoiding exposure to foods, then we’re looking at some kind of chemically driven ‘software’—perhaps immune system signals—that can change fast. This means that at least some of autism probably comes from a kind of metabolic encephalopathy—a systemwide process that affects the brain, just like cirrhosis of the liver affects the brain.”

In 1943 Johns Hopkins University psychiatrist Leo Kanner first described autism as a now-famous collection of symptoms: poor social engagement, limited verbal and nonverbal communication, and repetitive behaviors. Back then, autism was considered rare; Kanner first reported on just 11 patients, and Johns Hopkins still has records of about 150 patients he examined in total. Even within this small group of patients, other, less visible symptoms were evident. In his 1943 paper, “Autistic Disturbances of Affective Contact,” Kanner noted immune and digestive problems but did not include them in the diagnosis. One reads with a shiver sentences lifted out of various case histories: “large and ragged tonsils . . . she was tube-fed five times daily . . . he vomited all food from birth through the third month . . . he suffered from repeated colds and otitis media. . . .”

Former Marine struggles to find a helpful hand for her gifted autistic son

By Chris Munzing

When you're a child, you often have no other advocate but Mom and Dad. They stick up for you when no one else will and make your fights their own. For a child with special needs, these struggles can seem so insurmountable that it appears that no amount of fighting will right a wrong. Luckily for James Cucek, a 22-year-old autistic man, he has a very special mother: a former U.S. Marine.

Linda Cucek lives with her husband, Stan, and her two sons, James and Brian, 23 in Mission, British Columbia. James' was diagnosed at the age of 13. Linda says she's been fighting for her son since he was misdiagnosed as having dyslexia after troubles in school. "As a mother, I was asking myself what I was doing wrong," Linda says. Having grown up in the United States, Linda assumed that the government of her adopted country would step in and provide assistance for her son. Unfortunately, she soon found out that she would be the lone soldier in the struggle to help her son and would have to take on an entire government. Once James turned 19, the Canadian government cut off his provincially funded Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) treatment, as it does when children with autism reach adulthood. Linda felt that the progress her son was making under the treatment was too valuable to just stop and that cutting it off would do irreparable harm.

The struggle against the government has often been an uphill one. In July 2005, the Cucek family received a letter from a social worker from the Ministry of Children and Families, according to an article in the Abbotsford Times. The letter told Linda that it was time to give up on getting any treatment for James that he hadn't already received. What surprised Linda was the letter's suggestion that if she was unsatisfied with the services in Canada, she should go to the United States. "When I read that letter, I said to myself, 'I'm not going to give up on my son.' This is not just for James, but for everyone," Cucek says. "I'm fighting for all of the adults and all of the kids out there. I'm just so frustrated because the government is not giving us what we were promised. And a promise is a promise."

Cucek is concerned that James' story is not a unique one. Despite the progress made in recent years, she believes that Canada is not yet up to speed on the options available to people with autism. "The teachers here in Canada aren't trained to deal with an autistic child, so it can be a problem," she said. Children with autism "don't learn anything in school because their teachers don't know how to teach them. James' teachers thought he had dyslexia." Her struggle has captured national media attention-something she hopes will eventually annoy enough people that progress is made. "They kind of want me to shut up," she laughed. "They think everything's hunky dory, but it's not. At least now, people are starting to pay attention."

Cucek also felt that, despite the progress her son had made as a teenager, ABA wasn't going to cut it for her son as he got older. She has fought with the government ever since to have her son transitioned to Lovaas therapy, an intensive, 40-hour a week treatment plan that can cost up to $60,000 per year. ABA, she said, is a "watered-down version" of Lovaas. "I think he needs more intensive therapy," Linda said. Cucek won a small victory, however, when James was granted continued ABA treatment and modified Lovaas with an independent firm, CBI Consultants. Linda thought that this might be the answer she was looking for after years of making phone calls, writing letters, and scheduling meetings to speak with government officials. Her momentary joy was quickly replaced with skepticism for CBI.

She felt that many of the people at CBI weren't qualified to deal with her son, a charge that CBI Director Dr. Paul Malette calls "categorically untrue."CBI felt that straight Lovaas treatment would not benefit James, as it is aimed at younger children looking to catch up with their peers. In a report written by Malette, he calls Linda and Stan Cucek "pioneers seeking and advocating for innovative effective support for James," but maintains that modified ABA therapy that incorporates a few Lovaas elements would help James. "We know what we're doing; we've been doing it for 25 years," Malette says. "We've talked to Linda about what she's looking for James." Linda, however, doesn't think that CBI is in the position to be making assessments for her son. "They're not scientifically approved," Cucek said of CBI. "They're more like babysitters most of the time, to be honest. They're trying to put the burden onto Brian without giving him the proper training that he needs.

They gave him the title 'behavioral interventionist.' He works extremely well with his brother, but he needs the training. They're just not giving it to him, because they don't have the ability to." "We're working with Linda to develop an intervention model to focus on his needs as an adult," Malette says. "We're still hoping she's going to go for it. We have a high commitment to James and his entire family." James' care is currently the responsibility of his older brother, Brian, whom CBI contracted to provide James with the government-approved therapy. Brian recently received a certificate from the Gateway Society Autism Training Program, which gives Brian the necessary skills to work with his brother, something he is excited about. "I want to see my brother grow and become a better person," Brian said in an email. "By me working with him, I feel it will help James in social skills, behavior, and help him interact with people."For Linda Cucek, having Brian work with James in a professional capacity and not just as siblings is the best of both worlds.

The two brothers are only 18 months apart, and despite James' autism, the two are usually on the same page, Linda said. "Brian is very excited, he feels that he can really help his brother," she says. "Being so close in age, they've been together for a long time. Finally there will be somebody with the knowledge James' needs." When the film Rain Man was released in 1988, most people associated autism with the ability to count toothpicks, cheat at blackjack and walk around with Tom Cruise. For the vast majority of those with autism, however, the affliction came with no earth-shattering abilities. James is one of the lucky ones. In a world where people with autism can be trapped in their own worlds without the ability to communicate with others, James is verbal ("extremely verbal" his mother laughs).

He is also uniquely blessed on the piano. Since first sitting down at a piano at age 4, James has progressed light years beyond the normal pianist, often playing back compositions by ear. "He's never even had a lesson," his mother said. "He started when he was four with a toy piano we got him for Christmas. "I remember thinking, 'How could he play like this?'" Today, James composes his own music. Linda said that it is the one thing that makes her son forget that has a disability and allows him to express himself. "That's his world," she said.

The inspiration for Rain Man Kim Peek, befriended James after hearing about his story. Since they first met several years ago, Peek and his father, Fran, have encouraged the Cuceks to never stop fighting for their son. Fran encouraged them in a letter to remember his son's message: Learn to recognize and respect differences in others and treat them as you want them to treat you. With a former U.S. Marine, a loving brother, and the inspiration for an Oscar-winning movie in his corner, James Cucek has some powerful advocates in his corner. Whether he receives the treatment his family has fought so hard for or not, James is in the position to succeed. Linda hopes her training as a soldier rubs off on her son, because of the lessons it taught her. "They put you through a lot, but they teach you to never give up," she says.

Autism Speaks and Cure Autism Now Applaud Presidential Signing of the Combating Autism Act

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Dec. 19, 2006) – Leadership of Cure Autism Now and Autism Speaks, nonprofit organizations dedicated to increasing awareness of autism and raising money to fund autism research, today applauded President Bush’s signing of the landmark Combating Autism Act of 2006 (S. 843). The bill – which has the support of all major autism advocacy groups -- authorizes nearly $1 billion over the next five years to combat autism through research, screening, early detection and early intervention. The new legislation will increase federal spending on autism by at least fifty percent. It includes provisions relating to the diagnosis and treatment of persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders, and expands and intensifies biomedical research on autism, including an essential focus on possible environmental causes. Autism is now diagnosed in 1 in 166 children, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

“The Combating Autism Act represents a critical and hard-fought victory for the autism community, and yet much of the toughest work is still to come during next year’s appropriations process,” said Bob Wright, co-founder of Autism Speaks and Chairman and CEO of NBC Universal. “We must continue to be collaborative and relentless in our efforts to ensure that this historic commitment is fulfilled.”

“The campaign to enact the Combating Autism Act worked because it was bipartisan in the truest sense of the word, as our political leaders put the interests of individuals and families impacted by autism above all else,” said Jon Shestack, co-founder of Cure Autism Now. “As the prevalence of autism grows, the odds are that every American will know a family who will directly benefit from the programs and research made possible by this legislation.”

The Combating Autism Act was signed into law by President Bush this morning. The bill was sponsored by Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Christopher Dodd (D-CT). The House version was brought to the House floor by Congressman Joe Barton (R-TX), Chair of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. A companion bill was originally introduced in the House of Representatives by Congresswomen Mary Bono (R-CA) and Diana DeGette (D-CO).

About Autism
Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person’s ability to communicate and develop social relationships, and is often accompanied by extreme behavioral challenges. Autism Spectrum Disorders are diagnosed in one in 166 children in the United States, affecting four times as many boys as girls. The diagnosis of autism has increased tenfold in the last decade. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called autism a national public health crisis whose cause and cure remain unknown.

About Autism Speaks and Cure Autism Now
Autism Speaks and Cure Autism Now are dedicated to increasing awareness of the growing autism epidemic and to raising money to fund scientists who are searching for a cure. Cure Autism Now was founded in 1995 by Jonathan Shestack and Portia Iversen, parents of a child with autism. Autism Speaks was founded in February 2005 by Suzanne and Bob Wright, grandparents of a child with autism. Bob Wright is Vice Chairman and Executive Officer, General Electric, and Chairman and CEO, NBC Universal. Autism Speaks and Cure Autism Now (CAN) recently announced plans to combine operations, bringing together the two leading organizations dedicated to accelerating and funding biomedical research into the causes, prevention, treatments and cure for Autism Spectrum Disorders; to increasing awareness of the nation’s fastest-growing developmental disorder; and to advocating for the needs of affected families. Together the organizations have awarded autism research grants valued at more than 50 million dollars. To learn more about Autism Speaks, please visit www.autismspeaks.org. To learn more about Cure Autism Now, please visit www.cureautismnow.org.

Learn and understand the basic autism symptoms

Autism is a condition that affects perception, attention, interaction with others, thought, and many other vital abilities. Unfortunately, because we know so little about how the brain functions, we can't explain why autism appears or how can it be treated. The only thing we can do for autistic people is to try to help them integrate and fit in as much as possible, and to make them feel good about themselves.

The first thing that can be done in order to help an autistic person is need to discover if he/she is suffering from autism or not by checking the symptoms, because it's up to the ones around those with autism disorders to discover them due to the fact that they are not aware of their own condition and will never visit a doctor on their own. In the children's case it's up to the parents or the family to see if their son or daughter have the autism condition.

Autism is a term that covers a wide-range of disabilities, from mild to severe ones, so there aren't some specific symptoms of this so-called illness, but it is known that it affects behavior, interaction with others and communication skills, so those with problems of this kind and that present some other signs that seem to be common in autism cases are diagnosed with the autism disorder.

Here follows a list of the most encountered symptoms and signs of autism, but as mentioned before this affection does not follow a certain pattern, so don't jump to any conclusions on your own. Only a certified doctor can put an accurate diagnosis.

The first autism symptoms can be detected during the childhood, and until the child reaches the age of 3 or 4 years old the disorder is usually very visible. Adults and children that suffer from autism disorders are completely ignoring other people, they are indifferent to whatever is happening around them, they like to be alone, they reject contact and communication with others and they stare for hours at a single thing sometimes. They are living in a world of their own and they are very sensitive to sensations such as strong smells or loud noises.

Austists cannot speak right, they have problems with the language skills, so they express their needs through gestures rather than through words. Young children with autism don't like to be cuddled, tickled, or touched at all. The way they play is very different from other children's play.

The world is a strange place that they don't understand, so autistic persons need special treatment and special care, they need to be loved and protected because they are in danger all the time. For them it does not seem dangerous to cross the street when the traffic lights are red for example.

Therefore, discovering and properly diagnosing and treating autism is the first and most important step in helping those that suffer from it. So seek advice from a specialized doctor if you suspect your child or anyone else to be an autistic.

Take care
Jeff Casmer

Introduction to Symptoms of Autism

The hallmark feature of autism is impaired social interaction. Children with autism may fail to respond to their names and often avoid looking at other people. They often have difficulty interpreting tone of voice or facial expressions and do not respond to others' emotions or watch other people's faces for cues about appropriate behavior. They appear unaware of others' feelings toward them and of the negative impact of their behavior on other people.

Many children with autism engage in repetitive movements such as rocking and hair twirling, or in self-injurious behavior such as biting or head-banging. They also tend to start speaking later than other children and may refer to themselves by name instead of "I" or "me." Some speak in a sing-song voice about a narrow range of favorite topics, with little regard for the interests of the person to whom they are speaking.

People with autism often have abnormal responses to sounds, touch, or other sensory stimulation. Many show reduced sensitivity to pain. They also may be extraordinarily sensitive to other sensations. These unusual sensitivities may contribute to behavioral symptoms such as resistance to being cuddled. (Source: excerpt from Autism Fact Sheet: NINDS)

People with classical autism show three types of symptoms: impaired social interaction, problems with verbal and nonverbal communication, and unusual or severely limited activities and interests. These symptoms can vary in severity. In addition, people with autism often have abnormal responses to sounds, touch, or other sensory stimulation. Symptoms usually appear during the first three years of childhood and continue through life. (Source: excerpt from NINDS Autism Information Page: NINDS)

People with autism represent a broad spectrum of impairment, with great variability in clinical symptoms and levels of functioning. Some people with autism have normal intelligence and develop good basic language skills, while others lag intellectually and develop little or no language. (Source: excerpt from Autism Research: NIMH)

Children with autism do not follow the typical patterns of child development. In some children, hints of future problems may be apparent from birth. In most cases, the problems become more noticeable as the child slips farther behind other children the same age. Other children start off well enough. But between 18 and 36 months old, they suddenly reject people, act strangely, and lose language and social skills they had already acquired. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)

From the start, most infants are social beings. Early in life, they gaze at people, turn toward voices, endearingly grasp a finger, and even smile.

In contrast, most children with autism seem to have tremendous difficulty learning to engage in the give-and-take of everyday human interaction. Even in the first few months of life, many do not interact and they avoid eye contact. They seem to prefer being alone. They may resist attention and affection or passively accept hugs and cuddling. Later, they seldom seek comfort or respond to anger or affection. Unlike other children, they rarely become upset when the parent leaves or show pleasure when the parent returns. Parents who looked forward to the joys of cuddling, teaching, and playing with their child may feel crushed by this lack of response.

Children with autism also take longer to learn to interpret what others are thinking and feeling. Subtle social cues-whether a smile, a wink, or a grimace-may have little meaning. To a child who misses these cues, "Come here," always means the same thing, whether the speaker is smiling and extending her arms for a hug or squinting and planting her fists on her hips. Without the ability to interpret gestures and facial expressions, the social world may seem bewildering.

To compound the problem, people with autism have problems seeing things from another person's perspective. Most 5-year-olds understand that other people have different information, feelings, and goals than they have. A person with autism may lack such understanding. This inability leaves them unable to predict or understand other people's actions.

Some people with autism also tend to be physically aggressive at times, making social relationships still more difficult. Some lose control, particularly when they're in a strange or overwhelming environment, or when angry and frustrated. They are capable at times of breaking things, attacking others, or harming themselves. Alan, for example, may fall into a rage, biting and kicking when he is frustrated or angry. Paul, when tense or overwhelmed, may break a window or throw things. Others are self-destructive, banging their heads, pulling their hair, or biting their arms. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)

By age 3, most children have passed several predictable milestones on the path to learning language. One of the earliest is babbling. By the first birthday, a typical toddler says words, turns when he hears his name, points when he wants a toy, and when offered something distasteful, makes it very clear that his answer is no. By age 2, most children begin to put together sentences like "See doggie," or "More cookie," and can follow simple directions.

Research shows that about half of the children diagnosed with autism remain mute throughout their lives. Some infants who later show signs of autism do coo and babble during the first 6 months of life. But they soon stop. Although they may learn to communicate using sign language or special electronic equipment, they may never speak. Others may be delayed, developing language as late as age 5 to 8.

Those who do speak often use language in unusual ways. Some seem unable to combine words into meaningful sentences. Some speak only single words. Others repeat the same phrase no matter what the situation.

Some children with autism are only able to parrot what they hear, a condition called echolalia. Without persistent training, echoing other people's phrases may be the only language that people with autism ever acquire. What they repeat might be a question they were just asked, or an advertisement on television. Or out of the blue, a child may shout, "Stay on your own side of the road!"-something he heard his father say weeks before. Although children without autism go through a stage where they repeat what they hear, it normally passes by the time they are 3.

People with autism also tend to confuse pronouns. They fail to grasp that words like "my," "I," and "you," change meaning depending on who is speaking. When Alan's teacher asks, "What is my name?" he answers, "My name is Alan."

Some children say the same phrase in a variety of different situations. One child, for example, says "Get in the car," at random times throughout the day. While on the surface, her statement seems bizarre, there may be a meaningful pattern in what the child says. The child may be saying, "Get in the car," whenever she wants to go outdoors. In her own mind, she's associated "Get in the car," with leaving the house. Another child, who says "Milk and cookies" whenever he is pleased, may be associating his good feelings around this treat with other things that give him pleasure.

It can be equally difficult to understand the body language of a person with autism. Most of us smile when we talk about things we enjoy, or shrug when we can't answer a question. But for children with autism, facial expressions, movements, and gestures rarely match what they are saying. Their tone of voice also fails to reflect their feelings. A high-pitched, sing-song, or flat, robot-like voice is common.

Without meaningful gestures or the language to ask for things, people with autism are at a loss to let others know what they need. As a result, children with autism may simply scream or grab what they want. Temple Grandin, an exceptional woman with autism who has written two books about her disorder, admits, "Not being able to speak was utter frustration. Screaming was the only way I could communicate." Often she would logically think to herself, "I am going to scream now because I want to tell somebody I don't want to do something." Until they are taught better means of expressing their needs, people with autism do whatever they can to get through to others. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)

Although children with autism usually appear physically normal and have good muscle control, odd repetitive motions may set them off from other children. A child might spend hours repeatedly flicking or flapping her fingers or rocking back and forth. Many flail their arms or walk on their toes. Some suddenly freeze in position. Experts call such behaviors stereotypies or self-stimulation.

Some people with autism also tend to repeat certain actions over and over. A child might spend hours lining up pretzel sticks. Or, like Alan, run from room to room turning lights on and off.

Some children with autism develop troublesome fixations with specific objects, which can lead to unhealthy or dangerous behaviors. For example, one child insists on carrying feces from the bathroom into her classroom. Other behaviors are simply startling, humorous, or embarrassing to those around them. One girl, obsessed with digital watches, grabs the arms of strangers to look at their wrists.

For unexplained reasons, people with autism demand consistency in their environment. Many insist on eating the same foods, at the same time, sitting at precisely the same place at the table every day. They may get furious if a picture is tilted on the wall, or wildly upset if their toothbrush has been moved even slightly. A minor change in their routine, like taking a different route to school, may be tremendously upsetting.

Scientists are exploring several possible explanations for such repetitive, obsessive behavior. Perhaps the order and sameness lends some stability in a world of sensory confusion. Perhaps focused behaviors help them to block out painful stimuli. Yet another theory is that these behaviors are linked to the senses that work well or poorly. A child who sniffs everything in sight may be using a stable sense of smell to explore his environment. Or perhaps the reverse is true: he may be trying to stimulate a sense that is dim.

Imaginative play, too, is limited by these repetitive behaviors and obsessions. Most children, as early as age 2, use their imagination to pretend. They create new uses for an object, perhaps using a bowl for a hat. Or they pretend to be someone else, like a mother cooking dinner for her "family" of dolls. In contrast, children with autism rarely pretend. Rather than rocking a doll or rolling a toy car, they may simply hold it, smell it, or spin it for hours on end. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)

When children's perceptions are accurate, they can learn from what they see, feel, or hear. On the other hand, if sensory information is faulty or if the input from the various senses fails to merge into a coherent picture, the child's experiences of the world can be confusing. People with autism seem to have one or both of these problems. There may be problems in the sensory signals that reach the brain or in the integration of the sensory signals-and quite possibly, both.

Apparently, as a result of a brain malfunction, many children with autism are highly attuned or even painfully sensitive to certain sounds, textures, tastes, and smells. Some children find the feel of clothes touching their skin so disturbing that they can't focus on anything else. For others, a gentle hug may be overwhelming. Some children cover their ears and scream at the sound of a vacuum cleaner, a distant airplane, a telephone ring, or even the wind. Temple Grandin says, "It was like having a hearing aid that picks up everything, with the volume control stuck on super loud." Because any noise was so painful, she often chose to withdraw and tuned out sounds to the point of seeming deaf.

In autism, the brain also seems unable to balance the senses appropriately. Some children with autism seem oblivious to extreme cold or pain, but react hysterically to things that wouldn't bother other children. A child with autism may break her arm in a fall and never cry. Another child might bash his head on the wall without a wince. On the other hand, a light touch may make the child scream with alarm.

In some people, the senses are even scrambled. One child gags when she feels a certain texture. A man with autism hears a sound when someone touches a point on his chin. Another experiences certain sounds as colors. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)

Some people with autism display remarkable abilities. A few demonstrate skills far out of the ordinary. At a young age, when other children are drawing straight lines and scribbling, some children with autism are able to draw detailed, realistic pictures in three-dimensional perspective. Some toddlers who are autistic are so visually skilled that they can put complex jigsaw puzzles together. Many begin to read exceptionally early-sometimes even before they begin to speak. Some who have a keenly developed sense of hearing can play musical instruments they have never been taught, play a song accurately after hearing it once, or name any note they hear. Like the person played by Dustin Hoffman in the movie Rain Man, some people with autism can memorize entire television shows, pages of the phone book, or the scores of every major league baseball game for the past 20 years. However, such skills, known as islets of intelligence or savant skills are rare. (Source: excerpt from Autism: NIMH)