Causes of Autism - Case Study Example

Causes Of Autism Causes Of Autism Introduction The term autism is used to refer to a psychological disorder recognized as Autism Spectrum Disorder and people suffering from this disorder experience issues while communicating with others and experience social difficulties. Autism has several types and has several symptoms associated with it. These types includes the regressive autistic spectrum disorder and a child who suffers from this form normally depicts normal growth but after reaching 2 years of age, the child starts exhibiting symptoms of autism. Another type is the Asperger’s syndrome which is recognized as a severe form of autism. Researchers have failed to agree on one single cause of autism but they have identified several causes of autism including hereditary, environmental and cognitive causes. Body Genetic factors have been recognized to be one of the main causes of autism amongst young children. Several genes are transferred from parents to children and transference of certain genes has been recognized as major factors that increase the probability of a child developing the autism syndrome. In other words certain genes that are transferred from parents to children increase the risk of those children to develop this disorder. Furthermore, it has been recognized that autism may be experienced by different members of the family. For example children who are born in families in which their siblings are suffering from autism have a higher chance of developing this syndrome. A study was conducted by Chaste et al during the period of 2012 in order to identify the genetic as well as environmental factors that may increase the chance of developing autism. The researchers identified that children who have brothers or sisters who are experiencing autism are at a risk of 2% to 8% of developing this disorder (Chaste et al., 2012). Furthermore the researchers even identified that the probability of certain impairments that are experienced by autistic individuals increased by 12% to 20% if their brothers and sisters were autistic and were experiencing impairments of the same body parts (Chaste et al., 2012). The researchers even state that children who are born from the same ova are at a higher risk of developing autism as compared to twin who is born from different ova (Chaste et al., 2012). Environment in which a child is either reared or the environment in which a mother gets pregnant with a child even has a close association with the development of autism amongst children. Individuals may not be at a higher risk of developing autism if they belong to a risky environment. But those children who are born with certain genes that are linked with autism are at a higher chance of developing autism if they are in contact with an environment that triggers the development of autism amongst children. There are various environmental factors that can increase the probability of a child experiencing autism spectrum syndrome. Landrigan (2010) has reported several studies that have focused on the environmental causes of autism. Landrigan identified that children who had already developed autism were exposed to Thalidomide which is a drug. Landrigan states that the parents of these children were consuming Thalidomide and due to this the child’s brain development became abnormal and in turn they developed autism syndrome. Landrigan reports that a study was conducted in Sweden on 100 cases of Thalidomide embryopathy and out of these 100 cases, 4 of the cases tested positive for matching the diagnosis of autism (Landrigan, 2010, p.221). Furthermore, Landrigan even states that children whose parents are indulged in excessive alcohol consumption may even end up experiencing autism. Landrigan reports that a study was conducted during the period of 1990 in which a total of 482 school going children were studied and through the study it was identified that children experienced several impairments linked with autism because their mother was indulged in consuming more than five alcoholic beverages when she was pregnant (Landrigan, 2010, p.221). There is a lack of research on the psychological causes of the development of autism syndrome. But the psychological theory of mind has been especially associated with the mental development of children experiencing autism. Children who experience autism are less likely to be able to correctly read the minds of other individuals or they do not have the ability to understand the emotions that others are experiencing. This means that the mental development of a child is not similar to the mental development of child who is not experiencing autism. The mental development of a non-autistic child has been identified by the theorists of theory of mind. The theory states that when non-autistic children are only five months old they are able to identify the different facial expressions exhibited by individuals when they are experiencing different emotions (Lantz, 2002). After a small period of time a child becomes able to not only read the facial expression of their parents, they even become able to analyze their parent’s emotional state. This is why they look at the face of their parents before communicating with them (Lantz, 2002). Children who are suffering from autism do not develop the ability of reading as well as interpreting their parent’s mental state and thus they end up in a conversation with their parents even when a child may find it dangerous to talk to their parents. Lantz even states that due to autistic children’s inability to read the expressions of their parents, they do not indulge in joint attention which takes place when a child looks at an object when he/she witnesses his/her caregivers looking at the same object (Lantz, 2002). There are various treatment options that are being tried to treat an autistic child. These treatment options do not help in curing an autistic child completely, rather these treatment options focus on helping children cope with various social impairments. Treatment options for treating autistic children even includes behavioral therapies and training. Children suffering from autism may exhibit lack of ability to communicate as well as lack of ability to concentrate. In order to help these children, training can be provided in the area of communication skills and attention skills in order to help them develop these abilities. For example: there is a program that is recognized as TEACCH and the purpose of this program is to help children learn and develop communication skills as well as attention skills with the assistance of visuals (Autism.org.uk, 2014). Furthermore medicines are even used to assist an autistic child. Children experiencing autism even experience difficulty in sleeping and due to this they fail to learn and cope with their impairments. Medicines to help children sleep so they can learn in a better manner are even prescribed to children. Parents should take preventive measures in order to ensure that their children are not exposed to environmental factors that may lead to increase in the chances of their children developing autism. For example: parents who indulge in heavy drinking may put their child at a risk of developing this disorder. In order to keep their child safe from developing this disorder, they should avoid drinking especially when a mother is pregnant. Conclusion Children experiencing autism experience difficulty in communicating with others and paying attention. Children may experience various types of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Children may develop autism because they may belong to families in which the brothers and sisters of autistic children are experiencing the same disorder. They may even experience autism because of their unhealthy environment and children who are autistic lack mental capabilities that a non-autistic child may develop during early ages of life. References Lantz, J. (2002). Theory of mind in autism: Development, implications, and interventions. The Reporter, 7(3), 18-25. < http://www.iidc.indiana.edu/?pageId=424> Autism.org.uk,. (2014). TEACCH - | autism | Asperger syndrome |. Retrieved 13 December 2014, from http://www.autism.org.uk/teacch Landrigan, P. J. (January 01, 2010). What causes autism? Exploring the environmental contribution. Current Opinion in Pediatrics, 22, 2, 219-25. < http://faculty.washington.edu/rab2/Site/AUT501_files/Landrigan%20env%20factors%202010.pdf> Chaste, P., & Leboyer, M. (January 01, 2012). Autism risk factors: genes, environment, and gene-environment interactions. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 14, 3, 281-92. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3513682/ Read More