Early Signs of Autism to Look Out For
By Lisa Pecos Most children with autism don’t get a final diagnosis until the age of four. There is no specific medical test or blood test to diagnose autism the way you would a medical condition such as cancer or diabetes. Medical professionals base their diagnosis on a child’s behaviour and development. Since children without the condition can exhibit many of the same issues, getting a diagnosis is often delayed. Even so, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that a diagnosis by an experienced professional by the age of two can be very reliable.
Having a Dog Can Help Ease Symptoms, Improve Behavior in Children with Autism
Parents of autistic children know how difficult it is at times to manage all of life’s responsibilities, and to care for a child with special needs. Autism has aspects that can make parenting and teaching autistic children that much harder. Many parents are turning to dogs to help their autistic children: dogs can make an autistic child happier, less prone to throw tantrums, and strengthen the child’s sense of security. Centers have opened in some American cities to specifically train dogs as companions for children with autism spectrum disorders; still other centers that train dogs for special-needs children now also train canines for autistic children.
Autism Rates Increasing Rapidly: CDC
Autism rates in the United States rose by 30% between 2008 and 2010, and by 120% between 2000 and 2010, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. One in 68 8-year-old children had been diagnosed with autism by 2010, up from 1 in 88 two years earlier, says the report. These are staggering statistics, compared to the 1 in thousands ratio of American children who had been diagnosed as autistic in 1970. The study, published online in late March, 2014, found that five times as many boys as girls are being diagnosed with autism. The CDC estimates that 1 in 42 boys has autism, and 1 in 189 girls. Caucasian children are diagnosed most frequently, followed by Hispanics, then African-Americans. The average age at which children are diagnosed has fallen, but remains above age 4 (diagnosis is possible by age 2).