Air Pollutants Linked to Higher Autism Risk

As it has become so common these days, many are searching for what may contribute to a higher autism risk. Parents of children with this health condition want to understand how it came to be. There has been a lot of skewed research out there that can be confusing to parents and to families, so getting to the bottom of this disability can be vital. Not only will insight such as this help families who have autistic children, but it will also help with treating and diagnosing future patients. Therefore, when there is current research that points to something like air pollutants as a potential cause, health experts want to jump in and study the issue for some answers.

Research has recently found that there may be a very real link between certain air pollutants and a higher autism risk. It is important to note that this phenomenon is in the early stages of research, but it may offer some answers and even some hope for the future if it proves to be true. In this study, patients who were at any stage on the autism spectrum were studied, as were details about their upbringing. In many cases, there was an exposure to air pollutants in a high and concentrated amount. Most of this exposure was believed to occur during pregnancy when the mother was exposed. The exposure also continued into the first two years of life when the child was at an important developmental stage.

The Connection May Be All Too Real

What is believed to have happened is that the concentration of air pollutants was so high that it did something developmentally and resulted in higher autism risk. Some children might already have been on the spectrum or likely to develop such symptoms, but that is a question many health experts are looking at. Ingesting these fumes and having this continuous exposure at such an important time in development, however, may help to explain how these children end up on the spectrum. The verdict is still out, but it certainly seems a possibility.

So although the research will continue and there are no concrete answers just yet, understanding factors for higher autism risk will continue to be evaluated. Research could help patients who are at various points of the spectrum. It may also help parents to understand what led autism to develop in the first place. Autism affects so many children these days that finding more information or answers that could lead to some type of cure will always be important. Being in tune with the contributing factors as well as symptoms and implications of this health condition could prove helpful to those individuals and families working through it in the future.