Causes Of Autism
Genetic Vs. External Influences
Introduction
The causes of autism are widely argued to this very day. If 10 people were asked that question
the answers would vary. Many scientist and psychological professionals believe that the cause
of autism can be linked to genetic anomalies and mutations. On the other hand, many medical
professionals believe that it can be caused by external factors such as vaccinations and
environmental toxins and that the child is not born with autism. Many of the opinions vary due
to the onset of autism. Both of these positions are backed by tremendous amounts of research
but neither has concrete proof of its pathology.
Position 1
Many professionals believe that the occurrence of autism has to do with familial genes
being passed down or genetic maladies that the child has from birth. Congenital and/or
genetic refers to the having autistic symptoms from birth or shortly therea,er (Goin-Kochel,
Myers 2005) Autism is known as a behavioral disorder that can be characterized by social
deficit, communication impairment, and repetitive behaviors (McCary, Roberts 2013). There
were studies done on families with multiple incidences of autism to further track and isolate the
genes responsible. One of the most common causes of autism has been identi4ed as Fragile X
Syndrome (FXS) which accounts for 5% of autism cases. As many as 50% of individuals with
Fragile X Syndrome exhibits the characteristics from the DSM-IV-TR for autism disorder and 60-
74% has been meet the full criteria for autism spectrum disorder. FXS has been identi4ed as a
single gene disorder with the causes unknown.
Another type congenital type of autism is Idiopathic autism (IA). This type of autism is
genetic but the gene that causes the disorder is unidenti4ed or unknown. There are early
detection methods that are taken to show whether the child has IA. These methods include
parental retrospect about the child’s behavior pa@erns along with home video of the autistic
pa@erns that the child exhibits during their first year of life. The second wave of research
consists of future, longitudinal studies following high-risk infants from the 4rst year of life
