Monday, January 21, 2008

What is Autism?

According to Wikipedia,

Autism is a brain development disorder that impairs social interaction and communication, and causes restricted and repetitive behavior, all starting before a child is three years old. This set of signs distinguishes autism from milder autism spectrum disorders (ASD) such as Asperger syndrome.

Autism is highly
heritable, although the genetics of autism are complex and it is generally unclear which genes are responsible. In rare cases, autism is strongly associated with agents that cause birth defects. Other proposed causes, such as childhood vaccines, are controversial
and the vaccine hypotheses lack convincing
scientific evidence. Most recent reviews estimate a prevalence of one to two cases per 1,000 people for autism, and about six per 1,000 for ASD, with ASD averaging a 4.3:1 male-to-female ratio. The number of people known to have
autism has increased dramatically since the 1980s, at least partly due to changes in diagnostic practice; the question of whether actual prevalence has increased is unresolved.

Autism affects many parts of the brain; how this occurs is poorly understood. Parents usually notice signs in the first two years of their child's life. Early intervention may help children gain self-care and social skills, although few of these interventions are supported by scientific studies. There is no cure.With severe autism, independent living is unlikely; with milder autism, there are some success stories for adults, and an
autistic culture has developed, with some seeking a cure and others believing that autism is a condition rather than a disorder.

The band, Five for Fighting, is generously donating $0.40 to Autism Speaks for *each time* the video is viewed the funding goes toward research studies to help find a cure. When you have a moment, please visit the link below to watch the video and pass it along to your friends and family. They are aiming for 10,000 hits, but hopefully we can help them to surpass his goal.

http://www.whatkindofworlddoyouwant.com/videos/view/id/408214

Let us hope this project would cover not only those in America but in the whole wide world, too. Thank you very much for passing this on.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wonderful raq, thanks for writing a post about this. I also wrote a similar post months ago but yours is more detailed, haha!

I love Five for Fighting, especially the song 100 years and the Superman song Its Not Easy.

Here is the link:

http://teacherjulie.com/2007/05/31/what-kind-of-world-do-you-want/

Oh, in connection with Autism, I also have a new post but there is almost nothing in it, its just a plug :)

http://teacherjulie.com/2008/01/22/angels-walk-for-autism/

Best regards.

raqgold said...

hi julie, thanks for giving me the link. will visit them later. alam mo kaya i added some info in this post is because i also wanted to know more. we meet a lot of people or hear a lot about those affected with autism but we dont really know what autism is. it is good to know more, di ba

Anonymous said...

Just clicked the link. Would love to help even in little ways.

Anonymous said...

i heard about five for fighting's cause and i think that's very admirable :) sana more celebrities will do the same.