In The Politics of Autism, I discuss various ideas about what causes the condition.
A release from Case Western Reserve:
A team of researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine has provided fresh insight into the dangers some common household chemicals pose to brain health. They suggest that chemicals found in a wide range of items, from furniture to hair products, may be linked to neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis and autism spectrum disorders.
Neurological problems impact millions of people, but only a fraction of cases can be attributed to genetics alone, indicating that unknown environmental factors are important contributors to neurological disease.
The new study, published yesterday in the journal Nature Neuroscience, discovered that some common home chemicals specifically affect the brain’s oligodendrocytes, a specialized cell type that generates the protective insulation around nerve cells.
Studies have ruled out vaccines as a cause of autism, but there is a very long and growing list of other correlates, risk factors, and possible causes that have been the subject of serious studies:
- Inflammatory bowel disease;
- Pesticides;
- Air pollution and proximity to freeways;
- Maternal thyroid issues;
- Autoimmune disorders;
- Induced labor;
- Preterm birth;
- Fever;
- Birth by cesarean section;
- Anesthesia during cesarean sections;
- Maternal and paternal obesity;
- Maternal diabetes;
- Maternal and paternal age;
- Grandparental age;
- Maternal post-traumatic stress disorder;
- Maternal anorexia;
- Smoking during pregnancy;
- Cannabis use during pregnancy;
- Antidepressant use during pregnancy;
- Polycystic ovary syndrome;
- Infant opioid withdrawal;
- Zinc deficiency;
- Sulfate deficiency;
- Processed foods;
- Maternal occupational exposure to solvents;
- Congenital heart disease;
- Insufficient placental allopregnanolone.
- Estrogen in the womb;
- Morning sickness;
- Paternal family history;
- Parental preterm birth;
- Antiseizure meds
- Location of forebears
- Lithium
- Aspartame
- BPA
- Brain inflammation
- Maternal asthma
- Infertility
- Ultraprocessed foods
