Prevention of Autism Spectrum Disorder/Neurodiversity information and resources: New Horizons Un-Limited

Disability Specific: Prevention of Autism Spectrum Disorder/Neurodiversity

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See our NHU page on Autism Spectrum Disorder/Neurodiversity Research for more information on what is being done in research to find the risk factors and causes to prevent Autism Spectrum Disorder/Neurodiversity and research on early interventions and treatments.

Early intervention treatments are making a difference in reducing the adverse developments of those with Autism. They cite prenatal folic acid taken in the weeks before and after a woman becomes pregnant may reduce the risk of autism in the newborn.

Editorial: What Can Be Done to Prevent Autism Now? from the Autism Institute, Understanding Autism: Minimizing Risks, this article is written by Maureen McDonnell, RN. A very comprehensive list of action items a woman could do if considering pregnancy and during pregnancy to improver her diet and make better lifestyle choices and items for the new born infant stages. This is based on emerging research that points to the effects of the gestational and perinatal environment on the developing neural and immune systems as they may pertain to autism. There is a direct link to the video from the MIND Institute at Univeristy of California at Davis discussing these theories on prevention.

NHU Report on the Prevention of Disabilities - Spring 2015 Read about the rising prevalence of developmental disabilities, the impact of developmental disabilities and the need for data for research. ----We all know to move forward on any problem facing mankind requires research. We are stating, in order to protect children of the future, newborns, their parents and society from disabilities, we should broaden the scope of data collected through the U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth. This update to our existing data system would be more easily adopted and is necessary to more effectively meet current research needs for the purpose of preventing disabilities. Existing data collected is vague and not in sync with the rapid advances in medicine for today.

Study: Association of Autism With Induced or Augmented Childbirth in North Carolina Birth Record (1990-1998) and Education Research (1997-2007) Databases, published August 12, 2013. This preliminary study suggests that induction/augmentation during childbirth is associated with increased odds of autism diagnosis in childhood. In the most extreme example, boys born after labor was both induced and accelerated had a 35 percent higher chance of autism as compared to children born without the aid of either treatment. The authors of this study do suggest however that further research is needed to determine if other underlying factors may have contributed to the diagnosis of autism.