I would have to say that I believe it is genetic in intital origin.
Possibly affected by environmental factors, and definitely affected by how you choose to proceed with raising your child.
I have a 25 yr old neuro typical daughter who is on her own, a 16 yr old son on the spectrum, a husband on the spectrum and now my 4 yr old son, who is being evaluated.
Prior to my first son being dxed in the 3rd grade – I had never heard of Aspergers Disorder or met anyone with autism.
Being the only NT person in our home has challenges that should not be taken lightly.
I basically have to do everything – and my husband just works his job.
He has no involvement in finances, teaching the boys or planning anything.
He has no hobbies, no active friendships and no desire to do anything more than work as a cashier forever and watch tv/movies.
He cannot handle responsibility or decision making and he is an inconsistent disciplinarian and not the best role model for his boys.
But he is my husband – and with these characteristics – I still love him.
He learned to mimic ‘proper social behavior’ at a very young age – being in a large family – so when I met him, fell in love and married him – I was under the impression that he was a very different person.
He is an example of NO intervention.
Our oldest son has come so far – and is more successful at the things his father has not been able to accomplish.
He has been taught and modeled the right behaviors by our extended family and is a bright, healthy and handsome teenager.
He has overcome many tactile, sensory and social issues without any special treatments.
He is an example of EARLY intervention.
With autism and spectrum disorders – the point of taking a ‘village to raise your child’, is huge.
Support is key.
Empathy, eye contact, hugging and making a joke – are things we take for granted with our children – I know I did with my daughter.
Then you have your child on the spectrum – and when they do look you in the eye, initiate a hug or dish out some sarcasm – you want to cry out of the joy you feel that your child has connected, yet again.

Thank you for this posting and educating others that April is the month for Autism Awareness!

Dear Kelli,
I am sorry that you find my comments upsetting, but I believe they directly embraced the topic (in that we specifically considered the possibility of our child becoming autistic as a result of certain vaccinations) and were not offensive. More importantly, the whole point of the article was that there are differences of opinion concerning what causes autism; and certainly no suggestion was made in the article that comments were unwelcome by those who did not have autistic children. Thanks.

My six-year-old son has autism. Looking back, the signs were there from almost the beginning. I believe he was born with autism — that it is part of his genetic makeup — and not caused by any outside influence (vaccines or whatever). We do receive some services to help him (OT and social skills). However, I think it is even more important that we as a society learn to accept and embrace people with autism instead of forcing our definition of normalcy on them. I am not saying we should not help our children but there is line between helping and forcing.

To Lenny,

Until you’ve had a child with autism, I wish that you would refrain from making such statements. While autism in better than death, it’s a lot more than making their life “more difficult”.

The mortality rates for measles, mumps and rubella are quite low in developing countries.

Of course, with any illness their can be complications.

I am glad that your child is doing well, and that you are happy with your decision to vax.

My son is 2.5 years old. He has not been diagnosed with autism and shows no signs of it. When it came time to do vaccinations, including MMR, we considered the pros and cons and attendant risks of him developing autism, as well as developing a deadly illness. It just so happened that at the same time were considering this, yet another couple lost their child to a preventable, flu-related complication. That did it for us. While we certainly can’t appreciate how difficult it may be to raise an autistic child, I’ve no doubt that death trumps that by a long shot. We simply could not have been able to live with ourselves if our son died from a preventable illness because we were concerned about him developing an illness that would make life more difficult but not kill him.

My 3yr old daughter was dx’d with Autism at the age of 2 and I can’t even begin to emphasize the importance of early intervention. It has made such a HUGE difference in her life, she’s become a much more vocal child.

I am 7 months pregnant now, and I am very confused about the vaccines, my hubby and myself believe there is more of a genetic link that the vaccine may trigger. Of course with all the debates, unfortunately no real hard facts are out there yet

But information is key, so thank you for bringing more awareness!!

My 8 year old daughter was diagnosed with autism. I believe that vaccines have nothing to do with her condition, and that the explanation ultimately lies with genetics. It is important to realize that there are two sides to this debate. Many alternative treatments are not regulated by the FDA. When my daughter was first diagnosed, many of these options were presented to me. It is only when my doctor explained that many of them were unsubstantiated, and even dangerous, that I became wary. Obviously any parent will do what they feel is in the best interest of their child, but I would advise any parent with a recent diagnosis not to let their desire for a “cure” overide their gut instinct in a quest for treatment options.

thank you for bringing more awareness!!! I have a 7 year old son with regressive Autism. He lost everything he had learned by 18 months after having a series of shots, including MMR. I am in the group that firmly believes there is a genetic link and an environmental link. We had 2 years of ABA therapy and are now concentrating on Speech Therapy. Please think twice before you give your babies a series of shots. I am not against vaccines, but I am against the amount at one time that children receive.

My sons autism dx is a result of a cord injury at birth. We used Floortime successfully and have now moved onto RDI – an AMAZING program.
We also do some dietary interventions (he’s GFCF) and some holistics.
Another program I have found immensly helpful to his sensory system is a program called “Handle”
The changes have been amazing.

There IS hope.