Autism facts, autism fiction
New studies and rumors fly almost every week on what (allegedly) causes autism and what “cures” it. At the same time, autism studies (including the frequently cited Wakefield study linking MMR vaccines to autism in 1998) occasionally get retracted. What’s true and what’s not? Dr. Perri Klass and Dr. Eileen Costello, pediatricians and co-authors of “Quirky Kids: Understanding and Helping Your Child Who Doesn’t Fit In – When to Worry and When Not to Worry,” distinguish autism facts from autism fiction.
For example, they lay out whether a gluten-free, dairy-free diet can actually help children with autism, and whether paternal and maternal age is something we should be concerned about. They also explain what autism is and what can’t cause it. (Read more of Costello’s thoughts in “The Top Five Autism Myths.”)
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