Environmental Factors Of Autism Essay

Environmental factors are one of the emphasized causes of ASD. It is important to understand that the study of environmental risk factors includes much more than exposure to chemicals. Scientists use the term "environmental" to refer to influences other than changes in a gene’s DNA. Autism risk factors, for example, appear to include such influences as parental age at conception, maternal nutrition, infection during pregnancy and prematurity (“Environmental Factors in Autism Initiative”). If a child is conceived at an older age or the mother does not take proper care of herself, then the end result could be an Autistic child. An infection during the pregnancy and prematurity are also environmental factors that could cause Autism. Because these factors are reoccuring in children, the diagnosis of autism can raise.
None of these influences appears to “cause” or “prevent” autism by themselves. Rather they appear to influence risk in those genetically predisposed to the disorder. (“Environmental Factors in Autism Initiative”). There has been much discussion about the initial suggestion that MMR (measles mumps, rubella) vaccine. However there is now a scientific consensus that the evidence favors rejection of a causal relationship between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism, based on multiple epidemiologic studies which did not support a link between thimerosal-containing vaccines and ASD. However, other environmental factors are likely to contribute to a significant proportion of ASD risk. A recent meta-analysis of prenatal factors, limited to pregnancy-related factors, identified few significant risk factors. The main factors are maternal gestational diabetes, maternal bleeding during pregnancy, and maternal medication (Chaste, Pauline, and Marion