Autism is a disorder in which children have impaired or poor communication and social skills. It usually becomes apparent within first three years of life but some mild cases get diagnosed during early schooling. Autism is a disorder of neural development characterized by impaired social interaction and verbal and non-verbal communication, and by restricted or repetitive behaviour. But many parents feel that their kids start showing autistic traits suddenly after a period of normal development.

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)?

IndexThe autism spectrum disorder describes a range of conditions classified as pervasive developmental. ASD includes autism, Asperger syndrome, pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS]. These disorders are characterized by social deficits, communication difficulties, stereotyped or repetitive behaviours and interests, and in some cases, cognitive delays.

What are the signs and symptoms of Autism?

Autism (or ASD) is a wide-spectrum disorder and children with autism often vary in the severity and range of signs and symptoms. As well as experiencing varying combinations of symptoms, some people will have mild symptoms while others will have severe ones.

Onset: Overt symptoms gradually begin after the age of six months, become established by age two or three years and tend to continue through adulthood.Autism is distinguished by a characteristic triad of symptoms: impairments in social interaction; impairments in communication; and restricted interests and repetitive behaviour. Other aspects, such as atypical eating, are also common but are not essential for diagnosis. Here is a detail list of Autism symptoms.

Social Skills – signs and symptoms:

  • Very little or no eye contact.
  • Resistance to being held or touched.
  • Tends to get too close when speaking to someone (lack of personal space).
  • Responds to social interactions, but does not initiate them.
  • Does not generally share observations or experiences with others.
  • Difficulty understanding jokes, figures of speech or sarcasm.
  • Difficulty reading facial expressions and body language.
  • Difficulty understanding the rules of conversation.
  • Difficulty understanding group interactions.
  • Seems unable to understand another’s feelings.
  • Prefers to be alone, aloft.
  • Unaware of/disinterested in what is going on around them.
  • Talks excessively about one or two topics.
  • Minimal acknowledgement of others.

Language Development – signs and symptoms:

  • Abnormal use of pitch, intonation, rhythm or stress while speaking.
  • Speech is abnormally loud or quiet.
  • Difficulty whispering.
  • Repeats last words or phrases several times. 
  • Makes verbal sounds while listening (echolalia).
  • Often uses short, incomplete sentences.
  • Speech started very early and then stopped for a period of time.
  • Difficulty understanding directional terms (front, back, before, after).

Behaviour – signs and symptoms:

  • Obsessions with objects, ideas or desires.
  • Ritualistic or compulsive behaviour patterns (sniffing, licking, watching objects fall, flapping arms, spinning, rocking, humming, tapping, sucking, rubbing clothes).
  • Fascination with rotation.
  • Play is often repetitive.
  • Unusual attachment to objects.
  • Perfectionism in certain areas.
  • Inability to perceive potentially dangerous situations.

Emotions – signs and symptoms:

  • Sensitivity or lack of sensitivity to sounds, textures (touch), tastes, smells or light.
  • Difficulty with loud or sudden sounds.
  • Resists change in the environment (people, places, objects).
  • Calmed by external stimulation – soothing sound, brushing, rotating object, constant pressure.

Learning Development – signs and symptoms:

  • Exceptionally high skills in some areas and very low in others.
  • Excellent rote memory in some areas.
  • Difficulty with reading comprehension (can quote an answer, but unable to predict, summarize or find symbolism).
  • Difficulty with fine motor activities (colouring, printing, scissors, gluing).
  • Short attention span for most lessons.
  • Resistance or inability to follow directions.
  • Difficulty transitioning from one activity to another in school.

Locomotor Skills – signs and symptoms:

  • Walks on toes.
  • Unusual gait.
  • Difficulty changing from one floor surface to another (carpet to wood, sidewalk to grass).
  • Difficulty moving through a space (bumps into objects or people).
  • Gross motor skills are developmentally behind peers (riding a bike, skating, running).
  • Fine motor skills are developmentally behind peers (hand writing, tying shoes, scissors).

When should you get your child evaluated for Autism or ASD?

  • If your child has any of these delays or behaviour, consult your paediatrician asap:
  • No babbling by 9 months
  • No pointing or gestures by 12 months
  • Not responding to their name by 12 months of age
  • No single words by 16 months
  • Lack of pretend play by 18 months
  • No two-word phrases by 24 months
  • Any loss of language or social skills at any age
  • Your infant or child resists cuddling and doesn’t respond to his or her environment or to other people
  • Your child bangs his or her head or demonstrates self-injurious behaviour or aggression on a regular basis
  • Your child demonstrates unusually repetitive behaviour, such as repeatedly opening and closing doors or turning a toy car upside down and repeatedly spinning its wheels

How prevalent is Autism?

Incidence and Epidemiology of Autism.Autism is approaching the numbers of an epidemic. The figures are staggering—in the 1960s, four in 10,000 children had autism. Today, according to Autism Speaks, an organization dedicated to autism, one in every 110 children is diagnosed with autism. Different studies in different countries have found a prevalence rates between 3/10000 to 40/10000. U.S. government statistics suggest the prevalence rate of autism is increasing 10-17% annually. Boys are nearly five times more likely than girls to have autism. 

Based on the evidence reviewed in a study published in 2012, the median of prevalence estimates of autism spectrum disorders was 62/10000. 

USA: Most recent reviews tend to estimate a prevalence of 1–2 per 1,000 for autism and close to 6 per 1,000 for ASD and 11 per 1,000 children in the United States for ASD as of 2008;

UK: A 2006 study of nearly 57,000 British nine- and ten-year-olds reported a prevalence of 3.89 per 1,000 for autism and 11.61 per 1,000 for ASD; these higher figures could be associated with broadening diagnostic criteria.

Canada: The rate of autism diagnoses in Canada was 1 in 450 in 2003. However, preliminary results of an epidemiological study conducted at Montreal Children’s Hospital in the 2003-2004 school year found a prevalence rate of 0.68% (or 1 per 147).

India: It is estimated that there are 20 lakh ( 2 million) individuals in India suffering from Autism/ASD using the extrapolated prevalence figures of 1/250 to 1/500.

What treatment can Homeopathy offer for Autistic Children?

“Homeopathy is the latest and refined method of treating patients economically and nonviolently. Government must encourage and patronize it in our country. Late Dr. Hahnemann was a man of superior intellectual power and means of saving human life, having a unique medical nerve. I bow before his skill and the Herculean and humanitarian labour he did. His memory wakes us again and you are to follow him, but the opponents hate the existence of the principles and practice of homeopathy, which in reality cures a larger percentage of cases than any other method of treatment, and it is beyond all doubt safer and more economical and the most complete medical science.”- Mahatma Gandhi

Homeopathy is one of the most popular alternative systems of medicine. Despite some controversy regarding its mode of action, the anecdotal evidence for Homeopathy is so strong that it is recognized by dozens of National governments as effective medical modality. There are tens of millions of patients across the world using homeopathy. Despite the negative comments at Wikipedia Homeopathy page, which has been sabotaged by skeptics, there are increasing number of clinical and laboratory studies, not just on humans, but also on animals and plants, which have demonstrated the effectiveness of potentised homeopathic remedies.

Homeopathic medicine is one of the most popular alternative systems used for Autism treatment. There are several books and websites dedicated to providing information about homeopathic treatment of Autism. YouTube also has many videos from parents giving positive testimonials of homeopathic treatment for their children. Homeopathy is a safe and gentle system of healing, which tries to identify the root cause of any problem by taking a detail case history, which includes the current complaints of the patient, his/he past medical history, family history, nature and disposition of the patient and many other finer factors.

Homeopathy is practiced in two forms – classical and complex. In classical homeopathy, the homeopathic doctor takes a detail case history, tries to identify the root or exciting cause of an illness, and prescribed a single homeopathic remedy at a time to the patient. In complex homeopathy many medicines for a given condition are mixed in a bottle and given at a time. 

Classical Homeopathy is the pure form of homeopathy and offers deep and lasting cures.

When you consult a classical homeopath, he will note the full case history of your child. This will include your child’s current medical complaints, their onset, modalities, past medical history, mother’s history during pregnancy, family history, exploration of any stress points or causes for current illness, and a detail assessment of your child’s mental and emotional makeup. After this exhaustive case history and analysis, the homeopath identifies a homeopathic medicine that covers your child’s symptoms and condition the best. Such a remedy, when well selected, can bring significant changes in many difficult and inveterate cases.

Does diet and nutrition play any role in Autism?

Many therapists recommend large dose supplements of Vitamin B, Vitamin C, Zinc and Fish oil. Casein free and Gluten free diets have also been suggested by many. Please consult your physician before making any dietary changes.