Andrew Wakefield Banned in Britain

Andrew Wakefield, the British doctor who claimed that the MMR vaccine was linked to autism, has been found guilty of professional misconduct by the General Medical Council. Wakefield says he is not going to go away, however.

Autism connection?

From Time magazine: "Studies Link Infertility Treatments to Autism."

Medical marijuana for children, cont'd.

http://www.slate.com/id/2251174/pagenum/2

-- Part three in a series of a mother's essays on why she gives her autistic son medical marijuana.

Muse looks at autism

This month's issue of Muse magazine features articles on autism, including essays by Temple Grandin and Daniel Tammet (referenced in an earlier post by The Fool). Check it out, share it with your children.

Is natural selection contributing to the rise in autism rates?

http://www.livescience.com/health/evolution-causes-sickness-100111.html

Medicinal marijuana and children

In DoubleX's "debut," a mother writes about why she gives her son marijuana. "Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut."

Taking on Jenny McCarthy

Oprah Winfrey gives Jenny McCarthy a pulpit from which she can air her views on vaccines. Arthur Allen, among other people, is not happy about this.

Autism breakthrough?

Researchers find first common autism gene.

"The Hawthorne Effect"

The author of Slate's "medical examiner" column discusses alternative therapies for autism, why he believes none of them work, and why he believes parents continue to swear by them. The article is interesting -- and less caustic than one might expect. I believe the author does miss one key point, though. I think it is entirely possible that parents continue to cling to treatments that are dismissed by the scientific community because they need to know that they are doing something that is helping their children. Nobody wants to give up hope.

Missouri legislature considers mandatory insurance coverage for autism

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090305/ap_on_re_us/autism_coverage

I am having a difficult time understanding how someone could be opposed to this.

autism and vaccines

A special court rejects autism vaccine theories.

Then he learned Icelandic in a week...

Interesting interview in New Scientist with Daniel Tammet, who holds a record for reciting digits of pi.

www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126881.800-inside-the-mind-of-an-autistic-savant.html?full=true

He's written a book. "The thinking of savants is an extreme form of the kind that everyone has. The aim of my book is to show that minds that function differently, such as mine, are not so strange, and that anyone can learn from them."

Video program teaches autistic children about emotions

The Transporters, courtesy of Professor Simon Baron-Cohen, makes its U.S. debut this week.

Pre-natal screening for autism?

If we screen out autism we run the risk of losing genius, too

From the article: "To bring up one autistic child is a challenge to the sanity of an entire family. To bring up two might destroy it." On the other hand, professor Simon Baron-Cohen cites the number of autistic males who are highly skilled in mathematics and the sciences as an argument against prenatal screening.

The author asks, "Who is to judge where lies the dividing line between madness and norm?" This is a good question. I would add, why is there such pressure to conform to the norm? Instead of eliminating those who are different, why not offer acceptance and support, instead?

Rainy parts of country show higher autism rates

...but researchers do not think the rain per se causes autism. Read the story here.

"Taking Things Apart"

...along with "All About Pirates" and "The History of Snack Food," "Taking Things Apart" is an elective offered at a small high school for boys on the autistic spectrum. This is a very interesting article - check it out!

Memo to John McCain

When you have a few minutes to spare, please check out these pages. I know, I know, it's Wikipedia, but, hey, it's a start.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down_Syndrome

Please note that these are, in fact, distinct and very different disorders.

Interesting stories from NPR

From today's Morning Edition, "Learning to Thrive with Attention Deficit Disorder," a story about a young woman with ADHD who is learning to adapt to life as a college student. Another piece, "Ten Tips for College Students With Disabilities," accompanies the main story.

Another story from the same Morning Edition series, "Your Health," aired last week: "An Autistic Student's Journey to College."

More on Savage

Still more on Michael Savage's thinking-before-speaking disorder. It's "funny" how some commenters immediately turned this into a "crazed liberals denying Savage his conservative/libertarian viewpoint" issue. Who knew that autism only affected liberals??

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/21/radio-station-is-targeted-over-autism-comments

Seven radio stations in Mississippi, a notorious hotbed for left-leaning wingnuts, have dropped Savage's syndicated program as a result of his comments on autism:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/23/arts/23arts-SAVAGELOSESA_BRF.html

Growing controversy

The New York Times picked up the Michael Savage controversy:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/22/business/media/22sava.html

I still feel conflicted. On one hand, I feel that paying any attention to this joker is giving him exactly what he wants -- attention. I prefer the "don't feed the trolls" school of thought. On the other hand, the Fool's comment below reminds me that chances are many of Savage's listeners now think that autism is a fake diagnosis used to excuse poor behavior....