The incidence of Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is reaching epidemic proportions, believed to affect approximately 1 in 166 live births. It is our sincere aim to create a “POSITIVE AWARENESS” on Autism both among the professionals and parents.
Red Flags for Possible ASD
Although autism is only considered to manifest around18 months of age, recent developments in research have indicated that it can be identified much earlier. Some of the characteristics they may exhibit include-
- Arching their back away from their caregiver to avoid physical contact,
- Failing to anticipate being picked up,
- As infants,they are either passive or over agitated babies. A passive baby refers to one who is quiet most of the time making little, if any, demands on his/her parents. An over agitated baby refers to an infant who cries a great deal,sometimes non-stop, during his/her waking hours.
- Some autistic toddlers reach/rush through developmental milestones, such as crawling, and walking, much ahead of time; whereas others are considerably delayed. The absence of eye contact is to be observed in particular even during the breast fed phase of life.
Please understand that ‘A child with autism is not merely a compilation of symptoms.’ Because significant evidences now link the molecular pathways of cellular stress response to the onset of chronic inflammation associated with chronic diseases.‘Bodily symptoms could be the manifestations of signalling and metabolic derangements that may have widespread effects integrally related to what we now call autism.’
Thus in autism, inflammation and decreased connectivity could hamper simultaneous and complex coordination between functional areas of the brain explaining the impaired social and communication skills.Our research indicates that restoration of Molecular order could activate the dormant neuronal pools,improve connectivity and restore functional integration.