Autism Incidence and Environmental Toxins

Issues surrounding the causes and potential cures for autism have been hotly debated by many researchers within the field, as well as by parents who disagree with government studies showing no link between environmental contaminants and a high incidence of autism. Martha Herbert, M.D., Ph. D., presented her views on the environmental role in autism in her 2006 article titled “Time To Get a Grip” (http://www.autism-society.org.) A summary of that publication appears below. Dr. Herbert is an assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, as well as a pediatric neurologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and Cambridge Health Alliance Center for Child and Adolescent Development. Her article was first published in Autism Advocate, 5th Edition, 2006. She explained the difference between the old and new model of autism. The old model viewed it as a genetically determined brain disorder. More current positions see autism as an inclusive model where both genetics and environment impact upon the whole person in ways not limited to the brain.

Why Autism and Environment?

The claim that autism is genetic assumes our environment is stable and/or we are not affected by environmental changes. The current increase in autism rates points to a role for the environment since genes don’t change that fast.

The Big Picture: Major Environmental Changes

Is the environment stable? Consider…

• In the last 100 years new chemicals never seen on earth before have expanded. Many are toxic by design (pesticides, etc.) and many have unanticipated toxic effects.
• Cancers, allergies, degenerative diseases and autoimmune illnesses have increased.
• Cancerous illnesses and malformations in animals have increased.
• There is a loss of biodiversity and health promoting traditions.
• Increased dead zones in the oceans have increased, with enormous pollution and dying out of fish stocks.
• Global climate change is proceeding faster than anyone anticipated.

In light of this environmental instability we must ask why children and their developing brains would be spared.

We Are All Polluted

Every person on the planet carries at least traces of hundreds of chemicals. Increasing numbers of babies are now born with hundreds of chemicals in their bodies. This creates uncharted waters about the heath impacts of this pollution.

Many Other Changes in Our Ways of Life

In addition to chemicals, there are other environmental changes. They include:

1. Chemical pesticides, fertilizers, and genetically modified food.
2. Hormone manipulation of animals.
3. Information overload with media and computers.
4. Electromagnetic and nuclear radiation.
5. New drugs with unknown side effects.
6. Oral antibiotics that change the resistance of bacteria.
7. Air pollution.
8. Mechanically generated noise.

A single change in the environment may have no impact, but it is both possible and likely that the combination of these changes relates to the increased rates of autism.

Environment and Genetic Vulnerability

A new model for autism, the “gene-environment interaction” model, suits what we know now. This helps explain why it has been so hard to find the autism gene. (Since this article, an autism gene has been discovered for one form of the disease.) There may be a combination of genes that lead to a vulnerability for autism, a variety of environmental exposures possibly triggering its appearance.

Can Regulation Keep Up with Science and Technology

At the present time, chemicals are only studied one at a time. Further, there is no requirement to test chemicals for their impact on developing brains. Of approximately 3,000 chemicals produced in the largest volumes, only 20-30 were tested using a standard protocol for developing central nervous systems. Chemicals react differently depending on a high or low dose, whether in embryos, juveniles, adults, male or female. The politics of science and between scientists prolong fixing regulations to address this problem and the marketplace is governed by outdated standards.

Autism, Genes, Environment and Medical Problems in Autism

All cells in our bodies have the same genome and many biochemical processes take place in all body systems. The separation of the brain from the body is artificial in that all bodily systems are interconnected. The gastrointestinal and immune systems have more direct interface with environment than other body systems, dealing with outside intrusions into the body. Therefore, it should be no surprise that many with autism have these specific problems.

Autism as a Whole-Body Condition

Medical problems may be core parts of autism, such as seizures, digestive problems, sensory disturbances, sleep disruptions, low muscle tone, clumsiness, etc. We must rethink whether the brain is the primary target of the disease or if it functions parallel with other bodily changes, the whole-body experience related to environmental stress.

Autism Recovery

From a whole-body approach, it makes sense to consider recovering from autism. As we learn more about brain-body interactions in autism, that clearer picture could show us how to treat the body that impacts on the brain. For those who are said to recover, we must ask- was there something different about them? Nutritional supplements and elimination diets make sense because they are designed to target the body’s response to environmental exposures and stressors.