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autism clusters among highly educated parents
2010-Jan-09, Saturday 10:49 amIt's only been 2 weeks since I posted my new autism theory, and I already have some confirming evidence of my prediction. :)
A new California study has found autism "clusters" within the state, mostly within the urban areas of San Francisco and Los Angeles. The researchers studied the California records of the 2.5 million babies born there between 1996 and 2000. Within these clusters, autism rates are twice what they are outside of the clusters. What is the sole unifying feature that they identified among these groups?
The scientists go on to explore various explanations for why this association could be found. They mention that richer people have better access to doctors who can diagnose. They also say that richer people may have different household items that are causing an environmental (chemical) exposure. Both of these possibilities are reasonable and should be explored.
They fail to mention, however, that the bodies of these parents have changed (epigenetically) because of their lifestyle, and that change might be triggering differences in their offspring. I hope somebody is planning studies on the effects of meta-cognition (thinking about thinking) on the epigenetic landscape within human bodies (including the germline).
I still like my theory. :)
A new California study has found autism "clusters" within the state, mostly within the urban areas of San Francisco and Los Angeles. The researchers studied the California records of the 2.5 million babies born there between 1996 and 2000. Within these clusters, autism rates are twice what they are outside of the clusters. What is the sole unifying feature that they identified among these groups?
The 10 clusters were found mostly among children with highly educated parents...
- http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=autism-clusters-californiahighly-educated-parents
My goodness, but that was some quick confirmation of my idea. *laugh*- http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=autism-clusters-californiahighly-educated-parents
The scientists go on to explore various explanations for why this association could be found. They mention that richer people have better access to doctors who can diagnose. They also say that richer people may have different household items that are causing an environmental (chemical) exposure. Both of these possibilities are reasonable and should be explored.
They fail to mention, however, that the bodies of these parents have changed (epigenetically) because of their lifestyle, and that change might be triggering differences in their offspring. I hope somebody is planning studies on the effects of meta-cognition (thinking about thinking) on the epigenetic landscape within human bodies (including the germline).
I still like my theory. :)