Archive for August, 2011

Autism is neurological brain disorder which develops in infancy and continues till adulthood. The sings of autism are obvious by the age of three leading to poor communication skills and also poor social interactivity. Some autistic children have high functioning autism while some have low functioning autism. Depending on the functioning level the parents can chose therapies and educational program to modify the behavior of the child.

Medications

There has been no permanent cure for autism till date but there are some medicines available which can improve the behavior problem of the autistic child.

Serotonin helps to treat patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression and also anxiety. Many autistic people use this medicine as per research. Some medicines like Lenox, Prozac and Anafranil have the ability to reverse behavior problem like repetitive behavior, irritability and aggressiveness. Studies also say that these medicines improve the eye to eye contact and also enhance social interaction. The doctor for the other signs of the autistic child prescribes another drug Ritalin. As the autistic children are highly sensitive to medicines the dosages very from person to person and any side effects noticed should be immediately reported to the doctor.

Vitamins

Different types of vitamins improve the different aspects of the autistic child. Studies say that Vitamin C helps to reduce the acuteness of the signs and symptoms whereas Vitamin B and magnesium improves the eye contact and also helps the child to pay attention. Experts feel that improper absorption of the nutrients play an important role in the severity of the autistic condition of the child. The childs doctor can determine the exact vitamin needed for your child after evaluation.

Diet

Autistic persons have sensitivity to certain foods. Weaning of those foods brings a clear change in their behavior. Studies say that some autistic people have problem in breaking the amino acids of food which have gluten and casein found in diary products. Some have sensitivity to oats, wheat and rye. Avoiding such foods shows decrease in autistic symptoms.

Behavior

Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) program helps to treat the behavior problem in autistic children. This helps in treating the variety of autistic behavior like the communication skills and other behavior problems with a variety of therapies. The aim of this theory is rewarding the good behavior and punishing the bad one.

The entire behavior modification program depends on the learning ability of the autistic child. A visually inclined childs program is designed in such a way that the child benefits the maximum from it.

The above mentioned are a few treatments and therapies available to treat autism. As every autistic child is unique so choose a program that suits the child according to his/her learning ability. A program benefiting one autistic child need not benefit another. So take the help of you doctor before choosing the program. He can assess the child and advise the right therapy or program to improve the behavior problem of the autistic child.

There is a variety of response from the society for autistic people just like the people with mental and physical disability. Some give full assistance while others totally ignore them. Even the caregivers, co-workers, family members who encourage and help the autistic are not fully aware of the autism in detail. So their way of handling becomes typecast which results in disgusted and other miserable conditions, Thus it is better to gain complete knowledge about autism so that handling autistic children will be easier and you can also help the other in the society.

Each and every autistic person is unique. There are sets of patterns for other types of diseases and impairments. But autism is an intricate brain disorder which has different response from different persons. There are two types of functioning levels in autism the high functioning people and the low functioning people. The high functioning people can grow up as individuals and can also pursue jobs whereas low functioning autistic people need support throughout their life. The signs of autism like impairment of speech and communication skills and other behavioral problems are present in low functioning people while high functioning people have control over their behavior through behavior modification therapies and sometimes never look like autistic people at all.

There can never an overall opinion about autism as every autistic person is unique. But the most common is the impairment in the communication skill. Although they cannot communicate they have a strong sense of feeling. Some autistic people fall in love and also get married. These relationships are very tough to be made but can be achieved with time and training.

Some autistic people exhibit exceptional qualities and function unusually. They excel in music, arts and also in math. Films portray autistic people as talented heroes but in real life such things do not happen. So it is better not expect too much from an autistic person. They behave according to their functioning level.

Never confuse autism with mental retardation but some autistic children turn out also as mentally retarded. So treat autistic people according to their disability.

Finally studies on autism say that patience and open-mindedness are the most vital message imparted to us. When one gains complete knowledge on the subject of autism his awareness on autism is better making them to handle an autistic person with more patience and skill. Take one more step to extend the knowledge to the community and society who can have a better approach to autism.