Autism may be caused by environmental factors

A team of researchers from the University of Chicago concluded that exposure to toxins such as pesticides while in the womb can lead to a significantly greater risk of developing the disorder.The findings published this week in the PLOS Computational Biology Journal were culled from health records of over 100 million Americans in an effort to shift research from almost exclusively genetic to include environmental factors.Essentially what happens is during pregnancy there are certain sensitive periods where the fetus is very vulnerable to a range of small molecules – from things like plasticizers, prescription drugs, environmental pesticides and other things,’ study author Andrey Rzhetsky told Fox News.‘Some of these small molecules essentially alter normal development,’ the University of Chicago professor of genetic medicine and human genetics continued. ‘It’s not really well known why, but it’s an experimental observation.’The defects were especially noticeable in boys’ reproductive systems, Rzhetsky noted.Rates were compared against those reproductive system defects and the findings were alarming – instances of autism rose 283 per cent against every one per cent rise in outnumbered congenital malformations such as micropenis, Fox News reported, citing the study.Other intellectual disabilities increased by 94 per cent for ever one per cent increase in malformations, findings showed.‘Malformations predict very strongly the rates of autism, and the rate of malformation per person varies significantly across the country,’ Rzhetsky told Fox. ‘Some counties have low rates and some have very high.  And rate of malformations is higher in counties with higher rates of autism.’Instances were much higher in young males, but females were affected to – just not as highly.One in 88 children suffers from autism, and diagnoses in boys greatly outnumber those in girls, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No clear cause has been established for the disorder.‘The environment may play a very significant role in autism, and we should be paying more attention to it,’ said Rzhetsky. ‘We should definitely take into account environmental factors.’(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az