WHAT WE KNOW AND
WHAT WE ARE STILL LEARNING
By ERIN STAUDER
A utism spectrum disorder
(ASD) is one of the fastest-
growing developmental
disorders in the United
States with a growth rate of more
than 1,100 percent, according to the
Autism Society. But ASD is still greatly
misunderstood by the public.

What is ASD?
Autism is a complex developmental
disability and affects a person’s ability
to communicate and interact with
others. Autism, which typically appears
during the first three years of life, is
a “spectrum disorder” that affects
individuals to varying degrees. There is
no known single cause of autism.

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According to the Autism Society, a few
signs to look for are:
• delay in or lack of spoken language
• repetitive use of language and/or
motor mannerisms
• little or no eye contact
• lack of interest in peer relationships
• lack of spontaneous or make-believe
play • persistent fixation on parts of objects
MYTH NO. 1: Individuals with
autism are intellectually disabled and
lack communication skills.

While autism is not curable, it
is treatable. Early diagnosis and
intervention, including behavioral
treatments or medication, can
significantly improve social and
educational outcomes.

For children with autism who are
unable to verbally engage, there are
alternative forms of communication
available. A recent study supported by
the group Autism Speaks concluded
that the use of American Sign
Language for children with autism can
be an effective form of communication.

ASD affects people in different ways,
especially with communication. Some
children may be nonverbal or nearly
nonverbal; others may be extremely
verbal with rich vocabularies and high
reading skills.

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5 Myths of



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Approximately 10 percent of children
with ASD also can show extremely
high abilities in specific areas, such as
math, music and memorization. Over
the last 20 years, college enrollment
rates among students with disabilities
have tripled, and almost half (about
44 percent) of children identified with
ASD have average-to-above-average
intellectual ability.

MYTH NO. 2: Autism affects both
boys and girls at the same rate.

Based on genetics and diagnosis,
autism does not affect boys and
girls the same way or have the same
percentage rates. Autism is about 4.5
times more common among boys (one
in 42) than among girls (one in 189),
according to the Centers for Disease
Control. However, diagnosis referrals
for boys versus girls are closer to 10-
to-1, likely meaning many girls are not
being tested at a young enough age to
benefit from early intervention.

ASD also displays differently in
girls than boys and affects the rate
of diagnosis, especially for girls on
the higher-functioning end of the
spectrum. Genetics may also explain
why boys are more likely to be on
the spectrum. One model studied by
the CDC suggests that “girls have a
higher tolerance for harmful genetic
mutations and therefore require a
larger number of them than boys to
reach the diagnostic threshold of a
developmental disorder.” At the same
time, because the female mutation
threshold is higher, girls tend to fall on
the more severe end of the spectrum
when they are diagnosed.

add up to thousands of dollars.

Intensive behavioral interventions can
cost $40,000 to $60,000 per child per year.

There are also a number of direct and
indirect costs with medical care, special
education, lost parental productivity and
more that cause a significant economic
burden on families.

Roughly half of the U.S. currently
requires coverage for treatments
of autism spectrum disorders; but
medical costs for children with ASD are
estimated to be six times higher than for
children without ASD.

MYTH NO. 4: Autism is caused by
“bad parenting.”
In the ‘50s, a theory called the
“refrigerator mother hypothesis” arose
suggesting that autism was caused by
mothers who lacked emotional warmth.

Medical and behavioral care providers
told parents the reason their child
displayed poor social skills was because
the child failed to receive warm and
loving interactions with the parents,
particularly the child’s mother. It is
now understood that this is not true
— autism is not caused by a failure to
properly bond to a parent. Yet, some
parents still encounter the stigma.

There is no proven correlation between
vaccinations and autism,
but many myths about autism still lie
in the hypothesis that vaccinations
cause autism. The increased rate of
autism diagnosis has fueled fears that
environmental exposures might be to
blame. Medical professionals are working to
understand the neurological disorder,
but to date, there is no one known
cause of autism.

MYTH NO. 5: Autism Spectrum
Disorder is uncommon.

The increased rate of autism likely
is driven by a broadened diagnostic
criteria and increased awareness.

We are now seeing more and more
children being diagnosed on the autism
spectrum, with 23 percent of households
having at least one child receiving
Individualized education program
services in his or her local school.

The Centers for Disease Control’s
Autism and Developmental
Disabilities Monitoring reported
that approximately one in 68 U.S.

children has been identified with ASD,
and it can be more common among
individuals with affected relatives.

Parents who have a child with ASD
have a 2 to 18 percent chance of having
a second child who is also affected.

Erin Stauder, M.S., CCC-SLP is a licensed
speech-language pathologist and executive
director of The Hearing and Speech
Agency, a nonprofit organization that
provides hearing, speech and language
services and advocates for people of all ages
with communication disorders/disabilities.

MYTH NO. 3: Most autism care costs
are covered by insurance.

Autism therapy is excluded from
coverage by many insurance plans.

If families do have a plan that covers
some of the physical cost of autism,
there are still significant behavioral
costs and other economic burdens that
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