At Monarch House Autism, we provide home based and centre-based services for individuals with autism spectrum disorder.

2.  Autism, a pervasive neurological syndrome
affecting individuals' behavior and
communication, has become more common in
recent years. More parents are finding that their
children are autistic and require different
considerations and care. Although some autistic
children simply have the stereotypical symptoms,
such as lack of speech and repetitive movements,
most have their own mix of symptoms from a
long list of autistic behaviors. The signs that
children may have autism, as well as possible
causes behind the disorder, are discussed below,
along with some of the most popular treatments
for autistic spectrum disorders.

3.  Many young autistic children don't like to be
touched, but this isn't true with all of them.
Some enjoy cuddling or hugging family
members but no one else. On the other hand,
some are mainly upset by touch they are
unprepared for. Finally, some autistic children
may arch their backs or engage in other self-
stimulation to ease the discomfort of being
embraced or touched.

4.  Most commonly, autistic
children dislike loud noises
and bright lights, but this
isn't always true. Some are
only sensitive to certain
types of sounds, such as
strange voices or toilets
flushing, and others appear
totally indifferent to loud
noises that bother most
non-autistic people. As with
touch, the sounds that often
cause the most problems for
sensitive children are those
that are unexpected.

5.  Behaviors that are repeated over and over,
such rocking, pacing or filling up and pouring
out a cup of water over and over, are
classified as stereotypical behaviors and are
commonly seen in autistic children. These
actions can arise from discomfort,
overstimulation or simply from an intensely
focused enjoyment of some feeling. They're
not, as some worry, signs of psychosis.

6.  One of the most common symptoms associated
with autism is a lack of speech, but autistic
speech is often more complicated than mere
muteness. Some children don't speak at all,
others don't begin speaking until much later than
their peers. Many autistic children speak in
strange ways, such as parroting back everything
that is said to them. Others speak in a very
formal monotone, using strange rhythms and
tones when they talk.

7.  Many autistic children self-stimulate, or stim,
themselves in response to anxiety arising
from overstimulation. This may take the form
of tapping themselves, humming, hand-
flapping, rocking, or in cases of extreme
frustration, biting themselves. After getting
away from the source of overstimulation,
such as a crowded grocery store, parade or
firetruck siren, the behavior often disappears.

8.  In autistic children, social
skills are usually stunted
either severely or in strange
ways. Some children do not
acknowledge the presence of
others, while others may only
behave awkwardly with
others. In some cases, young
children with autistic
spectrum disorders may
develop impressive language
skills despite interacting
inappropriately.

9.  Many autistic children have trouble learning
actions from watching others but few
problems learning facts such as vocabulary,
transportation schedules or animal names. In
school, these children may have trouble
paying attention and learning at the same
pace or in the same way as the other children.

10.  In normal children, imaginary play is
commonplace. This can take the form of
having tea parties, pretending a rock is a car
or pretending to be a comic book character.
This behavior is conspicuously absent in most
children with autistic spectrum disorders.

11.  Some autistic children don't understand the
emotions of others. For example, they may
wonder why others cry or smile, and they may
not display these emotions themselves.
Despite these differences, autistic children
are not emotionless by any means; rather,
they simply don't process their displays of
emotion the same way others do.

12.  Despite long-standing beliefs about vaccines causing autistic
disorders, this is not supported by science. Autistic disorders
are not caused by bad parenting, and they're not as
dependent on genetics as once thought. In some cases,
however, mutated genes can cause autism or similar
disorders such as Fragile X. In addition, parents with one
autistic child are much more likely to have a second child with
the disorder.
 Older parents are more likely to have autistic children, and
infertility treatments are also associated with a higher risk.
Premature children and those with low birthweight are more
likely to be autistic, and children exposed to certain
medications, such as valproic acid, during pregnancy are
more likely to be autistic.
 Some say that food allergies, such as gluten or casein
intolerance, are to blame for autistic spectrum disorders.
Although such food allergies are more common in autistic
children, they have not been proven as causes.

13.  Although no cure is currently known, many treatments have reputations for
improving the functioning of autistic individuals. One of the most popular
conventional treatments is applied behavioral analysis, also known as ABA. ABA
aims to mold the behavior of autistic children superficially to get them to behave
more like others, but it does not change the person inside. Proponents note that it
enhances public acceptance, but many people criticize the practice as inhumane;
ABA practitioners commonly terrorize autistic children with unbearable stimuli to
achieve their results.
 Alternative treatments vary, but one of the most popular is vitamin therapy with B
vitamins, fish oil and vitamin C. Many autistic children, who commonly have
nutritional deficiencies, experience significant improvements with this. Gluten-
free, dairy-free diets make big changes for some children, and these diets have
been shown in studies to improve functioning in various populations. Finally,
some people advocate the use of chelation therapy to remove heavy metals, and
others promote oxytocin to help autistic children feel more trusting with others.
 Although autistic children share many symptoms with each other, they're as varied
in personality and aptitude as the rest of the population. Each autistic person has
his or her own challenges, and responses to various treatments vary
tremendously. With proper nutrition, support and training in social and life skills,
autistic children can be surprisingly successful.