Federal health officials are infusing millions into a host of new research projects designed to better understand what’s behind autism and how to treat the disorder.
Some $100 million will be doled out over the next five years to fund nine different research projects, the National Institutes of Health said Tuesday.
The awards will go toward a study that will use brain imaging technology to investigate genetic links to autism as well as research into why some with the disorder learn to speak and others do not.
Other projects receiving grants include one examining the unique experience of autism in girls and another that will assess whether an oxytocin nasal spray can improve socialization and communication in those with the developmental disorder.
The funding is part of the Autism Centers of Excellence program, an NIH initiative created in 2007 to propel “intense and coordinated” research on the causes of autism and how to treat it.
So awesome to see more research money being funded for autism! We need more. We need continued, stable funding to find a solution for autism!
It is not a solution. People keep treating as disorder will not understand all the funding will not make the lives any better. It like saying it being neurotypical is a disorder. Being that what is wrong being different. Yeah there things you can do to prevent autism but the bottom line is that it is environmental factors you look at. Most people I find do not want to clean up the environmental toxins that create disorders. You can fund all you like to treat autism but does little prevent it. The end of the day it does not make people lives better.
More genetic research and meaningless anecdotal junk…what exactly is the purpose of defining the “girls” experience? Does little to nothing to help anyone. No one is going to look for the causes because they don’t want to find whatever is in the environment that is wreaking havoc with our kids. More money wasted on useless studies that yield nothing, but keeps people believing that the Government is actually trying to find the cause….pitiful waste of taxpayer dollars
This money could go to improving the lives of autistics right now, but oh “we don’t know what’s wrong with these people” so that’s where the money goes. Yeesh.
How about funding effective treatments for ASD’s instead of funding research into what causes it and how to “cure” it. Especially lacking is effective programs for adults with ASD’s.
I register three comments in favor of getting rid of autism–though one looked like it really wanted to be supportive–and two in favor of improving quality of autistic life. I’m strongly in favor of the latter position, so let’s tie it up.
$100M would fund: quite a lot of student-loan forgiveness;
about 50-100 autistic business ventures (how about actually putting that sensory shield into production, hmm?);
ensure Autreat’s full financial endowment, indefinitely;
take a chunk out of healthcare costs for spectrumites, whether through insurance or direct program funding;
or possibly even spring for a few more EEOC investigators so discrimination clams could be processed in timely fashion.
Here’s hoping some of the folks getting those grants are at least autistic themselves.
And KA continues the fight to increase subsidies to go directly into peoples pockets. What has happened to this country that we now suspect any effort to treat or even eliminate a disorder. You don’t see the vast majority of parents of children with hearing impairments turning down cochlear implants. You don’t see individuals with vision impairments turning down glasses or surgery.
The causes and pathways of Autism need to be better understood. Understanding could lead to treatments. And even if better treatments can’t be developed (a big stretch of logic), we can study effective services; rather than throwing more money at programs whose success rates are high suspect at best.
High serum albumin in pregnancy prevents autism in infants, study available from National health Fed.
Glen S! Good to see you again.
Friendly reminder: having a sensory difference–whilst leading to different perceptions–isn’t autism. Spectrum membership tends to involve a lot of differences, and they aren’t always downsides. Amanda of Ballastexistenz has blogged fairly thoroughly on the topic; search for “that’s attached”.
[Ordinarily I'd provide a link, but DisScoop doesn't like them. Sorry.]
I recall discussion in my disability-law class of how the Deaf community had mixed feelings about cochlear implants: it’s tough to have children denied the opportunity to join one’s culture. Thanks for pointing out that it’s the parents making the cochlear-implant determination, rather than the children themselves. (We could go back and forth on informed consent, age, and developmental milestones, but I’m not sure that would be productive.) Self-determination is a significant issue in autism advocacy–as I’m quite sure you know already.
In any event, we’ve discussed the Deaf community already. My experience with blind people (two in recent memory–anecdata at best, granted) is that they didn’t derive identity from their blindness. Perhaps other blind people do. I wouldn’t know; I’m sighted. I do know that quite a lot of autistics do find identity in their autism; the community is undeniable. Feel free to look into Autreat if you like. We’ll be around.
As for the “directly into people’s pockets” comment? Every suggestion I made involved the money being used for a particular purpose, which would improve the quality of autistic lives. Each would help different subsets of the population–some broader than others, granted–but none would just give individual people discretionary income. We tend to be pretty good at following grant guidelines, just like any rational & clearly-explained rule.
Have a good one!
Supporting a flawed argument with a flawed argument still makes the argument flawed. Ultimately, the hearing impaired community loses the argument concerning cochlear implants. No other impairment, disability, mental health issue, etc. comes on sites like this and arguments that the only correct use of funds is to give money directly to or provide services for individuals with that particular issue. I don’t hear individuals dealing with Parkinson’s asking for a subculture to be formed. I don’t hear individuals dealing with spinal cord injuries asking that only services be provided.
It is also interesting to note that to date, the majority of the individuals on this site advocating for the acknowledgement of a subculture of individuals with Autism are high functioning adults most with a high degree of education. Either way, they are in the minority even withing the community for whom they profess to speak.
Step out of your disability bubble. There is a bigger world out there.