Deirdre Imus shares a lighter moment with a child at Summit Academy in Getzville, N.Y., which cares for about 400 children with neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism, the fastest growing developmental disability today.

By Deirdre Imus
Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) cover a broad range.  But there is a substantial body of evidence that indicates environmental toxins, most notably thimerosal, play a role in some cases.(1,2,3) Thimerosal is a form of mercury, a known neurotoxin still used as a preservative in some vaccines including multi-dose flu shots. When a staggering one in 150 children suffer with ASDs according to CDC estimates, some cases can be a very large number -- and behind every number there is a child's face, a family's anguish, and crushing medical bills. 

Last year, the Federal Vaccine Court found sufficient evidence in the Hannah Poling case to rule in the family's favor.(4)  Another vaccine test case was decided in favor of a family last fall.(5)

There are those who seem to dismiss any role of mercury or other environmental factors as a knee-jerk reaction, or who resist the publicly funded research that could provide a more definitive answer.(6) (Autism receives less than 5 percent of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases.(7) Money talks with a powerful voice when it buys the advertising that keeps the media alive. But we should not permit either money or fear of the truth to put our children at risk.  Our legislators cannot ignore information that could help curb the autism epidemic. There can be no sacred cows.  Each of us needs to speak up for the sake of our children.

The modern growth in autism began in the late 1980s, paralleling the introduction of new thimerosal-containing vaccines in the children's vaccine immunization schedule.(7) Correlation may not imply causation, but 20 years later, we now have a generation of children about to become a wave of adults with autism. In 2003, the Autism Society of America calculated that the annual cost of autism would increase to $200-400 billion in 10 years. Most of the costs are for caring for adults.(8)

What will become of these adults?  Who will care for them? There are organizations that are focusing on solutions, and we want to highlight two:

• The Autism Self-Advocacy Network, based in Washington, D.C., started three years ago to advocate for support and services to individuals on the autism spectrum while working to change public perception and combat misinformation. The organization is run by and for adults on the autism spectrum. Founder and president Ari Ne'eman, 21, says more funds are needed for "social and system changes" to improve quality of life and support services for autistic people across the lifespan. “With the right supports and a paradigm of acceptance of neurological diversity rather than normalization, members of our community can succeed.” Some strides are being made in this area. For example, technology companies are beginning to tap the more verbal portions of the ASD population, recognizing that a person with weak social skills but strong verbal skills can be an asset in areas like software testing.  Ne'eman says there is a strong need for changes in existing disability service-provision infrastructures, such as vocational rehabilitation and special education systems, that don’t understand how to meet the needs of autistic adults. His organization advocates for civil rights legislation like the ADA Amendments Act and the Community Choice Act as well as for research into improved educational and support services.
  
  
• Community Options, Inc. wants those with ASDs to live their best lives.  Many reportedly come to Community Options from unlawful and segregated institutional settings and are now living in beautiful, inclusive community-based homes. They are gainfully employed, and with the use of Positive Behavioral Support and the Gentle Teaching Philosophy, adults experience an improved quality of life.  "We believe that having meaningful relationships is the foundation to living your best life.  We all need to have relationships in our lives that connect us, allow us to have fun and to feel the reciprocation of love, admiration and respect, " says, Robert Stack, President and CEO of Community Options, Inc.  Stack adds, "Community Options provides the most inclusive supports for people with developmental disabilities."

We focus this year on these questions to highlight the importance of supporting the autism community already among us, and to address the very real medical and social issues that limit opportunities for autistic people.  We also focus on the hope that together we can prevent many childhood diseases by eliminating toxins from the environment.
______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________