{"id":13588,"date":"2016-04-11T16:04:26","date_gmt":"2016-04-11T14:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/responsive.jozikids.co.za\/zaparents\/?p=13588"},"modified":"2022-06-08T21:12:38","modified_gmt":"2022-06-08T19:12:38","slug":"autism-tips-parents","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jozikids.co.za\/blog\/education\/autism\/autism-tips-parents\/","title":{"rendered":"Autism \u2013 what parents need to know"},"content":{"rendered":"

The number of autism cases are increasing worldwide. Yet the symptoms of this conditions are often so vague and subtle that parents and even medical experts find it difficult to pinpoint what exactly is wrong with a child. In addition, there is an enormous lack of education and awareness about autism, which often prevents it from being diagnosed and treated correctly. April is autism awareness month \u2013 here is what parents should know.<\/em><\/p>\n

Autism is a neuro-biological development disorder that is characterised mainly by social, communication and behavioural problems.<\/p>\n

On a social level, children with autism don\u2019t know how to relate to others. They seldom play with other children and would rather keep themselves busy with repetitive, often strange behaviour. They have trouble understanding emotions and body language and often behave inappropriately. Approximately 40% of autistic children never communicate using words, or their use of language is odd and repetitive. Many even prefer using gestures rather than words to communicate.<\/p>\n

As far as behaviour is concerned, autistic children can become completely obsessed with a topic or object, or they can get caught up in specific rituals. They may perform repetitive actions, such as rocking back and forth, and they can be extremely sensitive to certain sounds, smells, textures and even physical touch.<\/p>\n

To make matters even more confusing, the term \u2018autism\u2019 is actually an umbrella term that includes five different autism spectrum conditions. These are:<\/p>\n

Autistic disorder<\/h2>\n

The classic form of autism, where children mostly live in a world of their own and don\u2019t really respond to the outside world.<\/p>\n

Asperger syndrome<\/h2>\n

Sufferers usually have an average or above average intelligence and their language and speech development is excellent, which often means that parents don\u2019t immediately realise that something is wrong.<\/p>\n

Rett\u2019s syndrome<\/h2>\n

This rare condition affects mostly girls, who struggle to communicate, make odd hand gestures, have difficulty walking and show poor coordination.<\/p>\n

Childhood disintegrative disorder<\/h2>\n

Children develop normally up to the age of two or three, and then start to regress. This rare form of autism is usually associated with epilepsy.<\/p>\n

Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified<\/h2>\n

This includes children who display some but not all of the symptoms of autism, and applies to many cases.<\/p>\n

Everything from pollution and diet to the MMR vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella have been investigated as causes of autism, but the actual cause remains unknown. What experts do know is that autism is a lifelong condition for which there is no cure.<\/p>\n

Danger signs<\/h2>\n

If a child displays an unusual combination of the following characteristics or behavioural patterns \u2013 especially between the ages of three and five \u2013 a specialist should be consulted.<\/p>\n