Study Suggests Link Between Autism and Parents' Ages

by Tom Henderson (Subscribe to Tom Henderson's posts) Feb 9th 2010 11:30AM

Categories: Medical Conditions, Development, In The News, Special Needs

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As parents and researchers struggle and debate about the cause of the autism epidemic -- or if there's even an epidemic at all -- a new study suggests a link between the disorder and parents' ages.

A study published Feb. 8 in the journal Autism Research concludes that older mothers are more likely than younger ones to have a child with autism. In addition, older fathers significantly contribute to the risk of autism when their partners are under 30.

The New York Times reports researchers analyzed almost five million births in California during the 1990s. Some 12,159 of those children were diagnosed with autism.

According to the Times, previous research concluded that autism diagnoses grew with the age of the father. In this latest study, researchers found when the father was older than 40 and the mother was younger than 30, the autism rate was 59 percent higher than it was for younger men. When the mothers were over 30, that number was about 12 percent.

In addition, the Times reports, every five-year increase in a mother's age raised the risk of autism by 18 percent. A 40-year-old woman's risk was 50 percent greater than that of a woman who became a mother in her late 20s -- and 77 percent higher than that of a woman under 25.

"The rise in autism is occurring among children of parents of all ages," the study's lead author Janie F. Shelton, a graduate student in epidemiology at the University of California, tells the Times. "We can't say that the shifting trend of maternal age is responsible for the increased rates of autism."

According to Scientific American magazine, one in 5,000 children were considered autistic in 1980s. That number is now about one in 166.

Recent scientific studies have refuted the belief of many parents that there is a link between autism and childhood vaccines, leading to fresh speculation on what is causing the epidemic.

If there is an epidemic, that is. The Scientific American article suggests there may not be an autism epidemic so much as a diagnosis epidemic.

Authors of the new study say its numbers can be tricky.

One of the authors, Dr. Dolores Malaspina, a psychiatrist at the New York University Langone Medical Center, tells the Times that mothers and fathers were usually so close in age that small statistical differences could appear to shift the effect of advanced age from one parent to another.

"It's important we not turn around and blame mothers," Malaspina tells the newspaper. "The evidence is very, very strong that there is a paternal age effect."

Related: Autism

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Comments (30)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Patrick 2-09-2010 @ 2:07PM

This study is fails to answer what are the older parent doing that is different; thus causing the increase in Autism. This does not explain why the increase in the number of cases. My speculation is Fertility Drugs. I have yet to see a study that looks into this arena. If you look back over the last ten years, fertility drug use has skyrocketed, just like Autism. Coincidence, it might be, but a correlation that I feel is worth researching.

jessica 2-09-2010 @ 8:56PM

In the past, mothers were commonly young compared to what we are doing today. The majority of women do not take fertility drugs. If what the research is suggesting is true, what it means is that the frequency of autism is increasing probably due to the increase in average age of mothers today.

undrgrndgirl 2-10-2010 @ 12:24AM

the parents aren't "doing" anything but being older...though i agree with you - no one has looked at fertility drugs; or connections to the use of fetal ultrasound - especially the use of 3d imaging for non-medical purposes...

rita 2-09-2010 @ 8:26PM

Sorry researchers, keep trying to find the answer. Every problem cannot be blamed on advanced parental age.

SwtCooky2 2-10-2010 @ 5:56AM

Why not? When your car reaches 100K, you expect trouble and trade it in. Ova and Sperm aren't healthy forever. Somewhere in the scheme of things (even if you don't believe in God) humans and animals aren't supposed to reproduce anymore. If that weren't the case, we'd be living in human "ant farms". Doctors now say peri-menopause starts in your thirties. If we keep poking a finger in Mother Nature's face, she can get real nasty with us.

matt715 2-09-2010 @ 8:52PM

I agree that fertility drugs may be playing a role in the increase of cases. I also feel it's a backlash against people who wait until they've actually done things with their lives as well as be able to financially afford a baby. Guess it must be better to have kids when you're young & poor, huh?

rita 2-09-2010 @ 8:36PM

My grandparents were 42 and 52 when my mother was born.
My parents were 42 and 43 when I was born.
My son (only child) was born when I was 43 and my husband 41.
The same is true on my husband's side.
His parents were 43 and 45.

No syndromes, autism, defects ect....

Everyone has advanced degrees and our son is thriving both intellectually and socially.

Stop blaming everything on age. If anything, the older parent takes better care of themself than the majority of the younger parents.

Bob 2-09-2010 @ 11:35PM

My grandparents had several children, they were in their 40's when my mother was born. A lot of other people in the area were the same. I do not recall any of them with problems like these. I can not believe the age thing. Sounds like funny research to me.

Becca 2-09-2010 @ 8:42PM

What a load of crap. I have 2 children with autism. The first was born when I was 21 and the second when I was 27. I don't consider that advanced age. My husband was only 36 when our youngest was born.
There are so many arguments as to what causes autism that there's a dichotomy within the autism community itself. I say they start focusing on what helps to reverse the symptoms and help heal these children.
First it was refridgerator mothers that were the cause, then vaccines, then environment, genetics, I could go on all day. Personally, I don't really care at this point what triggered the autism. More parents need to know that it can be reversed. JMHO.

Laura 2-20-2010 @ 3:42PM

I totally agree. I have two children with autism as well, and I had one when I was 24 and the other when I was 27. My husband is two years older than I am. none of these theories exlain our situation.

Yes, try to find a way to stop the increase in cases, but also try to help all of these children who all ready have the disease or chronic condition (whatever you want to call it).

peggy 2-09-2010 @ 8:47PM

Fortunately, my children and grandchildren are healthy with no disabilities. It seems to me that if you have one child with autism, you may be more inclined to have another with autism. Look at that family on television that all six are autistic. Sad.

SKL 2-09-2010 @ 9:10PM

You should stop talking as if there is "a" cause of autism. There are already known causes, and those don't cover the majority of the cases.

My cousin is severely autistic. His mom and dad were both around 20-25 when he was born.

Angry 2-09-2010 @ 9:16PM

I was 26(dad) and mom was 34 when our son was born.
anyone other parents of autistic children remember how your child reacted to the MMR (measles/mumps/rubella) vaccine?
we weighed the options, and decided to do the MMR Vacc....and he reacted horribly. I often think this could have awaken the disorder.
also...mom had preeclampsia during her pregnancy...OB-GYN called for enducing labor 3 weeks early, and she ended up having an emergency Cesarean due to elevated blood levels in the infant.
It was the most wonderful experience, but looking back, I wonder if it contributed to his condition. He is mildly autistic, but definitely on the spectrum.

John 2-09-2010 @ 9:27PM

According to the article we have gone from 1 autistic child in 5,000 in the 80's, 1 in 411 (5 million births, 12,159 autistic children) in the 90's and 1 in 166 in the 00's. Either we have a bunch of dillusional scientists, graduate students or the like, or we have a serious issue facing us.

Tammy 2-09-2010 @ 10:14PM

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you..........this is the most sensible remark I've read so far. My son is 12 and was diagnosed with autism at the age of three. If everyone saw this the way you do, maybe the ball would get rolling to concentrate on dealing with what is right in front of us AS WELL AS finding a cause.

lawrecshop 2-09-2010 @ 10:35PM

Having 2 autistic grandchildren.I have done lots of thinking and research.In the last 20-30 years we have gone from organic food raised by individual farmers to mass grown crops by big companies.They use more pesticides and un-natural fertlizers to make thing grow quicker.The animals from cows to chickens are raised so fast and fed so much crap they are un-natural.Fish for the most part are farmed raised.They are pumped with all kinds of crap.We have gone from glass bottles to plastic containers made from petroleum products.We cook foods that are blasted in a microwave that does heaven knows what to our food.Everything used to be farm fresh.Now it is pumped with things to give it a longer selve life.They preserve it alright but what is all these fillers doing to us and our children,We are giving up alot and it is all in the name of greed.How much medicine and corporate waste goes into our drinking water ? How much disease is being shipped with our food that comes from outside of America ? They will never find an answer because it lies in front of them.It is corporate greed and the dumbing down of America.The answers are here on this page and it is all controlled by the FDA.Do away with plastic.Suppy our food from American family farmers.Use Pesticides and Preservatives that don't harm us or our children.Autisim will continue to worsen as corporate greed grows.Something needs to be done.This year let's start replacing every politician.Let's all work together to make America like it used to be.Let us make it again.for the people and by the people.God bless America--------------AGAIN....

knominee 2-09-2010 @ 11:17PM

My son was just diagnosed at age 3 with severe autism. I am not sure what caused it, but I do know that I was NOT on fertility medications and it was not the shots. I knew when he was 2 weeks old that something was terribly wrong. He would not look me in the eyes at all and that behavior continues to this day. I think that it is something in our environment...toxins, medications, chemicals, etc. I think that makes sense with the link between the increase of autism with the increase in maternal age. There is more of a chance that she has been exposed to such things a lot longer than a younger mother. I have done a lot of research and believe that it causes these children to be allergic to certain foods. That is why the GFCF diet has shown to bring kids out of their behavior and act normally again. Read about Jenny McCarthy's son on her website and search out this pediatrician, Dr. Joseph Cannizzaro, and read his research. The truth is out there, as far as treatment and possible cures. What is causing it will soon follow...Oh, by the way, my son has a twin brother who is NOT autistic. That one is hard to figure out...why one twin and not the other...interesting.

john 2-09-2010 @ 11:25PM

the age related study is not credible.i would like to see a study on the number of songrams(ultrasound produces energy and cell changes as does xrays which is contraindicated in a pregnant women}per year from the 1980,s to present day.i would also like to know the average number of sonograms for each trimester.lastley,i would be interested in tne autism rate in switzerland.

Ellye 2-09-2010 @ 11:55PM

I do not agree with this!!!!! My husband is 43 and I am 24, we just had our first child who is 6 months and she is perfectly fine and normal!!! This artice is bulls**t! I disagree with this completely! If you are going to do research like this at least do more than just a few births in Cali! Study the whole US for god sakes!!!

undrgrndgirl 2-10-2010 @ 12:24AM

you consider FIVE MILLION a "just few births in california" that is a HUGE cohort and well beyond the number of cases usually studied for anything...consider yourself lucky to have a healthy child too bad she'll grow up with such an uneducated mother...

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