According to the latest results from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 31 children (more than 3% of children) were identified as autistic, and the study tracks prevalence trends in certain U.S. communities in some U.S. communities.
“They're once again, in two years. In some states, we have 1 autistic in 20 boys and 1 in 31 kids. When I'm today, my generation has autism rate of one in 10,000 today,” said Secretary General of Health and Public Services, Robert Kennedy Jr. New investigation results were announced, said in Indiana on Tuesday. “It's just a disease. This generation of children is damaged by chronic diseases.”
Kennedy often cites the CDC figures in this study as his claim that the United States is now seeing a growing “Popularity” of Autismexperts and advocacy groups have been criticized for being stigmatized and misleading.
“As the report shows, more and more children can use the assessment of autism and identify more children as autism. This is encouraging because when children are identified early, appropriate support and services can be tailored to help them, and their families thrive.”
For years, CDC scientists have said that data indicating autism spectrum disorder diagnosis or ASD diagnosis may reflect improvements in screening and autism services in some communities. However, experts at the agency did not give a press conference on the latest discovery, which changed from previous years.
“Study has not proven that living in certain communities puts children at a greater risk of ASD,” the authors of the CDC said in the report.
The authors of the study said that Asian, black and Hispanic children always had higher prevalence of autism compared to white children. The report said factors such as differences in premature birth and lead poisoning may lead to this gap.
Data from 16 community websites were collected for new CDC reports. The last report found that based on data from 11 communities, the ratio among 36 children was 1 in 2020.
Although the network’s data is not nationally representative, figures from other federally funded surveys and studies have also tracked the rise in prevalence of autism over the past two decades and accelerated in the early 2000s.
“Children with autism add value to our community. Advocating for resources and funds to support autistic people throughout their life cycle is critical to a productive and healthy America,” Thor said.
This is because federal spending on autism research has also surged, mainly in efforts to study the biology suspected of constituting this situation. Although scientists link 90% of autism to genetic characteristics, other factors are also suspected to play a role in changing its risks.
Kennedy said he believes “an environmental toxin” is causing autism, suggesting a potential culprit from food contaminants to vaccines.
Many studies have debunked the claim that vaccines can cause autism. However, fewer studies have been conducted on other factors that have been shown in the study and may be related to autism, from pesticides to the time of two pregnancy.
“While the number of studies investigating the epidemiology of autism is increasing, most potential environmental factors have not been adequately investigated to draw definitive conclusions,” the federal government's Office of Coordination for Autism Research said in 2023.
Kennedy claimed in a statement Tuesday that autism is preventable and said “we have not yet determined that the underlying cause is unforgivable.”
“We are assembling a team of world-class scientists to focus our research on the origins of the pandemic, and we hope to start getting answers by September,” he said. Leading autism organizations have Expressed doubts For commitment and concern, he will resume debunking theories.
The CDC also issued a statement stating that prevalence rates vary widely between locations in the study. Dr. Karyl Rattay, Head of the CDC Department of Human Development and Disability, said.
CDC postpones reports, banning agent experts from entering the media
Several officials told CBS News that the CDC National Center for Birth Deficiencies and Developmental Disabilities initially planned to release the report. CDC officials delayed its publication within the departmental scope of the Trump administration.
Anonymously, several CDC officials said plans to enable experts at the agency to explain and interpret the results were also cancelled. Before the last release of the agency Autism Numbers In 2023, scientists from the CDC appeared in a press conference and were interviewed by the media about the report.
That year, the news media also provided in advance the embargo copy of the report to give reporters time to prepare reports and interview experts. Officials say that within the Trump administration, this long-standing practice has also been abandoned by scope agencies.
The CDC and HHS did not respond to requests for banning reports and did not make any experts available for interviews.
Officials said most of the communications personnel working with the center were also fired as part of Kennedy’s radical restructuring of the department this month.
The branch responsible for producing autism numbers is Several teams remain Work at the CDC’s Birth Deficiencies and Disability Centers.
Officials hope it will crack from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and merge into Kennedy’s new administration for healthy American institutions.
