Chances of having a child with Autism?

Question

These new neighbors by my house have a kid with Autism. Its so sad. I'm scared something like that can happened to me. I feel So bad for his parents. They have to deal with a lot. Their kid gets in a lot of trouble. What are my chances of having a kid with Autism? No one in My family has any problems like that. And what do they mean when kids didn't get enough air to their brain?

thank you

Answer 1

This is one of the big questions when deciding to become a parent.  You must be willing to accept the fact that you may have a child with special needs.  If you are not willing or feel that you may not be able to raise a child with special needs you should give a long hard though to bearing your own children, certainly you can adopt if you wish to become a parent.  

As other posters have said, the risks are "high" at 1 in 150 births.  Many families have no history of Autism and yet couples have a children or siblings with Autism.  Good luck with your decision.

Answer 2

There is no way to know for sure what the chances are until they find all the triggers for it.  They now know there is a gene located in the brain that can be passed down but not all people have it "triggered" so they have to find what triggers the gene.  They think high mercury content may be partly to blame but there are other factors as well.  

When babies don't get enough oxygen to their brain that can cause things like Cerebral Palsy or other neurological disorders but I have never heard any of the Dr's here mentioning it being linked to an autism trigger.  My son has PDD/Aspergers which is basically a high functioning Autism.  He was born that way but people look at him and can't really tell, they see his outbursts as just him being a brat or make comments about him being undisciplined but I know the truth as done everyone close to him.  Nobody in my blood line that I am aware of has the disorder but some people can just be carriers of many disorders without ever showing signs themselves.  

Answer 3

Experts said that 6 of every 1000 children will have Autism

Males are 4times likely to have Autism than female

My daughter have Autism like symptoms, by she test to high for Autism.  She falls more under PDD-NOS, form of autism, then Autism

I have seen people that have children with serval Autism, and it is hard.  My child, most people could not tell she has Austim like symptoms, unless you know some one with Autism

try this website it should answer the question more than me

www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/autism/det...

I know more children that are in the PDD range of autism.   It's a lot less scary then full autism

You will love the child you get

I hope one day, they can help with the children with autism

Answer 4

Your concern is a very valid one and is shared by a lot of people.  I used to be a special education teacher and I have worked with these kids.  Today one out of every 150 kids is autistic and just a few years ago the numbers were much lower.  So the rate of autism is soaring and nobody knows why.  

Researchers are scrambling to try to find the cause.  The thinking is that it is a combination of genetics and environment.  Genetics because statistically the risk of producing another autistic child is higher in a family that already has one.  Environment because a purely genetic risk would not cause a sharp upsurge like we have seen.

The suspicion is that we have always had genetically susceptible people and families.  However without an environmental trigger those individuals remained safe.  Somehow in the last few years an unknown environmental trigger has entered our lives.  Technology has handed us thousands if not millions of new products which have become part of our existence.  Many scientists feel that a specific item or group of similar items are triggering autism in those who are susceptible.  The problem is that nobody knows what the trigger is.

I'm glad that nobody in your family has a problem but that does not prove that you and yours are not susceptible.  Your family may not have encountered the trigger.

The brain is a very delicate organ.  Just a brief period without oxygen can cause permanent damage.  Sometimes this happens for various reasons during the birth process.

I would encourage you to be as supportive as you possibly can to your neighbor.  Please realize that when the child acts up it is not because of bad parenting on their part.  Reach out to them.

Answer 5

my brother has autism, it may have been hard on my mother to raise him by herself. if  you where to ask her she would tell you she loves her boy no matter what!!!his still her baby. it may be best to speak to autism Australia they can answer any of your questions. if you do have a disabled child you wont think about it you'll love them with all your heart and that's all that i can say on the matter..

Answer 6

I do believe the odds are 1/150. My son has it and there is nobody in mine or my husbands family who has it. Or anything like it. Boys are 4 times more likely than girls to get it.

If a child has a parent or sibling with it, they are considered high risk. I now have a 7 month old son and I read the chances of him having it are 1/20 since his big brother has it.

I would check out www.autismspeaks.org for more info.  

Answer 7

Autism is 1 of the fastest growing disorder in the world 1 in every 250 children will be diagnosed with a form of autism and the reason for its increase is not known. Boys are more likely to be affected than girls and the autism spectrum is very broad. It ranges from children with very mild symptoms who respond very well to early intervention and go on to live normal productive lives to children who are completely trapped in there own world and unable to communicate at all. There is no way to test for autism and no none cause of it; if you have a family member with the condition then you are more likely to have child with autism.  I work in the disability field for 10 years and the last 5 years there was such a huge increase in the number of children being diagnoside with the condition. I also have a nephew who is affect with autism and is currently involved in an early intervention program he is 2yrs old and it was very clear from a very ypoung age that something was no right with his development.

Answer 8

It can happen to anyone.