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Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked To Autism (newatlas.com)

New submitter future guy quotes a report from New Atlas: The researchers examined around 4,200 blood samples from pregnant women and their children and discovered a link between autism and low levels of vitamin D. More specifically, they found that pregnant women who were vitamin D deficient at 20 weeks gestation were more likely to have a child with autistic traits by the age of six. Rather than taking in more sunlight and the heightened risk of skin cancer that it carries, the researchers suggest that making inexpensive and safe vitamin D supplements available to at-risk groups may be a better path forward. "This study provides further evidence that low vitamin D is associated with neurodevelopmental disorders," says Professor John McGrath from the University of Queensland. "Just as taking folate in pregnancy has reduced the incidence of spina bifida, the result of this study suggests that prenatal vitamin D supplements may reduce the incidence of autism." The research was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

216 comments

  1. Shots by Rakshasa+Taisab · · Score: 1

    Can't they just get some vitamin shots for this?

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    - These characters were randomly selected.
    1. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      That's the recipe for Aspergers!

    2. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Which they? The mother?

      If you're talking about a problem during pregnancy (true in this case) you can indeed inject supplements into the mother during pregnancy. This probably isn't called for here, however, as vitamin A+D supplements are very small pills and are pretty well tolerated by most people. (I've been taking them for about a year). It's certainly not completely nuts that a vitamin with effects related to neurology would cause developmental problems in the brain of children whose mothers are deficient during pregnancy.

    3. Re:Shots by jgullstr · · Score: 1

      Or maybe a vaccine?

    4. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes ! Drinking oral vitamin D supplements, 3 shots ; one every 2 weeks. As soon as the deficiency is discovered.

    5. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's the recipe for Aspergers!

      You've got it backwards. I avoid the sunlight because of my Asperger.

      Similarly, sleeping in a coffin doesn't cause vampirism, and having tender times with sheeps doesn't cause you to be from Wales or New Zealand.

      The direction of causality is important!

    6. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I have some very good recipes for aspergers. Have you ever tried aspergers welsh rabbit? It's a cheese sauce (with a hint of worcestershire )over toast with broiled aspergers on top. I also love a good aspergers soup, with a cream base.

    7. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Captain Morgan is not an "oral vitamin D supplement".

    8. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      " having tender times with sheeps doesn't cause you to be from Wales or New Zealand."

      And what about Kansas and Alabama?

    9. Re:Shots by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Can't they just get some vitamin shots for this?

      A Vitamin D vaccine? Hell no! Vaccines cause autisim! Jenny McCarthy told me so.

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      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    10. Re:Shots by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Just 'cause your cousin looks like a sheep doesn't mean she is one.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    11. Re:Shots by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah! You can't expect us to believe hard science when a Hollywood bimbo tells us it's not!

    12. Re:Shots by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Yeah! You can't expect us to believe hard science when a Hollywood bimbo tells us it's not!

      Some times. I think it would take Sophia Vergara level hottnitude to get me that dumb.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  2. Oh My Gawd by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They just said vaccines steal vitamins!

    The girl from porn was right!

  3. Tell mom's to drink their milk. by EzInKy · · Score: 0

    Problem solved.

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    Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
    1. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      1. Typicak vitamin D fortified milk doesn't have much vitamin D.
      2. Drinking their own milk won't work either.
      2a. They don't lactate until *after* the baby is born.
      2b. Recycling vitamins is stupid by drinking their own milk.

    2. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by EzInKy · · Score: 1

      Your solution then is?

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      Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
    3. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by TheConway · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Maybe something crazy like taking inexpensive vitamin D pills

    4. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by EzInKy · · Score: 1

      Why not just utilize the originals sources, such as fatty fish, beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks.

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      Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
    5. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by thegarbz · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Because the amount of vitamin D available in food sources is piss poor in general. The effective natural way to get it is to go on the sun. This has orders of magnitude more effect than diet.

    6. Re:Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Be sure to drink your Ovaltine

    7. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by SeaFox · · Score: 1

      The effective natural way to get it is to go on the sun. This has orders of magnitude more effect than diet.

      Kinda hard to get much outdoor time when most people work indoors during the day and employers wont allow the rank-and-file a good work/life balance.

    8. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Have you noticed how civilizations in history have most of the time been located near waters abundant in fish?
      Did you know fish is very important for health, especially for the health of our brains?
      Have you wondered what would happen to a human population where fish is all but cut out from their diets?
      Why people living inland away from seas, lakes and great rivers seem stupider on average?

    9. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by EzInKy · · Score: 1

      Of course I did, but still there are the vegans.

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      Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
    10. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Hence the vitamin D pills

    11. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by kcelery · · Score: 1

      Then people should expect wide spread of autism in China when the fog is there all year round.

    12. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by NoNonAlphaCharsHere · · Score: 3, Informative

      There's plenty of sunlight on Vega, so, problem solved.

    13. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      Have you noticed how civilizations in history have most of the time been located near waters abundant in fish?
      Did you know fish is very important for health, especially for the health of our brains?
      Have you wondered what would happen to a human population where fish is all but cut out from their diets?
      Why people living inland away from seas, lakes and great rivers seem stupider on average?

      Yes, I have noticed this. Thankfully, those advanced Polynesian islanders will use their advanced techno-wizardry to bring their fishy goodness to backward, impoverished places like Switzerland in the near future.

    14. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Rei · · Score: 2

      What "people living inland away from seas, lakes and great rivers"? The reason you see populations of people near bodies of water is because water is essential for life, not because it contains fish. Ancient Egyptian civilization was by the Nile because its floods provided water and nutrients to their crops, not because some lack of fish would have transformed them into blithering idiots. Same with Mesopotamia. Same with the Indus valley. Same with the early Chinese civilizations.

      --
      Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion.
    15. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Maritz · · Score: 2

      Given that you think eating fish is directly linked to being smart, I'm assuming you're from an inland region.

      --
      I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
    16. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Vitamin D is fat soluble. I would recommend an emulsion.

    17. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by nospam007 · · Score: 1

      "Have you noticed how civilizations in history have most of the time been located near waters abundant in fish?"

      That's because they needed water to drink, fish are just a nuisance, they piss into that water.

    18. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Immerman · · Score: 1

      Probably not - clouds don't actually block all that much UV, which is the component of sunlight used for synthesizing vitamin D. It's quite possible to get a very nasty sunburn on a dismally overcast day (source, personal experience).

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      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    19. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Mr+D+from+63 · · Score: 1

      Maybe something crazy like taking inexpensive vitamin D pills

      Maybe, and hopefully, but it appears they have not yet determined if it is causation or just correlation. It may be that whatever causes Vitamin D deficiency also increases risk of Autism.

    20. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Immerman · · Score: 1

      As has been mentioned elsewhere, even vitamin D rich foods are a poor source of vitamin D. The efficient source is sunlight exposure (even if it's overcast, UV mostly passes right through clouds). So, even assuming your correlation is correct, it probably has more to do with the fact that coastal cultures tend to wear less clothing and spend more time in the sun than with their diet.

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      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    21. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Because the amount of vitamin D available in food sources is piss poor in general. The effective natural way to get it is to go on the sun. This has orders of magnitude more effect than diet.

      Pretty much this. I'm gonna go into a "when I was a kid" thing now.

      When I was a kid, we all got a lot of outside time, including the adults.

      Then the sun and outdoors became our enemy. Relentlessly we were taught that even one sunburn could kill us http://www.dailymail.co.uk/hea...

      Which of course is unmitigated bullshit.

      But today, mothers, if they even allow their children to go outdoors, slather them in sunscreen because even if the child's skin turns pink, they are presumably killing the kid.

      So now, we've raised a generation of people with Vitamin D deficiency.

      Meanwhile, and considering how many people are alive who in earlier days spent a lot of time outdoors, and had a sunburn every year, you would think that Melanoma would have killed them all by now.

      It isn't to ridicule melanoma, it sounds like a bad way do die. It's just that you don't take a creature like humans, who evolved in the outdoors, and turn them into cave critters and not have some repercussions.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    22. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 1

      That's true, but fewer people go outside on cloudy ugly days than when the weather is nice and the sky is blue.

      --
      "That's the way to do it" - Punch
    23. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Rei · · Score: 1

      It's not so simple of an issue. The colour of our skin has evolved - taking into account clothing, which we've been wearing for quite some time - relative to our environment's sun exposure. Melanin is our natural sunscreen. People in sunny locations tend to evolve darker skin because melanoma was more of a threat than vitamin D deficiency. People in dim locations tended to evolve lighter skin because vitamin D deficiency was more of a threat (high latitudes strike doubly, as people wear more clothes to stay warm).

      If you're light skinned and live in a sunny location, you probably should be more concerned about melanoma than vitamin D deficiency. If you're dark skinned and live in a dim location, you should probably be more concerned about vitamin D deficiency than melanoma. At least, that's what evolution tells us.

      --
      Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion.
    24. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by ChrisMaple · · Score: 1

      To become significant, civilizations need trade. Oceans make possible trade routes; they don't provide drinking water or water for crops (other than seaweed).

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    25. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Immerman · · Score: 1

      Generally true, but not necessarily applicable to places where cloudiness is the norm. (cue Oregon joke: there is no bad weather in Oregon, only bad rain gear)

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      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    26. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      People in sunny locations tend to evolve darker skin because melanoma was more of a threat than vitamin D deficiency. People in dim locations tended to evolve lighter skin because vitamin D deficiency was more of a threat (high latitudes strike doubly, as people wear more clothes to stay warm).

      Yup, the people who aren't adapted propely tend to die a lot sooner.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    27. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by omnichad · · Score: 1

      You could also just take it with food.

    28. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Vegan+Cyclist · · Score: 1

      Why not just utilize the originals sources, such as fatty fish, beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks.

      Um, by 'original source' I think you mean the sun - that's where most people get their D from. As mentioned, the amount of D in food is unreliable, a supplement is probably the best choice to ensure enough D is obtained.

    29. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Talderas · · Score: 1

      If you think the vegans are bad you should meet the raw vegan subset.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
    30. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Kinda hard to get much outdoor time when most people work indoors during the day and employers wont allow the rank-and-file a good work/life balance.

      Hence why we're talking supplements.

    31. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by thegarbz · · Score: 1

      Not for several reasons.
      a) Fog doesn't block nearly as much UV as you think it does.
      b) China's climate in general is far sunnier and has a far higher UV rating hitting the ground than most of Europe.
      c) Genetic predisposition has not been studied here and outside of Vitamin D / sunlight there can be many other influences on autism. You've not only decided on causality ruling out alternatives, but your causality is done via an intermediate variable as well. Bad science!

    32. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I second that emulsion.

    33. Re: Tell mom's to drink their milk. by nbritton · · Score: 1

      Because the amount of vitamin D available in food sources is piss poor in general. The effective natural way to get it is to go on the sun. This has orders of magnitude more effect than diet.

      Not only is it piss poor, the vitamin D2 supplemented in food sources can't be converted into the active metabolite of vitamin D3. D2 is for bones, D3 is for the brain.

  4. So what about peoples who live at the poles? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Presumably peoples who live at the extreme latitudes near the poles, who would get a lot less sunlight in winter, would have a seasonally higher incidence of autism?

    1. Re:So what about peoples who live at the poles? by brantondaveperson · · Score: 1

      They probably take supplements already, which would mean that you'd find a lower incidence.

    2. Re:So what about peoples who live at the poles? by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 2

      Presumably peoples who live at the extreme latitudes near the poles, who would get a lot less sunlight in winter, would have a seasonally higher incidence of autism?

      People who live near the poles tend to each a lot of oily fish that have a plenty of vitamin D.

  5. My new research idea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Vaccines cause vitamin D deficiencies

  6. Where is the news? by quenda · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Where is the news?
    This seems to just confirm previous data, which is important to researchers, but not that interesting to the public.

    The vitamin-D hypothesis has been around for years. It would be interesting if a causal link, or treatment, could be demonstrated,
    e.g. a randomised placebo controlled trial of supplements during pregnancy. But there seems to be none of that yet.

    1. Re: Where is the news? by Lenny369 · · Score: 1

      I also question the actual impact... And curious as to why they did not include this in either article. So I found it in the actual journal: "those who were deficient at time of birth had on average 0.06 point higher gender-weighted SRS score, which corresponds to an increase of approximately one fourth of the s.d. (s.d. of the SRS in the total sample=0.23)."

    2. Re:Where is the news? by jandersen · · Score: 5, Informative

      Where is the news?
      This seems to just confirm previous data, which is important to researchers, but not that interesting to the public.

      Well, this is how science works. Overall, it is extremely rare to make astounding, new discoveries; most scientific research is about confirming what we already know or improving our observations - even the Higgs boson was just a confirmation of what we already knew, really. It is easy to get the idea that all science is making sensational finds, if you only read the popular science stuff, and it gives you the completely wrong picture. Important science is mostly routine. It has to be - the scientific method dictates that you must keep testing, because the only certainty you can achieve lies in falsifying predictions. That is why there still are people who keep finding new ways of testing that gravity still works as predicted; next time it might not - that is of course taking it to the extreme, but it is scientifically very valid to keep asking the question.

      The vitamin-D hypothesis has been around for years. It would be interesting if a causal link, or treatment, could be demonstrated, e.g. a randomised placebo controlled trial of supplements during pregnancy. But there seems to be none of that yet.

      I think you are getting things mixed up a bit. Randomised trials are meant specifically for testing the efficacy of new medicines. The method would work for vitamin D, of course, but it would be ethically unsound to deliberately expose groups of people to the well-documented risks that this deficiency would cause, and it would be extremely difficult to control the parameters, I think; you get vitamin D from many sources, such as exposure to sunlight, and you would have to keep large groups of pregnant women confined indoors for 9 months, and so on. Can't be done practically.

      But it isn't really necessary. Firstly, I think we have confirmed that the correlation is real, not spurious, so presumably we now have a confirmed pattern of vitamin D deficiency correlating to a certain increase in the risk of developing autism. Secondly, other research seems to point to plausible mechanisms - we know something about what goes on in an autistic brain, and we know that vitamin D probably plays an important role in the development of certain features that appear to be important in connection with autism.

      But you are right, this is not a surprising, new discovery; we are simply inching closer to understanding how autism develops.

    3. Re:Where is the news? by guises · · Score: 1

      What is your question exactly? Are you asking why this is being published on Slashdot? Because there exist people who believe that autism is caused by something else, and being able to point at something and say, "Hey look, real evidence showing that it might be this thing instead of that make-believe thing" is a useful bit of information to share with the public.

      Or are you asking why the research was done at all? Maybe because the researchers were not as confident of the correlation between vitamin D deficiency and autism as you're suggesting. Establishing a link like that takes a veritable mountain of evidence - a lot of studies like this one.

    4. Re:Where is the news? by ravenshrike · · Score: 1

      Bullshit, with a large enough cohort, and without telling them it's vitamin D just a new drug, you would have baseline control probably close enough to the average rate of autism that you could discern any potential benefits from vitamin D. That assumes, of course, that this report itself doesn't spur a large amount of mothers to start taking large vitamin D supplements, thus changing the average prior to any trials if the link actually exists.

    5. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Where is the news? This seems to just confirm previous data, which is important to researchers, but not that interesting to the public.

      The vitamin-D hypothesis has been around for years. It would be interesting if a causal link, or treatment, could be demonstrated, e.g. a randomised placebo controlled trial of supplements during pregnancy. But there seems to be none of that yet.

      Severe ethics and social problem there. Its just about impossible to have trials of medicine with pregnant women or young children involved, as any birth defects or developmental problems and the people running the tests will be crucified.

      You won't ever see any test like that, the closest thing they can do is do analysis after the fact, when they are not held responsible for any problems.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    6. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Bullshit, with a large enough cohort, and without telling them it's vitamin D just a new drug, you would have baseline control probably close enough to the average rate of autism that you could discern any potential benefits from vitamin D. That assumes, of course, that this report itself doesn't spur a large amount of mothers to start taking large vitamin D supplements, thus changing the average prior to any trials if the link actually exists.

      Its rather amusing that a person who calls bullshit is so full of it.

      You weren't by any chance involved in the Tuskegee syphilis experiments were you?

      And just how many experimental trials were you involved in?

      This isn't the 1940's any more. Any medical experimentation is subject to ethical review, and before you get to even start the experiment. There is absolutely no way that a trial that involves purposefully causing a vitamin deficiency in a selected group will ever make it through an ethics review.

      Sorry Dr Mengele, you can't do your twin vivisection experiments any more.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    7. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      What is your question exactly? Are you asking why this is being published on Slashdot? Because there exist people who believe that autism is caused by something else, and being able to point at something and say, "Hey look, real evidence showing that it might be this thing instead of that make-believe thing" is a useful bit of information to share with the public.

      Exactly this! One of the arguments I used that always shut the vaccine assholes up, was pointing out how fixated they were on first that merthiolate was the cause, then something else was the cause after merthiolate was removed, then drug companies were in a conspiracy even after it was proven that the only conspiracy was between the asshole that started the whole thing and a lawyer who were going to capitalize on the sympathetic victim effect in the courts.

      It always ended up with the statement "Your vaccine blame is really far behind as a cause of autism. It takes an extraordinary amount of conspiracy, and now some unknown mechanism for your idea to be true."

      Then the question "Are you more concerned with finding what might cause autism, or is you main goal blaming vaccines."

      That's when they tend to get a little quiet.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    8. Re:Where is the news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This isn't the 1940's any more. Any medical experimentation is subject to ethical review, and before you get to even start the experiment. There is absolutely no way that a trial that involves purposefully causing a vitamin deficiency in a selected group will ever make it through an ethics review.

      Don't worry, the 21st Century Cares Act will ensure lots of untested cures will be on the market, gotta innovate fast!

    9. Re:Where is the news? by EmeraldBot · · Score: 1

      Bullshit, with a large enough cohort, and without telling them it's vitamin D just a new drug, you would have baseline control probably close enough to the average rate of autism that you could discern any potential benefits from vitamin D. That assumes, of course, that this report itself doesn't spur a large amount of mothers to start taking large vitamin D supplements, thus changing the average prior to any trials if the link actually exists.

      Its rather amusing that a person who calls bullshit is so full of it.

      You weren't by any chance involved in the Tuskegee syphilis experiments were you?

      And just how many experimental trials were you involved in?

      This isn't the 1940's any more. Any medical experimentation is subject to ethical review, and before you get to even start the experiment. There is absolutely no way that a trial that involves purposefully causing a vitamin deficiency in a selected group will ever make it through an ethics review.

      Sorry Dr Mengele, you can't do your twin vivisection experiments any more.

      I don't think he means intentionally depriving them of vitamin D, rather I think he means simply creating a control group being given a placebo (pills of sugar, perhaps), and another group being given pills of vitamin D. The control group would have no worse outcomes than the average pregnant women would have, while the experimental group should show some improvement.

      However, your point still stands; you wouldn't be able to easily control for lifestyle choices, and those have much more of an impact on vitamin D levels than a pill would.

      --
      "Set a man a fire, he'll be warm for the rest of the night. Set a man afire, he'll be warm for the rest of his life."
    10. Re:Where is the news? by quenda · · Score: 1

      Severe ethics and social problem there. Its just about impossible to have trials of medicine with pregnant women

      Many pregnant women already take supplements which include vitamin D. It is approved, and any serious negative effects should already be visible.
      For a trial, you exclude those women. Then give group A daily pill containing folate and iron, group B get folate, iron and vitamin D. randomised, double-blind. Then come back in a few years and see how they are doing.

    11. Re:Where is the news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think we have confirmed that the correlation is real, not spurious, so presumably we now have a confirmed pattern of vitamin D deficiency correlating to a certain increase in the risk of developing autism.

      So what does that have to do with establishing causation? The prevalence of autism is also correlated with dietary sugar intake and BMI too. That doesn't mean they are related. The only way to establish causation is to test the hypothesis, not test the correlation.

    12. Re:Where is the news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I believe the ethical quandary here is that you're trying to put pregnant women into a study group an deprive them of a nutrient that researchers believe has a causal link to autism spectrum disorders.

    13. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      I don't think he means intentionally depriving them of vitamin D, rather I think he means simply creating a control group being given a placebo (pills of sugar, perhaps), and another group being given pills of vitamin D. The control group would have no worse outcomes than the average pregnant women would have, while the experimental group should show some improvement.

      That wouldn't be a proper experiment according to his wishes. You can't prove that a deficiencey causes something unless you create that deficiency. Because if you geive people extra Vitamin D, and less or no autistic children are born, he'll be screaming "Correlation!=Causation" because you have to prove lack of something causes something. And there is enough variation in human activity to cast doubt on the exactitude of any experiment. You have to specifically cause the problem to determine if a problem is caused by something. Human testing is a Helluva minefield.

      However, your point still stands; you wouldn't be able to easily control for lifestyle choices, and those have much more of an impact on vitamin D levels than a pill would.

      There are intriguing issues here. I wouldn't presume to declare Vitamin D as the smoking gun. But with a rise in autism rates since many people avoid the sun is interesting. People of dark skin pigmentation having increases in Autism rates appearing at the same time as they live in areas where they get less insolation. Not causation, but extremely interesting.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    14. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Severe ethics and social problem there. Its just about impossible to have trials of medicine with pregnant women

      Many pregnant women already take supplements which include vitamin D. It is approved, and any serious negative effects should already be visible. For a trial, you exclude those women. Then give group A daily pill containing folate and iron, group B get folate, iron and vitamin D. randomised, double-blind. Then come back in a few years and see how they are doing.

      The problem of course, is that you actually have to create the autism. Otherwise you have no exact causation. If there is one thing you won't find, it is a company or government that would ever sponsor such a test. That's why you don't see many drugs designed for pregnant women. One birth defect, not necessarily even caused by the drug test, and as they say "You are well and Truly fucked". Your ass would be hauled into court, and you'll be painted as the big conspiratorial Pharma, while the weeping mother and unfortunate infant will have the jury's sympathy.

      It's a pity, and some people complain about the paucity of drug treatments for pregnant women, but that's just how things are - no one is going to take that liability exposure. You are 100 percent going to lose.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    15. Re:Where is the news? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Agreed. Anecdotal: a doctor told me (who is also VitD deficient) that the modern western lifestyle, where ALL sun exposure is eschewed due to the skin cancer scare, and people work in offices and stay indoors for most of the daylight hours, is a leading cause for widespread VitD deficiency in the western world.

    16. Re:Where is the news? by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

      It would be 'ethical' to find a population that's already deficient, then supplement half of them.

      But now you need to study the rates within that group and have to use caution extrapolating to larger populations.

      Test it with existing data. If it's true, populations more likely to be vitamin D deficient (darker skins at higher latitudes) will already have higher autism rates. Do black folks in Chicago have higher autism rates than in the south? (Where we know the population migrated from, mostly less than 100 years ago.)

      Data will be called racist, so compare dark skinned folks at different latitudes.

      --
      John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
    17. Re:Where is the news? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Informative

      It would be 'ethical' to find a population that's already deficient, then supplement half of them.

      Okay, let me give you a few cites so that you know where I'm coming from.

      https://sciencebasedmedicine.o...

      There was a time when we had a pretty awful approach to medical experimentatino on humans. The Tuskegee syphilis experiment is one of the worst examples. There was another STD experiment called the Guatamalan syphilis Experiment. And by the way, given the nature of the experiments, good luck in getting cooperation from dark pigmented people as they have a well earned distrust of medical experimentation. And Black women in northern climates are probably the number one risk group.

      You will probably really stand up for the experiments on children during the mid-1960's At the Willwbrook State School in Staten Island, a school for the mentally deficient, they intentionally injected children with Hepatitis in order to see if Gamma Globulin could cure it. That's pretty sweet and kindly.

      http://ethics.iit.edu/eelibrar...

      Anyhow, they rationalized it by declaring that since so many of the children became infected with Hep, it wasn't a big deal. Oddly enough, it was never made clear why they didn't test Gamma Globulin on the children who already contracted hepatitis.

      In 1948 REsearchers gave over 800 pregnant women "vitamin drinks" that contained radioactive iron to examine the placental/ mother's blood transfer. At the Massachusetts based Walter E. Fernald State School, the AEC and Quaker Oats performed a experiment of given them oatmeal with radioactive Calcium in it to track digestion of Calcium. The students were told they were joining a science club.

      There are a lot more, but when these abuses - and I seriously hope you would also consider them abuses, a lot of ethical concerns, and eventually ethics committees and regulations came into existence.

      While there might be some clandestine stuff still going on, any program such as one that is aimed at studying autism causes is going to be closely studied for three reasons. One is that it's an obvious one, to possibly help children avoid becoming autistic. The second one is that it involves mothers and children at all, so it will have ahigh priority. The thirs is a bit of an embarrassment, because people who for some reason are heavily invested in the belief that vaccines cause autism, will want to debunk the experiments in any way possible. If you don't believe me, just look at what happened when they removed the original "cause of autism" th emerthiolate from vaccines, and it had no effect. So without any proof, the anti vaxxers just decided it was "something else".

      Test it with existing data. If it's true, populations more likely to be vitamin D deficient (darker skins at higher latitudes) will already have higher autism rates. Do black folks in Chicago have higher autism rates than in the south? (Where we know the population migrated from, mostly less than 100 years ago.)

      Data will be called racist, so compare dark skinned folks at different latitudes.

      Good luck with African descent people to agree with any test like you suggest. They don't trust the medical profession in that way, and they have a good reason not to.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    18. Re:Where is the news? by jandersen · · Score: 1

      So what does that have to do with establishing causation? The prevalence of autism is also correlated with dietary sugar intake and BMI too. That doesn't mean they are related. The only way to establish causation is to test the hypothesis, not test the correlation.

      When you know that you have a strong correlation, you certainly have a reason to start looking more closely, for one thing. And when you also have several, good ideas that there may be plausible ways in which one could cause the other, then that is where you start looking; this isn't sophisticated and difficult to follow, it is simple, common sense that most people use every day.

    19. Re:Where is the news? by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

      They gave large doses of Vitamin D to old men with early stage prostate cancer. To study how much it retards cancer growth (results were very statistically significant).

      When you start with a population that is deficient it is ethical to only give supplements to half, until you prove the supplements do something.

      Some black folks are stuck in the 1950s, don't encourage them. Obama did one very good thing, took away all black folk's excuse. It is _not_ impossible because they are black.

      You will have to adjust for the population in the study being self selected from the better educated. The fact that no nation of islam members are in the study doesn't invalidate it though.

      --
      John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
    20. Re:Where is the news? by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Randomised [Controlled] trials [RCTs] are meant specifically for testing the efficacy of new medicines.

      You can use RCTs for a new drug of course, but you an also use them for a lot of other things. In particular you can use them for non-new drugs (or surgery, or whatever) treating a disease for which there is an established treatment. In which case, you have an RCT of "new treatment" against "established treatment," not "new treatment" against "placebo". You still have to be very careful to monitor your case by case progress (the new treatment may be worse than the established treatment, and it may be worse than doing nothing).

      The method would work for vitamin D, of course, but it would be ethically unsound to deliberately expose groups of people to the well-documented risks that this deficiency would cause, and it would be extremely difficult to control the parameters, I think; you get vitamin D from many sources, such as exposure to sunlight, and you would have to keep large groups of pregnant women confined indoors for 9 months, and so on. Can't be done practically.

      Going back to the "established treatment" case for an RCT, here your established treatment is normal life with normal levels of vitamin D, and the "new treatment" is normal life plus a vitamin D supplement. Thus, no patient gets a worse outcome than the standard treatment would have given them. If I were to try to present this to an Ethics Committee, I'd maybe consider blinding it by putting both arms of the RCT on some non-controversial treatment (e.g. w.r.t. pregnancy, perhaps folic acid) but spiking the "new treatment" arm with the vitamin D as well.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    21. Re:Where is the news? by beastofburdon · · Score: 1

      And just how many experimental trials were you involved in?

      A couple.

      This isn't the 1940's any more. Any medical experimentation is subject to ethical review, and before you get to even start the experiment. There is absolutely no way that a trial that involves purposefully causing a vitamin deficiency in a selected group will ever make it through an ethics review.

      Ha, Ha, Ha, oh shit, I need to catch my breath....
      Forced experimentation without an ethics review board is alive and well in the US, especially in the military and prisons. I know, I've been subject to such experiments, and if I had refused I would have ended up in Leavenworth making small rocks out of large ones.
      Your fantasy of justice and ethics simply does not, and never has existed.

    22. Re:Where is the news? by RyoShin · · Score: 1

      it would be ethically unsound to deliberately expose groups of people to the well-documented risks that this deficiency would cause, and it would be extremely difficult to control the parameters, I think

      I agree, but what is the possibility of a doing just one-half of the study: Find willing, pregnant women, make sure they're getting a full dose (or more) of Vitamin D routinely, measuring their Vitamin D levels throughout pregnancy, then checking in after birth at 1, 5, and 10 years to see how the kids are. Figure out the rate of kids on the autism spectrum, then compare this "trial" group to the general population rate (i.e. the "control").

      You then have some manner of comparison without intentionally creating any risk. The "trial" group would have to be quite large to be meaningful, of course, but I imagine that Vitamin D intake/measuring is relatively simple, so you can partner with OBGYN, hospitals, etc. to collect data.

  7. Another possibility by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    1. Autism is primarily genetic

    2. Autistic individuals seem to have real problems metabolizing some vitamins and minerals from food. Vitamin B-12 is one well-known example... basically, autistic individuals aren't able to adequately metabolize forms like cyanocobalamin into something that can cross the blood-brain barrier, but giving them injectable methylcobalamin (which CAN cross the BBB) can reduce some symptoms of autism by giving their brain access to a vitamin it would otherwise be deficient in.

    3. By extension of 1 and 2, aspie mothers might show vitamin D deficiencies and, for reasons completely independent of their own vitamin D deficiency, be more likely to have kids who are themselves on the autism spectrum.

    1. Re: Another possibility by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've suspected I was on the spectrum. If I don't take b and iron daily my life is a mess. There was a doc on cbc a while ago about how there is a link between autism and the gut. Thought to be linked to taking antibiotics as the cause of autism

    2. Re:Another possibility by jandersen · · Score: 1

      Whether autism is "primarily genetic" is still a matter of a lot of debate, not least because we don't really understand enough about genes in general to determine whether things are due to variations in DNA or due to epigenetics - ie the interface between environment and DNA. It is not at all implausible that differences in the availability of vitamin D can have a profound impact on the expression of genes, IMO. Also, it has to be added that no study is suggesting that autism is caused exclusively by any one factor; only that lack of vitamin D seems to one of the contributing factors.

      It is right and good that we are skeptical about scientific results - the scientific method is nothing less than skepticism honed to a razor-sharp edge - but there is a difference between skepticism, intelligently applied, and mere contraryness. This is something we all have to keep in mind, always.

    3. Re:Another possibility by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      1. Autism is primarily genetic

      No. The recent growth rate of autism is far too high for that to plausible. The rate has grown as fast as car adoption rates.
      Living near highways has been linked to high autism rates. Maybe there is a link between inhaling car exhaust and low vitamin D?
      This would not effect city dwellers because slow moving and stopped cars produce almost no exhaust when compared to highway driving.
      Discuss.

    4. Re:Another possibility by Immerman · · Score: 1

      >This would not effect city dwellers because slow moving and stopped cars produce almost no exhaust when compared to highway driving.

      Seems unlikely, have you ever paid attention to gas mileage numbers, either from the manufacturers or in-car metering? Highway driving is considerably more efficient than stop-and-go city driving, and worse mileage means you're producing more exhaust per car-mile in the city. Then there's the fact that city roads tend to have a lot more cars per mile, and that there's a *lot* more road-miles per square mile in the city. All of which add up to a *lot* more car exhaust in the city. it's also radically more likely that your car hasn't been driven long enough in the city to get the catalytic converter warmed up yet, so there's going to be a lot more toxins in the exhaust than there are once you've been driving for a while.

      If I were to make a guess, I'd say that the correlation has more to do with the fact that the average person living near the freeway is still living in the city, and city property near the freeway tends to be the low-rent district. After all it's already well established that low income correlates well with a LOT of health problems, probably because it also correlates well with poor diet, more environmental toxin exposure, greater stress levels, and less medical oversight.

      Also, autism is a poorly understood condition which is believed to have a wide number of contributing factors - just because prenatal vitamin D deficiency is linked to an increase risk of autism doesn't mean that anything linked to autism is related to vitamin D deficiency. Though it's certainly an angle worth examining.

      --
      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
  8. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by brantondaveperson · · Score: 5, Insightful

    No, you look after them for the rest of their lives, just like any responsible society does for those not able to look after themselves.

  9. And schizophrenia. by nbritton · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Don't forget schizophrenia too. Vitamin D3 deficiency (Calcitriol) is why black mothers who give birth in winter months have a significantly high percentage of having a child that develops schizophrenia. D3 has a strong catalytic effect on glutathione production in the brain (PMID 10428085), and without adequate glutathione the body will not have a way to control reactive oxygen species. This oxidative stress then irrevocably damages the brain during fetal development and you end up with a wide range of problems down the road like Autism and mental health problems.

    Also don't forget that the half-life for the active metabolite of vitamin D is on the order of 21 days. That means it takes about 5 months to reach steady state. One of the best advice I can recommend is that all pregnant women take at least 2,000 IU of D3 per day, with a 21 day 4,000 I.U. loading dose.

    1. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >biological facts are racist

      I have no face at this.

    2. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why your emphasis on "steady state"? Half life tells how long you may have something left. It is also highly variable between people and likely between differing times and environments for the same individual. You really can't assume a "steady state" from a generic metabolic rate applied to any individual. I don't really see why hypothetical steady state would be a goal.

    3. Re:And schizophrenia. by jbmartin6 · · Score: 4, Informative

      Where is the racism? Africans synthesize a less D than Europeans, it's a particular problem in the winter with a lot less sun exposure.

      --
      This posting is provided 'AS IS' without warranty of any kind, implied or otherwise.
    4. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nature has a racist bias.

    5. Re:And schizophrenia. by rhazz · · Score: 1

      "The numbers also were striking for their newborns - 92.4 percent of African-American babies and 66.1 percent of white infants were found to have insufficient vitamin D at birth." Source

      It affects all mothers, but black mothers more. Scientific research supports that conclusion. I'll admit it was odd in this context to single out black mothers in the GP's comment (the schizophrenia link to vitamin d deficiency was the interesting part), but you'll have to provide an argument as to why it's racist.

    6. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The incidence of vitamin D deficiency is about 40% across the population, with blacks about 80%. Of people having an acute schizophrenic episode, about 65% are vitamin D deficient. The effect size this study shows to link vitamin D with autism is about a quarter of a standard deviation. Just because you can resolve a statistical difference in a large population, does not make the effect important.

      If your best advice to pregnant women is to take vitamin D, then you may want to stop giving advice. Or check on the effects of alcohol and tobacco.

    7. Re:And schizophrenia. by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 2

      It affects all mothers, but black mothers more. Scientific research supports that conclusion. I'll admit it was odd in this context to single out black mothers in the GP's comment (the schizophrenia link to vitamin d deficiency was the interesting part), but you'll have to provide an argument as to why it's racist.

      Good grief! The issue is race based, but it surely isn't racist.

      It all has to do with skin pigmentation. Groups who evolved in areas with a lot higher sun exposure were capable of generating enough vitamin D from insolation. When they move to an area with a lot less insolation, they tend to have trouble generating enough Vitamin D.

      I caught a report on NPR that noted that people with dark pigmentation (note this can be either African or Indian) living in a northern city like Detroit, Michigan cannot create enough Vitamin D metabolically from solar exposure, and should always take supplements.

      Conversely, people who are predominantly light skin will often have problems when living in tropical or sub tropical areas. In this case, their skin has difficulty handing the increased insolation.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    8. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I believe it's because of the vitamin absorption rate of different skin colors, some being less optimal than others.

    9. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's simple! It's racist because Trump.

    10. Re:And schizophrenia. by fish_in_the_c · · Score: 1

      why would anyone associate 'African' with race, it is a content? you are designating a specific population. Would you be being racist if you said Europeans have a higher rate of depression then Australians?

      That being said, it is kind of a misnomer, it seems like there should be better ways of accurately speaking about genetic profiles that are tied to specific geographic origins. After all I there are quite a few 3rd and 4th generation African's of European descent.

      Race is an entirely made up construct , it just doesn't exist and the sooner everyone starts acting that way the better off we will all be.

      What exists are these things, Culture ( sometimes confused with race), Genetic traits ( skin, eye and hair color) also sometimes confused with race, but each of the genetic traits can be inherited independently and there are people who are 'culturally' more African then many people with black skin and there are many people with black skin who have less association with Africa then 3rd generation Irish/Americans have with Ireland.

      --
      âoeTolerance applies only to persons, but never to truth. Intolerance applies only to truth, but never to persons.
    11. Re:And schizophrenia. by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 0

      Black people producing unfit offspring susceptible to diseases and insanity was one of the arguments in favor of eugenics, Heinrich. It sounds like something the KKK would say circa 1924. If you're unaware of your own dark history then your deplorable people are condemned to repeat it.

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    12. Re:And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      troll, you've followed a rather dark path. because the facts are uncomfortable, we should not mention them,
      you've also offered up a strawman. nobody suggested anything other than vitamins. there was no suggestion
      that folks were unaware of history --- except yours.

    13. Re:And schizophrenia. by MattskEE · · Score: 2

      There is a world of difference between bias based on prejudice and scientific observation based on fact.

      The truth is there are certain medically significant differences between races. In this case, the increased skin melanin in black individuals is well known to lead to increased incidence of Vitamin D deficiency, which can be linked with certain other problems. Also people of Asian decent are more likely to be lactose intolerant. There are probably more differences but these are commonly known ones.

      It doesn't mean that we practice eugenics, it means we study the problem and try to help everybody be as health as they can be. One treatment does not fit all. If some groups of people are more susceptible to certain health problems then those specific problems should be addressed.

    14. Re: And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One problem -- autism is "basically unheard of" in remote, inland regions of sub-Saharan Africa... the one place on Earth where you can still find people with no Neanderthal DNA *whatsoever*.

      Autism is a side effect of hybridization between African homo sapiens and Eurasian homo neanderthals. Sometimes it makes a brilliant & disruptive genius. Most of the time, it trainwrecks the person's life and causes endless problems for them. BUT... it's that minority of brilliant/disruptive aspies who've driven our explosive growth in science, technology, and engineering. They're the spark that triggered everything we now regard as "human civilization." Human history began 10,000-20,000 years ago... exactly the same time African homo sapiens started mating with Eurasian homo neanderthals. In the exact place now seen as the "cradle of civilization." Coincidence? I think not.

      Having a few aspies enriches communities. Having too many would make it dysfunctional. An aspie mating with artsy hot chick or brilliant nerdy girl has 50-50 odds of a kid with profound classic autism. The solution? Support gay rights. Then some of them won't have dysfunctional kids they didn't really want to begin with (gays who are truly gung-ho on having kids are almost NEVER even SLIGHTLY autistic), but enough will still accidentally procreate as teens to ensure they continue to exist.

    15. Re: And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > Race is an entirely made up construct , it just doesn't exist and the

      > sooner everyone starts acting that way the better off we will all be.

      Leopards & jaguars are officially classified as distinct species, but they're genetically more alike than sub-Saharan non-coastal Africans and Scottish gingers. The reality is, leopards & jaguars are just different races of 'panther' who live on opposite sides of the planet & look slightly different, but can easily interbreed without problems and make healthy leguars & jaguleps.

    16. Re:And schizophrenia. by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 2

      That being said, it is kind of a misnomer, it seems like there should be better ways of accurately speaking about genetic profiles that are tied to specific geographic origins.

      Which is why I try to refer to it as skin pigmentation. Because you don't have to be African to have a lot of melanin.

      After all I there are quite a few 3rd and 4th generation African's of European descent.

      Race is an entirely made up construct , it just doesn't exist and the sooner everyone starts acting that way the better off we will all be.

      But there are important issues of genetics involved, many people of African descent and some Mediterraneans have a genetic profilee that allowed them to be resistant to Malaria. Obviously a good evolutionary trait in an area where Malaria is common. However, it also leaves them susceptible to Sickle cell anemia. Now My ass is so lily white that no one owuld ever consider testing me for SSA. So I would disagree that race is an artificial construct.

      You can't just say that race doesn't exist. Well you can, but you'd be throwing away a lot of genetic variations like Vitamin D shortages, sickle cell anemia, melanoma and other issues that have life and death implications. Knowledge and acknowledgement of these things does not equalte to racism.

      This isn't to say that there aren't stupid preconceptions. I was listening to a woman being interviewed on NPR sometime this past year She was of Kenyan descent, but lived in Germany. The woman interviewing her asks her how she felt about some issue as an "African American" A couple second delay, then the woman answered " I'm not certain how to answer that, because I'm a German".

      It was hilarious to listen to the interviewer stumble all over herself for a while.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    17. Re: And schizophrenia. by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

      Autism is unheard of anywhere people still struggle to survive, Eskimos never heard of it either. It's a collection of symptoms, in search of a common cause.

      The rest of your rant hangs on this misconception.

      --
      John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
    18. Re: And schizophrenia. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Jaguars are just tarted up Fords.

  10. We made an autism vaccine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Your move

    1. Re:We made an autism vaccine by Major+Byte · · Score: 1

      Many scientists are a bit on the autistic spectrum... Ergo, autism causes vaccines!

  11. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But, but because of Freedom we can't create and make comprehensive public health system and research with free prenatal guidance and support for mothers!

  12. Re:And this is why blacks... by tsa · · Score: 1

    Physics was not one of your best subjects in high school, was it?

    --

    -- Cheers!

  13. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    "Antisocial" is a very narrow view and actually completely fucking wrong.

    Socially incompatible with normies and their primarily emotionally driven horseshit is more like it.

    I would know, source is myself.

  14. 3-4X autism in Somali immigrant childern in Sweden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    This is consistent with studies going back to the late 1990's.

    https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/vitamin-d-and-autism/

    >... Swedish researchers published a study in Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology that found the prevalence of autism and related disorders was three to four times higher among Somali immigrants than non-Somalis in Stockholm. The study reviewed the records of 2,437 children, born between 1988 and 1998 in Stockholm, in response to parents and teachers who had raised concerns about whether children with a Somali background were overrepresented in the total group of children with autism.
    >
    > In Sweden, the 15,000-strong Somali community calls autism "the Swedish disease," says Elisabeth Fernell, a researcher at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and a co-author of the study.

      In Minnesota, where there are an estimated 60,000 Somali immigrants, the situation was quite similar: There, health officials noted reports of autism among Somali refugees, who began arriving in 1993, comparable to those found in Sweden. Within several years of arrival, dozens of the Somali families whose children were born in the U.S. found themselves grappling with autism, says Huda Farah, a Somali-born molecular biologist who works on refugee resettlement issues with Minnesota health officials. The number of Somali children in the city's autism programs jumped from zero in 1999 to 43 in 2007, says Ann Fox, director of special education programs for Minneapolis schools. The number of Somali-speaking children in the Minneapolis school district increased from 1,773 to 2,029 during the same period.

  15. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Socially incompatible with each other too, look at the divide between free software idealism and open source pragmatism. And good luck navigating the deceitful minefield of tech jobs these days where "tech" means "on a computer" and the actual jobs are marketing, advertising, public relations, or similar social bullshit work.

  16. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 5, Informative

    No, you look after them for the rest of their lives, just like any responsible society does for those not able to look after themselves.

    Many of them can look after themselves, especially if they get some help to get started. In America, 80% of autistic people are not employed. But with coaching, and targeted help, most autistic people are employable. Some countries do a far better job of this than others. The Economist recently had an article about the effectiveness of education and employment policies for autistic people.

  17. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    As an autistic person I find your comment far more offensive and ignorant than the obvious flamebait above it. Autistic people who cannot take care of themselves are a minority of a minority of a minority.

  18. Re:And this is why blacks... by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 4, Informative

    Physics was not one of your best subjects in high school, was it?

    Melanin make skin dark, and does indeed cause more light to be absorbed, but the light is absorbed before it generates vitamin D. People with darker skin living in northern climates are more likely to be vitamin D deficient.

  19. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by ChristW · · Score: 2

    Not everyone with autism is an 'antisocial nerd' that's living in the gutter, thank you very much. People with autism may be even more productive in some areas than neurotypical people.

    --
    09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0
  20. Wait a second by mppp · · Score: 1

    According to the following studies, darker skin colors are are significantly associated with poorer vitamin D status and whites are 30% more likely than blacks and 50% more likely than Hispanics to be identified with Autism. These trends do not seem to support the hypothesis that vitamin D deficiency is a primary cause of Autism. http://www.medscape.com/viewar... http://www.aappublications.org...

    1. Re:Wait a second by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It doesn't say primary, just that it increases the risk.

    2. Re:Wait a second by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Let's face it, Asperger's Syndrome (something that has traditionally been placed on the autistic spectrum) was something of a "trend" a while back. I wonder if that messes with the relative statistics in different social groups, I know some educated people who searched second opinions just to get their difficult child diagnosed as an Aspie, because it "suddenly explains everything" and (supposedly) classifies the kid as some kind of child prodigy in their minds.

    3. Re:Wait a second by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And yet from that very same article, "A greater number of black children (48%) were classified within the range of intellectual disability vs. 38% of Hispanic and 25% of non-Hispanic white children."

      It's almost like socio-economic background is highly correlated with "identification" and skin darkness is highly correlated with actual outcomes. None of this contradicts the vitamin D connection at all, in fact it's exactly the pattern you'd expect to see in the USA.

  21. Re:MMR Virus by mrbester · · Score: 4, Informative

    And the vaccine contains mercury...

    Oh wait, both those statements are bollocks.

    --
    "Wait. Something's happening. It's opening up! My God, it's full of apricots!"
  22. Re:And this is why blacks... by tsa · · Score: 1

    Thanks for enlightening me.

    --

    -- Cheers!

  23. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Eventually, the Market will sort all that out. People with autism will choose to be born in countries that have better public health care, which will bankrupt themselves by subsidizing the weak and useless. America will become greater by not having so many autistic people born here. Of course, once they're born, we won't let them in, unless they can get an H1B visa.

  24. Re: Oh Yeah Guess What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Viruses are not really alive, ever... read up on it.

  25. Sounds *very* plausible. by Qbertino · · Score: 1

    I'm - as I suspect most of us are here - your classic nerdy/geeky semi-ADHD/Auspergers type. But generally speaking AFAICT nutrition has been linked to this condition and personality type more than once (look for the book "The LCP Solution"). My mother told me she was practically addicted to licorice during her pregnancy with me. This could have been a "self-medication" attempt of her body to mitigate the lack of vitamin D which she recently noticed. And, fittingly enough, excess licorice consumption during pregnancy is actually in fact one of those rare things that has been found to correlate with ADHD symptoms in the child.

    As for vitamin D I haven't had a bloodwork in more than a decade but I'd bet money that I've got a vitamin D deficiency, as any indoor computer expert guy probably has. My mom herself is of the nerd/shut-in/bookworm type and ADHD disposition runs on my mothers side of the family.

    I myself don't drink alcohol, eat meat very rarely and live quite healthy aside from the fact that I am basically a sugar-addict. A thing I certainly link to my mothers excess licorice consumption during her pregnancy. I also notice that as soon as I actively curb my sugar addiction and lean towards a more organic balanced, whole & fresh foods diet, my awareness hightens notably and I get cooler/calmer than I usually am. If you're a nerdy type, try it out and go full organic & balanced for 8 weeks. The difference you'll notice is palpable.

    I'm coping pretty well and wouldn't call my ADHD a disfunction rather than a disposition ... "Hunter/Gatherer in a Farmer/Settler society, Rebel/Adventurer/Leader disposition, etc, jada-jada" ... you probably know the evolutionary theories concerning ADHD. That aside I truely believe backed by what I've read and experienced nutrition is the biggest leverage any ADHD/Aspergers candidate has, aside from regular excercise and a diversified daily routine.

    My 2 cents.

    --
    We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
    1. Re:Sounds *very* plausible. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I also notice that as soon as I actively curb my sugar addiction and lean towards a more organic balanced, whole & fresh foods diet, my awareness hightens notably and I get cooler/calmer than I usually am. If you're a nerdy type, try it out and go full organic & balanced for 8 weeks. The difference you'll notice is palpable.

      'Organic' is fucking red herring. Just dropping excess sugar and eating more vegetables is recommended for all people, not just the ADHD afflicted.

    2. Re:Sounds *very* plausible. by EmeraldBot · · Score: 1

      I'm - as I suspect most of us are here - your classic nerdy/geeky semi-ADHD/Auspergers type. But generally speaking AFAICT nutrition has been linked to this condition and personality type more than once (look for the book "The LCP Solution"). My mother told me she was practically addicted to licorice during her pregnancy with me. This could have been a "self-medication" attempt of her body to mitigate the lack of vitamin D which she recently noticed. And, fittingly enough, excess licorice consumption during pregnancy is actually in fact one of those rare things that has been found to correlate with ADHD symptoms in the child.

      As for vitamin D I haven't had a bloodwork in more than a decade but I'd bet money that I've got a vitamin D deficiency, as any indoor computer expert guy probably has. My mom herself is of the nerd/shut-in/bookworm type and ADHD disposition runs on my mothers side of the family.

      I myself don't drink alcohol, eat meat very rarely and live quite healthy aside from the fact that I am basically a sugar-addict. A thing I certainly link to my mothers excess licorice consumption during her pregnancy. I also notice that as soon as I actively curb my sugar addiction and lean towards a more organic balanced, whole & fresh foods diet, my awareness hightens notably and I get cooler/calmer than I usually am. If you're a nerdy type, try it out and go full organic & balanced for 8 weeks. The difference you'll notice is palpable.

      I'm coping pretty well and wouldn't call my ADHD a disfunction rather than a disposition ... "Hunter/Gatherer in a Farmer/Settler society, Rebel/Adventurer/Leader disposition, etc, jada-jada" ... you probably know the evolutionary theories concerning ADHD. That aside I truely believe backed by what I've read and experienced nutrition is the biggest leverage any ADHD/Aspergers candidate has, aside from regular excercise and a diversified daily routine.

      My 2 cents.

      It probably played a role, but something else to consider might also be a genetic component. This can roll two ways; potentially, there might be a gene that weakens your ability to synthesize vitamin D from the sun, which is the primary manner of how we obtain it, or there could be a gene that simply gives you the condition directly. If such a thing were to be the case, it wouldn't matter how your mother raised you, but it would simply be something you were born with - and your children may inherit, should you ever have/currently have some. It might be worth it to see if any members of your family have your condition, but do actively go outside, which may provide some more insight into this matter.

      --
      "Set a man a fire, he'll be warm for the rest of the night. Set a man afire, he'll be warm for the rest of his life."
    3. Re:Sounds *very* plausible. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      "I am basically a sugar-addict. A thing I certainly link to my mothers excess licorice consumption during her pregnancy."
      Source? Sounds like pseudoscience.

  26. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Well, as an austenitic person I find your sub-912C body temperature and non-FCC crystal structure to be disturbing and unnatural.

  27. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Maritz · · Score: 1

    Let them rot in the gutter?

    Everybody's tripping over themselves to demonstrate to the world how un-empathetic they are. Weird way to go about getting respect.

    But in short, you're a skidmark, and should you ever find yourself in need of assistance, I hope to fuck you don't get it.

    --
    I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
  28. Re:MMR Virus by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    As long as people avoid MMS they should be fine.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  29. Re:MMR Virus by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Also avoid the MMR virus as it's linked to Autism, too.

    Yeah, that measles mumps & rubella virus is a real pain. Not as bad as the polio aids smallpox virus, but bad nonetheless.

  30. Cod liver oil by taxman_10m · · Score: 1

    If you don't like the taste look for mint flavored cod liver oil.

    1. Re:Cod liver oil by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you don't like the taste look for mint flavored cod liver oil.

      Minty and still utterly repulsive. Yes, it's very good for you, but mint is just putting lipstick on a pig. After the brief flash of lipstick, pig comes through loud, clear and long.

    2. Re:Cod liver oil by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      How about putting that stuff into flavorless pills instead? Like it's done...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:Cod liver oil by omnichad · · Score: 1

      flavorless when you swallow it. Not later when you get all eructatey.

    4. Re:Cod liver oil by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      Then I guess I'll wait for the suppository variant. I mean, why should I alone suffer?

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    5. Re:Cod liver oil by RockDoctor · · Score: 1
      If you're burping often enough and strongly enough that you can taste stomach contents then you have got a significant heath problem there. Find out the root cause and fix it while trying to figure out what to do about the other problems for which you were taking the capsules.

      I literally can't remember the last time I tasted burp, except when drinking to excess during and after a curry.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
    6. Re:Cod liver oil by omnichad · · Score: 1

      That's not how it works. That's not how any of this works. It's a well known direct effect from digesting the oils.

  31. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    you get them sterilized, THEN you look after them.

    they're not just for Christmas.

  32. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Round'em all up and euthanize them, like they would do in yoorop.

  33. Re: And this is why blacks... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Though the Dylan Roof thing was a tragedy... at least it made me lol once while driving and listening to the radio news.

    A synopsis of the events:

    (white guy kills nine peaceful members of society including a state senator)

    FBI: "Why'd you do it?"

    Roof: "Blacks are violent."

    LOL

  34. CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

    Ok, lets be clear this is a retrospective cohort study. That means that no experimental treatments were applied, so cause and effect cannot be determined on the basis of this trial. This is a clear example of what is wrong with most people's understanding of "BIG DATA". Just because the sample size is enormous, it does not immediately follow that differences detected are real, meaningful, or causal. In-fact, large sample sizes Guarantee that spurious differences will pop up in the data pretty regularly.

    Even if the association is real, there is nothing in this data to say whether
    A) low Vitamin D causes increased autism risk
    B) Increased autism risk causes low Vitamin D
    C) Or whether both are in turn caused by something else with improvements in one having no effect on the other..

    The authors should never have made recommendations based on this data, other than that more trials are needed to determine whether or not this association is causal, or if it could be used as an indirect indicator of autism risk.

    --
    Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    1. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Gilgaron · · Score: 1

      You're proposing that it would be ethical to conduct a study in which we'd intentionally put children at risk for developing autism? There's a reason you can't do double blind experiments for everything...

    2. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      No, I'm proposing that we limit our assertions to what can be supported by the available evidence.

      There are various ways in which we could strengthen or disprove this association.

      1. One could be to survey 1000 pregnant women for Vitamin D status. Then (accounting for status) provide half with a Vitamin D supplement for the duration of their pregnancy and look at the results. Since vitamin D supplementation is not a routine pre-natal practice no one would be at increased risk of Autism (assuming that the correlation is real, causal, and in the direction asserted by the authors).

      2. We could look at how Vitamin D affects brain development in research models that already exist to study Autism. Thus building a mechanistic framework to justify considering the correlation detected above as causal.

      We need to be clear that vitamins are not completely harmless, particularly the fat soluble vitamins, which includes Vitamin D. Unlike the B vitamins, which are excreted via the urine when consumed at high levels, fat soluble vitamins accumulate in body fat stores, and can reach toxic levels much easier. There can be too much of a good thing, particularly in young animals (including the developing fetus) who's storage capacity can be relatively quickly exceeded by small changes in supplementation.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    3. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Immerman · · Score: 1

      I agree that the data is insufficient to make a scientifically sound claim that vitamin D deficiency is causally linked to increased autism risks, but I disagree that the authors should have avoided making a recommendation.

      Consider: essentially they're recommending to people that they take supplements for a deficiency that we know most people have, and that we know will help reduce lots of other health and developmental issues, and *might* help reduce the risks of a very unlikely condition that gets a ridiculous amount of public attention and leads people to engage in all sorts of behaviors that actually increases the risk of other things based on far more tenuous evidence.

      Is it bad science? Yes. Is it a socially irresponsible or unethical recommendation? No.

      --
      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    4. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      Ok, lets be clear this is a retrospective cohort study. That means that no experimental treatments were applied, so cause and effect cannot be determined on the basis of this trial.

      Welcome to the ethics of dealing with humans, and especially with children.

      This is a clear example of what is wrong with most people's understanding of "BIG DATA".

      Hardly clear. Perhaps you are having a little difficulty dealing with trying to apply rigorous scientific experimentation to woarking with humans and medical issues. Would you take responsibility for assigning test subjects a protocol that might kill them and you know it might kill them? Good luck getting subjects willing to have you assign death or disability to their children.

      So we are left with the data. There are certainly proper scientific experiments to analyze correlation effects to see if there could be causation, but the dream of a widespread experiment involving pregnant women and babies isn't going to happen, because when you finally get to the final experiment, you are deliberately harming people.

      Even if the association is real, there is nothing in this data to say whether

      A) low Vitamin D causes increased autism risk

      B) Increased autism risk causes low Vitamin D

      C) Or whether both are in turn caused by something else with improvements in one having no effect on the other..

      But we do know for a fact that vitamin D deficiency is not good. So it is pretty unethical and immoral to demand that females be purposely restricted in order to produce offspring that are likely to have problems. I doubt there is specific ground truth that folic acid deficiency is the cause of spinal bifida in human children, but it would take Mengele level amorality to demand the proper double blind experiments because there is a link, we just don't know the entirety of it.

      The authors should never have made recommendations based on this data, other than that more trials are needed to determine whether or not this association is causal, or if it could be used as an indirect indicator of autism risk.

      We don't have some of the tools we would like to have, given the ethics of dealing with living beings. So we are left with analysis of things as they are. The effects of improper levels of nutriments are pretty well known, so advisement to get enough of a nutriment is hardly irresponsible.

      But let's go back to your idea of trials. Let's say we have a hypothesis that too much Vitamin A causes problems. So we have a trial where vitamins are mailed out to OB/GYNs by the group doing an experiment. They don't know what is in them. But a third have recommended amounts of vitamin A, some have none, and some have a friggin whopping dose of Vitamin A.

      So now after birth, the OB/GYN's are seeing babies with symptoms of hyper vitamin toxicity, and a few with symptoms of vitamin A deficiency, because most but not all pregnant women do get Vitamin A from their regular diet.

      How long do you figure women are going to trust anything their OB/GYN's tell them after this shit gets out?

      So we tell people they should get enough vitamins, doctors monitor pregnant women's vitamin D levels, and hopefully some results are seen.

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    5. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      Vitamin D is not without it's risks. As a fat soluble vitamin, it can accumulate in fat stores. Particularly if people are taking higher doses. Vitamin D can be toxic at high enough concentrations, particularly in young children and presumably the developing fetus.

      I consider this irresponsible because they have not confirmed that their recommendation does not constitute the lower risk option. They have just assumed that action is better than inaction, which is not a safe assumption.

      A good example of this "unintended risks" can be found in numerous trials evaluating the effect of low fat diets for control of heart disease. Lot of these trials show small reductions in death due to heart disease, but increases in other causes of death for no net change in total death, or possibly a slight increase. At the end of the day, on average, there is no net change in your probability of dying by adopting a low fat diet. You just die of something else.

      For this and many other reasons, medical policy should never be set based on a single trial, and DEFINITELY not on a trial that can only show "associations" that may turn out to be spurious.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    6. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      As I pointed out to another commenter, testing this hypothesis more rigorously does not require putting anyone at elevated risk. You assume, incorrectly, that subjecting one group to a restriction would be necessary.

      Having one group proceed as they would normal (change in risk of precisely ZERO), and have one group take a Vitamin D supplement. You can balance for pre-existing Vitamin D status so that the two groups are similar before starting. The Vitamin D supplement would constitute an altered risk (and one that may not be entirely quantifiable), but since the researchers feel the risk is small enough to justify a recommendation without additional data I fail to see why it would cause anyone pause in the context of a trial.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    7. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Gilgaron · · Score: 1

      I fail to see how (1) is superior to post hoc data analysis of a larger cohort looking at Vitamin D supplementation across the cohort. You're still trying to generate correlation with poor controls.

    8. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A quick minute with google finds lots of studies that show the relationship between UVB exposure and incidence of autism.

      searching on "autism rate latitude", the first two links take you to studies published on the NIH web site:

      https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3897584/
      Autism prevalence in the United States with respect to solar UV-B doses

      https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2835879/
      Epidemiologic evidence supporting the role of maternal vitamin D deficiency as a risk factor for the development of infantile autism

    9. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      As I pointed out to another commenter, testing this hypothesis more rigorously does not require putting anyone at elevated risk. You assume, incorrectly, that subjecting one group to a restriction would be necessary.

      You do not prove something causes something unless you prove it causes something. Why do people who demand exactitude do this tapdance when it's pointed out it is the only way to prove it?

      If you use your method, there are altogether too many variables, and all we get is more correlation, because non-causation != causation. You simply have to cause the problem to know exactly what what the cause is.

      why is causation = causation such a difficult thing for people to grasp?

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    10. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Immerman · · Score: 1

      Yes, taking really high doses of vitamin D is dangerous. But they're not suggesting that - they're suggesting that pregnant women make sure they're not suffering from vitamin D deficiency (which they probably are, because most Americans are). And we already know for a fact that vitamin D deficiency causes a host of *other* problems for developing fetuses, so it would be good advice even if there's were no autism link at all.

      --
      --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
    11. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      I don't argue about that, but in my experience most parents are not exactly rational when it comes to fears surrounding autism. People give their kids bleach enema's from quack doctors they find on the internet. The authors didn't say "be sure you are not deficient" they said "take a supplement" and didn't specify how much. Even if the research did say "avoid deficiency for a host of good reasons, which may include autism prevention" in the interview, this is going to be turned into "take a supplement or your kids will get autism" as it is filtered through the press.

      Most Americans, in my experience, are surprised that "More is Always Better" doesn't apply to vitamins. What happens when a mom who took vitamin D has a child with autism, because even if some cases are related to vitamin status, many are absolutely not? She may very well just up the dose for her next child, putting herself and the subsequent child at greater risk of Vitamin Toxicity.

      Hell, Americans are not rational about vitamins either. Roughly 30 years ago they fought to prevent the FDA from regulating dietary supplements, including vitamin supplements due to a clever smear campaign by the big vitamin manufacturers. They even got big name actors (of the day anyway) to star in commercials where jackbooted FDA agents with M16's break into Mel Gibson's house to seize his vitamins from his kitchen cabinet. The FDA wasn't looking to ban anything, but to ensure that labelling claims were supported with evidence, but that didn't matter because people know that vitamins are GOOD FOR YOU (TM) and therefore more must be better.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    12. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      Maybe I'm not being clear.

      1. enroll women early in pregnancy into a trial.
      2. measure all enrollee's Vitamin D status on Day 1 of their enrollment.
      3. Block mothers based on their preexisting Vitamin D status.
      4. within block randomly assign half of the pregnant women to receive a Vitamin D supplement, and assign the other half a Vitamin D placebo pill
      5. Take blood work throughout the pregnancy to test for their Vitamin D status throughout gestation, birth, lactation, until the child is say 4 to 6 years old
      6. look at Autims prevalence in the two groups at the end of the study.

      I'm obviously ignoring a lot of other factors that would need to be accounted for in the initial blocking step (economics, medical history, age of mother and father, etc.), but this is an experiment designed to change a single factor and to control for possible confounding factors BEFORE the treatment is applied. It can therefore speak to causality. The retrospective CoHort study relied on some bloodwork and a lot of questionnaires and cannot speak to cause and effect at all in the absence of corroborating evidence from actual experimentation.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    13. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      The researchers are not claiming that Vitamin D deficiency causes autism. They are claiming it increases the "Risk of Developing Autism", which is subtly different. Lots of chronic diseases and conditions are not so cut and dry as "Vitamin D deficiency causes Rickets".

      For example, we know that smoking can increase your risk of developing lung cancer, but we also can point to specific examples of people who smoked for decades without ever developing Cancer. We know that processed meats appear to increase your risk of colon cancer, but the risk is fairly low and most people will never develop colon cancer despite a diet high in processed meats like bacon. That doesn't mean these risks are not real, but that the mechanism by which these things increase risk are probabilistic.

      Even with the moral questions ignored, it may be impossible to show a 1:1 causation between any single environmental factor and autism development, but we can potentially learn which factors can causally influence risk. The trial presented above can show correlation, but not causality. The trail I proposed could address the potential for causality by showing support, or not, for a change in relative risk of autism development based on level of Vitamin D supplementation.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    14. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      And these all show Correlation because they are picking through data not designed, but essentially found.

      There are lots of environmental differences that are confounded with UV exposure and geographic latitude and while epidemiologist can try to balance for all of those factors, they cannot do so completely.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    15. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

      The researchers are not claiming that Vitamin D deficiency causes autism. They are claiming it increases the "Risk of Developing Autism", which is subtly different. Lots of chronic diseases and conditions are not so cut and dry as "Vitamin D deficiency causes Rickets".

      Pedantics. The basis is the same. If more children become autistic among women who have a deficiency of Vitamin D, then there is the possibility of having women who get the proper amount having children who do not become autistic. Perhaps the lack of vitamin D does not specifically cause autism, but it might block what does specifically cause autism in a child who is predisposed.

      Even with the moral questions ignored, it may be impossible to show a 1:1 causation between any single environmental factor and autism development, but we can potentially learn which factors can causally influence risk.

      Sure. It's like the tobacco industry laywers argument - though not in the service of obvious evil.

      But there is hardly any good reason to set out purposely deprive anyone fmor a proven nutrient, so what we do is take the moral yet roundabout method of a push for all people to address the lack of vitamin D since present day lifestyles and some people's genetic dispositions and locations do not match. As well, it is well documented that Vitamin D is a real problem today : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/p... https://www.cdc.gov/media/rele...

      We know the effects of a lack of vitamin D, it is not in doubt. So that's where the moral problem of a controlled experiment comes into play. If the concept of vitamin D deficiency is related in some manner to development of autism, it is hard to come up with a moral way to deprive people of it.

      The only possible moral experiment would be to have a recommendation that all women receive enough vitamin D, then take a control group who are specifically tested and monitored for proper Vitamin D levels, then comparing the autism rate of their offspring to the general public. It's not remotely perfect, but as noted, some of the most likely Vitamin D deficient people have a well documented and well deserved suspicion of human medical experimentation. It isn't paranoia when you can point to historical documents. I've no doubt that you can tell an American of African descent that she need to make certain she gets enough Vitamin D, but you will probably get a different reaction to asking her to be in a study, and "here - take these". People who have been purposefully infected with Veneraial diseases, and treated by being not treated, who have infected their wives and children (congenital syphilis) by race are perhaps not going to trust that approach.

      Regardless, can you come up with a moral excuse for anyone to be deprived of Vitamins?

      --
      The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
    16. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      Your experiment at the end is PRECISELY what I was recommending. Take people who are doing whatever they would have been doing anyway, and take another similar group and administer an intervention in the form of supplemental Vitamin D. The control group serves as the "low vitamin D" group not through a deliberate restriction, but by taking advantage of an already known tendency for people to be Vitamin D deficient. Not sure why you got all butt hurt about it when it was my idea.

      The only difference is that I'm recommending that the researchers refrain from recommending vitamin D as a possible preventative for Autism until after the trial is conducted, whereas you have them making the recommendation before it is conducted. I don't even disagree with recommending people take a supplemented if they are Vitamin D deficient, only with researchers making a specific recommendation for Vitamin D as it relates to Autism until the trial is complete.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
    17. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by Gilgaron · · Score: 1

      That is explained more clearly, now. While that could be better, it is important to note that it would be a great deal more costly.

    18. Re:CORRELATION != CAUSATION by crmarvin42 · · Score: 1

      That is true, and why trials with rodents or other models of Autism development to understand the possible mechanism should probably be done first, to determine if a trial of this magnitude is even justifiable.

      --
      Bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.-Oscar Wilde
  35. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Gonoff · · Score: 1

    But, but because of Freedom we must create and make comprehensive public health system and research with free prenatal guidance and support for mothers!

    FTFY

    --
    I'll see your Constitution and raise you a Queen.
  36. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by Gonoff · · Score: 1

    Agreed. It cannot.

    --
    I'll see your Constitution and raise you a Queen.
  37. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Steel yourself against their words brother. Their sticks and stones cannot hurt you.

  38. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 1

    Not everyone with autism is an 'antisocial nerd' that's living in the gutter, thank you very much. People with autism may be even more productive in some areas than neurotypical people.

    And so many people don't get this. As the "autism epidemic" took hold - mainly by expanding the definition to include more people, they started including people who might have been just a little different than neurotypicals.

    People with say, Asperger's syndrome are often wildly productive. I have a few friends with the syndrome, and they aren't remotely disabled. They are differently abled. Sometimes much better abled for what interests them.

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  39. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So if autistic people are a minority, and those who can't take care of themselves are another minority, what exactly is the third minority in this hierarchy?

  40. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Spot on, vaccines dont cause it. Thats what all of the science says at least.

  41. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by rickyslashdot · · Score: 1

    Again, another issue - whether proven or not, that indicates that pre-natal vitamins ARE THE BEST THING YOU CAN INVEST IN FOR THE HEALTH AND FUTURE OF YOUR IN-UTERO DEVELOPING CHILD ! ! !
    It's a shame that these supplements are not covered as a matter of course for EVERY pregnant woman in the world.

    --
    redneck geek
  42. Re: Oh Yeah Guess What? by Immerman · · Score: 1

    That depends heavily on your definition of "alive" - a concept for which surprisingly enough there's not actually any clear definition, much less a widely agreed upon one. The medical profession doesn't even have a clear line to tell us when a particular person is alive or dead - it's all fairly arbitrary "rules of thumb" (currently brain death, including the brain stem, is the accepted threshold in the US)

    --
    --- Most topics have many sides worth arguing, allow me to take one opposite you.
  43. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by EmeraldBot · · Score: 1

    Eventually, the Market will sort all that out. People with autism will choose to be born in countries that have better public health care, which will bankrupt themselves by subsidizing the weak and useless. America will become greater by not having so many autistic people born here. Of course, once they're born, we won't let them in, unless they can get an H1B visa.

    Glad to see the births, lives, and deaths of people can be summed up as "the Market". Also, glad to see eugenics is back in fashion. Also, factually disprovable because the highest rates for autism in the world belong to Denmark, Sweden, and Japan, all countries with vastly higher standards of living and far more robust economies than the USA, which comes just after.

    --
    "Set a man a fire, he'll be warm for the rest of the night. Set a man afire, he'll be warm for the rest of his life."
  44. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    This depends on where you draw the line for being "autistic" or not. Having spent some years working with a program for autistic kids at a local public school, there is a difference between saying a child is autistic and on the autistic spectrum, with the latter including much more minor characteristics that usually don't get in the way of life with a little guidance. The majority of the former however were going to need some amount of care for the rest of their life. A large fraction of them are also employable, but with simple tasks with high amounts of supervision that is done for charity rather than productivity (and unfortunately often paid a pittance, less than minimum wage). But in that case, being employable doesn't mean capable of independent living.

  45. Re:And this is why blacks... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You're a worthless individual. Yes, that's why no-one likes you.

  46. Re: And this is why blacks... by Maritz · · Score: 1

    They're violent because they're human. Something you should strive for yourself.

    --
    I do not want your cheap brainburning drugs. They are useless for work. And I am a working man today.
  47. Finally, a real correlation with weather by Applehu+Akbar · · Score: 1

    If Vitamin D is a culprit, then we should see more autism in places like the UK, which are historically deficient in sunlight. Furthermore, this correlation should be strongest in specific locales where a modern supplemented diet does not predominate.

    1. Re:Finally, a real correlation with weather by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      If Vitamin D is a culprit, then we should see more autism in places like the UK, which are historically deficient in sunlight.

      Logically therefore, places like northern Norway will have even lower vitamin D levels, since they get even less sunlight during the winter months.

      Sunlight is an issue. Diet is as big an issue, if not bigger - and the traditional association of Nordic life with eating a lot of fresh fish is telling in this regard.

      I remember there was a fuss in the UK a decade or two ago about whether to introduce supplements into staple foodstuffs (white bread, IIRC) specifically to address vitamin D levels, folic acid levels, or both. I stopped following the debate since it was only about pregnancy health (someone else's problem), but on checking the bread bag in the bin, there's no mention of either supplement on that bag. But my salt bottle doesn't mention the iodine either, so that's a fat "Meh" on labelling.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
  48. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Humans... all our EMP and magnetic rays couldn't harm them, but a simple stick can easily kill them.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  49. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Enigma2175 · · Score: 1

    Eventually, the Market will sort all that out. People with autism will choose to be born in countries that have better public health care, which will bankrupt themselves by subsidizing the weak and useless. America will become greater by not having so many autistic people born here. Of course, once they're born, we won't let them in, unless they can get an H1B visa.

    Glad to see the births, lives, and deaths of people can be summed up as "the Market". Also, glad to see eugenics is back in fashion. Also, factually disprovable because the highest rates for autism in the world belong to Denmark, Sweden, and Japan, all countries with vastly higher standards of living and far more robust economies than the USA, which comes just after.

    Ummmm, whoosh? Do you really think the AC thought that people with autism would CHOOSE where they get born?

    --

    Enigma

  50. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    When you look at the lyrics of "Human Behaviour" by Bjork, it sure reads like an Asperger's view of humanity...

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  51. Re:MMR Virus by Opportunist · · Score: 1
    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  52. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    He's a bot. We all know how even though every first-in-class player says AI is on the cusp of great win-win synergy with humanity, satire is still a long-term research goal.

  53. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Antisocial tech nerds have always been useless.

  54. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    No, why would it?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  55. I thought pregnant women take vitamins? by billrp · · Score: 1

    Physicians always strongly suggested a multi-vitamin during pregnancy, and even wrote scripts for them - has this stopped?

  56. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Considering that an overdose of some vitamins is actually harmful to you (and in turn a potential fetus growing inside of you), you might want to reconsider that.

    I agree that a sensible level of all essential substances you might need is a good thing, but simply saying "pump as much of that stuff into your body" isn't going to cut it. That's like watching an anorexic woman giving birth to a sick child and concluding that every pregnant woman should drink a few gallons of fat every day, even if she looks like she's about to give birth to an elephant.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  57. Taking supplements insufficient by laughingskeptic · · Score: 2

    Blood draws are required to measure efficacy. For instance, most vitamin D supplements did not improve my wife's vitamin D levels. Science requires measurement and the science people should care the most about is the science of their own health. Doctors telling patients to take supplements without follow up are poor practitioners of medicine.

    1. Re:Taking supplements insufficient by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I had issues going to the bathroom a lot. Decided to add extra salt into my diet, issue went away. Told my doctor, he looked at my blood results, my electrolyte levels were exactly the same and so was my blood pressure. You would think something as simple as salt would be easy to see an increase in the blood, but it's not that simple.

  58. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I bet chemtrails would help too.

  59. All I can think of... by ilsaloving · · Score: 2

    Reading this, all I can think of is how much sooner would we have figured this out if we hadn't wasted millions of man-hours and 10s of millions of dollars fighting against all the anti-vaccine idiocy.

  60. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by rickyslashdot · · Score: 1

    Please note that I said PRE-NATAL VITAMINS - - - implicitly referring to medically prescribed levels of vitamins and supplements.

    Agreed, dosing the body with massive supplements is bad, and in many cases is tantamount to self-poisoning, along the same lines of taking arsenic to restore youthful appearance. Without medically approved control of vitamins and supplements, you may as well eat a bullet - - - at least that would be quicker and more painless than the damage you can do to your body by gulping massive doses of ANYTHING.

    cheers . . .

    --
    redneck geek
  61. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by omnichad · · Score: 1

    There's some theories that a number of brain development issues are caused by autoimmune responses to virus exposure (vaccine or otherwise). It's too early to say yes or no to it, but it's really interesting at the very least.

  62. Please stop spreading false information by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Rather than taking in more sunlight and the heightened risk of skin cancer that it carries, the researchers suggest that making inexpensive and safe vitamin D supplements available to at-risk groups may be a better path forward.

    1) more sunlight does not mean heightened risk of skin cancer--it actually *reduces* it:
    http://www.realfarmacy.com/sci...

    2) vitamin supplements actually *increase* our risk of disease:
    http://www.theatlantic.com/hea...

  63. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Look at me, look at me, everyone, I'm being all edgy and shit!

    YOU are the useless autist, please kill yourself.

  64. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by surd1618 · · Score: 1

    magnetic rays

    Magnets don't make rays, magnetic fields have divergence of 0
    obsessively_correcting_factual_errors_while_substantially_missing_actual_point

  65. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by slew · · Score: 1

    magnetic rays

    Magnets don't make rays, magnetic fields have divergence of 0

    obsessively_correcting_factual_errors while_substantially_missing_actual_point

    I see you haven't uncovered the existence of my secret doomsday weapon powered by magnetic monopoles...

  66. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by ArtemaOne · · Score: 1

    Also the highest functioning of us can lead better than average lives. It tends to contribute to intelligence levels, though social interaction is more of a challenge. My daughter and I seem quite capable of overcoming everything and are quite fulfilled. Though, the difference is Pervasive Developmental Disorder can be higher functioning than Asperger's even. Training for eye contact and many other things isn't too bad. Only big difference is emotional attachments are kind of juvenile. When my brain picks someone as a friend I just want to spend all my time with them and would do almost anything for them. You have to learn some skepticism to avoid having that backfire. Asperger's also seems to be a bit lacking empathy, but my daughter and I seem to have a fair amount. The spectrum is quite broad!

  67. What that tells us is our heath care system by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Is so bad that there is a real lack of prenatal care. Thanks Republicans.

  68. There are lots of studies about this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You can find lots of studies about the correlations of UVB exposure with the incidence of autism.

    Check out the NIH web site.

    For example: Autism prevalence in the United States with respect to solar UV-B doses https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3897584/

    Yup, lower UVB exposure correlates with increased risk of autism.

  69. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Fair and balanced society can't produce American Dream! ;)

  70. Correlation is not Causation by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It just isn't. https://www.fastcodesign.com/3030529/infographic-of-the-day/hilarious-graphs-prove-that-correlation-isnt-causation

  71. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Guitargeek86 · · Score: 1

    I am on the spectrum and so is 1 of my 2 kids. I make enough to alow my wife to stay home and pay for everything most families struggle for with two incomes. My son can do algebra at 3. I might be socially awkward but you are an asshole. This being a STEM based site I guarantee that there are more than a few of us on the spectrum. It's what makes me a great programmer and engineer, and also let's me focus on my work rater than the office drama.

  72. Sleeping outside by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ... low vitamin D is associated with neuro-developmental disorders ...

    What about toddlers? It would explain the Scandinavian custom of sending their babies outside into the freezing spring air for their midday nap. Plus, it would harden them against pollen and other irritants.

  73. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why? If this study turns out to be correct, then this is a gestational disease, not a genetic one, and the trait is not passed down to their offspring.

  74. Re:Autistic People Not Needed by Bengie · · Score: 1

    Most people have delicate egos and only like to have others who know how to stroke it around them. Aka, being "social". Of course you don't want to be a party-pooper, but I prefer people who just tell me what's on their mind rather than act fake to blend in.

  75. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    There's a theory now? Could you link to it? What I've found so far is much but "scientific" isn't quite the term I would have used to describe it. It had more of religious zeal.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  76. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Sorry, I thought "pre natal" only means "before birth", didn't know it entails medical supervision.

    In that case, I guess we agree.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  77. Bullshit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Bullshit. Predispositions are hereditary. Everyone knows that it runs in families.

  78. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by rickyslashdot · · Score: 1

    Apologies. A bit of naivety on my part, as I "assumed" that proper vitamin supplements marketed as 'pre-natal' would have to meet relatively rigid medical guidelines, and be doctor prescribed or doctor recommended - by name - in order to be labeled as such. Additionally, I made the assumption that the vitamins would be part of a medically supervised course of pregnancy protocols handled through a physician - ob/gyn or otherwise.
    Thanks for helping to clarify that issue.

    --
    redneck geek
  79. Re: Vitamin D Deficiency During Pregnancy Linked T by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    It would certainly be sensible, yes. Whether it is done and whether making the claim that "it's good when you're pregnant" is protected from abuse by marketing is a different question.

    What I know about pregnancy shortcomings is that as far as I know (but don't quote me, I'm neither a physician nor pregnant) pregnant women show a noticeable deficit in iron and sometimes calcium. A vitamin shortage isn't really a big issue as far as I know.

    Still, one thing is certain: It would certainly be a GOOD idea to get a physician/gynecologist involved and ask him for advice on the topic.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  80. Re:Oh Yeah Guess What? by omnichad · · Score: 1

    I'll stick with one, just because I don't have time right now.
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/p...

  81. F.U.C.D. by bussdriver · · Score: 1

    F.U.D. + promotion of confusion... So Fear Uncertainty Confusion and Doubt.... F.U.C.D. Pronouncing it aptly describes what that kind of propaganda does to society.

    "anti-vaccine idiocy" was promoted to create CONFUSION. The vaccines involved are now voluntary banned by the FDA; which normally doesn't ban things to avoid idiotic complaints. The whole issue involves an additive put into certain vaccines given to children after it was previously banned in another market and now it has once again been banned it is now used in flu vaccines. In addition to using a new PR tactic, it appears this is a new way to still sell banned drugs: move them to new applications!

    FUCD is so much worse because it fools people into making bad decisions as well as creating plenty of righteous smug people who waste tons of time attacking each other on both sides of the issue. It's a divide and conquer approach because most likely those squabbling would be unified.

    MS did it with Outlook viruses in the 90s... all the media I saw always said EMAIL and never mentioned MS outlook was the only attack vector every single time it was a news story. Did they intentionally create confusion? I don't know. But I knew a TV news director who censored for sizable advertisers - he didn't know enough to realize how all of them were outlook only exploits (fyi, he didn't care either.) This is similar in that they get people blindly opposing all vaccination instead of the specific ones that were linked to the problem.

    1. Re:F.U.C.D. by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      The whole issue involves an additive put into certain vaccines

      SOME of the claims of anti-Vaxxers revolve around an adjuvant included in SOME vaccines, it is true. But OTHER anti-Vaxxers are against the whole idea of vaccination, regardless of the presence or absence of a particular component in the vaccine. Dangerous fucking idiots, the lot of them.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"
  82. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well said. Let's not forget the most intelligent and intellectual people in history were those who were on the spectrum. Musicians, painters, scientists. They used their single mindedness to better lives for millions of people. Chew on that everyone. Lol

  83. Re: Autistic People Not Needed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Social interaction and emotional connection can seem incredibly fake and conceited to those who do not understand it. I probably would've placed on the spectrum well into my late 20s, when I got help from some friends and myself to explore the scary world of emotions and connection that I had rejected as a child. Actually deeply connecting with someone is the most rewarding experience in the world, and it can only be done in an emotional level. In my younger years I could only feel attachment to things and knowledge, and could only interact well with humans outside my family when agreed-upon rules were set, such as when playing board games.
    Through this "safe haven" of sorts I was able to tentatively explots the world of social interaction, and belatedly get the experience and courage to develop what most do naturally during childhood.

  84. Confusion works well on idiots by bussdriver · · Score: 1

    The problem is how confident low-information people can be and how the media will give them time and equal treatment when the better informed people are lucky to even get coverage...

    1. Re:Confusion works well on idiots by RockDoctor · · Score: 1

      Agree on all points. Why it happens becomesclearer when you realise that the informatino media have been replaced by the entertainment business because of the improved profits.

      --
      Birds are not dinosaur descendants;birds are dinosaurs, for all useful meanings of "birds", "are" and "dinosaurs"