Figures from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development show that the current estimated cases of autism are around one in every 1,000 and one in 500. Some scaremongers claim that vaccines are responsible for these high levels of autism, but there has never been any established link between vaccines and autism. There is also growing concern that autism may be caused by toxins and pollution in the environment. Another school of thought is that nutrition may contribute towards autism, as well as viral infections, antibiotics and other minor factors.
Although people talk about children ‘developing’ autism, some new research coming out of the Autism Society of America suggests that there may be a genetic link, and that the disorder is actually present at birth. The symptoms of autism normally appear by the time the child is three, and it is then that a formal diagnosis can be made. Autism is difficult to diagnose, however, as there are so many different factors and characteristics, such as social communication problems, language problems and difficulties with cognition.
In the Western sense, autism does not exist in traditional Chinese medicine. It is instead classified as the ‘Syndrome of 5 Delays’. These delays are categorised as walking, standing, teeth eruption, hair growth and speech. Based on the yin and yang theory, traditional Chinese medicine treats the problem within the framework of rebalancing the energy.
Western medicine rates the brain as being the most important part of the human physique, whereas Chinese medicine views the body and mind as being joined, as part of a circular system which includes the organs and the central nervous system. . The Chinese medicine system sees balance as the key to achieving wellness and wellbeing. The complementary system sees the organs as being a vital part of this balance.