Artist and designer Pablo Solomon contacted me with his reactions to the new autism rates that the CDC recently reported. He believes that we need to address what causes autism before we can address the rising autism rates. I may not agree with everything he has to say, but some should be addressed. Let me know what you think.
"Hi Tammy,
Glad that you are open to opinions that might open some tough discussions.
Please, let me say that while I express these opinions that I in no way wish to induce guilt in anyone nor hurt feelings. Trust me, my life has been filled with enough mistakes and misjudgments to fill more than one novel.
But here are some issues that I feel must be addressed/researched--
1. Woman having children at such late ages.
2. What effects do medications have? We all know about the vaccine controversy. However, women are routinely taking several medications daily and often have been for years. We really do not know enough about sideline effects on fetuses, especially the combined effects of these drugs.
3. Environmental factors. Sadly, many cities use the chlorinated waste water from cities upstream or from lakes. We now know that many medications pass through the body and end up in large quantities in our water supplies. Not to mention the old standbys such as pollutants in the atmosphere.
4. Stress factors. So many women are not only having children later in life, but have very stressful lives.
5. The male factor. What factors do men contribute? And to what degree do all the factors that I have listed for women effect men?
6. What degree does vanity play? Botox, silicon implants, etc. Even hair coloring,hormone treatments, skin care products, etc.We know very little about the impact of any of these.
7. Is there any connection between abortions and later problems? This is not meant to be a commentary on this controversial topic, but rather a cold scientific question.
8. Weird environmental factors. I am also known for my visionary environmental designs. While global warming is the least of my environmental worries, many other factors should be cause for real alarm. Things like exposure to too many x-rays---at the dentist, doctor, mammograms, etc. Exposure to microwaves from everything from ovens to cell phones. Exposure to electromagnetic energy from high voltage electric lines. And the list goes on. While I support moving forward to make life better, there are situations in which we take the short term cheap way out and pay the long term price.
9. Dry cleaning has long been suspected to cause some health problems--is autism one of them? While on the subject of chemical exposure, how much extermination of one's home is acceptable? Does the little spot of Raid left on your finger before you can wash it off soak in--for example--or should we wear protective gloves every time we take aim at a bug?
10. General inactivity. What effect does exercise--to much or too little have?
11. Chaotic home lives. Do children react to chaos by tuning it out?
Well this will probably get us started. I would be glad to discuss any of these.
Thank you for taking on such an important and difficult subject. Unless we do our research and face the resultant facts, we cannot make progress on addressing autism." - Pablo Solomon --Artist and Designer
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Comments (3)
"Woman having children at such late ages."
WTF? Women have been having children at such late ages since prehistory!
The difference is that these days a 40-year-old in labor is more likely to be having her first baby than a 40-year-old in labor a thousand years ago was, and less likely to be having her tenth or twentieth baby than a 40-year-old in labor a thousand years ago was.
Everyone who talks about older women giving birth as if it's a new phenomenon forgets that a girl or woman can give birth more than once in her lifetime. Even a pregnant teenager can eventually become a woman having a child at such a late age.
This is funny.
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