Early Signs of Autism

Greetings Earthlings! 😀

Happy New Year! 😀

Still can’t quite believe I’ve been blogging now for over 2 years, it’s madness! 🙂

This week I’m going to take a look at some of the early signs of autism to look out for. ASDs are usually detectable before a child’s third birthday, with some signs appearing even earlier (a recent study detected signs as early as 6 months). A definitive diagnosis can only be obtained after the age of two, however, here are some of the early signs to look out for:

Diminished Visual Attention/Eye Contact– if a baby shows more interest in objects/toys than the people interacting with it, this could be an early indicator of autism. This behaviour may be noticeable as early as 6 months. Similarly a tendency to avoid eye contact may also be an indicator

Aversion to Cuddling– a lack of response to cuddling or a lack of interest in initiating a cuddle may too suggest that your child might have an ASD

Colic- There is some evidence to suggest that colic may be a very early sign of autism (yours truly for example was a colicky baby). Colic is defined as “episodes of crying for more than 3 hours a day in an otherwise healthy baby”. The cause is unknown, however many believe it may be linked to GI discomfort- and GI issues are often co-morbid in cases of autism. Colic rates do not appear to be elevated in the ASD population, however excessive crying may still be an early indicator of autism

 

Fecal smearing– As discussed previously, fecal smearing (or scatolia) can be one of the earliest signs of autism, most likely thought to be a sensory response to periods of under-stimulation in autists.

Other early signs of autism may include a lack of physical gestures for communication, lack of interest in playing with others, a (perceived) lack of empathy or if your child fails to imitate movements and facial expressions.

 

When it comes to autism, early diagnosis can be critical to getting your child the best possible interventions to allow them to thrive in later life, so it’s useful to know the early indicators to watch out for.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Enjoy the weekend!

Aoife