Take a listen in the first video - the doctor catches herself saying, "ABNORMAL" development and quickly changes her language to "DIFFERENT."  That's the story, morning glory.  Autism MUST be called a difference. and doctors have been told as much.  Oh, and man-made toxic load during pregnancy might cause autism.

By Anne Dachel

AUSTRALIA: Is BPA exposure in utero linked to autism? “World-first study” finds a risk

At last, there is something substantive to say about why there is so much autism in kids today. As the rate of autism continues to climb, it’s getting harder and harder to sell the tired claim that we’ve always had autism around like this, but doctors didn’t know what it was until recently.

Research has, over the past two decades, linked the development of autism to bad moms. I’ve long talked about the dead-end studies showing an “association” between the behavior of mothers and autism in children: moms who are old, fat, drinking, smoking, having babies too close together, having preemies, living too close to freeways, taking antidepressants, etc.

It was a bit of a stretch to say that any of those findings could explain the world-wide explosion in the rate of autism to now three to five percent of children and growing.

At last, research shows a link between male fetuses exposed to BPA (bisphenol A) and autism in mice.

Australian scientists have produced research from over the past ten years pointing to plastics as the culprit in boys developing autism. There is still a lot of work that needs to be done here, but the good news is, not only do they suspect plastics are a factor, but they’ve also found a way to reverse the symptoms of autism in mice.

Several American scientists were involved in this study, but the main effort was in Melbourne, Australia.

This is very important in Australia because, as we learned in April this year, one in 25 “seven to 14-year-olds now have a primary diagnosis of autism.” Guardian

Researchers are careful to avoid saying there is a causal link, but there are reports everywhere talking about the scientists and what this means going forward.

It would naturally follow that we need to clean up the plastics industry and have pregnant women be careful about their exposure to BPA.

Here’s what the press is telling us.

News.com.au: BPA plastic in womb linked to autism, world-first study finds

A world-first study by Aussie scientists has discovered a link between a common chemical, and autism symptoms.

Pregnant mothers who gave birth to boys with autism were found to have had higher levels of a plastic chemical commonly used in food packaging in their wombs, according to Aussie scientists in a world-first study.

A long-term peer-reviewed study by the Florey Institute in Melbourne found boys with lower levels of a key brain enzyme aromatase and who were born to mothers with high levels of the plastic chemical bisphenol A (BPA) in their wombs are three-and-a-half times more likely to have autism symptoms by the age of two.

By the age of 11, they are six times more likely to have had a verified ­autism diagnosis.

BPA can be found in takeaway containers, plastic bottles, the lining of takeaway coffee cups as well as polycarbonate (hard) plastics such as baby bottles.

It’s also used in the lining of cans to stop the food coming into contact with the metal, and is even found on the shiny coating of cash register receipts.

“Exposure to plastic chemicals during pregnancy has already been shown in some studies to be associated with subsequent autism in offspring,” Florey scientist and co-author Professor Anne-Louise Ponsonby said in a statement.

“BPA can disrupt hormone controlled male fetal brain development in several ways, including silencing a key enzyme, aromatase, that controls neurohormones and is especially important in fetal male brain development. This appears to be part of the autism puzzle.”

Speaking to The Australian, Professor Ponsonby stressed the chemical is “not the cause of autism”.

Dr. Anne-Louise Ponsonby is getting the most coverage about the study.

ABC News: Study links prenatal BPA exposure and autism risk in boys

Dr. Ponsonby:

Several past studies have shown a link between higher plastic exposure in pregnancy and abnormal child neurodevelopment including or different child neurodevelopment including autism.

We wanted to go beyond correlation to understand this more deeply. So we conducted an program  of research over 10 years including two birth cohorts, one here in Australia . . . and one in New York Columbus Centers study, and then over 25 laboratory studies to consistently get a picture on what was happening  with the link between these two in terms of underlying mechanisms. We have now published that.

So we find that this link between higher BPA exposure in the womb and the risk of male autism is through suppression of aromatase, a key steroid enzyme in brain development, particularly for males.  . . .

PBA is not the only chemical to worry about and much more study is needed.

So now we’re concerned about chemical mixtures. Sorry for the difficult news, but we can only move forward.

We’re worried about chemical mixtures acting together. BPA is just the oldest and the easiest one to start with and study, but we’re not saying that’s the only one that needs consideration here.

It’s up to the regulators.

It’s not our job to consider. It’s safety regulators of governments, and already the findings of this paper have gone towards EU regulation systems. So it’s good to know that the findings are feeding back into that loop. . . .

The anchor asked if these findings would result in advice to parents.

Ponsonby: 

I think that the regulatory bodies that are responsible for giving advice about exposures during pregnancy or process levels in food, they themselves will  consider and bring it into their recommendations.

More generally, things don’t usually change just on one study, but certainly this study will contribute to that machinery of advice and recommendations.

With the treatment, we’re yet to evaluate it in humans. We haven’t even established the safety in humans, yet alone the efficacy. That’ll be work that Florey [Institute] is continuing to do hopefully eventually developing human trials, but now that …Boon have identified this compound it really starts to give us some better ideas towards future autism treatment for subgroups of children with autism that it  might be warranted for and also for prevention.

In both the cohort studies, higher levels of BPA were associated with switching down that aromatase gene that’s very important for controlling male brain development in particular, less so for females. . . .

Then in the lab studies we had a whole lot of other mechanistic data: cell cultures, electrical activity.  The important is my colleagure, associate professor Boon found a target compound that once we had identified the mechanism could then negate some of these effective BPA, and in fact, minimize some of  the features of autism. across different types of models in the lab.

Anchor:

Wow! That is a huge development in itself, two big developments.

People who may be pregnant may be worried watching this . . .  So what is it that’s in a mother’s stomach that is causing the damage?

Ponsonby:

Unfortunately we find plastic avoidance at the individual level is quite difficult to achieve. Many studies have shown that, so it’s really a job for government regulators.

Currently BPA is in some food contact plastic materials. It’s in lining of cans, and it’s in epoxy lining on various different products

Even though BPA has become less common, other bisphenols like BPF and S. They’re very similar in structure, and I think we have to consider that they may have some health issues as well and should be evaluated for that.

And the other thing in our work is this aromatase site is the site that we know that other chemicals like flame retardants can operate.

So now we’re concerned about chemical mixtures. Sorry for the difficult news, but we can only move forward. . . .

The Australian: Doctors are calling for tougher regulation of the chemical BPA amid health harms

Medical experts have called for an overhaul of plastics regulation in Australia as growing evidence indicates that neuroendocrine-disrupting chemicals are linked with the development of autism.

The nation’s top doctors’ group has called for an overhaul of plastics regulation in Australia as growing evidence indicates that neuroendocrine-­disrupting chemicals found in disposable water bottles, food containers, canned food packaging and cosmetics are linked with the development of autism.

News9 Australia: Plastic chemicals may trigger autism in boys, says research

Anchor:

There’s been a big breakthrough in understanding what may cause autism with new research linking autism in boys with plastic chemicals. Two Melbourne based scientists found that pregnant women with traces of food packaging in their system are more likely to give birth to boys who then develop the condition. 

Anne-Louise Ponsonby:

The unique feature of our work was not so much the link between high plastic exposure and autism, several past studies have shown that, but we went beyond correlation to be actually be able to map out an underlying mechanism, and that involved the suppression of a key steroid enzyme called aromatase that is particularly important for male brain in utero.

And let me add that this mechanism is not possibly occurring for all autism. Autism is a complex multifactorial disease with both genetic and environmental drivers. . . . We think this is a contributing factor to some cases of autism. 

It’s very helpful to understand something about a mechanism because it puts us in a much better position for future prevention and treatment. . . .

Anchor: Could this lead to preventive treatment? ,,,

Ponsonby:

We are hoping to move towards treatment. One of my colleagues. . .  she tested and identified a target compound that could negate some of the effects of plastic and actually reduce some of the autism symptoms. . . . We’re yet to move to any human phase with safety or efficacy. . . .

Professor Boon and team have been talking with the U.S. FDA and are trying to move towards safety human trials in the first instance.

Medical News: Higher BPA levels in pregnant mothers linked to autism in sons

Professor Ponsonby said the researchers analysed two large birth cohorts – the Barwon Infant Study (BIS) in Australia and the Columbia Centre for Children's Health and Environment in the USA. . . .

BPA can disrupt hormone controlled male fetal brain development in several ways, including silencing a key enzyme, aromatase, that controls neurohormones and is especially important in fetal male brain development. This appears to be part of the autism puzzle."  . . .

In laboratory work, Dr Boon studied the impact of prenatal BPA on mice. . . .

Professor Ponsonby said BPA, similar bisphenols and other plastic chemicals with endocrine-disrupting effects are now widespread and almost impossible for individuals to avoid. 

"We all ingest plastic chemicals in many ways – through ingesting plastic food and drink packaging, inhaling home renovation fumes, and through the skin from sources such as cosmetics. There are so many ways these chemicals enter our bodies, so, it's not surprising that BPA was present in a large proportion of the women's urine samples we studied. It's important for us to understand how these plastics affect our health," Professor Ponsonby said. 

7News Australia: Microplastics warning for expectant mums - Products to avoid 

7News:

Researchers here at the Florey tested BPA levels in the urine of pregnant women. Male babies with a lower level of brain hormones were six times more likely to be diagnosed with autism if their mothers had high levels of BPA. It’s commonly found in food packaging like plastic bottles and tin cans.

To limit exposure avoid drinking out of soft waster bottles, don’t put plastic in the microwave, also don’t touch till receipts

Professor Mark Green, Melbourne University:

Here in Australia, till receipts are absolutely covered in BPA, so just doing those simple things will hopefully reduce your exposure to BPA.  

7News:

The same scientists also found a drug that can reduce BPA-induced autism in mice.

Dr. Wah Chin Boon:

That symptoms were actually reversed, and their brain activity returns to normal.

7News: Scientists are now planning to test whether this drug can reverse autism in humans. The safety studies could begin as early as next year.

Ponsonby: First we have to establish safety and then work towards efficacy. 

The Project: Are Plastic Chemical Causing Autism?

A plastic chemical found everywhere in our daily lives, and now a group of Aussie scientists  have linked it to the development of autism in boys.

So, can this world-first discovery revolutionize our understanding of the condition?

It leaches into our food, we absorb it through our skin, inhale it when we breathe. It’s in plastic bottles and takeout containers, the linings of coffee cups and canned food, the shiny coatings of cash receipts, a chemical that is used to harden plastics.

About 95 percent of us have bisphenol A, also known as BPA, in our bodies right now.

Dr. Wah Chin Boon:

The problem now is that it’s everywhere. So even if it passes through your body in 45 minutes, you’re constantly being exposed to it.

Reporter:

Now in a ground-breaking study, a group of Aussie scientists have discovered a link between high levels of BPA in pregnant moms and the development of autism in boys. 

Ponsonby: 

It seems to be particularly in mid-gestation, rather than very early or very late I pregnancy.

Reporter:

Studying 1,770 pairs of mothers and children over more than a decade, scientists found that BPA can switch off an enzyme called aromatase, which is key to brain development, particularly in boys. 

Ponsonby:

If the child had a genetic architecture indicating that they were vulnerable—

Reporter:

—then those boys, when exposed to high levels of BPA in the womb, were three and a half times more likely to have autism symptoms by the age of two. 

Six times more likely to have an autism diagnosis by age 11.

And there’s a potential antidote, a fatty acid that reversed the effects of BPA in lab mice.

Boon:

They can actually start to socialize and stop their excessive grooming, and even their brain activity returns to normal.

This is huge news. Plastic exposure is worldwide so it makes sense that the damage would be seen everywhere.

IF these findings gain support, it would be a way for doctors and health officials to finally admit autism is increasing, something no one in our regulatory agencies has ever done in the past.

Of course it will be years before we have anything conclusive about the link between BPA and autism, but I can see a massive effort for companies to get on board with the move for SAFE PLASTIC. We’ll see the end to plastic coated cash register receipts, and we could go back to glass bottles for soft drinks. The possibilities are endless.Top of Form

Cathy Jameson is a Contributing Editor for Age of Autism.

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