I made, a friend, an aspie friend :)

actually, i made 3 aspie friends! i see myself in them and i feel normal, almost like how an NT feels amongst other NTs. One is a tad more sever then me, one is the same level as me, and one is a tad more milder then me. I met them all on my own, and they seem to like me quite a bit. but, i noticed something, there are about 12 students with Aspergers syndrome in my school of over 1200 students. the diagnostic rate for Autism Spectrum Disorders is 1 in 150 or 135, but there are over 16 students with an autism spectrum disorder of somekind! i think the Diagnostic rate is rising O_O.

I'm delighted for you. Having friends with common interests is so important. You've hit the jackpot.
Remember to give us feedback on how it's progressing.

The pressure to succeed is draining on everyone. A lot of what you are seen diagnosed "Aspergers" is kids that did not have the opportunity to learn the skills they need from their parents who is always busy. That together with therapists who is being pressured by parents to make a diagnosis presents more of these type of diagnosis.

It's not a bad thing though because the skills that they need is well represented in Aspergers therapy.

The important thing is that you enjoy your friendship and focus on making it work.

Have lots of fun, that's what makes life worth living.

Good for you.

Supersonicfreak15 wrote:i think the Diagnostic rate is rising O_O.

or the actual incidence of ASDs is rising with the amount of junk food people eat. additives are known to relate to the severity of ADHD. i'd be surprised if there wasn't a similar relationship with AS.

Correlation doesn't equal causation. It's hard to say what's causing the ASD increase.

It is true that food, in general, has a huge impact on the body and therefore the mental health of an individual. I wouldn't really immediately claim it's "junk food", but more what specifically in the food is causing the problems (and additives is a very vague answer).

I do believe that there needs to be some research in this area..and I'm sure there is. I rely kinda heavily on dietary changes to try and manage some mental stuff (anxiety, depression, adhd), rather than go to drugs (although I do take some herbal stuff)

I'm worried for the day that they find food additives correlating to AS.

If the pharmaceuticals smell money, we're buggered with a capital F

I believe the rate is rising simply because the awareness is rising, since it's a relatively new thing. Like myself, a lot of people around my age have kids who are getting diagnosed with it (because the schools are WAY more aware than they were when I was a kid), and that spurs the parents to realize they've had it all their lives and so they get diagnosed.
It's not so much the instances that are rising, it's all the people who have always had it and only just finding out. And I'll bet my weight in gold that there are yet MANY people walking around with it unaware.

-- Mon Nov 12, 2012 10:57 am --

Supersonicfreak15 wrote:actually, i made 3 aspie friends! i see myself in them and i feel normal, almost like how an NT feels amongst other NTs. One is a tad more sever then me, one is the same level as me, and one is a tad more milder then me. I met them all on my own, and they seem to like me quite a bit. but, i noticed something, there are about 12 students with Aspergers syndrome in my school of over 1200 students. the diagnostic rate for Autism Spectrum Disorders is 1 in 150 or 135, but there are over 16 students with an autism spectrum disorder of somekind! i think the Diagnostic rate is rising O_O.

Supersonic, that's great! That's way better than I ever did..... I'm really glad to hear that the awareness is going up!!

TDT wrote:Correlation doesn't equal causation. It's hard to say what's causing the ASD increase.

i'm not saying it's causing ASDs, i'm saying it's accentuating the severity of them and this in turn is causing a higher rate of diagnosis.

TDT wrote:It is true that food, in general, has a huge impact on the body and therefore the mental health of an individual. I wouldn't really immediately claim it's "junk food", but more what specifically in the food is causing the problems (and additives is a very vague answer).

junk food is a bit of a loose terminology but i think most people would understand the kind of over-processed, artificially coloured, artificially flavoured and/or artificially preserved food that this term encompasses. the colourings, flavourings and preservatives are, of course, additives. there have been studies in schools where such foods have been removed from the school dinner menu and replaced by more natural and therefore healthier alternatives. these studies have shown a significant improvement in behaviour and concentration. it's difficult, in my opinion, to dispute these facts. we really don't understand the effects many of these additives have on health. they're used because they're cheap and convenient and sometimes even addictive too. i've just bought some lemon juice. it's ingredients are: lemon juice (not surprisingly) and preservative (E223). it's going down the sink. i only bought it because i want a convenient way to carry freshly squeezed lemon juice when i travel. i avoid all preservatives because they don't just preserve the food you eat, they preserve you too. by that i mean they reduce the ability of the body to metabolise and therefore function. most people in western society are over-fed and under-nurished and add to that the affects of additives and you get a society that's suffering epidemic proportions of illness, such as heart disease, cancer, etc.

TDT wrote:I do believe that there needs to be some research in this area..and I'm sure there is. I rely kinda heavily on dietary changes to try and manage some mental stuff (anxiety, depression, adhd), rather than go to drugs (although I do take some herbal stuff)

i don't believe there's anywhere near enough reasearch into this. truth is the food industry are very powerful and they won't fund research that says their products are unhealthy. a good example is IGH-1 that's in milk and is responsible for accelerating prostate cancer. i can't see the milk marketing board highlighting this any time soon. i know someone with prostate cancer. their dietician told them to use soya milk, though no explanation was offered as to why. it makes me wonder what they actually do know.