Is Autism Really Still on the Rise?

Many scientists clarify that reported cases of autism have been on the rise, but cannot know for sure whether this is due to an actual increase of people with autism, or that the definition of autism has become more encompassing and more people are open to being diagnosed than in previous years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describe the heightened reports of autism as "likely due to a combination of these factors."

Many researchers have found that a significant part, if not the majority, of the reported increase is not, in fact, due to an actual increase.

However, the rise in reporting is not only starting now, since the 1990s the reported cases of autism in children have been on the rise. The CDC states that in 1996 the rate was 3.4 per 1,000, which jumped to 14.6 per 1,000 in 2012.

Of course, in the term “autism spectrum disorder”, the idea of the spectrum means everyone on the spectrum experiences the disorder differently. Each will have different symptoms, which can range from manageable to incredibly severe.