Health
Autism by the numbers: Experts share reasons for the dramatic surge in diagnoses
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Monday’s sweeping autism announcements have sparked deeper conversations about the widespread neurological disorder.
Health officials spoke during a press conference in Washington, D.C., about possible causes, vaccine guidance and the potential for a cancer drug to double as an autism therapy.
Autism diagnoses have been steadily rising in recent decades, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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“In the 1970s, autism was considered rare, perhaps 1 in 5,000 to 10,000 children,” Steven Quay, M.D., Ph.D., a physician-scientist and founder of Atossa Therapeutics in Seattle, Washington, told Fox News Digital.
In the year 2000, an estimated one in 150 children aged 8 had the disorder. By 2010, that number had risen to one in 68 — and by 2022, one in 31 children were diagnosed.
Autism diagnoses have been steadily rising in recent decades, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (iStock)
“Autism is no longer an uncommon condition tucked away in psychiatric textbooks,” said Quay. “It is part of the daily fabric of schools, clinics and families everywhere.”
Dr. Aggie Papazyan, a Los Angeles-based psychologist specializing in autism spectrum disorder, noted that autism prevalence has also increased globally.
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“These rates vary by region,” she told Fox News Digital. “In many places, especially in higher-income settings with more robust diagnostic and health resources, prevalence estimates have gone up.”
She added, “However, it’s important to note that how autism is measured makes a big difference.”
Awareness vs. epidemic
The CDC has noted that improved identification of autism could be part of the increase, but that other factors could also come into play.
Decades ago, many autistic people were “missed, misdiagnosed or labeled differently,” said Papazyan.
“There doesn’t seem to be a sudden surge in biological incidence.”
“Over time, as awareness has grown, diagnostic definitions expanded and screening became a bit more routine — so it’s not a surprise to see more autism diagnoses,” she said.
“The biggest misconception is that rising numbers mean autism itself is suddenly becoming more common,” the expert went on. “That’s scary to some people, but there’s no new autism ‘epidemic.’”
Experts say more funding is needed for early intervention programs, such as speech, occupational and behavioral therapies. (iStock)
Most of the increase, according to Papazyan, is due to earlier intervention, broader diagnostic criteria and improved access to services.
“There doesn’t seem to be a sudden surge in biological incidence,” she added. “There may still be a true rise, but it’s not as dramatic as many people want to think.”
Quay said it would be “naïve” to assume that the rise is due only to better detection, and said that environmental change also plays a role.
“Fifty years ago, many individuals on the spectrum were mislabeled — sometimes as intellectually disabled, sometimes as ‘eccentric’ or ‘odd,’ but I do not believe this accounts for the entire increase,” he said.
To counter the rising autism diagnoses, experts call for increasing awareness and acceptance while reducing stigma. (iStock)
“Environmental influences, from prenatal exposures to changes in maternal health to shifts in early childhood experiences, likely play some role.”
‘Urgent need’
To counter the rising autism diagnoses, Papazyan is calling for increasing awareness and acceptance while reducing stigma, as this affects how resources are allocated.
“Beyond that, we need to expand diagnostic and assessment services, especially in underserved communities, so that people are properly diagnosed and given the care they need,” she said.
Papazyan said more funding is also needed for early intervention programs, such as speech, occupational and behavioral therapies.
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The experts also agreed that support is needed for autistic people as they get older, including mental health services, financial assistance and life skills development.
“Interventions are needed that go beyond childhood, because autistic adults will spend most of their lives outside the school system, yet services for them are almost nonexistent,” said Quay.
“Fifty years ago, many individuals on the spectrum were mislabeled.”
Looking ahead, Papazyan predicts that autism prevalence will continue to increase over the next few years before it slows down and eventually hits a plateau.
Quay also expects that prevalence will continue to rise in the near term, largely due to improvements in detection and “societal willingness to diagnose.”
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“Whether there is a biological plateau remains to be seen,” he said. “If environmental contributors are identified and mitigated, we could see stabilization.”
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Feeling lonely may take a toll on older adults’ memory — but it may not speed up cognitive decline, according to a new study.
Researchers from Colombia, Spain and Sweden analyzed data from more than 10,000 adults ages 65 to 94 across 12 European countries and found those who reported higher levels of loneliness did worse on memory tests at the start of the study, according to research published this month in the journal Aging & Mental Health.
Over a seven-year period, however, memory decline occurred at a similar rate regardless of how lonely participants felt.
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“The finding that loneliness significantly impacted memory, but not the speed of decline in memory over time was a surprising outcome,” lead author Dr. Luis Carlos Venegas-Sanabria of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences at the Universidad del Rosario said in a statement.
Loneliness may be linked to memory performance in older adults, a new study suggests. (iStock)
“It suggests that loneliness may play a more prominent role in the initial state of memory than in its progressive decline,” Venegas-Sanabria said, adding that the findings highlight the importance of addressing loneliness as a factor in cognitive performance.
The findings add to debate about whether loneliness contributes to dementia risk. While loneliness and social isolation are often considered risk factors for cognitive decline, research results have been mixed.
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The study looked at data from the long-running Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), which tracked 10,217 older adults between 2012 and 2019. Participants were asked to recall words immediately and after a delay to measure memory performance.
Social isolation and loneliness could play a surprising role in cognitive health among seniors. (iStock)
Loneliness was assessed using three questions about how often participants felt isolated, left out or lacking companionship.
About 8% of participants reported high levels of loneliness at the outset. That group tended to be older, more likely to be female and more likely to have conditions such as depression.
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Researchers found that those with higher loneliness had lower scores on both immediate and delayed memory tests at baseline. Still, all groups — regardless of loneliness level — experienced similar declines in memory over time.
The results suggest loneliness may not directly accelerate the progression of memory loss, though it remains linked to poorer cognitive performance overall.
Researchers look at a brain scan at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)
Experts warn, however, that the findings should not be interpreted to mean loneliness is harmless.
“The finding that lonely older adults start with worse memory but don’t decline faster is actually the most interesting part of the paper, and I think it’s easy to misread,” said Jordan Weiss, Ph.D., a scientific advisor and aging expert at Assisted Living Magazine and a professor at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.
“It likely means loneliness does its damage earlier in life, well before people show up in a study like this at 65-plus,” Weiss told Fox News Digital.
By older age, long-term social patterns may already be established, making it harder to detect when the effects of loneliness first took hold, an aging expert says. (iStock)
He suggested that by older age, long-term social patterns may already be established, making it harder to detect when the effects of loneliness first took hold.
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“By the time you’re measuring someone in their late 60s, decades of social connection patterns are already baked in,” he said.
Weiss, who was not involved in the research, added that loneliness may coincide with other health conditions, and noted that participants who felt more isolated also had higher rates of depression, high-blood pressure and diabetes. The link, he said, may reflect a cluster of health risks rather than a direct cause.
“While they can go hand-in-hand, it’s not clear that loneliness contributes to dementia,” a psychotherapist says. (iStock)
Amy Morin, a Florida-based psychotherapist and author, said the findings reflect a broader pattern in research on loneliness and brain health, and that the relationship may be more complex than it appears.
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“The evidence shows there’s a link between loneliness and cognitive decline but there’s no direct evidence of a cause and effect relationship,” she said. “So while they can go hand-in-hand, it’s not clear that loneliness contributes to dementia.”
Morin added that loneliness, which can fluctuate, may not be the root of the problem, but rather a symptom of other underlying mental or physical health issues.
Researchers suggested screening for loneliness be incorporated into routine cognitive assessments as one way to support healthy aging. (iStock)
She said staying socially and mentally engaged is crucial for overall brain health.
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“It’s important to be proactive about social activities,” Morin said. “Joining a book club, having coffee with a friend, or attending faith-based services can be a powerful way to maintain connections in older age.”
The researchers also suggested screening for loneliness be incorporated into routine cognitive assessments as one way to support healthy aging.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers for comment.
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Research continues to uncover new details on how fasting may help extend life.
A new study published in the journal Nature Communications investigated how intermittent fasting can boost longevity in small worms often used in aging research.
Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas compared worms that were fed normally to those that underwent a 24-hour fast in early adulthood and were then fed again, according to a press release.
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The scientists measured a variety of factors, including stored fat, gene activity related to fat metabolism and lifespan.
The results showed that the life-boosting benefit did not depend on the fasting itself but on the body’s behavior after eating again.
Experts say sustainability is key when choosing a long-term weight-loss strategy. (iStock)
Study lead Peter Douglas, associate professor of molecular biology and a member of the Hamon Center for Regenerative Science and Medicine at UT Southwestern, suggested that these discoveries “shift the focus toward a neglected side of the metabolic coin – the re-feeding phase.”
“Our data suggest that the health-promoting effects of intermittent fasting are not merely a product of the fast itself, but are dependent on how the metabolic machinery recalibrates during the subsequent transition back to a fed state,” he said.
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“Our findings bridge a gap between lipid metabolism and aging research,” he added. “By targeting aging, the single greatest risk factor for human disease, we move beyond treating isolated conditions toward a preventive model of medicine that enhances quality of life for all individuals.”
Lauri Wright, director of nutrition programs at the University of South Florida’s College of Public Health, called this a “high-quality” study that adds an “important nuance to how we think about fasting and longevity.”
Intermittent fasting typically involves limiting meals to an eight-hour daily window or fasting every other day. (iStock)
The benefits of the refeeding phase after fasting were “especially interesting,” Wright, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
“The researchers showed that longevity was linked to the body’s ability to turn off fat breakdown after fasting, allowing cells to restore energy balance,” she reiterated.
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“From a scientific standpoint, that’s a meaningful shift because it suggests fasting is not just about burning fat, but about metabolic flexibility.”
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Fasting may support longevity through triggering metabolic switching, enhancing cellular repair and stress resistance and improving markers like insulin sensitivity, research shows.
Limitations and cautions
Although this study provides “important insight” on the power of refeeding, Wright noted that the findings should be approached with caution, as the study was done on worms and cannot always be translated to humans.
“Additionally, it explains how a process might work in a controlled lab condition rather than real-world eating behaviors,” she added as a limitation. “Finally, the study is short-term and doesn’t give us the long-term translation on lifespan outcomes.”
The review found intermittent fasting was barely more effective than doing nothing, according to the study authors. (iStock)
Wright cautioned that fasting is “not a magic solution for longevity, and how you eat overall matters more than when you eat.”
“I advise, first and foremost, to focus on diet quality, including a variety of fruits and vegetables, healthy fats and minimally processed foods,” she said.
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For those who are considering fasting, it’s better to stick with a moderate plan — like a 12- to 14-hour overnight fast — rather than going to extremes, Wright said. After fasting, she recommends focusing on well-balanced meals.
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Several groups of people should be cautioned against fasting, according to Wright, including those with diabetes who are on insulin or hypoglycemic medications, those who are pregnant or breastfeeding, anyone with a history of eating disorders and older adults at risk of malnutrition.
Anyone considering intermittent fasting should consult with a doctor before starting.
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