April Is Autism Awareness Month

Article by Vanessa Richardson

April is Autism awareness month. I was quite fascinated with autism upon learning celebrities like Toni Braxton, Holly Robinson Peete, and Jenny McCarthy kids were diagnosed with it. Upon hearing their heart touching testimonies it became glaringly clear that a cure must be found. I decided to not just read about Autism; but to also help advocate about it.  To date there is no known cure for autism,  but there are treatments available.

What is Autism? According to autismspeaks.org.  Autism is defined as: A spectrum disorder (ASD) and autism are both general terms for a group of complex disorders of brain development.

The autism-society shared some statistic about Autism:

1 percent of the population of children in the U.S. ages 3-17 have an autism spectrum disorder.¹
Prevalence is estimated at 1 in 88 births.²
1 to 1.5 million Americans live with an autism spectrum disorder.³
Fastest-growing developmental disability; 1,148% growth rate.⁴
10 – 17 % annual growth.⁵  Click for more information 

Do you want to become involved?

You can first attend a Autism meeting in your community.

Become informed and share with church, family, and friends.

Take some online courses.

In May 2007, McCarthy announced that her son Evan was diagnosed with autism in 2005

Toni Braxton and her son youngest son Diesel. Toni  revealed that Diesel was diagnosed with autism at age three.

Holly Robinson Peete and her son Rodney, Jr.  RJ, was diagnosed at about 2 1/2 years of age.

Autusim Resources

www.autism-society.org

www.autismspeaks.org