Second Opinion
A major new study offers yet more proof that MMR vaccine does not cause autism
The current study is now the largest one to have investigated the safety of the MMR vaccine, which makes its findings all the more powerful.
autism
Mental Health & Addiction
Fraser’s new east-metro mental health facility will help expand treatment options for Minnesota children
This week, Fraser will break ground in Woodbury on what will be the organization’s seventh mental health clinic and first-ever east-metro location.
Mental Health & Addiction
Lost no more: Research finds that autistic children can learn navigation techniques
It seems as if children with ASD are able to achieve greater independence if they have a basic tutorial in how to navigate a space, Julie Irish said.
Second Opinion
Researchers used a fake bicycling accident to test how empathy affects altruistic behavior
Cambridge researchers decided to conduct a real-world social psychology experiment to see if the number of empathic traits an individual has is a good predictor of altruistic behavior.
Mental Health & Addiction
DNA research may lead to early intervention for children with autism
SPARK is a national research study with a goal of enlisting some 50,000 people with autism and their families. The University of Minnesota is participating.
Second Opinion
‘Crowds turn people stupid and dangerous’ and other leading psychological myths
Psychologist Christian Jarrett lists 10 of the most “erroneous psychological intuitions [that] are widely believed among the public and are stubbornly persistent.”
Mental Health & Addiction
Jed Elison: Early brain scans may help identify infants who could one day develop autism
In his lab on the university’s West Bank campus, Elison, who was recently awarded a prestigious McKnight Land-Grant professorship, studies brain scans of infants as young as 3 months.
Learning Curve
More than a safe harbor: MPS autism changes are meant to create a new ecosystem
The end goal, explains MPS’ Amy Johnson, is for everyone in a school community to feel ownership over the success of all of the kids.
Second Opinion
Another large study finds no link between autism and vaccines — even among high-risk children
An analysis of all the data found that the children with an older sibling with autism were more likely to develop the condition — whether or not they were vaccinated.
Mental Health & Addiction
Disabled children’s adoptive/foster mothers hope to expand their Minneapolis home
With six busy children under the age of 5 plus one preteen boy, the house is bursting at the seams.
Mental Health & Addiction
From duct tape and leaky roofs to $40 million and 1,000 employees: Diane Cross’ 25-year career at Fraser
The organization, the largest provider of autism services in the Midwest, now serves adults and children with more than 60 types of mental and physical disabilities.
Mental Health & Addiction
St. David’s Center’s autism treatment preschool reaches out to Somali families
With its new Northeast Minneapolis preschool for children with autism, St. David’s Center hopes to build a trusting relationship with the city’s Somali community.
Mental Health & Addiction
St. David’s and the boy who wouldn’t play: A tale of transformation
As St. David’s Center prepares to expand the reach of its children’s mental-health services, one mother expresses her gratitude.
Second Opinion
FDA cracks down on misleading claims about autism therapies
The targeted therapies include everything from “chelating” agents (which bind to chemicals in the body) to hyperbaric oxygen chambers and clay baths.
Second Opinion
Autism rate among U.S. kids is higher than thought, CDC finds
The new data show that 1 in 68 children had autism in 2010 — a 30 percent higher rate than previous estimates.
Second Opinion
Children born to older dads at greater risk of mental illness and academic problems, study finds
The study analyzed data for 2.6 million people born to 1.4 million men in Sweden between 1973 and 2001.
Second Opinion
A ‘silent pandemic’ of toxic chemicals is damaging our children’s brains, experts claim
The list includes pesticides, industrial solvents and everyday products used in homes.
Second Opinion
Autism highest among Minneapolis’ Somali and white children, U study finds
The data for the U of M study was collected from the school and medical records of more than 5,000 Minneapolis children.
Second Opinion
Autism diagnoses are up; older dads more likely to have grandchild with autism
In 2011-2012 as many as 1 in 50 U.S. children between the ages of 6 and 17 were diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder or related developmental disorder.
Second Opinion
Early use of folic acid supplements in pregnancy linked to lower risk of autism
“The mothers who took folic acid supplements in early pregnancy had a 40 percent reduction in the risk of having a child with autism,” said lead author Dr. Paul Suren.
