Asperger's syndrome: Difference between revisions

There is debate in the autistic community as to whether or not high-functioning autism in particular should be treated as a health problem or not.  The "neurodivergent" or "neurodiversity" crowd argue the label is stigmatizing, or they imply autism is good/neutral.  Those opposed to the "neurodivergent" and "neurodiversity" movements claim that these movements downplay behavioral and social issues often found in those diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders.  

A major controversial theory of the etiology (cause) of ASD is known as the extreme male brain theory. The theory first proposed by the world famous autism researcher from the University of Cambridge, Simon Baron-Cohen, states that the major cause of ASD is excessive exposure to androgens (male sex hormones) during prenatal development. '''Baron-Cohen does not claim that persons with ASD are more 'masculine' then neuro-typicals, a point often lost on laymen'''. Baron-Cohen merely asserts that this 'extreme' masculinity takes form in a deficit of empathy in ASD individuals, as well as an increase in their mental tendency to attempt to systemise information they receive from the external environment, which a major cause of the obsessional interests and social deficits displayed by those with the disorder. The theory is supported by analysis on the amniotic fluid of children who were later diagnosed with ASD, which found evidence of elevated androgens (androstenedione and testosterone) in the placental fluid.<ref>https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24888361?dopt=Abstract</ref> However the relationship between these factors is likely complex; as later studies have also found evidence of elevated levels of estrogens in the pre-natal environment of those later diagnosed with autism<ref>https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190729094538.htm/</ref>. This is likely partially due to the activity of the enzyme [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aromatase aromatase] in the placenta, converting some of the androgens to estrogens, and there is animal evidence that pre-natal estrogens can have a "paradoxical" masculinizing effect in the right context.