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HEALTH WATCH
Catch Them Young
Autism calls for early and correct diagnosis as well
as integrated schools for autistic children
When I look back,
it's so obvious. He couldn't connect, he was perfectly happy in his own
world. If I lived my life again, I'd know from the time my son was in
his crib that he had autism," says Merry Barua. No one gets that
second chance. That's why Barua, who runs the Delhi-based organisation
Action for Autism, now spends her time helping parents like her give their
children a better shot at life. It's an arduous task since autism is not
even listed under The Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995. And this is
just one of the issues before the National Task Force for Attention Deficit
Disorders and Autism Spectrum, a conglomerate of parents and professionals
currently being formalised at Delhi's Vidyasagar Institute of Mental Health
and Neuro Sciences (vimhans). Says Dr J. Nagpal of vimhans: "We want
the government to provide R&D funding and to give us regulatory powers
to weed out incorrect intervention."
 But
awareness should come first. In lay terms, autistic people are often described
as "lost souls". They appear withdrawn, have difficulty in communicating
and making eye contact, and display what doctors describe as "limited,
repetitive behaviour". Autism Spectrum is a range of developmental
disorders with similar core features. While doctors differ on the choice
of treatments, most agree on the need for integrated schooling. "But
there is no point telling schools to take in children with special needs
unless the government provides funds for additional infrastructure and
staff required, and tells them what to do with these kids," says
Shalini Dave, a psychologist with Delhi's Vasant Valley School, a regular
school that addresses the needs of autistic children. Some proposals for
special education courses dealing only with autism are pending with the
Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), which is under the Ministry of
Social Justice and Empowerment. Says J.P. Singh, RCI member secretary.
"First let autism be incorporated in the Disabilities Act ... Such
a course is needed, but there are priority areas and we have to see how
many among the masses are affected." The problems don't end there.
Says Sudhanshu Grover of Vadodara, whose twin toddlers are autistic: "Since
they were diagnosed we've been travelling all over for help. If the government
doesn't help us, where do we go?" No one has an answer for her yet.
—Anna M.M. Vetticad
IN SMALL DOSES
Playboy Peril: Multiple sex partners
lead to higher risk of prostate cancer, according to a study reported
in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Researchers at the University
of Illinois arrived at this conclusion after monitoring the lives of 1,456
men. Half the men suffered from prostate cancer, the other half were healthy.
The men with the highest number of female sexual partners were twice as
likely to have prostate cancer. The risk was specifically linked to the
number of partners, not to the frequency of sexual activity with a partner
or other factors like hormonal level indicators. Monogamy does have its
benefits.
 Painful
Reaction: Science reported a study of 20 people whose brains were
scanned while their jaws were made to ache. While the same number of pain
nerves were stimulated in all cases, people whose brains produced pain-killing
chemicals in the body most quickly felt the least pain. In doing so, more
areas of the brain were involved. Bearing pain needs brains, not guts,
after all.
 Genes
Drive Menopause: A woman's mother might provide the best clue to how
long her biological clock will keep ticking. Dutch scientists studying
genetic factors of menopause in 243 women found that in 85 per cent of
the cases genes determined the onset of menopause. So a woman whose family
has a history of early menopause is likely to undergo it herself. Since
fertility drops rapidly a few years earlier, this study has implications
for modern working women who increasingly postpone having children in
favour of careers. Other factors like smoking and birth control pills
also influence menopause.
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