Signs of autism

Signs of autism can occur from as young as six months. Signs can vary according to age and can be detected by one year. Autism can be conclusively diagnosed after two years. Research shows that early detection is possible in siblings of autistic children.

Dr.sumanasena identified the following signs of earlystage autism. She said at first parents could miss these signs due to a lack of knowledge of a baby’s behaviour.

Not meeting the eyes or looking at the parents’ face. Not smiling spontaneously and needing prompting to elicit a smile.

Not showing an inclination to bond with the mother and having breastfeeding issues. Being excessively cranky or unusually quiet. Unfortunately, a parent could interpret a quiet baby as being independent and leave him/ her alone without interacting with them and developing a relationship, causing the child to retreat deeper into his/her own world.

with cranky children the parent could introduce them to repetitive practices or to a screen to comfort and manage them, thereby reinforcing the child’s autism. Babbling repetitively without variation in tone and quality. Parents could mistake this for speech.

Saying ‘mama’ and ‘dada’ but not directly to the parents. Having a natural aversion to food. Disliking tastes, smells and textures, making them poor and fussy eaters. Parents may sit such children in front of a screen to coax them to eat. This becomes a negative pattern to an autistic child.

repetitive play, like lining up toys in a meaningless manner and spinning toys or performing ritualistic routines.

being unusually clever at repeating phrases or nursery rhymes. Knowing colours, shapes, numbers, and letters of the alphabet.

Their tendency to be routinebased can be identified when about two years. Lacking joint attention. They may not focus or look when an object is pointed out and will fail to point at things themselves. Minimal or abnormal motor activity like delay in head control and delayed walking.