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[–] 15 points 11 months ago (2 children)

It's a complex genetic disorder, where many genes influence an outcome that generates a spectrum of disease. While at one end of the spectrum it can be debilitating at the other end it produces some of the best minds in STEM. In other words, there is an evolutionary advantage in humans to have autism in the population.

This is a very complex genetic disorder from birth. There is definitely is not an environmental cause. By try explaining this to a guy that swims in sewage.

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  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    We know it's HEAVILY influence by genetics, but there seems to be some other component as well. That unknown piece, from what I understand, has not been discovered.

    In identical twins (same DNA,) If one twin has ASD, the other only has it 96% of the time. If it was purely genetic, this should be 100%.

    https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/severity-autism-symptoms-varies-greatly-among-identical-twins

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  • [–] 6 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Not true, that's called twin discordance. It's very common. While they were born with the same DNA sequence, every person develops slightly differently and has a different epigenetic profile. The concept that twins are identical when developed was outdated about 20 years ago.

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