Environmental Health Articles

Below is a collection of articles that were compiled as part of the Autism Society’s campaign to increase awareness about links between autism spectrum disorders and environmental toxins. Some of these articles appeared in a special issue (5th edition, 2006) of the Autism Advocate and others are exclusively featured here. Autism Society members receive online access to the Autism Advocate, along with a biweekly e-newsletter, advocacy alerts, conference updates and much more. Click here to become a member of the Autism Society. Click here to read other issues of the Autism Advocate online.

Reference Materials

Read current articles and fact sheets to familiarize yourself with current topics in autism and the environment.

Men's Health Fact Sheet
The Rise of Autism and the Age at Diagnosis By Irva Hertz-Picciotta and Lora Delwiche
Autism and Environment By Philip J. Landrigan
Scientists Warn of Chemicals Autism Link, CNN Health, June 10, 2010Autism and Toxic Chemical Exposure: What is the Relationship?
Government Says 2 Common Materials Pose Risk of Cancer

Internet Exclusives

Most of the articles below are in PDF format. You will need Adobe Reader to view them. If you don't already have it installed on your computer, you can download it for free at http://www.adobe.com/.

Autism and the Environment (published in the Autism Advocate Fourth Edition 2009)
Autism and the Link Between Brain and Body by Richard Lathe, Ph.D.
Autism Spectrum Disorders and the Immune System by Paula Goines, B.S., Paul Ashwood, Ph.D., and Judy Van de Water, Ph.D.
Canadian Study: Is There a Digestive Link to Autism? by Derrick MacFabe, M.D.
Can Exposure to Environmental Toxicants Influence Autism Susceptibility?by Isaac N. Pessah, Ph.D.
Environmental Exposures and ASDs: Making the Connection by Claudia S. Miller, M.D., M.S.
Epidemiologic Approaches to Autism and the Environment by Craig J. Newschaffer, Ph.D.
Finding the Words: An Interview with Elizabeth Horn by Judith Chinitz Gorman
Fish and Industry Toxins: A Link to Rising in Hong Kong and China by Kulani Mahikoa
Helping to Shift the Paradigm: Learning More About Recovery in Autism by Robert Sinaiko, M.D.
The Children’s Corner School: Combining Diet and Education for Optimum Results by Stan Kurtz
The Crime Against Our Children by Philip and Alice Shabecoff
The UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute: Uniquely Designed to Study Gene-Environmental Interactions in Autism by Robert Hendren, D.O.
Understanding Mercury, Understanding Autism by Ellen Silbergeld, Ph.D., and Jennifer Nyland, Ph.D.
We’re Loaded With Toxins: Analyzing the Toxic Body Burden of Americans by Judy Chinitz Gorman

Special Issue Articles

Feature Articles

• Time to Get a Grip by Martha R. Herbert, M.D., Ph.D.
• An Interview with Dr. Tom Insel, NIMH Director by Bleu Blakslee
• Autism's New Paradigm: Seeking Answers to Environmental Threats by Michael Lerner, Ph.D.
• At Senate hearing, trade groups split over efforts to ravamp chemical-safety law, Washington Post, November 17, 2011
• The Chemicals that should be on Your Radar...but Probably Aren't, Greenbiz.com, February 25, 2010
• New Research Investigates Link Between Autism and Toxic Chemicals, Voice of America, April 15, 2010
• Toxic, WCV-TV 5 Boston, January 26, 2009
• Indiana: High Rates of Autism, Toxic Pollution, The Bloomington Alternative, April 19, 2009
• Autism Spikes, Toxic Pollution Suspected, The Bloomington Alternative, November 1, 2009

Biomedical Factors in Autism

• Beyond Behavior: Biomedical Diagnoses in Autism Spectrum Disorders by Margaret L. Bauman, M.D.
• Environmental Mercury Release and its Association with Changing Autism Rates by Raymond F. Palmer, Ph.D., and Stephen Blanchard, Ph.D.
• Evidence for Metabolic Imbalance and Oxidative Stress in Autism by S. Jill James, Ph.D.
• Gastrointestinal Illness in Autism: An Interview with Tim Buie, M.D. by Kulani Mahikoa
• Requirements for Good Scientific Inquiry by G. Jean Harry, Ph.D.
• The Prenatal Environment and Neuroinflammation in Autism by Susan L. Connors, M.D., Carlos A. Pardo, M.D. and Andrew W. Zimmerman, M.D.
• The 'Three Strikes' Concept of Autism - Interviewed by Judy Chinitz Gorman; Edited by Ian Lipkin, M.D., and Mady Hornig, M.D.
• Transforming the Public Debate on Neurotoxicants: The Learning and Developmental Disabilities Initiative by Elise Miller, M.Ed.
• Why Time Trends in Autism Matter by Mark F. Blaxill

Treatments for Autism

• Biomedical Treatment of Autism by John Green, M.D.
• Effective Treatments for Autism by Doreen Granpeesheh, Ph.D., BCBA
• The Parents' Role in Biomedical Treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorders by Lisa Ackerman

Autism: First-Person Perspectives

• Autism's McGuffin by Dan Olmsted
• Exploring the Role of Toxicology in the Etiology of Autism: A View from the Spectrum and a Call to Action by Stephen Shore, Ph.D.
• Fighting for Our Children: Advocacy in the Age of Environmental Awareness by Bernard Rimland, Ph.D.
• Rescuing a Generation by J.B. Handley
• There is Hope: Children with Autism Can Recover by Judy Chinitz Gorman