LewRockwell
In the mid-1960s, the autism rate was 1 in 10,000.1 By 2012, it had risen to 1 in 88,2 then 1 in 68 as of 2016,3 and now, we’re looking at an autism rate of 1 in 44 8-year-olds, although rates vary widely from state to state.4
In California, where incidence is the highest, 1 in 26 8-year-olds has a diagnosis of autism. Missouri, which has the lowest incidence, has a rate of 1 in 60. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the dramatic uptick is in part due to improved and more comprehensive identification and diagnosis.
However, improved diagnosis alone cannot explain this trend. One in 44 children were not autistic in the 1980s, with or without diagnosis. No, something is going on. One or more environmental factors are clearly having a devastating impact on our children.
