In addition to the reports mentioned earlier of increased frequency of allergies among stutters, celiac disease among autistic children and autoimmune thyroid disorders in their parents, and migraine among childhood dyslexics, a high frequency of food allergies (Tryphonas and Trites 1979) and atopic disorders (Geschwind and Behan 1984) have been reported among hyperactive children (p. 94). (Geschwind, N. & Galaburda, A. M. (1987). Cerebral Lateralization. Cambridge: MIT Press.)
Geschwind and Galaburda’s Cerebral Lateralization is crammed with information that suggests an etiology for autism. It is the first place that I know of that associated autism with a mother’s testosterone levels. When the book discusses allergies and autism, I am reminded that perhaps a mother’s allergies influence her testosterone, or even estrogen levels, and that those changing levels increase chances for conditions featuring maturational delay. I’ve wondered if the recorded season of birth effects associated with autism are related to when a mother’s allergies correlate with certain points in pregnancy when maturation rates are established.
