A new study in the journal, Pediatrics finds that one possible environmental factor affecting the risk of autism, is the interval between multiple pregnancies.
The authors examined the medical records of over 650,000 second-born children and compared their autism rates to the length of time between the birth of the first child and the conception of the second child. The result showed that if a child was conceived less than twelve months after the birth of his or her older sibling– that child was more than three times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than a child conceived more than three years after the birth of he first child.
Children conceived between one and two years after the birth of their older siblings– were at almost double the risk of autism. The study concludes that a second-born child is at increased risk of autism, if conceived within one year after the birth of the first-born.
Researchers don’t know why, but suggest a possible reason may be that the first birth depletes the mother’s body of nutrients needed for proper development in the womb.
For more information about autism, please visit, Autism Speaks.
