Earlier quoted context omitted.
Since always? It’s a developmental disorder, and a disease is “a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal, or plant, especially one that produces specific symptoms or that affects a specific location and is not simply a direct result of physical injury.” Pretty much every medical body would list it under its classification of illnesses. e.g. NHS: https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/brain-n…
Perhaps the GP was referring to the role that social norms play regarding whether some abnormality is considered a disease or not, and the ensuing debates about whether or not is should be.
The problem here is that most people think that those who suffer from autism are the quirky guy at work who’s good at math while in reality most of them would be in diapers trough adulthood.
In reality it is a terrible debilitating disease that enacts a huge toll on both those who suffer from it and their families. I really hope no one would have to live through the fear that they can’t die because no one would be there to provide the life long support their child might need, not to mention having to live with that responsibility for the rest of their natural life.