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Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

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Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#161

Post by Aurornis »

tomstoms wrote: post #123
Aurornis wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Being given antibiotics at such an early age will probably severely dysregulation gut microbiota. It’s extremely common for young kids to receive antibiotics. In some countries, antibiotics are over the counter and many parents will give their kids antibiotics for nearly any infection. Antibiotic misuse is rampant in some countries where they aren’t gated behind prescriptions. Any such link with autism would theref…

«So John went back to the hospital and spent a month on powerful antibiotics pumped directly into a vein near his heart.» This is not «extremely common».

No it is not, but ignoring the part about the severe infection require extended hospitalization and trying to reduce it all to “antibiotics” is extremely disingenuous.

Given that antibiotics are common but extreme infections and extended hospitalizations are not, why would anyone focus on the antibiotics as the root cause?

Not all antibiotics are created equal nor do they affect gut bacteria the same. There isn’t a singular scale for antibiotic power. Often, antibiotics are given via vein because they aren’t absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, for example. This doesn’t tell us anything about the magnitude of impact on gut bacteria relative to an antibiotic that actually starts its journey in your gut.

This is a complicated case. Reducing the entire complicated episode to “it was the antibiotics” is extremely reductionist.

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#162

Post by ChiperSoft »

This article annoys me to all ends. It started out badly by referring to autism as a disability, but it got worse in the fact that they’re assuming all of John’s symptoms are because he’s autistic. All of his disabilities can much easier be ascribed to brain damage post-partum. That hole in his heart meant he was getting less blood flow and less oxygen at a critical time in his brain development.

The fact that both twins are autistic has nothing to do with it!

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#163

Post by impendia »

scottlamb wrote: post #54

This is driving me oddly nuts: > "I think there's an understanding that 'My twin isn't quite as capable of communicating in the way that they need to, so I'll help them with that,'" she says. > That description fits Sam and John. > When asked to name his favorite episode of Sesame Street, John blurts out a series of words: "Abby makes the seasons change." Sam understands immediately and quickly steps in to explain. >…

Apparently John wasn't even off by a "the":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8d-SQF-F90

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#164

Post by reilly3000 »

mkoubaa wrote: post #28

Wasn't there a theory that autism was affected by ultrasounds during pregnancy?

It’s strongly correlated with genetics down to a handful of SNPs. There is also a lot of evidence to suggest physiological differences in amygdala mass as well as hormone production. No exterior factor has been proven. No scapegoat is needed either, autists tend to like who they are and have unique and important value.

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#165

Post by ProllyInfamous »

toasterlovin wrote: post #62
ipnon wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They divided from the same oocyte, they have identical genomes.

Not strictly true. Mutations happen and when they happen early, they can affect a large percentage of the cells in the body.

I agree, as an identical twin (partially inversus situ) — some examples: opposite hand-dominance; our optical Rx was once exactly opposite; intro/extro -version; engineer/stoner; life outlook/perspective.

We have taken completely different life pathways, and yet still enjoy each others' company. Knowing that I will precede as "Algernon" from "Flowers for..." makes me immensely sad for "Charlie" [Twin].

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#166

Post by ipaddr »

Aurornis wrote: post #121
drooby wrote: post #4

This seems to bolster the theory that autism is modulated by the gut-brain axis. Being given antibiotics at such an early age will probably severely dysregulation gut microbiota. And GABA actually does cross the BBB but in small amounts. Perhaps at such an early age, dysregulation in GABA produced in the gut has significant effects on brain health - over stimulation, learning memory issues, etc.

> Being given antibiotics at such an early age will probably severely dysregulation gut microbiota. It’s extremely common for young kids to receive antibiotics. In some countries, antibiotics are over the counter and many parents will give their kids antibiotics for nearly any infection. Antibiotic misuse is rampant in some countries where they aren’t gated behind prescriptions. Any such link with autism would theref…

Antibiotics refer to a group of drugs. Eating food from the supermarket will expose a child to antibiotics. Different classes of antibiotics have a lifelong effects while common ones are quickier to recover from.

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#167

Post by brightball »

cma wrote: post #133
brightball wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would that correlate?

> Christian Scientists avoid almost all medical treatment, relying instead on Christian Science prayer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Science#Healing_prac...

Have literally never heard of that. Is there any area where this is prominent?

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#168

Post by genericresponse »

ChiperSoft wrote: post #162

This article annoys me to all ends. It started out badly by referring to autism as a disability, but it got worse in the fact that they’re assuming all of John’s symptoms are because he’s autistic. All of his disabilities can much easier be ascribed to brain damage post-partum. That hole in his heart meant he was getting less blood flow and less oxygen at a critical time in his brain development. The fact that both t…

Definitionally, at least in the US, Autism is a disability. It's a qualifier for the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The specific definition: "A disability is a physical or mental impairment that makes it harder for a person to perform certain activities or interact with the world around them." For many ASD makes it harder to interact with the world around them, whether that's overstimulation, communication challenges, or something else.

It's reasonable to wonder if the disabilities were caused by brain damage post-partum or are symptomatic of his autism. At the same time we shouldn't forget the many others with ASD and similar disabilities who lack another explanation. Some of the population with ASD have limited communication skills and cannot pass as neurotypical.

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#169

Post by dgfitz »

jdhendrickson wrote: post #157
Der_Einzige wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's an easy fix for this one! AI literally made game hacks undetectable. It's never been easier to cheat on videogames in a way that poses literally zero risk of getting banned. Here's an example of a tool that has made my "The Finals" experience about 10000% better: https://github.com/Babyhamsta/Aimmy I'm having fun with my buddies, leasiurly talking on discord while yet another diamond sweat-lord who tries to g…

you shouldn't be proud of this. people like you ruin games.

The most fun I had playing video games in the past 10 years was when the PokémonGo api wasn’t locked down.

Re: Identical twins both grew up with autism, but took different paths

#170

Post by burnte »

djhope99 wrote: post #159

My 8 yr old identical twin daughter’s have severe autism but one is definitely worse than the other, one of them can use some words but the other is completely unable to communicate. I have absolutely no explanation for this, I cannot think of anything different that happened to them. They didn’t have antibiotics or surgery at a young age like in this story either.

There's genetics, but then there's gene expression which is affected by the world, so they clearly grew differently.
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