Looking for a new definition for autism?

Okay, great...doctors are wanting to redefine autism, which has parents worried, according to a recent USA Today article. Yeah, I'd be worried too, cause now every third kid is gonna be autistic, instead of every fifth kid. Must be a hot new (read very ass-poundingly expensive) line of therapy getting ready to hit market.

Yeah, it's easy to be cynical. You got washed-up Playmates making the rounds on the TV talk show circuit spouting health tips, proving reinvention indeed knows no bounds, no matter how half-assed it may be out in the daylight. With more autistic children than ever in the United States, 1 in 88 according to the latest government data, you know at some level, someone is looking at autism as a growth industry. I mean, somebody's making a nickel here and there off those cause ribbon magnets, et cetera...

Doctors on a American Psychiatric Board panel say the revision is necessary to weed out labels and clarify the range of symptoms for autism, which would make it easier to diagnose and ensure that true autistics receive the same diagnosis. The new definition may also help determine whether or not the rising numbers reflect a real increase or are the result of overdiagnosis.

Yeah, until the next C-lister decides it's easier to slap on a shocked or concerned face and elict emotions from Anderson Cooper, or those cackling hens on The View. I appreciate the American Psychiatric Board's position, and I truly hope this leads to a better overall picture of what we're dealing with, but having said that, I'm off to see what kind of deals (wholesale) I can get on ribbon magnets...

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