Autism is normal?

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I'm a biology major, specifically in botany, but biology in general is very interesting to me, especially the interaction of genes and environment. If you have any knowledge of evolution you may know what a niche is. If not, it is simply an environment/lifestyle/diet and organism is suited for.

Humans live all over the globe and there are many niches available to us, although it seems we just make our own. I have read that we are not specialized to any specific environment, but I sometimes question this. It seems the shoreline hunter/gatherer diet is the best for a long healthy life: nuts, fruits, fish, etc. It also seems that many on the autism spectrum are naturally drawn towards habits that seem like hunter/gather traits. In the modern world, living in such a way would be difficult. One can't just go hunting/gathering anywhere due to laws or destruction of natural areas.

I'm just curious if anyone else thinks autism is just a normal variety of human.

Yeah, that's what I tell myself from time to time!

If by "autism" you mean the broad autism phenotype traits of having a fondness for consistancy and predictability and being introverted and relatively untalkative, yes, those are all fairly normal. Some of the traits individually are even pretty common.

But if you mean the problems people diagnosed with ASDs have more often than the general population, such as debilitating sensory issues, emotional difficulty with starting or switching tasks, difficulty with executive functions, poor motor control, and difficulty communicating with others, no, I don't think any of that is normal. If a hunter-gatherer had those problems, they'd probably die, or survive mainly on the gifts of others.

Although a lot of those problems are exacerbated by the modern developed lifestyle, so it's possible that the same person who has those problems in our society wouldn't have them so bad if they were a hunter-gatherer (I don't mean that the problem wouldn't matter as much, but literally that they'd have the problem less).

autism is normal in the sense that almost no one gets through life without some difficulties.

No, autism is not normal. The very defition of disorder is, "unusual, irregular, abnormal".

It's a think style, not a race.

...3

Biologically? Yes. Just like having your own parts of your own body. It's something innate... It can be inherited, yes. But there's a lot of cases where autistics are autistics when there's no family records regarding to it.
Also by Neurologically? Yes. As is, you have to be born with it. You can't "catch" it.

Environmentally? I wonder if a born NT was raised autistic, or treated like an autistic, or at least mimic autistics, what would become of the born NT?... I don't know. Yet certainly if an autistic were to act, raised, and disciplined as NT with or without knowing his/her true nature, that would be learning a second language that might take most of their lifetime... Or never. And still considered an autistic by biological means, even when integrated with the NT culture; especially if it's against the autistic's will to act NT...

Socially? In this current Era: No... Because by any means, from an autistic point of view, that the neurotypical norm is a foreign thing; same goes with reverse. The main reason why it's called 'abnormal' it's because the autistics are minority, and the NT expects the invisible minority to act alike the majority...
And I mean by current 'Era', the social norm can, and HAD change, and WILL change: For better or for worse.

Racially? There is no such thing.
Culturally? Autism is it's own class... As it's not picky in whatever culture and/or social standing a person is born into.

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