Do most autistics have very pale skin?

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03 Aug 2006, 10:34 am

Something that I have noticed recently is that nearly all autistics seem to have skin more pale than average.
I certainly have skin close to perfect white, and I've had people jokingly call me albino.
I don't really know if its logical to assume that autistics would have physical differences from NTs when Autism is neurological condition, but I'm curious if these might be a common trait of autistics.
What do you guys think?



Yupa
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03 Aug 2006, 10:48 am

Not really.
I have kind of a tan from living in warm climates all my life. Also, one of this site's members is hispanic and another two or so are black.
I just think that asperger's tends to be diagnosed more in European and North American cultures because Hans Asperger's, who was responsible for creating the diagnosis of AS, was of European descent, and because western cultures tend to rely more on textbook psychiatry. I think another major factor is that non-western cultures have different definitions from us of what's "normal" or "unusual" in a person's behaviour.



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03 Aug 2006, 12:21 pm

I knew an AS girl that has pale skin but she didn't complain about it. I have tanned skin because I stay out in the sun a lot.


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03 Aug 2006, 12:33 pm

I do have very white, but can tan, I think I did spend a lot of time inside as a child so it may have had something to do with it. But not sure.



DavidR
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03 Aug 2006, 12:36 pm

I dont tan..ever, just not my colouring I burn in seconds



Psychlone
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03 Aug 2006, 12:38 pm

My skin is fairly pale.

Have you heard of the Neanderthal theory of Autism? If this theory is true, it could explain a connection. No one really knows for sure what Neanderthals looked like, but they did live in cold climes so it is to be expected they had pale skin.

This is of course only a theory. What Yupa suggested about it being under-diagnosed in other ethnic groups might also explain things.



alex
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03 Aug 2006, 12:39 pm

What about aspies who have black skin?


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TheMachine1
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03 Aug 2006, 12:59 pm

alex wrote:
What about aspies who have black skin?


Well another question would be do black aspie usually have some European
's in their bloodline just looking at African-American skin tones clearily shows
European bloodlines is very common.



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03 Aug 2006, 1:12 pm

Yeah, Alex.


I am mostly caucasian (spelling?) but I do have Native Americans in my family, which makes my skin unable to get pale past a certain extent. But I hardly ever actually have an actual tan.



sc
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03 Aug 2006, 1:14 pm

I did until a few weeks ago when I started going on walks, now I have a bit of a tan!

It's becuase prior I was too hyper-focused and none of my interests, aside from going outisde from time to time, were all indoor activities.



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03 Aug 2006, 1:19 pm

I'm very pale skinned and blond-red headed. It's not common in my family but a few relatives, none nearer than a great uncle, carry it.

My record for burning is a comprehensive set of two-inch blisters down my back.
Acquired THROUGH a shirt (in Spain).



Steve_Cory
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03 Aug 2006, 2:40 pm

It is logical to note, as many have probably came to the conclusion already, that many autistics are pale mostly because they stay indoors. A lot of Aspies don't like to go outside; the colors might bug them, and there is also the fact that there are people outside of their home that might make them socially uncomfortable. This describes me somewhat.



TheMachine1
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03 Aug 2006, 2:46 pm

Steve_Cory wrote:
It is logical to note, as many have probably came to the conclusion already, that many autistics are pale mostly because they stay indoors. A lot of Aspies don't like to go outside; the colors might bug them, and there is also the fact that there are people outside of their home that might make them socially uncomfortable. This describes me somewhat.


What I went outside the last ten days.....wait that was at around 3 AM in total
darkness :)



Steve_Cory
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03 Aug 2006, 2:58 pm

Lol. :P

I meant a lot of us don't get much sun or UV exposure.



Callista
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03 Aug 2006, 3:50 pm

I'm very white. I can, theoretically, get a tan; but I don't like to do things that require being outside, and the itching and tightness of a sunburn is very distracting.

Don't worry--I get my fresh air and sunshine by going to and from the library each day. I just don't spend long enough out there to get very tanned--this summer I'm slightly brown, which is more than I've ever been, because the library is farther away than it usually is (not because it's moved but because I have).


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03 Aug 2006, 4:42 pm

Most autistic people are sensitive to light, which would contribute to pale skin, however there are different races which cannot produce the white pigment such as African, native american, and others.