CDC & Autism

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This is the CDC Autism website.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/facts.html

Some people do not like the idea of autism being a disease.

Some people don't like other things the CDC says about autism.

Some people don't like Autism Speaks which the CDC links to.

It is my theory adversity in spite of quality of life progress stems from the abortion politics and costation politics of autism. Whereas special interest seek to redefine autism for one or both of the above issues. Since autism is a spectrum it is hard to redefine the image of autism because each person can be very different from one another. The perceptual politics can also stem from other unrelated issues or seek to bridge with these unrelated issues such as self-esteem, identity based labeling and mistrust against professions and professionals as a whole including standardized methodologies such as early intervention.

What are your thoughts?

Yeah, seeing autism listed w/ the CDC is really upsetting. For what its worth, I sent the site an email.

Why is it upsetting?

I don't believe it to be a disease!
And it is not an illness. A person does not catch it or recover from it. We acquire compensatory or coping skills.
I don't have time to go over this at the moment.

I don't think anyone wants to be called a disease or have pride in a label that conotates a disease. In the broader sense of the word disease autism is a part of this framework that is also a condition. This is what I have gathered so far. While differing from what people might think of when thinking of an infectious disease for instance a disorder can also be innate and inborn. A disorder is applied to help a person and the milder the condition for the individual the less relevant it seems the condition is.

I personally have no problem with the terminology disease. It just does not matter to me. I also do not call myself autistic (I have autism), I don't call myself autie or aspie and I don't really enjoy seeing myself as a label or privy to a label from day to day. Whatever science and establishment defines me as so long as it is not calling me names to hurt feelings of course I just don't bother minding it to much. I wonder why it is so important to others to not call it a disease becuase to not see autism as important means to take it less seriously which means less reason to help. The very high functioning people this would not hinder that much if at all whilst those that depend on help it would.

3rd party interest would also have a stake in organizations such as the CDC no longer thinking of autism as important. Such as abortion politicians and other political interest. I am just wondering what is your personal agenda and what agenda might it also serve without your knowledge of it.

The Harvard university wrote a booklet about the human rights of individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The right not to trust is entailed therein. By removing autism from the CDC's concern I believe it could result in neglect which is a form of abuse. My ability to trust groups and individuals within those groups requires my being able to practically interrogate them but for the most part simply investigate with maybe even a lie detector devise. It is my belief the system including the CDC currently take autism seriously enough to warrant my trust.

Nathan Young

The CDC site does not call autism a disease. The website you linked clearly calls it a developmental disorder. It is a disorder - just like other genetic disorders like diabetes or sickle cell anemia. Using the word disease seems like an attempt to stir up the locals...

No CDC does not call autism a disease specifically. But if you look at this website here below.

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_autism_a_disease

The persons states no at first but then technically yes. Yet Wikipedia states the following.

Disease
The term disease broadly refers to any condition that impairs normal function.

Disorder
In medicine, a disorder is a functional abnormality or disturbance.[10] Medical disorders can be categorized into mental disorders, physical disorders, genetic disorders, emotional and behavioral disorders, and functional disorders.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disease

My translation

Autism is a condition that is a disorder and a disease broadly refers to any condition that impairs normal function.

My Open Question

Why does it really matter?

In logical rational discussion it probably doesn't matter. In the general sense, the word 'disease' has been associated throughout history with extremely negative things - namely infectious disease, sexually transmitted disease, life threatening diseases like cancer. People do not only react rationally to words - they many times react emotionally. and writers are extremely cognizant of this fact and use whatever words convey the emotion they are looking to instill in their reader. Disease is one of those touchy words that people do NOT want to be associated with.

What feels better;

"Hi, I have developmental disorder."

or

'Hi, I have a disease'.

So the ego (self-esteem) and the preservation politic with regard (undetermined).

Undetermined Possabilic (non-use)

Self-image and societal adaption in awareness.

Potential prenatal preservation politic by calling autism a disease when if a test is developed.

Undetermined Possabilic (term usage)

Preservation politic to consider it serious enough to warrant a spectrum of needed adaptive assistance. Which can also be accomplished without the disease terminology.

Really Facts Needed Folks!

Folks need to explain these things from the get go. It's technically a false fact.

I tend to disagree. People's feeling are not false and they are not always subject to fact. In a purely academic discussion I could understand the derision but not when you openly ask for other people's opinions.

If you only want to discuss facts and facts alone - please specify that in the opening post.

In order to determine if people want fact or emotion this must be educated. My purpose is discovery to educate. Those that cannot explain this themselves or refuse and who object may need to learn to educate. It's quite simple to call people ignorant, discriminatory and so on based on emotional reasons but unless people are willing to openly educate I think this is a poor way to advocate. You got to educate and not destroy potential productive methods to increase tolerances.

I guess I am emotionally different and I can intellectually dissect myself. I have personal emotional facts. Facts are not always 1+1=2 universally in all minds for instance and variables differ for each subjective person.

Devil's advocate - why do you think the CDC has now adopted autism onto its hitlist?

The devil is originally product of the mind. A hit-list is commonly interpreted as a list of people to kill and so it is murder. Can you give me more understanding as to what your saying. Autism is a disability and to seek to remove autism when chosen under human rights law in the form of treatment and with the hope of a cure is not murder. The CDC I don't believe kills anyone.

Sorry for so many euphemisms in one sentence, ci! The 'hit-list' is the list of diseases currently on their focus list for treatment and cure - in essence - they do want to 'murder' the diseases on that list. Devil's advocate = you and I obviously do not agree yet I ask a further question in the name of debate. Some people would consider that 'evil'.

Why do you think the CDC is focusing so strongly on autism at this time?

Popularity of the condition and the emense macro awareness of the condition. The CDC has a job to do and if they ignore autism many would complain. Yet the CDC cannot force someone to remove the condition (difference) nor do I believe it can force parents who believe it is just evolution \ simple difference. At the same time why would anyone call it the devil or akin to the devil to want to remove others hardships especially when they choose. This politic does not seem fair nor normal. It is quite odd.

Do you think the uproar over vaccines had any effect on the CDC's decision to target autism?