Abstract
Since early wearning in infancy has been known to results in vulnerability to infection, wearning times of 145 children diagnosed as autistic by DSM-III were statistically compared with those of 224 normal children in the same catchment area: 24.8% of the patients and 7.5% of the controls were weaned by the end of 1 week, a significant difference. Early wearning because of the mother's rather than the child's condition occurred with 17.9% of the patients and 5.8% of the controls, also a significant difference. Historical studies on infantile autism revealed that the disease developed more prevalently in the socioeconomic status where the incidence of breast-feeding was less frequent. These results suggest that early weaning may contribute to the etiology of infantile autism.
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We are grateful to the staffs in Tsuchiura Child Guidance Center, Ishioka, Tsuchiura, Ryugasaki, and Yatabe Health Centers, for cooperation, and Dr. Katsumi Kano, for the statistical advice. This study was supported by a grant from the Matsuoka Memorial Fund for medical research in Ibaraki, Japan.
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Tanoue, Y., Oda, S. Weaning time of children with infantile autism. J Autism Dev Disord 19, 425–434 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02212940
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02212940