Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Gender Difference
It.has.been.suggested.that.autism.represents.an.extreme.form.of.the.way.in.
which.men's.brains.differ.from.those.of.women..This.so-called.male.brain.
theory. is. linked. with. the. “empathizing/systemizing. (E-S)”. theory,. which.
states. that. men. are. better. at. systemizing. than. women. and. that. women.
are. better. at. empathizing. than. men. due. to. physical. differences. between.
male. and. female. brains.. However,. the. concept. of. differing. types. of. intel-
ligence.between.men.and.women.is.controversial.and.remains.speculative.
(Frequency.of.Autism.2004)
By. measuring. testosterone. levels. in. the. amniotic. luid. of. mothers. while.
pregnant,.it.was.observed.that.the.babies.with.higher.fetal.testosterone.levels.
had.a.smaller.vocabulary.and.less.eye.contact.when.they.were.a.year.old..The.
original.58.children.were.examined.again,.at.age.4,.and.it.was.further.noted.
that.the.children.with.higher.testosterone.in.the.womb.were.less.developed.
socially.and.the.interests.of.boys.were.more.restricted.than.girls.(Knickmeyer.
et.al..2005)..However,.there.is.still.no.concrete.evidence.indicating.testoster-
one.levels.would.affect.brain.development.or.autism.
The.present.results.showed.that.men.contributed.to.90%.of.all.autism.cases.
and. the. children. were. diagnosed. with. learning. disabilities. and. attention-
deicit.disorder..This.seems.associated.with.weaker.antioxidant.capacity.in.
young.males,.with.greater.vulnerability.in.their.brain.and.nervous.systems..
This. may. render. them. more. vulnerable. to. heavy. metals. and. autism.. On.
the. contrary,. women. and. girls. possess. lower. levels. of. inactive. antioxidant.
chemicals,.and.estrogen.is.a.powerful.antioxidant.that.could.counteract.free.
radical-mediated.damage.in.aging.(Rush.and.Sandiford.2003).
Conclusion
The. present. study. demonstrated.the. connection.between.heavy.metal. poi-
soning.and.autism..Children.are.more.susceptible.to.a.vast.number.of.com-
mon. pollutants,. for. example,. arsenic. in. drinking. water,. lead. in. paint. and.
dust,.and.mercury.in.ish..Based.on.the.limited.information.available,.there.
seems.to.be.an.indication.that.in.Hong.Kong.children.with.autism.(and.other.
coastal.districts).are.associated.with.high.levels.of.mercury.and.cadmium,.
possibly.through.oral.intake.of.ish.and.shellish,.and.inland.children.with.
autism. are. associated. with. high. levels. of. arsenic. and. lead,. due. to. envi-
ronmental. pollution.. The. present. results. also. show. that. men. are. far. more.
susceptible. to. heavy. metal. poisoning. than. women.. Children. with. autism.
should.be.treated.under.a.Heavy.Metal.Detoxiication.Program,.providing.
them.with.nutrients,.antioxidants,.and.chelating.agents.
 
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