An appalling story appearing on the front page of CNN.com today noting that many schools are still using or have recently used "seclusion" rooms as a means to isolate students with disabilities, inluding autism, when the need to calm them arises.

Annemie Ploeger, developmental psychologist, hypothesizes that Autism and Schizophrenia may both develop during the first month of pregnancy. There are physical traits that both may share at times, such as protruding ears or peculiar toes. She believes that her research reveals that the embryo is susceptible to disruptions between 20-40 days after fertilization.

Researchers hope that medicines may soon be able to reduce activity in the gene known as FKBP12. When they reduced the activity in this gene in mice, they noted that there was an increase in neuron to neuron activity and an increase in fearful memory and obsessive behavior. This lends to the theory that this gene may be controlled by medicine.

New research seems to back up previous research studies where advanced paternal age increases the risk of having a child with autism.

Prelimary findings are showing that children born to women that took a drug called Epilim during pregnancy are seven times more likely to develop autism. Epilim is a Sanofi-Aventis drug to treat epilepsy, and it's generic counterpart is known as Valporate.

The Radiological Society of North America met recently and researchers unveiled new technology that may assist in assessing the severity level associated with autism by using a method called magnetoencephalography, or MEG for short. This technology will measuer the speed in which an autistic child's brain processes sound and will provide crucial information about the severity on the patient's condition. When tested, children on the spectrum had an average delay of roughly 20 milliseconds compared to those tested that were not on the spectrum.

More and more people are eliminating gluten from the normal diet. It is believe by many that by doing so, they are eliminating toxins from their body, and it has shown promise for some suffering from autism, celiac disease, ADHD, and other issues. It's been proven to help in cases related to celiac disease which affects approximately 1% of the U.S. population. Can it help others?