Cooking with confidence for autistic youth: outcomes from a pilot program evaluation model.

Objective: This article outlines the evaluation model for the Cooking with Confidence (CWC) program, developed using Bandura's Social Learning Theory as its conceptual framework. The evaluation aimed to: (1) Examine participant characteristics in the CWC program, (2) Assess changes in cooking knowledge, skill acquisition, self-efficacy, and confidence, and (3) Identify barriers and facilitators to participant engagement. CWC is a community-based educational program designed to help autistic young adults develop independent living skills and promote health through hands-on cooking classes.

Children's executive functioning and health behaviors across pediatric life stages and ecological contexts.

Executive functioning (EF) has been linked to chronic disease risk in children. Health behaviors are thought to partially explain this association. The current cross-sectional study evaluated specific domains of EF and varied health behaviors in three pediatric life stages.

Demographic Correlates of Autism: How Do Associations Compare Between Diagnosis and a Quantitative Trait Measure?

Prevalence of autism diagnosis has historically differed by demographic factors. Using data from 8224 participants drawn from the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program, we examined relationships between demographic factors and parent-reported autism-related traits as captured by the Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS; T score > 65) and compared these to relations with parent-reported clinician diagnosis of ASD, in generalized linear mixed effects regression analyses. Results suggested lower odds of autism diagnosis, but not of SRS T > 65, for non-Hispanic Black children (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.

Co-occurring Psychopathology in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): Differences by Sex in the ECHO Cohorts.

Purpose: Our goals were to: 1) examine the occurrence of behavioral and emotional symptoms in children on the autism spectrum in a large national sample, stratifying by sex, and 2) evaluate whether children with increased autism-related social communication deficits also experience more behavioral and emotional problems.

Methods:  Participants (n = 7,998) were from 37 cohorts from the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program. Cross-sectional information on demographic factors, parent-report of an ASD diagnosis by clinician, Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) scores, and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) scores were obtained for children aged 2.

Colliding public health priorities: A call to improve the understanding of autistic individuals utilizing housing assistance.

The objective of this study was to identify utilization of housing support provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) among autistic people in the U.

Toward improved understanding and treatment of self-injurious behaviors in autistic individuals with profound intellectual disability.

Self-injurious behaviors (SIB) commonly occur in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and span diverse topographies of self-inflicted behaviors ranging from head banging to hitting oneself against hard objects. Despite the high rates of SIB in autistic individuals, relatively little research has focused on psychological factors associated with the development and maintenance of SIB in individuals with autism and moderate-profound intellectual disability (ID). This commentary synthesizes existing literature on SIB and highlights the need for more research focused on psychological correlates and mechanisms in autistic individuals with moderate-profound ID.

Antiseizure medication use during pregnancy and children's neurodevelopmental outcomes.

The teratogenic potential of valproate in pregnancy is well established; however, evidence regarding the long-term safety of other antiseizure medications (ASMs) during pregnancy remains limited. Using routinely collected primary care data from the UK and nationwide Swedish registries to create a cohort of 3,182,773 children, of which 17,495 were exposed to ASMs in pregnancy, we show that those exposed to valproate were more likely to receive a diagnosis of autism, intellectual disability, and ADHD, when compared to children not exposed to ASMs. Additionally, children exposed to topiramate were 2.

The role of co-occurring conditions and genetics in the associations of eating disorders with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder.

Eating disorders (EDs) commonly co-occur with other psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, the pattern of family history and genetic overlap among them requires clarification. This study investigated the diagnostic, familial, and genetic associations of EDs with ADHD and ASD. The nationwide population-based cohort study included all individuals born in Denmark, 1981-2008, linked to their siblings and cousins.

The Impact of Using Standardized Autism Screening on Referral to Specialist Evaluation for Young Children on the Autism Spectrum: A Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: We tested whether the implementation of standardized, high-fidelity screening for autism during routine well-child check-ups results in the following: increasing the number of children with suspected autism referred to diagnostic evaluation; lowering the age at which they are referred; and facilitating autism diagnosis for children across a more diverse range of demographic backgrounds and clinical presentations, including those with subtle manifestations.

Method: As part of a multi-site cluster randomized trial, pediatric practices were randomly assigned to an experimental condition involving training and supervision in the universal, standardized, high-fidelity implementation of the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Revised with Follow-Up (M-CHAT-R/F), or a usual care condition. Children in both conditions identified as having a high likelihood of autism during well-child visits were referred to a diagnostic evaluation conducted by clinicians naive to referral source.

Autism Early Intervention - Progress, Steps Backward, and the Reconciliation of Conflicting Narratives.

Purpose Of Review: We review recent research on interventions, services and supports for children on the autism spectrum, examining both advancements and setbacks.

Recent Findings: Progress has included an increase in quantity and rigor of intervention science, as well as a broadening of disciplines and perspectives engaged in the examination of early interventions, including their effectiveness, social validity and the contextual determinants of implementation outcomes. Setbacks have included the decrease in research involving children on the autism spectrum who have co-occurring profound intellectual disability, minimal or no spoken language, and who require constant assistance with daily living activities.

Challenges and Opportunities in Transitioning Autistic Individuals Into Adulthood.

Background And Objectives: Approximately 1.2 million autistic youth will reach the legal age of adulthood over the next decade. Given dynamic changes in the socioecological context of the transition to adulthood, we produced an updated transitions research agenda reflecting the perspectives of autistic young adults, care partners (parents), and professionals who use autism research.

Community Member Views on Autism Intervention: Effects of Closeness to Autistic People with Intellectual Disabilities And Nonspeaking Autistic People.

Background: Controversy regarding the neurodiversity movement (NDM), the social and medical models of disability, autism intervention goals, and causal attributions of disability contributes to divides in the autistic and autism communities. The present study investigates the views of autistic and non-autistic autistic and autism community members on these topics. We explored whether these views are shaped by having close relationships to autistic people with intellectual disabilities (ID) and nonspeaking autistic (NSA) people.

The Moderating Effect of Sex on Autistic Trait Emotional Intelligence, Alexithymia, and Empathy.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with differences in social communication, and these differences are related to trait emotional intelligence (TEI), alexithymia, and empathy. Autism is known to present differently in males and females, but research on sex differences in TEI, alexithymia, and empathy is largely relegated to non-autistic people. Therefore, the current research sought to explore individual relationships between autistic characteristics and TEI, alexithymia, and empathy, as well as the possible influence of sex in these relationships.

3-generation family histories of mental, neurologic, cardiometabolic, birth defect, asthma, allergy, and autoimmune conditions associated with autism: An open-source catalog of findings.

The relatively few conditions and family member types (e.g., sibling, parent) considered in investigations of family health history in autism spectrum disorder (ASD, or autism) limits understanding of the role of family history in autism etiology.