Traders' Hub: April 2 is World Autism Day! ( Cure Our Ignorance of It)

April 2 has been declared by the United Nations General Assembly through a resolution passed in 2007 as the World Autism Awareness Day. It aims to encourage member nations to undertake measures to raise people's awareness about this disorder that is affecting 1 out every 150 individuals in the world. It is estimated that worldwide, about 67 million people are affected by this developmental neurological disorder with 500,000 of them in the Philippines.

What is Autism?

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental neurological disorder characterized by deficits in socialbehavior and communication, and a restricted range of activities. At least 1 in 150 individuals are affected with ASD. Autistic infants show less attention to social stimuli, smile and look at others less often, and respond less to their own name. Autistic toddlers have more striking social deviance; for example, they have less eye contact and anticipatory postures and are more likely to communicate by manipulating another person's hand. Three- to five-year-old autistic children are less likely to exhibit social understanding, approach others spontaneously, imitate and respond to emotions, communicate nonverbally, and take turns with others. However, they do form attachments to their primary caregivers.They display moderately less attachment security than usual, although this feature disappears in children with higher mental development or less severe ASD. Older children and adults with ASD perform worse on tests of face and emotion recognition.(from wikipedia)

Contrary to common belief, autistic children do not prefer to be alone. Making and maintaining friendships often proves to be difficult for those with autism. For them, the quality of friendships, not the number of friends, predicts how lonely they feel.

Watch the video below to understand what autism really is!

Autism is not a disease but a developmental disorder. Early recognition of its symptoms will help minimize its life lasting effects on individuals and even markly improve their development. Autism has yet no known cure but we can cure our ignorance of it and start helping to raise conciousness about it. There are many things we can do like: (Mouse over and click on the links.)

Donate to the world wide research fund designed to study more about the disorder and possibly find a cure for it.
Join Walk With Wubbzy On The Web and reserve part of your blog for a month long fund raising campaign for Autism.
Attend an event in your area
Send an eCard to your family and friends
Become a Fan of World Autism Awareness Day on Facebook - invite your friends.

Be informed. Get Involved. Let us help improve the quality of life of people with ASD and their families. Embed the video Walk With Wubbzy On The Web in your blog sites! Let people know you care!