Autistics die younger and what can be done.

Yes Desmond my late Father's brother was posted by the British Army to India during the War and he got an infection.  I expect the infection made him worse.  If he was Autistic when he was conscripted during World War 2 they would not have known about Autism and the Army did not always turn away peculiar people.    I do not remember him that well  as I only saw him when I went to Nice aged six and seven 1963 and 1964.  In 1966 he developed a sore mouth which later turned into Cancer and he died.   

My Mother thinks there is Autism on my Fathers side of the family but she never saw Desmond before he joined the Army and got an infection in India.

On the other hand many Autistic people stay at home and do not do things such as go out to work so might be safer. Many Autistic people do not go on holiday and with what happened   in Brussels these days it is probably safer not to travel    My Father died aged 85 ten years ago of  heart failure and he probably lived longer as he did not go on holiday with my Mother who loves travelling.  I am now going to start a discussion on the Autistic Programmes I watched this week.

David

Yes, you make a some very good points there, David.

Sorry to hear about your Uncle, that is such a unfortunate tale.  Sadly, I can see all too well how that kind of thing might happen to someone on the spectrum.

Impairments in executive functioning and perception of my bodily sensations have led me to neglect, or simply not notice, my ill health at times.  I have often allowed depression to progress to an acute stage because I did not want to bother my GP, or could not face the frustration of trying to get an appointment.  It can be so easy to convince ourselves that if we leave something it will just go away of its own accord.

Glad to hear that your GP looks after you so well.  Regular health checks are just the kind of thing that the researchers need to be looking into.

It might also be that Autistic people do not know how to look after themselves.  I had an Uncle Desmond who might have been Autistic.  He died of mouth Cancer fifty years ago in Nice at around the age of Forty.  He should have gone to a Dentist and reported it earlier as it began with a sore mouth.  My Doctor gives me a special health check once a year.  In general no one  bothers to keep an eye on us as we are supposed to be responsible Adults.  It needs to be made clear to the public that Autism is more than just a personality problem.  It also needs to be made clear that Autism does not affect just children but also Adults.

David Thanks to the last reply.

Hi David.

Yes, there has been a fair bit of discussion of this research on several of the autism boards that I frequent.  There are some indications that the results may be skewed due to the relatively recent introduction of the Asperger's Syndrome diagnosis, however the difference is too stark, I think, to be entirely down to statistical biases.

I think that the most worrying thing is that, aside from the special issues that autistic peope with epilepsy face, it seems that the reduced life-span is not directly caused by autism itself.  The next biggest cause after epilepsy that was identified was a shockingly high rate of suicides.  This points to social isolation and the poor handling of autistic patients with depression as a major cause of reduced life-span - nothing to do with our different genetics or neurology, but the way that society treats us, how this leaves us feeling, and the efficacy of treatments that we are offered.

Even the indications that common ailments such as heart disease are more common in the autistic population can very easily be seen as the result of depression leading autistic people to take less care of themselves, and greater difficulty accessing appropriate treatments.

It is urgent that any differences between the UK and Swedish populations be tested for, and that more research is done to identify any changes to social and health care that are needed, so that autistic people have a better opportunity to live a long and healthy life.