From the BBC:

Older mothers and those who have complications during pregnancy may have an increased risk of having a child with autism, according to a review by Harvard researchers published in the British Journal of Psychiatry (subscription required).

In a review of 40 autism studies, researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found that gestational diabetes, which affects four in 100 pregnancies, was associated with a two-fold increase in the risk of autism. Bleeding in pregnancy was found to carry an 81 percent increased risk.

The researchers also found a risk that was 27 percent higher for mothers aged between 30 and 34, compared with those five years younger, and over 100 percent higher for those over 40 compared to those under 30. For fathers, the risk of having a child with autism increased nearly 4 percent every five years.

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 2nd, 2009 at 7:31 am and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, autism, research news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.