People with autism 'have problem with self-awareness'

[Guest guest]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8407857.stm

Scientists have produced evidence that self-awareness is a big problem for

people with autism.

 

Sophisticated scans showed the brains of people with autism are less active when

engaged in self-reflective thought.

 

The findings provide a neurological insight into why people with autism tend to

struggle in social situations.

 

The study, by the University of Cambridge, appears in the journal Brain.

 

Navigating social interactions with others requires keeping track of the

relationship between oneself and others

Lombardo

University of Cambridge

Autism has long been considered a condition of extreme egocentrism.

But research has shown the problem is people with the condition have trouble

thinking about, and making sense of, themselves.

 

The researchers used functional magnetic resonance scans to measure brain

activity in 66 male volunteers, half of whom had been diagnosed with an autistic

spectrum disorder.

The volunteers were asked to make judgements either about their own thoughts,

opinions, preferences, or physical characteristics, or about someone else's, in

this case the Queen.

 

By scanning the volunteers' brains as they responded to these questions, the

researchers were able to visualise differences in brain activity between those

with and without autism.

 

They were particularly interested in part of the brain called the ventromedial

pre-frontal cortex (vMPFC) - known to be active when people think about

themselves.

 

The researchers found this area of the brain was more active when typical

volunteers were asked questions about themselves compared with when they were

thinking about the Queen.

 

However, in autism this brain region responded equally, irrespective of whether

they were thinking about themselves or the Queen.

 

Researcher Lombardo said the study showed that the autistic brain

struggled to to process information about the self.

 

He said: " Navigating social interactions with others requires keeping track of

the relationship between oneself and others.

 

" In some social situations it is important to notice that 'I am similar to you',

while in other situations it might be important to notice that 'I am different

to you'.

 

" The atypical way the autistic brain treats self-relevant information as

equivalent to information about others could derail a child's social

development, particularly in understanding how they relate to the social world

around them. "

 

Dr. Gómez de la Cuesta, of the National Autistic Society, described the

study as " interesting " .

" We know many people with autism do want to interact with others and make

friends but have difficulty recognising or understanding other people's thoughts

and feelings.

 

" This research has shown that people with autism may also have difficulty

understanding their own thoughts and feelings and the brain mechanisms

underlying this. "

Love, Gabby. :0)

http://stemcellforautism.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/gabby911

http://twitter.com/stemcell4autism

 

" I know of nobody who is purely Autistic or purely neurotypical. Even God had

some Autistic moments, which is why the planets all spin. " ~ Jerry Newport