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Older dads six times more likely to have autistic children
Last updated at 23:22pm on 04.09.06
Older fathers are far more likely to have autistic children, experts have warned.
A new study found that children born to men aged 40 and over are nearly six times more likely to suffer from autism than those born to men under the age of 30.
The researchers claim the findings provide the first convincing evidence of a link between a father's advancing age and the developmental disorder.
They said it was further proof that men, like women, have a "biological clock" when it comes to producing healthy babies.
The research comes as the number of men delaying fatherhood in Britain has rocketed in recent years.
Latest figures show that more than 75,000 babies were born to fathers aged 40 and over in 2004 - more than one in ten of all children born.
This was a rise of almost a third since 1999, when over 57,000 children were born to fathers from the same age group.
The new findings also follow the recent revelation that the scale of childhood autism in Britain is far higher than previously thought - with more than one in 100 children now thought to suffer from an autism disorder.
For the latest study, scientists from the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London and the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York followed more than 130,000 Jewish babies born during the 1980s in Israel.
The age of the father at birth was noted and then compared with psychiatric assessments of the children at the age of 17.
The findings are published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, a journal of the American Medical Association.
Dr Abraham Reichenberg said: "This research adds to our knowledge that men also have a biological clock when it comes to reproducing.
"The sample size for the over-50s was small so we added it to the results for fathers aged over 40, but our research suggests that very old fathers have around nine times the risk.
"The research shows a linear effect - every 10 years, the risk doubles."
The researchers believe that several genetic factors may be responsible for the link, including spontaneous changes in sperm-producing cells or discrepancies in how genes are expressed.
The team could find no link between a mother's advancing age and autism.
Autism is an umbrella term for a range of developmental disorders that have a lifelong effect on someone's ability to interact socially and communicate.
There are related problems, known as autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), which include Asperger's syndrome, which also result in special teaching needs.
Until the 1990s, the figure of four or five cases of autism per 10,000 people was widely accepted - rising to 20 cases if typical ASD problems were included - but there has been growing evidence and anecdotal reports that the true level is substantially higher.
A recent study published in the respected Lancet Medical Journal suggested autistic disorders affect 116 per 100,000 children - about one in 86.
Researchers of the latest study said they believed that most of their subjects had autism rather than ASD.
They added that the results could not necessarily be generalised to apply to closely related disorders like Asperger's syndrome.
But Dr Reichenberg added: "The data suggests a significant association between paternal age and the risk of autism spectrum disorders.
"Although further work is necessary to confirm this interpretation, we believe our study provides the first convincing evidence of this link."
Experts believe that some of the increase in ASDs is due to better awareness of autism disorder and improved diagnosis but they also believe there may be more cases.
Some experts claim the rise is linked with other possible factors - including diet, vaccines, and exposure to pesticides - which affect those with a genetic predisposition to autism.
Claims of a link between the MMR vaccine, autism and bowel disorders - which put off many parents from getting their children immunised - have been consistently challenged by later research findings and the Department of Health.
Reader views (5)
I agree more scientific study needs to be done, the fact that it wasn't a broader sampling e.g. (The subjects of the study were all from Israel), a larger sampling would need to be done to include other ethnicities, and from other regions on the globe. I would like to see a study that took into considration such things as environmental, regional data, and not just the age of the subjects in the survey. These can be a factor in genetic mutations and abnormalities. As well as diet and family history.
- Napoleon A. Courtney, Denver, CO, USA
Michael's comment misses the point. The study, if it's correct, merely suggests that the chances of fathering a child who suffers from autism increase with age, not that it causes the child to have autism or even that your child is likely to suffer from autism. It's just he's more likely to, according to this study, than is he if this father's younger. The study tells us nothing about the prospects for the majority of children of older fathers, who may indeed have better life chances than do their classmates.
What I want to know is whether we're going to have a panic in some papers about older men becoming fathers -- is it more or less risky for the child than subjecting him to an MMR jab, for example?
I think we should be told.
- Stephen Glynn, Warwickshire, UK
Older fathers are now being told that if their child has autism they could be to blame (Older dads six times more likely to have autistic children, 5 Sept.) Whatever the reasons for autism, it is surely time to divert some of this attention towards supporting families raising children who have an autistic spectrum disorder.
Research by the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities highlights the need for families to receive high quality emotional and practical support, especially since the cost of raising a child with a disability costs three times more than raising a non-disabled child. Fathers especially are often sidelined and excluded from decisions affecting their child.
The Foundation will shortly be working with the National Autistic Society and others to support families of children with autism to make plans for their future. This will provide some practical evidence to show how services can best support families of children with autism.
- Molly Mattingly, Assistant Director, Foundation For People With Learning Disabilities, London
More drivel masquerading as scientific research. I've never read one of these reports that couldn't be picked apart by a 10 year old.
- Derek S, Dundee
I have to admit that I am very sceptical about these claims. When I think back to my school days those with older fathers were the ones that did best and mainly went onto university. We seem too ready to label people these days, if they do not quite fit the perceived norm. Why we do not recognise that children are individuals and not clones with identical abilities I do not know. Sadly the modern obsession with statistics and league tables only make things worse.
- Michael, London
