Child’s Risk of Autism – Mother and Father Age

According to Journal Autism Research study, age of the parents is connected to the risk of autism.

the researchers analyzed almost five million births in California during the 1990s, and 12,159 cases of autism diagnosed in those children.

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Based on the first examination of heterogeneity in parental age effects, it appears that women’s risk for delivering a child who develops autism increases throughout their reproductive years whereas father’s age confers increased risk for autism when mothers are <30, but has little effect when mothers are past age 30. We also calculated that the recent trend towards delayed childbearing contributed approximately a 4.6% increase in autism diagnoses in California over the decade.

i.e, Older mothers are more likely to have a child with autism, and older fathers significantly contribute to the risk to have a child with autism disorder when their partners are under 30.

More information : Journal Autism Research, nytimes