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