09/18/2026
AUTISM: A MOTHER’S QUESTIONS AND WHAT SCIENCE KNOWS TODAY
A Personal Perspective from a Mother and Registered Nurse
Autism research is deeply personal to me.
My adult daughter has an intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) and has recently received diagnoses within the autism spectrum. As her mother and as a Registered Nurse with nearly 40 years of nursing experience, I have many questions about why autism and developmental disabilities occur.
I believe families deserve accurate answers based on science—not fear, assumptions, blame, or misinformation.
MY PREGNANCY
When I was pregnant with my daughter, I followed the recommendations given to me by my OB/GYN and did everything I knew to do to have a healthy pregnancy.
I did not smoke.
I never used to***co products.
I did not use drugs.
I did not drink alcohol.
I did not take any medications.
I avoided caffeine.
I avoided the foods, substances, and activities my medical providers advised me to avoid.
I did everything I knew to do—and everything my doctors recommended—to have the healthiest pregnancy possible.
HER DIFFICULT BIRTH
My daughter's birth was extremely difficult.
I labored for approximately 24 hours, and she became stuck in my pelvis. When she was finally born, the medical providers vigorously stimulated her sternum to get her responding.
For many years I have wondered whether something that happened during this difficult delivery could have contributed to her developmental disabilities.
Now that she has also received diagnoses within the autism spectrum, I have even more questions.
Was genetics involved?
Could complications surrounding her birth have played a role?
Could there have been multiple contributing factors?
Or is there something science has not discovered yet?
These are questions—not conclusions.
A difficult delivery occurring before a later diagnosis of autism or IDD does not by itself prove that the delivery caused either condition.
WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT AUTISM?
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition.
Science has not identified one single cause that explains every case of autism. Research indicates that genetics plays an important role, and scientists have identified numerous genes and genetic variations associated with autism.
This complexity may help explain why autism can look so different from one person to another.
DO VACCINES CAUSE AUTISM?
This is an important question because families continue to encounter conflicting information.
Large epidemiological studies have not found evidence that routine childhood vaccines, including the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, cause autism.
The small 1998 publication that generated enormous concern about a possible MMR-autism connection was later retracted.
Families should be able to ask questions about vaccine safety, but those questions should be answered with high-quality scientific evidence.
WHAT ABOUT PREGNANCY AND CHILDBIRTH?
Scientists have also investigated prenatal and perinatal factors associated with autism.
Research has examined factors such as certain pregnancy complications, premature birth, low birth weight, and complications occurring around birth.
But there is a crucial scientific distinction:
ASSOCIATION DOES NOT PROVE CAUSATION.
If researchers find that a particular condition occurs more frequently among people with autism, that does not automatically mean that condition caused their autism.
Genetic or biological factors could potentially contribute to both the complication and later developmental differences.
That is why it would not be scientifically appropriate for me to conclude from my daughter's history alone that her difficult birth caused her autism or IDD.
A MOTHER CAN DO EVERYTHING RECOMMENDED DURING PREGNANCY
This is something I especially want other mothers to hear.
Having a child with autism or an intellectual or developmental disability does not mean that a mother failed during pregnancy.
I followed my doctors' recommendations and avoided the substances I was advised to avoid.
Yet my daughter has IDD and autism.
Parents should not automatically blame themselves.
Instead, we need science to continue investigating the complex biological and genetic pathways involved in brain development.
WE STILL NEED ANSWERS
I want researchers to continue investigating:
🧬 Genetics and gene-environment interactions
🧠 Fetal and early brain development
🤰 Prenatal biological and environmental influences
👶 Complicated labor, delivery, and newborn health
🩺 Intellectual and developmental disabilities that occur alongside autism
🔬 Why autism affects individuals so differently
❤️ Earlier identification and effective individualized interventions and support
👨👩👧 Better lifelong resources for autistic individuals and people with IDD
Research should also continue exploring how genetic, biological, prenatal, perinatal, and environmental factors may interact.
WHY THIS RESEARCH MATTERS TO ME
My daughter is not a statistic.
She is my daughter.
My desire to understand autism comes from loving her and wanting answers that could help her and other individuals and families.
As a mother and a Registered Nurse, I believe we should continue asking difficult questions while allowing rigorous scientific evidence to determine the answers.
We may not yet know every reason why autism develops.
But we can continue researching.
We can continue learning.
We can reject misinformation while remaining willing to ask legitimate scientific questions.
And while researchers search for answers, we can make sure autistic individuals and people with IDD receive the respect, health care, opportunities, services, and lifelong support they deserve.
💙 Keep researching. Keep asking questions. Follow the evidence. Support individuals and families.
— Joann Clemmer, RN
