Reply #13: Research is extremely sparse and very preliminary

[Warpy]

and nothing has been proven, as yet.

Remember, there wasn't a differential diagnosis of autism until the 1930s and getting children specifically diagnosed instead of lumping them into the categories of mental retardation or childhood psychosis has been slow to change. That's responsible for the increase you've seen.

They might find an environmental trigger eventually, but that trigger is likely to have been pulled in utero. My own suspicion is that it will be neurotoxins, pesticides, but that's only a vague suspicion at this point.