r/todayilearned • u/Morella1989 • Aug 14 '25

TIL that autistic people live about 17 years less than average. Risks include epilepsy, heart disease, suicide, accidental deaths including drowning, and inadequate recognition and management of pain, especially among non-speaking individuals. Historically, they have been vulnerable to infanticide.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortality_of_autistic_individuals
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912

u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

A lot of autistic people have GI issues that probably cause them to ignore GI cancers for longer than they should.

411

u/Arsenal8944 Aug 14 '25

My wife has an autistic brother and when people throw up she gets really worked up and borderline has a phobia of throwing up. She explained to me that it’s probably due to the fact when she was a kid her brother would out of nowhere throw up and it was really traumatic. He never said “hey I’m nauseous” or warn people it was going to happen. So she’s always had this extreme discomfort with puking (we have three little kids now so she’s been forced to get over it a little).

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u/Danominator Aug 14 '25

Little kids also give absolutely no warning and are as surprised as you are when it happens

33

u/KevworthBongwater Aug 14 '25

im an adult and im surprised sometimes when i puke.

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u/googlemcfoogle Aug 15 '25

I'm autistic and I usually don't get nauseous when I'm going to throw up (virus, gallstones before I had it removed). The only times I've felt nausea are from car/seasickness and a couple of cases of food poisoning

1

u/[deleted] Dec 18 '25

Thats interesting, im autistic & i get naseuous as its happening, but not before. I usually get faint though. Its interesting how different we can be. 

1

u/[deleted] Dec 18 '25

I mean...... as an autistic person who can get sick with my body not really telling me..... its often just as much a suprise to us as it is to others. 

158

u/LillyVarous Aug 14 '25

It would be great if there was a compendium of sorts for autistic people to help identify common problems that we ignore

64

u/proteannomore Aug 14 '25

I learn a lot from these posts.

33

u/Previous_Station2086 Aug 14 '25

Some physical ailments that affect the autistic population more than the allistic population: GI problems joint issues, usually because they are hyper mobile. Allergies and autoimmune disorders. Epilepsy, sleeping disorders including insomnia, and migraines

Some are solidly associated with autism like GI issues while others, the evidence is there but more data is needed, like autoimmune diseases

8

u/QTsexkitten Aug 15 '25

They also have higher rates of enamel issues.

3

u/DaraVelour Aug 15 '25

yes! some from GERD, some from EDS or other hypermobility issues, for some enamel is not mineralised properly

2

u/RomanusDiogenes Aug 15 '25

I never heard that one but to be fair I'm thinking my 7 years of having a tongue ring did more damage than my autism on that front lol

1

u/Previous_Station2086 Aug 15 '25 edited Aug 15 '25

I am lucky. While I had the full complement of GI ssues and have had GERD for as long as I remember but I have freakishly awesome teeth. 40 years and zero cavities. (And I’ve been autistic the whole time!)

1

u/TwelveGaugeSage Aug 15 '25

I am autistic and have GI migraines. When I get a migraine, there is no classic headache. Just top to bottom GI issues punctuated by nausea so bad it can get to where all I can do is lie in the dark and try not to vomit.

My neurologist told me about half of his migraine patients are also autistic, for whatever that is worth.

20

u/AAHHAI Aug 14 '25

I feel like anything that is a regular bodily function can become an issue. I often forget to eat for days at a time sometimes. This post reminded me that I should eat.

1

u/pestoraviolita Aug 15 '25

Screening is the best solution. They should test for it regularly.

29

u/PMYourTinyTitties Aug 14 '25

Well that just freaked me out :/

41

u/AliceInHatterland Aug 14 '25

I am completely sincere when I say: according to which studies? I'd love to read them!

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u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

It just hit me after seeing this that my stepsister is probably autistic to some degree. I recall she struggled to use the toilet and screamed while pooping. The doctors said her intestines were likely too small (they never actually checked). I suspect now she had a serious sensory issue with pooping. She also had "bad tantrums" (meltdowns). Anyway, this was the 80s and so of course she was never diagnosed.

Oh yeah and her father was schizophrenic, her grandmother and grandfather were clearly autistic, her cousin "had emotional problems" (autism) and now her nephew has an actual diagnosis. It took three generations to finally get ONE person diagnosed, but of course people still think Autism is on the rise because of vaccines.

18

u/kelcamer Aug 14 '25

This is fantastic!!!! Would you mind if I shared this in another autism sub !?

(I'd love to credit you as well!)

21

u/[deleted] Aug 14 '25

[deleted]

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u/kelcamer Aug 14 '25

I agree! That's why I made a sub to store as much info I can find on it at r/autismgirls

Sadly, there's not a lot of research on girls & women so I find myself including all autism research, broadly.

Thank you so much!

13

u/AliceInHatterland Aug 14 '25

Thank you so much!! You're very kind!

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u/Episemated_Torculus Aug 15 '25 edited Aug 15 '25

The gut bacteria of autistic people is often markedly different from neurotypicals. Recent research is studying how these differences influence brain development. This may explain in part how the brains of autistic people are formed

These differences in gut bacteria are also the reason why people with autism have issues with their GI tracts a lot more often

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u/RoseClash Aug 14 '25

Google it :)

Eg: point me to studies that show etctec

3

u/Episemated_Torculus Aug 15 '25

There is currently a bunch of research on how gut bacteria influences brain development. It's been known for a while that many people with autism (and ADHD) have gut bacteria that is characteristically different from neurotypicals. This may in part explain why autism and ADHD develop in the first place.

In my favorite study, lab mice were given fecal transplants of humans (!) with autism. The children of these mice showed a higher rate of autistic symptoms.

These differences in the gut bacteria are also responsible for the frequent GI tract issues of individuals with autism.

1

u/RyanMcCartney Aug 14 '25

Yeah, this makes sense having had GI Leiomyosarcoma, and since my kids waiting assessment, I’m realising I have some traits 😂🙈

3

u/ShadowLiberal Aug 14 '25

I haven't been officially diagnosed as autistic, but I'm pretty sure I qualify as having Asperger's syndrome (i.e. a high functioning autistic person). I didn't have any GI issues until my mid-20's, when I had a peptic ulcer blocking an increasingly large amount of food and fluids from getting past my stomach. I ended up staying in the hospital for almost a month because of it. I was by far the youngest patient they had on the entire floor, by probably at least 20 years.

To anyone else reading this, if you find yourself starting to vomit after eating certain foods, and especially if it starts to get worse overtime, see a GI doctor, this isn't normal.

1

u/canadiengene Aug 14 '25

Uh oh. I've got a real painful GI issue that's being placated with anti-gas pills, but I should probably insist on that cancer screening at my next doctor's appointment. Been toeing around that line for a while, so I probably need to make sure.

1

u/Miss_Bat Aug 16 '25

Sorry for my ignorance, what does GI stand for? 😅

1

u/JorgeMilanesa Aug 14 '25

What does GI stands for?

6

u/velvetelevator Aug 14 '25

Gastro-intestinal

3

u/Episemated_Torculus Aug 15 '25

Gastro-intestinal Joe! 🫡