By: Amy Norton

Reuters Health

When one identical twin develops the developmental disorder autism, the risk of the other developing it is high — substantially higher than it is for fraternal twins, a new study confirms. The study, which gathered information from 277 twin pairs in which at least one had an autistic disorder, found that when one identical twin developed an autistic disorder, the other one also did 88 percent of the time.

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE59L4MW20091022

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -

Children with autism have mercury levels similar to those of other kids, suggesting the mysterious disorder is caused by a range of factors rather than “a single smoking gun,” researchers said on Monday. The researchers at the University of California, Davis, initially found that children aged 2 to 5 with autism had mercury levels lower than other children because the autistic kids ate less fish, the biggest source of mercury that shows up in the blood.

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSTRE59I4W020091019