"The Environment as an etiologic factor in autism: a new direction for research"  by EA London was published online by ehp, Environmental Health Perspectives, in 2000. Today, 12 years later, it remains the direction not taken as "autism research" continues down the road of genetic obsession and largely ignores environmental autism research.

Although public health authorities have paid lip service to the idea that autism appears to result from gene environment interaction funding has been overwhelmingly directed towards the gene side of the equation. The people who are much smarter than most of us, who understand things we can not possibly understand, who do not need our input as unwashed, unthinking parents of autistic children simply keep on keepin' on with their religious like belief that autism is primarily genetic.  Following is the abstract and the suggestion for new lines of investigation into environmental exposures which the US IACC, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and other agencies involved with setting directions for autism research do not appear to have accepted. Of course the genetic obsession research has brought us a better understanding of autism causes .... hasn't it?

The recent twins study led by Dr. Joachim Hallmayer and Neil Risch, Ph.D., has grabbed the attention of the world's media and shaken the "autism is genetic" mindset that has dominated autism research for many years.  The reaction to the study by the autism is primarily genetic research establishment has been quick and fearful. Within just a few days attempts were underway to diminish the study design and the outcomes of the study.  Portraying the study as controversial when it is anything but is the most obvious sign of desperation by the autism is genetic establishment. 

Where is the controversy?  Under the guise of science ScienceNews is helping create controversy by describing the study as controversial.  Teresa Binstock was right many years ago when she described the thinking of the public health research establishment as fixated on the view that autism has to be genetic. That view has been eroded over the last half decade by an autism paradigm shift which views autism as resulting from gene environment interaction.  The failure of the overwhelmingly genetic oriented autism research of the past decade to provide a clear genetic basis for autism causation preceded the recent studies which assign more responsibility for autism causation to environmental factors.  The "it's gotta be genetic" autism crowd is running skeeeeered.