Can you tell if a baby will be autistic?

Question

So on my SOs side there are few people with autism so it runs in the genes. Is there any cues or signs that a baby may turn out to have a diagnosis of autism later on? If you have an autistic child how did they act and behave as an infant? Did you notice there was something different with them or different from other babies?

Answer

My oldest has ASD. He wouldn’t cuddle, was late on most milestones and I couldn’t console him when he was upset. In the toddler years he was very ridged with routine, big tantrums , poor communication

Answer

My brother has autism and it runs on my husband's side of the family too. So I've talked to my mom and compared my son (3 months old) to how my brother acted as a baby. My mom said he seemed kind of distant and in his own world. He wasn't social. My son is very smiley and social and playful and my mom says he's the total opposite of how my brother was as a baby. However that's just our example so I can't say that's the same for every baby. I have read that children that reach their milestones later or not at all are more likely to be diagnosed with autism. It's a huge spectrum though so there's not a definite sign your child has autism. It takes years of different symptoms before coming to the conclusion. Don't stress about it too much.

Answer

If your baby is between 16-30 months I'd suggest googling the MCHAT questionnaire. That will give you a good idea. Before that age, it's generally pretty difficult to tell but I'd look for eye contact, smiling, laughing, engagement when you play games like peekaboo, babbling, and things like that.

Can you tell if a baby will be autistic?

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