Friday, April 02, 2010

Light It Up Blue! Get Your Blue On!

Facts about Autism

Did you know ...
  • Autism now affects 1 in 110 children and 1 in 70 boys
  • Autism prevalence figures are growing
  • More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined
  • Autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental disability in the U.S.
  • Autism costs the nation over $35 billion per year, a figure expected to significantly increase in the next decade
  • Autism receives less than 5% of the research funding of many less prevalent childhood diseases
  • Boys are four times more likely than girls to have autism
  • There is no medical detection or cure for autism

Prevalence vs. Private Funding
  • Leukemia: Affects 1 in 1,200 / Funding: $277 million
  • Muscular Dystrophy: Affects 1 in 100,000 / Funding: $162 million
  • Pediatric AIDS: Affects 1 in 300 / Funding: $394 million
  • Juvenile Diabetes: Affects 1 in 500 / Funding: $156 million
  • Autism: Affects 1 in 110 / Funding: $79 million

National Institutes of Health Funds Allocation
  • Total 2009 NIH budget: $35.9 billion
  • Of this, only $196 million goes directly to autism research. This represents 0.5% of total NIH funding.

4 comments:

Melanie said...

Geez! Those numbers are awful! Love the look of the blog-o btw!

Erica said...

Wow, those ARE depressing numbers!! Well, I've got a lot of moms from the park today rallied and ready to campaign for more to be done in Visalia to raise autism awareness for next year.

Clark, Jolie and Avery said...

Love the new blog look! I saw your blue lights tonight as we were leaving and wondered about them...now I know.

Clark, Jolie and Avery said...

And what a great time we had with your family! Thank you!!