Life expectancy with autism

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So a while ago, a nihilist I met on a discussion server who has autism showed me a study that people with ASD tend to live to either 39, or 58, depending on factors. Those with 'higher functioning' autism (so most of us I suppose) lived till 58, which certainly isn't terrible but lags quite behind the general population.

The leading causes of death were heart disease, suicide and epilepsy. Of course since this is an average, many are seriously disadvantaged and die at a very young age, and many also make it to a very old age. But I still don't know what to think about this. It's very frustrating to think about. I know that life is in certain ways harder for me but this is just depressing.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog ... population.

im 50 does that mean i only have 8 more years to live ?

will i die early if i dont have heart disease or epilepsy
and im not likely to commit suicide either

You'll probably live longer.
If one person with autism dies at 80 and another commits suicide at a young age the average would be 50, so averages don't mean much.

An average is not a predictor for any given individual within a population.

Restricted diets (over-dependence upon samefoods), stress, sedentary lifestyles, etc can all be contributors to reduced life expectancies among the ASD population. Not everyone has the same contributors though, at least not all to the same extent.

its just the way these studys word it that make it look like we are all born ill with short life expectancy

I'm not sure the problem is with the wording so much as with a lot of people not having a good understanding of averages so they read more into the headline.

Lots of people here freak out over these sorts of articles when really, they're not even telling us anything new.

What is the suicide rate for ASD? Is it significantly higher than for the general population?

I also wonder how Aspies differ from the general population on health care/healthy habits. Some of us might become obsessive about those things and even make it a special interest. That might increase the life expectancy for those that do.

i thought average meant most like most autistic people die in their late 50s

An average can have a narrow distribution (everything closely clustered around the average).
An average can have a wide distribution (everything is spread out evenly)

You can even have an average where there's two distinct lumps, neither of which are close to the average.

An example would be death rates in the middle ages; you have a bunch of people dying young (0-5) and a bunch of people dying between their 50s and 80s. Those two clusters contribute to an average in the 30s, but people weren't typically dying in their 30s.

If one made it to age 5 they'd probably get old but lots didn't make it to 5.

Lots didn't even make it to age 1 back then. The first year of life is one of the most dangerous for us. The infant mortality rate really drove down the average life expectancy until probably the 19th century, we medicine really started advancing.

The longevity figures I've seen for people with ASDs and learning disabilities, like mine are pretty disheartening, even in developed countries with universal healthcare. The lower life expectancy seem to mostly involve co-morbidity, with that said, I would manage any hypertension and get screened for early-onset dementia.

This is why I panic whenever I get unwell, as I think it's ASD old age (according to these stats, 33 is the equivalent to a 63-year-old neurotypical).

I'd be more interested in the mode age than the mean.

Grandad was was 73 (suicide)
Dad was 71 (cancer)
I'm not too worried despite all my medical issues.

If anything's gonna off me it's lack of sleep.

Statistically speaking people with aspd die younger than the average person. This is due to lifestyle choices. My brother who had aspd dies at aged 50.

I believe that and I'm not debating it. ^
I just don't worry about it, personally.

I'm leaving lots of life insurance for the kids anyway.



Condolences about your brother.
My dad and grandpa were ASD too (I forgot to say so.)

Oh no sorry. I was mistaken. My bro had aspd (antisocial personality disorder)

Don't be sorry. I'm not.