The question of what causes autism has been in existence for as long as doctors have been diagnosing people with autism. While we can’t pinpoint one specific cause of autism, we’re getting closer to identifying the factors that may increase the risk of children developing autism. One factor is a woman’s diet while she’s pregnant.  

A team from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, including Dr. Sharon Fowler, a UT Health San Antonio adjunct assistant professor of medicine, recently published a study that suggests there is a link between boys being diagnosed with autism and their mothers drinking diet soda or a similar amount of artificial sweetener, including aspartame, daily during pregnancy or while breastfeeding.  

Some key findings from the study: 

• Boys whose mothers drank one or more diet sodas or products containing similar amounts of artificial sweeteners per day were over three times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than their typical male peers. 
• While there is link between the consumption of diet soda during pregnancy and autism in boys, no significant link was found in girls whose mothers also consumed similar products on a daily basis during pregnancy.  

More research on this topic is needed, but this study provides a stronger reason to delve deeper into how diet could play a role in contributing to the development of autism. With time, more research will be done to develop a more thorough understanding of the potential risks associated with consuming diet soda and products containing artificial sweeteners as well as genetically modified foods, processed foods, and foods containing antibiotics and other additives.