Includes bibliographical references (p. 160-162) and index.

ch. 1. Understanding autism -- 1. An overview of autism / Carol A Turkington -- 2. Signs and diagnosis of autism / Kathleen A. Fergus -- 3. The causes of autism / Stephen M. Shore, Linda G. Rastelli -- 4. Causes of Asperger's syndrome, an autistic spectrum disorder / Tony Attwood -- 5. Treating autism / Nancy D. Wiseman -- ch. 2. The controversial side of autism -- 1. Vaccines may cause autism / Autism Society of America -- 2. No link exists between vaccines and autism / Michelle Meadows -- 3. Older fathers risk having autistic children / Shankar Vedantam -- 4. Older fathers do not show increased risk of having autistic children / Child Health Alert -- 5. Specific diets can help treat autism / Bruce Semon -- 6. Using the DIR/Floortime approach can help treat autism / Stanley I. Greenspan, Serena Wieder -- 7. Using ABA therapy can help treat autism / S. Jhoanna Robledo, Dawn Ham-Kucharski -- ch. 3. The personal side of autism -- 1. Visual autism : an autistic's experience / Temple Grandin -- 2. Our son's special relationship with animals / Susan Kirkman, John Kirkman -- 3. My experiences with autism / Jerimie Goike -- 4. A mother finds success for her autistic child / Holly Robinson Peete, as told to Amy Elisa Keith -- Glossary -- Chronology -- Organizations to contact.