People generally wake up with a double amount of cortisol to help them with the stress of a new day. However, researchers at the University of Bath found that Aspies have no such cortisol increase in the morning, yet their levels of the hormone drop off throughout the day as do everyone elses.
"We think this difference in stress hormone levels could be really significant in explaining why children with [Aspergers Syndrome] are less able to react and cope with unexpected change," psychology professor Mark Brosnan of the University of Bath said in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology.
Aspergers Syndrome is often defined as a form of high-functioning autism. Aspies often repeat behaviors and have narrow patterns of thought. Typically, they develop an obsession with a single topic or object.
Labels: asperger, autism, research
Posted By: Aspen/CRC