Study: Autism signs in babies can be erased

The research, run by the University of California Davis’ MIND Institute, provided directed therapy to babies ages 6-9 months old who were identified as having early signs of autism, such as an inability to make eye contact, lack of babbling and fixations.

By the time the seven babies reached their third birthday – a time when autism can reliably be diagnosed – five didn’t show any autism symptoms and a sixth had only mild symptoms.

The treatment now needs to tried in many more children to make sure that it can be consistently helpful, said study co-author Sally Rogers, a professor and developmental psychologist at UC Davis.