Today deviations in development of children happen as frequently as never before. Nearly 15 percent of American kids grow with impairment in their physical or cognitive development, which disturbs their everyday life. These disabilities are easy to notice as children struggle to meet developmental milestones characteristic for their age. Some of them cannot walk or speak when their peers already do it. Cognitive and physical disabilities can exacerbate with time, however, a number of disabled children come up with their healthy peers in a while.
The term “developmental disabilities” includes a range of inborn and acquired conditions. Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder are perhaps the most frequently discussed in the society as we still cannot precisely define which factor gave a push to one of the impairment in children of visibly healthy parents. While speculations continue, parents search for a costly remedy to improve the child’s life.
Most developmental disabilities begin yet before the childbirth. Parental behaviors and diseases during pregnancy usually contribute to inception of defects in fetus which is a common reason for the majority of inborn conditions. There are also genetic conditions caused by the impairment of the chromosomal structure. The use of vaccines was claimed to increase chances for developmental disorders, however, there is still no solid evidence that proves this assumption.
It is quite possible for children to live with a developmental disability as well as progress and improve. They obviously need either special services to provide a respective treatment or a greater attention of parents and pediatricians. But still, many kids with ADHD or ASD manage to come up with average peers.