The Real Story Behind Rising Autism Rates

Neurodivergent Insights with Dr. Megan Anna Neff

The autism rate in the U.S. has risen from 1 in 150 to 1 in 31 over the past two decades. But the story behind that number is far more nuanced than the headlines suggest. In this conversation, Dr. Megan Anna Neff and Dr. Donna Henderson walk through the history of autism in the DSM, the systemic shifts driving increased recognition, and why "epidemic" framing misses the point.

This video is for Autistic adults, late-diagnosed people, clinicians, parents, and anyone who has been asked "why is autism on the rise?" and wanted a deeper, more grounded answer to offer.


📩 If you want to go deeper on this topic, we have a visual guide and transcript available alongside this video on our website:https://neurodivergentinsights.com/episodes/why-is-autism-on-the-rise/

More description

The autism rate in the U.S. has risen from 1 in 150 to 1 in 31 over the past two decades. But the story behind that number is far more nuanced than the headlines suggest. In this conversation, Dr. Megan Anna Neff and Dr. Donna Henderson walk through the history of autism in the DSM, the systemic shifts driving increased recognition, and why "epidemic" framing misses the point.

This video is for Autistic adults, late-diagnosed people, clinicians, parents, and anyone who has been asked "why is autism on the rise?" and wanted a deeper, more grounded answer to offer.


📩 If you want to go deeper on this topic, we have a visual guide and transcript available alongside this video on our website:https://neurodivergentinsights.com/episodes/why-is-autism-on-the-rise/

2026-04-17 63 min
Listen elsewhere

Available Results

Generated results are saved to your library for reuse and search.

No generated results are available for this episode yet.

Transcript

No transcript is available for this episode yet.
Sign in to generate a transcript for review.
Sign in

Chapters

No chapters available.