What are physical health problems that go with Asperger's?

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Lax muscle tone > which can cause other physical issues

You can also have learning disabilities, as well as, AS such as Dyslexia. But not all have this link.

Other psychological issues can arise such as depression / anxiety

Without doubt, digestive issues. These could include any of the following (and maybe others) IBS, Crohn's Disease, Oesophageal Reflux.

OMG. I have second toes longer than big toes. I had no idea it had a name or that it is associated with AS though.

I don't have any health problems - I've always been very physically healthy in fact. It's mental health problems like anxiety and depression I've had the most of.

In fact I have a theory that perhaps Aspergers/Autism might be an attempt at an evolutionary solution for some illnesses e.g cancer

Also, I've never broken any bones in my body and thought perhaps the 'autistic'-type genes/'genes that cause me to be the way I am', are protecting me in some way.

Autism might confer some kind of bodily advantage in the way Sickle-cell Anaemia confers protection from Malaria.

So it would be useful to know, of people diagnosed with autism/Asperger's Syndrome:-

1. Have you ever broken any bones in your body?

2. Have you had cancer?

hypoglecemia
epilepsy as a child
low tone
IBS, celiacs
food allergies
anxiety, depression
immunodeficiency
hormone imbalances-found this out when I was pregnant.
goiter(thyroid issues)
and I had to have braces on my legs b/c I was a toe walker when I was a toddler.

I just checked....my 2nd toe is longer than my big toe only on my right foot, and not by much. On the left foot, the big toe is bigger by the same small margin. In 50 years I never noticed this. Haha.

No broken bones. No cancer.

Reply to nessa238

No cancer here,only one person in my family has had it.I fell and broke my nose once( clumsy oaf is my middle name) but no other broken bones but my family does have heart problems and I forgot to mention I have high cholesterol levels and degenerative disc disease.My bone structure is quite stocky and I have really sturdy teeth,I used to crack pecans with them as a kid.I have wondered if the IBS could protect against colon cancer because it seems like my body is trying to expel certain food products as quickly as possible.I know someone who is constantly having pre- cancerous polyps removed and they told me they never have problems with diarrhea.I guess having the trots is a small price to pay to avoid colon cancer.My IBS is so bad at times I bleed,my doctor had a colonoscopy done and every thing was fine,I just have a really cranky colon.

Thanks for the info

I do realise that a lot of people on this board are going to be too young to be likely to have developed cancer anyway.

My Mother died from cancer and there seems to be a genetic risk of it on the female side of her family. For some reason though I feel I won't get it, like some kind of certainty - I don't know why.

My Mother also had heart problems/risk factors for them - angina and high cholesterol and her brother had to have a heart bypass too so it's interesting to hear about other people on here having heart problems. I've had my cholesterol tested and it was above average level so I think I may be at risk of developing angina. Heart problems are very common in the general population though so this might be meaningless.

Despite having little self-confidence mentally, my confidence that I'm going to remain healthy and not get any bad diseases is pretty high for some reason. Perhaps it's self-delusion?

I have "Morton's Toe", but no problems from it. I actually have no health problems at all and am rarely sick, although a few years ago I had a gallbladder attack (I was crash dieting at the time, and started eating normally again and never had another). Like I mentioned on the other thread I have a lazy, nearly blind left eye. I also am allergic to some metals (I get a rash from some jewelry, jeans buttons, etc.), allergic to mold, and have suffered some episodes of depression, if any of that counts. No broken bones, but I'm not very athletic; no cancer, but I'm only 33.

Noticed a lot of people have IBS. I also have this D: Not to mention food allergies.

Same here; suffering from IBS...not cool at all. Also have hypothyroidism and flippin' hate going to the doctors for those darn blood tests :/

Asthma and the "mandatory" problems with motor skills, but apart from that my health is good and I'm fairly athletic.

I'm not diagnosed, but suspect AS.

I have M.E diagnosed, migraines and some digestive issues.

Although still in its infancy, there are an increasing number of studies which are finding common health issues associated with HFA/Asperger's.

From the American Mental Health Association WebSite:
"Medical Complications: Many clinicians are unaware that as much as 60% of the Autistic/Asperger’s population may struggle with rarely diagnosed chronic gastrointestinal problems. Harvard Medical School is currently organizing a national research project and database to better track, diagnose and teach physicians about the seriousness of these intestinal endopathies and malabsorption conditions. Symptoms of these conditions include: poor sleep, being awake at odd hours of the night, pale skin complexion, dark circles under the eyes, fatigue, chronic gas, constipation, bowel pain, irritable bowel syndrome, reflux, and nausea. When these conditions are not adequately treated children can show anxiety, hyperactivity, inability to relax, fatigue, anger and irritability, confusion, forgetfulness, odd giggling, or worsening of sensory integration symptoms. Associated conditions include: Celiac Disease (inability to digest gluten (a protein found in most grains)), Crones Disease (difficulty digesting food fiber), Malabsorbtion (difficulty absorbing vitamins, minerals, and other components in food), food intolerances (e.g., sugar, dairy, wheat, gluten, or soy), yeast infections (that only manifest themselves inside the body), poor liver and kidney function, and epilepsy (rates as high as 25% with onset in adolescence)."

In addition, there was a study recently done on Hypercholesterolemia and Asperger's . "AS subjects showed significantly elevated levels of TC, LDL, and TG and significantly lower levels of HDL compared with controls". And elevated cholesterol, combined with the more common issues of anxiety and depression result in a higher incident of Coronary Artery Disease and hypertension among the AS population.

I have type II diabetes (insulin dependent and insulin resistance)(injecting NovolimR and Lantus. My blood sugars are still not under control)
Hypertension (taking atenolol and lisinopril/HCTZ)
High cholesterol (taking niacin and fish oil capsules)
Anxiety
Bipolar I (2.5 mg Viibryd, which I'm weaning off. The fish oil puts me in a better mood)

Allergic to penecillan, all statins, actos, avandia, precose, Prozac, Effexor, amitryphine, citalopram, buspar, Viibryd.