Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, pointing out that the incidence of autism has increased in recent years, emphasized that the reason for this increase is learned autism. Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that unconscious and uncontrolled use of technology in children leads to social isolation and one-sided stimulation, stating, “Because the child does not feel the need to produce words, that region of the brain atrophies. The first sign of learned autism is delayed speech.” He warned. Tarhan, stating that the greatest remedy for autism is social contact, advised that children growing up alone in apartments should be sent to daycare from the age of 3 or taken to playgrounds to communicate with their peers.
The greatest remedy for autism is peer communication
The Ministry of Health prepared an 'Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Family Guide' for the families of individuals with autism. The guide, which states that the frequency of autism has increased 200-fold in 20 years, drew attention to excessive use of technological devices. Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector, Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, made an evaluation regarding autism. Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder, is a neurodevelopmental condition, and that the disorder is observed with different characteristics across a broad spectrum.
Their emotional literacy is weak
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that in Asperger syndrome, individuals are very intelligent, but their social relationships are very weak, saying, “In Asperger Syndrome, a person's logical intelligence is very high. They can immediately calculate and state which day of the week the 28th of the month will fall on two months later, but they cannot sit and chat or talk with someone. Everyone laughs and makes jokes, but they cannot understand and laugh, they cannot participate. Their emotional literacy is weak. This theory of mind exists only in humans. It does not exist in other living beings.” he said.
Theory of mind is produced by the meta-cognitive gene
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that in children with advanced autism, there is genetically no gene related to the formation of the theory of mind, stating, “We call this the metacognitive gene, or meta-mind gene. This meta-mind gene produces theory of mind, produces theory of theory, infers meaning, interprets, and reacts. Since this fundamental characteristic that makes humans human is not found in individuals with autism, autism is also considered an advanced genetic disorder.” he said.
There may also be a susceptibility gene in autism
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that studies indicate 15% of autism cases are genetically rooted, while 70-80% develop later, stating, “There are two types of genetic factors in autism. One type involves cases with a causative gene. Due to this gene, the person inevitably becomes autistic. But there are also those with a susceptibility gene for autism. If these individuals are incorrectly educated, found in unsuitable environments, or if their family and social environment are not healthy, autism begins to emerge later in these children. This is because they have a susceptibility gene for autism. We can liken this to the following example: someone with a causative gene for lung cancer will develop cancer when they reach 40, even if they don't smoke. If a person has a susceptibility gene but does not smoke, that gene does not become active, so cancer does not start in that person. 80-90% of lung cancer is genomic activity, meaning it is genetic and related to a susceptibility gene.” he said.
Like a box, they don't react…
Tarhan noted that despite individuals with autism having fine motor skills and gross motor skills, they cannot make emotional transfers, stating, “An autistic child can walk on time. For example, they walk at 1 year old, but delayed speech emerges. The child cannot learn sociality and emotionality. When everyone laughs, they cannot laugh. They cannot make emotional transfers. They cannot make eye contact. Their brain is more interested in things that are easy to learn. For instance, when you hold a child with advanced autism in your lap, they are like a box and do not react. But a healthy child can easily establish a relationship.” he said.
Families should observe carefully
Emphasizing that families should observe their children very carefully, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “If a child cannot make eye contact, cannot respond to emotions, cannot respond to the smiles of their mother and father, then autism should be suspected. Autism can be detected even at 1 year old. If a child has delayed speech, it is usually detected at 3-4 years old. There are other precursor symptoms besides delayed speech.” he said.
A very useful booklet…
Referring to the booklet prepared by the Ministry of Health on autism, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan said, “It is a very successful study, and I thank those who contributed. This will be a very useful booklet. Families can download and review it from the Ministry of Health's website for early diagnosis information. There is a lot of valuable information there.” he said.
Learned autism is increasing
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that the risk of a child having autism has increased compared to previous years, stating, “According to official statistics, it has increased by 200% in recent years. The increasing part is not genetic autism but learned autism. A person would not normally be autistic, but due to weak family ties, weak social learning, weak emotional learning, and one-sided learning, the child is only successful in a certain area. They fail in other areas. They become isolated and lonely. And currently, social isolation and loneliness are the diseases of humanity, of young people. Autism is actually a disease of introversion and loneliness. An autistic person lives in a separate world, a separate life. Meeting their basic needs is sufficient; an autistic person does not seek anything else.” he said.
The greatest remedy for autism is social contact
Tarhan stated that learned autism usually emerges rapidly in those with a susceptibility gene, adding, “In those without a susceptibility gene, it can emerge if there is a very high degree of stimulus deprivation. For example, wild children found in forests are thought to be autistic when first discovered. This is because they have no social learning as they have not experienced human interaction. The greatest remedy for autism is social contact. Deficiencies are completed with one-on-one education, but a person's social and physical contact is very important. The concept of social media is used incorrectly. In fact, social media is not social media, it is virtual media. There is no sociality there. There is only communication in a virtual environment. For it to be social, it needs to be face-to-face; people need to touch each other. The same applies to children. Children need to run, play, and have fun.” he said.
Must be corrected by age 4, otherwise the brain shuts down…
Emphasizing that technology use in children should be limited and controlled, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan drew attention to the negative effects of one-sided stimulation on the child:
“Unconscious use of technology leads the child to social isolation. It creates one-sided learning. The first symptom of learned autism is delayed speech, and this condition is referred to as 'clip syndrome' in popular psychiatry. In clip syndrome, the child is exposed to a one-sided message. Usually, a music channel is open, and the child continuously watches rotating clips. The child does not make any effort. There is no mental exertion or learning. There is only entertainment. The child gets engrossed in it. That's why we call it a cheap babysitter. The mother gives the child a tablet or smartphone, or turns on the television. The child experiences one-sided exposure. Their brain only receives visual perception. Because the child's brain does not feel the need to produce words, and does not feel the need to speak, that region of the brain atrophies. If we correct this by age 4, we correct it; if we don't, the brain shuts itself down afterward. After that, learning becomes very difficult. It happens with very special effort and training.”
Our relationship with technology must be healthy
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that it is impossible to avoid technology today, stating, “Especially, our relationship with technology is a part of our social relationship. If our relationship with technology is not healthy, we make our children candidates for autism. We can say this very clearly. Giving phones or tablets to our children, especially between 0-3 years old, and leaving them alone makes them candidates for autism. Emotional neglect harms the child.” he warned.
Children learn life by communicating
“When a child doesn't communicate, they cannot learn about life,” said Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan. “Because the human brain learns psychologically later. The animal brain is not like that; the animal brain comes into the world having already learned. The human brain comes into the world to learn. We learn sociality, humanity, love, affection, speech, friendship, that is, all human values later. It's not genetic; morality is not genetic; a moral phenomenon is not genetic. We learn these later. If you don't teach these to a child, how will the child know? The child needs to learn social boundaries, to know themselves and to know others. The child needs to learn empathy. The biggest characteristic of autism is the lack of empathy; they cannot read the emotions of others. They often cannot read their own emotions either. The lack of empathy is the biggest problem of this century. It is currently the area where the world suffers the most poverty and destitution. This is spiritual poverty. And its main topic is the lack of empathy.” he explained.
Preschool education is considered a remedy for autism
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan noted that big city life is one of the obstacles to children's socialization, stating, “In the past, children had friends after they started walking. They had friends and neighbors in the neighborhood. They learned about life through social contact with them. But now, with apartment children, the mother has no other option but to connect the child to social media or a smartphone. This harms the child. Therefore, it is recommended to send the child to daycare at age 3 for socialization. If the child does not see anyone other than their mother and father, they should be taken to social areas for 2-3 hours every day. Kindergarten and preschool education are very important. If preschool education is good, and the child is in an autism risk group, autism may not start directly. Preschool education for ages 0-3 is considered a remedy for autism worldwide.” he said.
Play and love, a child's two most important needs
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan stated that play has a very important place in a child's development, saying, “A child's most serious work is play. The child expresses and lives themselves through play. A child has two greatest needs. One is to play, and the other is to be loved. If these two are present, even if there is dormant autism, it does not activate. If there is a risk, it is not triggered in the risk group. This is the primary reason for autism. The isolation of people in communication, the weakening of social and emotional stimuli. And the accompaniment of autism as a childhood condition due to the epidemic of loneliness among people.” he explained.