t all times, or become obsessed by a particular activity such as flushing a toilet or turning a light switch on and off. Autism is also characterized by self-injurious behavior. This refers to any behavior that can cause tissue damage, such as bruises, redness and open wounds. The most common forms of these behaviors include head-banging, hand-biting, and excessive scratching or rubbing. There are two major sets of theories on why people engage in self-injury: physiological and social. The physiological theorists believe that these behaviors may release beta-endorphins in the person's brain, which in turn, provides the person with a form of internal pleasure. Another theory is that sudden episodes of self-injury may be caused by sub-clinical seizures. An infection of the middle ear is thought to be a cause of the head banging or ear hitting. The last theory is that some forms of self-injury may be a result of over arousal (such as frustration). It acts as a release, and lowers arousal. The social theorists have a different perspective on self-injurious behavior. They believe that the autistic individuals engage in these behaviors to obtain attention from other people. Research on how to treat autism is a continuous process. It also makes it difficult because each child reacts differently to the various treatments. There is no cure, and probably never will be because of autism being a brain-based disorder. It has not yet been discovered how to restore the brain back to normality. All they can do now is find ways to relieve the symptoms and to help the child and its family cope better. Sometimes the symptoms do lessen as the child ages, and can do so to the point that the average person would not be able to tell the person is autistic. This is rare though, and most show some signs of autism throughout their life. There are many different treatments that people try: Diet intervention, medications, auditory traini...
