Your baby doesn't like to be held, seems indifferent to his surroundings and sometimes laughs or cries for no reason. It could just be a growth spurt -- or autism. For parents like Jena Hicken, she rationalized the way her 1-year-old son Brennan was acting.

"BY THE TIME he was 2, and not saying anything, we knew something was wrong," Hicken said. "He's gotten better as he's gotten older, but sometimes he still gets aggressive at home."

Brennan is one of the thousands of children in Utah with autism. The disorder impacts an average of one in 119 babies in Utah County, according to a study released Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

"We are definitely seeing more cases now than even five years ago. There are broader terms today than there used to be, we are diagnosing more milder forms of autism, and people are becoming better at recognizing it," said Judith P. Zimmerman, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of Utah.

The University of Utah and Utah Department of Health have been involved with the CDC study since 2002.

Health and education records from 14 states were compared, and Utah ranks third highest for autism -- behind only New Jersey and Georgia. Utah's average rate of autism was 1 in 133. Davis, Salt Lake and Utah counties participated in the study.

The average rate of males having the disorder in Utah is 1 in 79 -- the second highest in the nation. Sixty-seven children are diagnosed with autism every day in the United States.

"It may be due to the fact that we had good cooperation from public and private institutions when gathering data," said Zimmerman.

In 1980, Utah's autism rate was 20 times lower than it is now, according to a study done then by the U of U and the University of California at Los Angeles

"I'm pretty convinced there are more cases at this point," said Karen Fairchild, the co-director of Giant Steps, a preschool for autistic children in Orem. "I think most professionals are starting to agree."

In Utah, where an estimated 6,339 children have autism spectrum disorders, the costs are staggering, according to Zimmerman.

"Using results from recent economic studies, we can estimate the combined economic costs for these Utah children are well above $20 billion across their lifetimes," she said. "Add into the equation the significant emotional strain placed on families and you will begin to understand why autism is an urgent public health issue and is believed by many people to be an epidemic."

According to the Utah Autism Foundation, autism is a cognitive disorder with an unknown cause. Researchers suspect it to be biological, and over the years they have tried to find a cure, but with no success.

"I think parents are being bombarded with treatments and theories, but they are truly just theories," Fairchild said. She said so often parents hear of miracle cures, but they turn out to be flukes and aren't research-based.

The Food and Drug Administration, according to the Utah Autism Foundation, recently approved the first drug to be used for autism, but there is still no effective treatment for most symptoms.

Fairchild said autism makes it so people can't effectively convey their wants or needs.

"They also sometimes have a hard time adapting to change, and sometimes have total meltdowns because of it," she said.

According to neurologychannel.com, symptoms of autism include children having abnormal reactions to sensory stimuli, such as smells, touch and noises. Children may also appear indifferent to their surroundings, appear content playing alone, have no interest in toys, have a low activity level, and have impaired language development.

"Signs of autism may appear during infancy and the disorder is usually diagnosed by the age of 3," according to the Web site. "Sometimes the child's development appears normal until about 2 years old and then regresses rapidly."

Some other findings from the CDC study show males are seven times more likely to have the disorder than females in Utah.

Hicken said her son showed some of those symptoms.

"There are some environments that upset Brennan. He doesn't like noisy, fast-paced atmospheres," Hicken said.

Some places she's learned not to take him include the grocery store and library. Hicken said his sister, who's 5, has a hard time when he gets aggressive at home, but his older siblings can normally take care of him while she runs errands.

"He likes movies, though," she said.

Today, 3-year-old Brennan Hicken is still in the lowest-functioning class at Giant Steps, but since starting this past fall he has made progress.

"One month into the program, he started talking," his mother said.

"By the time parents get to us, they've realized the communication delays, or that their child has a hard time adapting. Normally it's around 18 months or 2 years that parents start noticing something is wrong," Fairchild said.

Giant Steps, funded by Wasatch Mental Health, only has enough room for 37 students. Fairchild said there are more than 100 children on the waiting list.

"If we had more students, we wouldn't be able to do the programs that we have," said Suzanne Stephens, a co-director of Giant Steps.

The program aims to help children learn to adapt and prepare for elementary school settings.

"The best thing parents can do is get involved with early intervention programs. It makes a big difference," said Jennie Gibson, associate director at the Utah Parent Center.

She said that some of the children she's seen who have used early intervention programs have gone on to lead productive lives.

With so many kids on waiting lists for early intervention programs, Gibson said families are asking the state Legislature to increase the funding so those children can have services.

Public schools have had to meet the needs of students with autism with special-education courses at the district level.

"We are getting referrals everyday," said Launa Macomber, Nebo School District's special education program specialist. "I can see a big increase, and I think some of it is that there is more concern about autism today."

Officials in both Nebo and Alpine school districts said they have had to add more special-education classes because of the growth.

Alpine School District added two autistic classrooms to its district last year and plans to add two more next year.

"We want children with autism to be served close to home," said Kay Clark, Alpine's director of special education. The district has small-group classrooms for students with more severe cases, and offers services to those attending mainstream class.

Around 85 percent of children with autism in the state are receiving special education according to their different diagnoses, Zimmerman said.

When Fairchild's son was diagnosed with autism, she couldn't find help close to home, or even many doctors who knew about autism. Fourteen years later, she said that is no longer the case.

"There are huge strides being made in services and awareness," said Fairchild. "If parents are concerned about language development of their children compared to their peers, the best thing they can do is talk with a pediatrician or early intervention program."

For Hicken it was as simple as getting a third opinion from Brennan's doctor, and having a free evaluation from Kids on the Move in Orem.

If you don't know where to turn in your area, the Utah Parent Center in Salt Lake City can help find resources, hook parents up with support groups and answer questions about the disorder.

"The best thing about the support groups has been to listen to the stories," said Hicken, who sits on a parent support group at Giant Steps with her husband. "It helps you realize that you're not the only one who's in the situation."

Stephens said even if parents aren't able to have their children attend Giant Steps, they are welcome to come to parent training classes and be part of the parent support groups.

When the Utah Autism Society disbanded several years ago, the Utah Parent Center received their resources to continue helping those parents in need. In the past few years, Gibson said they have received four times as many calls for autism as for any other learning disorders.

"There are definitely more cases being identified, but it may also be that there hasn't been an autism society here for a while to help parents," Gibson said. The Utah Parent Clinic can be reached at (801) 272-1065, or utahparentcenter.org.

Brooke Barker can be reached at 344-2559 or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it