Unraveling the Link: Autism Traits, Mental Health, and Brain Function

People with more autistic traits often struggle with their mood and brain performance. This is not just about autism. Other mental health issues play a big role too. A recent study looked into this. It involved young adults who reported their autistic traits and symptoms of inattention, depression, anxiety, and psychosis. Their well-being and brain function were also tested. The study found that higher autistic traits were linked to more mental health symptoms. These symptoms, in turn, were linked to lower well-being and poorer brain function. Interestingly, the autistic traits themselves did not directly cause these issues. Instead, it was the co-occurring mental health symptoms that predicted poorer well-being and brain function. One exception was social relationships. Here, autistic traits directly affected quality of life, regardless of other mental health symptoms. This suggests that while mental health issues explain most impacts of autistic traits, social relationships are a unique challenge. The study used a special tool called functional near-infrared spectroscopy. This tool measured brain activity during memory and face recognition tasks. It found that mental health symptoms, not autistic traits, predicted lower brain activity during challenging tasks. In short, this study shows that mental health matters a lot when understanding the impacts of autistic traits. It highlights the need to consider co-occurring mental health symptoms in research and support for autism.