The claim
「自閉症の子どもの増加は母親と接する時間が減ったから」?
Original review summary
At a January 27, 2026 campaign speech, Hitoshi Senoki said research linked autism in children to how long mothers spend with them from ages zero to three. The review says experts reject this explanation and notes that Senoki later apologized, acknowledging his statement had no basis.[S1]
Additional context
The review reports that autism diagnoses have increased, but says changing diagnostic concepts are a major factor: people with less apparent symptoms and without intellectual disabilities are now more often diagnosed. The expert cautions against directly comparing past and present counts. [S1]
A resource for families, whose materials were supervised by Professor Hideo Honda, says autism spectrum disorder is thought to involve inborn differences in brain function and that research has found parenting is not its cause. [S1]
Research date:
Sources and attribution
- [S1] 日本ファクトチェックセンター original review
Original review · Retrieved October 16, 2026