Don Ma is an anchor and senior business correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City. Don is the anchor and producer of NTD's "Business Matters," which airs weekdays at 4:30 pm ET.

Don Ma

NTD Plus

News

Breaking news and in-depth analysis from the United States and beyond. We bring you the latest updates, exclusive insights, and sharp discussions on the most pressing issues. NTD Newsroom airs Monday–Friday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET.

NTD Newsroom

We Need to Strengthen Our Patent System to Prevent Chinese IP Theft: Inventor

‘The Chinese Communist Party Is an Existential Enemy of the United States’: China Analyst

Economist Expects US Dollar ‘to Strengthen’ After US–China Talks

Arleen Richards is NTD's legal correspondent based at the network's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers all major legal stories. Arleen holds a Doctor of Law (J.D.).


Arleen Richards

Global Celebrations for World Falun Dafa Day Represent ‘Being True, Good and Enduring’: Jan Jekielek

Man Who Visited Every Country Shares Tips on How to Travel With Purpose

China Is ‘Helping Iranian Regime Kill Americans’: Former CIA Operations Officer

Economic Pressure In Hormuz Strait A 'Checkmate Move' From US: Foreign Relations Analyst

Sherry Ning is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers local news.

Sherry Ning

21-Year-Old Falun Dafa Practitioner Shares Story of Parents' Persecution in China

‘It’s an Important Week’ to Honor ‘Courage and Sacrifice’ of Law Enforcement: Former Officer

‘Opening the Strait of Hormuz by Military Means Is Not Far Off’: National Security Expert

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 15)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 14)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 13)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 12)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 11)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 8)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 7)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 6)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 5)

NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (May 4)

NTD Newsroom comprises teams of reporters, editors, and producers assigned to cover breaking news and other stories.


Fast, compelling, first-hand news from China. China in Focus airs Monday–Friday at 8 p.m. ET.

China in Focus

China Sends Warships to Pacific Drill as Tensions With Japan Rise

Reuters is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages.

Reuters

We present news that is truthful and based on facts, outside of the political fog. Instead of focusing on the negative things happening around us, our mission is to give our viewers a good morning with empathetic and uplifting stories. Our aim is to provide an antidote to negativity by shining a light on the best side of people. We speak to inspiring people who positively impact communities, pursue topics that represent our common human values, and will never miss an opportunity to bring you heartwarming stories.

NTD Good Morning

2 US Embassy Personnel Assigned to Cartel Case Killed in Car Accident

The Associated Press is an American not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. 

The Associated Press

US News

Gunman Kills 8 Children, Including 7 of His Own, in Louisiana Mass Shooting

Flora Hua is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers China news, U.S.-China relations, and human rights issues. Flora primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus."  

Flora Hua

Trump: Seized Iranian Ship May Have ‘A Gift From China’

Joseph Lord is a congressional reporter for The Epoch Times.


Joseph Lord

Aldgra Fredly is a freelance writer covering U.S. and Asia Pacific news for The Epoch Times.

Aldgra Fredly

Former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani Hospitalized in Critical Condition: Spokesman

Wildfires Across Georgia and Florida Have Destroyed Nearly 50 Homes and Are Forcing Evacuations

News you can trust from the U.S. and around the world. Critical information and insight. We cover the stories that others don’t. NTD News Today airs Monday–Friday at 11 a.m. ET.

NTD News Today

US Warns of China Hacks via Routers, Smart Devices

Juliet Song is an international correspondent exclusively covering China news for NTD. She primarily contributes to NTD's "China in Focus," covering U.S.-China relations, the Chinese regime's human rights abuses, and domestic unrest inside China.

Juliet Song

2 Americans Among Suspected Communist Rebels Killed in Clashes With Troops, Philippine Officials Say

Ryan Morgan is a reporter for The Epoch Times focusing on military and foreign affairs. He was previously a news writer for NTD. 


Ryan Morgan

Mari Otsu is NTD's White House correspondent based in Washington. 

Mari Otsu

World News

Middle East

Iran

3 US Warships Fend Off Iranian Attacks, Trump Says Ceasefire Still Holds

Health News

3 Dead in Suspected Hantavirus Outbreak on Cruise Ship in Atlantic Ocean: WHO

WASHINGTON—The spike in autism has been caused by environmental factors as opposed to genetics, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said on April 16.

Kennedy <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/epochtv/live-now-health-secretary-addresses-alarming-increase-in-autism-5842521">said</a> at a press conference in Washington that autism is a preventable disease caused by environmental factors, with possibilities including mold, air, medicines, and the increase in the average age of parents.

“We have really good genetic markers now, and they provide a vulnerability. But those genetic markers alone are not going to dictate your destiny. You need an environmental toxin,” Kennedy said.

He revealed that new studies on the environmental causes would be announced in two to three weeks.

“This has not been done before,” the health secretary said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/new-cdc-report-shows-autism-now-impacts-1-in-31-american-children-5842446">released</a> a report on Tuesday that found the prevalence of autism has increased to one in 31 children, up from one in 36 children in 2020 and one in 150 children <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/autism/data-research/index.html">in 2002</a>.

Walter M. Zahorodny, an associate professor at Rutgers University who co-authored the report, offered support for Kennedy’s position.

“I would urge everyone to consider the likelihood that autism, whether you call it an epidemic, a tsunami, or a surge of autism, is a real thing that we don’t understand, and it must be triggered or caused by environmental risk factors,” he said during the briefing.

The jump in autism prevalence “is a true increase,” Zahorodny said. “There is a better awareness of autism, but a better awareness cannot be driving a disability of autism to increase by 300 percent in 20 years.”

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurological and developmental disorder that impairs people’s ability to socialize, communicate, learn, and behave.

Diagnosis typically takes place in early childhood.

Symptoms include an inability to maintain eye contact and not noticing other children.

The CDC’s website states that “many different factors have been identified that may make a child more likely to have ASD, including environmental, biologic, and genetic factors.”

Those factors, it says, include being born to older parents and having certain genetic conditions, such as fragile X syndrome.

Kennedy said on Wednesday that autism is an epidemic and criticized people who attribute the jump largely or solely to better screening and diagnostic criteria.

“Doctors and therapists in the past were not stupid,” he said. “They weren’t missing all these cases. The epidemic is real.”

Kennedy went over research from the past, including a study from North Dakota that sought to determine the rate of developmentally disabled children and determined it was 3.3 per 10,000 children.

“If you accept the epidemic deniers’ narrative, you have to believe that researchers in North Dakota missed 98.8 percent of the children with autism,” he said.

In a 2000 paper published 12 years later, the same researchers <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10850010/">said</a> they missed only one child with a developmental disorder.

The Autism Society of America, which advocates for autistic people, <a href="https://autismsociety.org/autism-society-of-america-responds-to-new-cdc-report-on-updated-autism-prevalence-rates/">said</a> in a statement this week that the rise in prevalence “does not signal an ‘epidemic'” but “reflects diagnostic progress.”

Earlier this month, Kennedy <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/rfk-jr-says-us-is-launching-massive-effort-to-pinpoint-cause-of-spiking-autism-rates-5839868">told</a> a Cabinet meeting that the United States has launched a massive new project to identify the causes of the spike in autism.

Few details have been made public, including which scientists are participating in the project, beyond the Department of Health and Human Services identifying the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as being involved.

“The NIH is fully committed to leaving no stone unturned in confronting this catastrophic epidemic—employing only gold-standard, evidence-based science,” a spokesperson for the department told The Epoch Times in a recent email.

The NIH did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

Kennedy told the Cabinet meeting that the causes would be determined by September.

On Wednesday, he said that his department would disclose more information about the research in the coming weeks.

“We will have some of the answers by September,” he said. “It will be an evolving process. We’re going to remove the taboo. People are going to know that they can research and follow the science, regardless of what it says.”

<em>From <a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/health-secretary-says-environmental-factors-not-genetics-behind-spike-in-autism-5842829">The Epoch Times</a></em>

Latest

Videos

04_Top Stories

Latest Clips

News with integrity, from the U.S. and around the world. Focused reports and analyses that shed light on major issues the world deserves to know. NTD Evening News airs daily at 6 p.m. ET.

NTD Evening News

Management

Nathan Worcester covers national politics for The Epoch Times and has also focused on energy and the environment. Nathan has written about everything from fusion energy and ESG to Biden's classified documents and international conservative politics. He lives and works in Chicago. Nathan can be reached at nathan.worcester@epochtimes.us

Nathan Worcester

Zachary Stieber is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times based in Maryland. He covers U.S. and world news. Contact Zachary at zack.stieber@epochtimes.com

Zachary Stieber

Jason Blair is a national correspondent for NTD News based in California. 

Jason Blair

02_Second Lead

Fiona Ji is a reporter based at NTD's global headquarters in New York City, where she covers local news.

Fiona Ji

Latest and breaking news, documentaries, movies, and lifestyle content on NTD+.
 
Empower your knowledge and elevate your spirit with NTD+, your go-to destination for truthful news, insightful documentaries, and captivating lifestyle content that enriches your life.

Health Secretary Says Environmental Factors, Not Genetics, Behind Spike in Autism