Wait, is serotonin the main reason why people freeze dry and ingest their placenta? It's supposed to help stave off PPD.

But it seems like a lot of autistic kids in my circles and family have autistic fathers but not mothers. Though some of the mothers (potentially myself, never tested) may just be higher masking.

“Autism, in essence, starts in the womb, not after delivery, and is most likely due to the genetics of the placenta and to a lesser extent, the maternal environment the placenta finds itself in.”

Wow, that was a fascinating read. I have fraternal same sex twins. One has ASD, the other doesn’t. They each had their own placenta. I guess differences between the placentas could explain the difference in their brain development. They were remarkably close in size their whole childhood until one hit puberty before the other, but maybe there was a difference in seratonin delivered to them during my pregnancy.

Anonymous wrote:Interesting, thanks for sharing. 

I do want to point out that it's well know that autism has some genetic causes. Autistic tendencies run in families, like ADHD and other mental health disorders.

Autism is not a mental health disorder.

Interesting, thanks for sharing. 

I do want to point out that it's well know that autism has some genetic causes. Autistic tendencies run in families, like ADHD and other mental health disorders.

Thought some people might find this interesting…supporting genetic causes of autism. You have to read to the bottom to get the part about autism and something called T1 folds in the placenta. I’m not sure I’m capable of summarizing but it sounds like genetic variations in the fetus lead to these irregularities in the placenta; the placenta regulates the delivery of serotonin to the fetus and the irregularities in the placenta may cause excess serotonin delivery to the fetus which may lead to overgrowth of the brain associated with autism.

https://news.yale.edu/2025/09/03/serotonin-shield-placentas-critical-role-health-babies?utm_source=YaleToday&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=YT_Yale%20Today%20Alum%20no%20Parents_9-4-2025