Did kids with asthma die more often at younger ages when we were little and could that partially explain why more kids have it today i.e. they didn't die of it but can live with it? I know that Singulair has made a tremendous difference to 3 of my family members and that type of medication was not available in the 60's and 70's. Additonally, I really wonder about the "increased rate" of autism. In retrospect, I can name at least 3 kids I grew up with who are almost certainly autistic but have never been diagnosed because that label was simply unknown then. They were just called "slow" or "retarded" or "odd".