Do AUTISTIC ADULTS appear YOUNGER than their SAME AGE neurotypical peers?

[Outdated]

My girlfriend told me that it is not uncommon in her native country to see 16 year old boys with girlfriends who are in their 30s or 40s.

In my case I was well aware of what I was doing and although I acted like one I most definitely wasn't a victim. I never tried to have a relationship with any of those women though, just some light hearted fun.

 

[Jonn]

I'm also 4 foot 11, I am incredibly short for an adult woman.

I think the mystery has been solved.

 

[Jonn]

I never had an issue with looking younger, but I also don't fit John's demographic of being asexual. To me looking younger was an incredible advantage that I still make good use of today.

Grow a beard.
It will make you look older.

OOPs!

 

[Jonn]

I think that those on the spectrum tend to make better food choices throughout their lives. Less variety in what we eat might equal a more youthful appearance. I mean, how many Aspies put mayonnaise on EVERYTHING.

Perhaps we don't go out in the sun as much.
The sun can age the skin a lot.

 

[Jonn]

I started losing my hair in my teens, and started going grey in my 30’s. I had to become a student of life early on, just to survive. And I always fit in better with folks much older than me. So…. I have always been told that I come off as a person roughly 10 years older than I am.

In some ways, we tend to be more mature in our thinking.
More rational.
Was it Dr Asperger who labelled high functioning auties "Little Professors"?

Consider "Young Sheldon", the sitcom.

 

[Jonn]

I think it's my behaviours that can make me look younger, like I have restlessness and hyperactivity so I can seem like an energetic teenager.

I'm convinced behaviour contributes to ppl thinking we are younger than we are.

 

[Jonn]

I'm turning 29 in less than two months, and the only place I have any "wrinkles" whatsoever is under my eyes. My same-age peers have wrinkles in their foreheads, around their eyes, and just generally look like how you would expect a 28 to 35 year old woman to look- "mature." Even my friends who are 24-26 look like "real" adults. I don't.

Autistics tend not to show expression as frequently as NTs.
Hence, less wear and tear on the skin.
Hence, less wrinkles.

 

[All-Rounder]

In some ways, we tend to be more less mature in our thinking.
More less rational.
Was it Dr Asperger who labelled high functioning auties "Little Professors Annoyances"?

Consider "Young Sheldon Donald", the sitcom.

 

[AO1501]

Like mutations? Or nonconformism to trends makes it more difficult for others to place a person in terms of demographics?

Mutations? No, hardly likely, except in the sense autistic brains function in a different way than NT brains do, and at least in some cases have been seen (via scans) to differ in shape. The degree to which these may factor into apparent aging isn't something I know about at all, however.

I suspect that the aging process simply differs from person to person, likely as a genetic factor, and that since autism is also known to be genetic, it is not unreasonable to think that by sheer chance if nothing else, the two characteristics would reasonably be found to coexist.

 

[Yeshuasdaughter]

I don't know if I appear younger than I am. But I think that I do speak as if I were younger. When people call me on the telephone, they sometimes ask if my mommy is home, lol.

 

[BewilderedPerson]

When I was 16, I had people thinking I was 3-5 years older. At 19, someone thought I was 23.

 

[AprilR]

I am often mistaken for being a student, or in my 20s despite being 32.

 

[Jonn]

When I was 16, I had people thinking I was 3-5 years older. At 19, someone thought I was 23.

We are on a spectrum, yes, but the greater tendency is for autistics to be more childlike:

Age-Inappropriate Interests and Behaviors in Autism

Autistic people, at every age and severity level, tend to be “young for their age.” In other words, they have at least some interests, behaviors, and emotional responses that would be expected in a much younger person.​

https://www.verywellhealth.com/age-inappropriate-interests-and-behaviors-in-autism-5190904

 

[MC1Rcat]

I am always told that I look 15 - 20 years younger than I am. On the phone, people always think I am a teenager, and I am 51. I think it is one of the known possible characteristics of Aspie women to have a "childlike" voice.