Why Do Vaccines Cause Autism

The Research Claiming Links Between Autism And Mmr Was Fraudulent

Not only was Wakefield’s paper inconclusive, it was later revealed that he tweaked timelines and manipulated data to show increase links between the vaccine and did not disclose that lawyers mounting a case against vaccine manufacturers financed his research. In fact, the parents quoted in Wakefield’s paper were also litigants. Immediately following these revelations, 10 of the 12 co-authors of the paper retracted its conclusion.

But that did not stop thousands of parents from standing in the way of their children being vaccinated.

Causes Of Vaccinating Children

A rising issue within the United States is vaccinations. There are a significant number of people who do not believe in vaccinations for a variety of reasons. There are many parents who do not vaccinate their children for different reasons such as allergies or religion, but there are some parents that do not vaccinate their children based on the belief that the vaccinations will cause their child to develop autism. As a society, people look for causes of certain diseases because they believe that

Vaccine Ingredients Do Not Cause Autism

• One vaccine ingredient that has been studied specifically is thimerosal. Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative used to prevent germs from contaminating multidose vials of vaccines. Research shows that thimerosal does not cause ASD. In fact, a 2004 scientific review by the IOM concluded that the evidence favors rejection of a causal relationship between thimerosalcontaining vaccines and autism.Immunization Safety Review: Vaccines and Autism external icon

Since 2003, there have been nine CDC-funded or conducted studies that have found no link between thimerosal-containing vaccines and ASD. These studies also found no link between the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine and ASD in children. Learn more about the CDC Studies on Thimerosal in Vaccines pdf icon.

Even before studies showed that thimerosal was not harmful, there was a national effort to reduce all types of mercury exposures in children. As precaution, thimerosal was removed or reduced to trace amounts in all childhood vaccines between 1999 and 2001. Currently, the only type of vaccine that contain thimerosal are flu vaccines packaged in multidose vials. There are thimerosal-free alternatives available for flu vaccine. For more information, see the Timeline for Thimerosal in Vaccines.

Besides thimerosal, some people have had concerns about other vaccine ingredients in relation to ASD. However, no links have been found between any vaccine ingredients and ASD.

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Autism And The Mmr Vaccine

What is Autism?

Autism is a complex biological disorder of development that lasts throughout a person’s life. People with autism have problems with social interaction and communication, so they may have trouble having a conversation with you, or they may not look you in the eye. They sometimes have behaviors that they have to do or that they do over and over, like not being able to listen until their pencils are lined up or saying the same sentence again and again. They may flap their arms to tell you they are happy, or they might hurt themselves to tell you they are not.

One person with autism may have different symptoms, show different behaviors, and come from different environments than others with autism. Because of these differences, doctors now think of autism as a “spectrum” disorder, or a group of disorders with a range of similar features. Doctors classify people with autism spectrum disorder based on their autistic symptoms. A person with mild autistic symptoms is at one end of the spectrum. A person with more serious symptoms of autism is at the other end of the spectrum. But they both have a form of ASD.

The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development , part of the National Institutes of Health , is one of the NIH Institutes doing research into various aspects of autism, including its causes, how many people have it, and its treatments.

Why do people think that vaccines can cause autism?

Should my child have the MMR vaccine?

Structural Abnormalities Of The Nervous System

Toxic or viral insults to the fetus that cause autism, as well as certain central nervous system disorders associated with autism, support the notion that autism is likely to occur in the womb. For example, children exposed to thalidomide during the first or early second trimester were found to have an increased incidence of autism. Thalidomide was a medication that used to be prescribed to pregnant women to treat nausea. However, autism occurred in children with ear, but not arm or leg, abnormalities. Because ears develop before 24 days gestation, and arms and legs develop after 24 days gestation, the risk period for autism following receipt of thalidomide must have been before 24 days gestation. In support of this finding, Rodier and colleagues found evidence for structural abnormalities of the nervous system in children with autism. These abnormalities could only have occurred during development of the nervous system in the womb.

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Evidence Shows Vaccines Unrelated To Autism

Claims that vaccines cause autism have led some parents to delay or refuse vaccines for their children. The most common claims are that autism is caused by measles-mumps-rubella vaccine, vaccines that contain thimerosal, or too many vaccines. Many studies have been done to test these claims. None has shown that vaccines cause autism. This sheet lays out the facts to help parents understand why experts do not think vaccines cause autism.

Vaccines Dont Cause Autism So What Does

Despite a flurry of research on autism spectrum disorder, the syndrome remains mysterious to most Americans. But experts say the answers are starting to come into focus.

Autism was once considered the kiss of parenting death, as Dr. Lawrence Diller, an expert in childhood developmental disorders and author of the influential book Remembering Ritalin, put it.

Before autism came to be seen as a spectrum of disorders ranging in severity, a diagnosis meant that the parent would have no relationship with their child, Diller said.

Those affected by autism have difficulties communicating and interacting with others.

With milder cases diagnosed as part of autism spectrum disorder , autism isnt a parenting death sentence anymore. But with rates of the developmental disorder doubling over the past decade, would-be parents still dread it. Researchers have hustled to provide some answers.

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The discoveries theyve made can, for the nonscientist, seem to increase rather than whittle away at the mystery of autism.

Its due in part to the many unanswered questions about this disorder that debunked research blaming vaccines for autism has continued to sway some parents.

One scientific certainty, reached after reviewing decades of studies on the effects of routine childhood vaccinations, is that the measles, mumps, and rubella, or MMR, vaccine is not linked to autism .

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Myth #: We Don’t Need To Vaccinate Because Infection Rates Are Already So Low In The United States

Thanks to “herd immunity,” so long as a large majority of people are immunized in any population, even the unimmunized minority will be protected. With so many people resistant, an infectious disease will never get a chance to establish itself and spread. This is important because there will always be a portion of the population infants, pregnant women, elderly, and those with weakened immune systems that can’t receive vaccines.

But if too many people don’t vaccinate themselves or their children, they contribute to a collective danger, opening up opportunities for viruses and bacteria to establish themselves and spread.

Not to mention, as the Centers for Disease Control warn, international travel is growing quickly, so even if a disease is not a threat in your country, it may be common elsewhere. If someone were to carry in a disease from abroad, an unvaccinated individual will be at far greater risk of getting sick if he or she is exposed.

Vaccines are one of the great pillars of modern medicine. Life used to be especially brutal for children before vaccines, with huge portions being felled by diseases like measles, smallpox, whooping cough, or rubella, to name just a few. Today these ailments can be completely prevented with a simple injection.

Why Do Parents Worry About Vaccines

• By Claire McCarthy, MD, Senior Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing

We are in the midst of a measles epidemic. As of July 25th, more than 1,100 cases have been reported in 30 states since the beginning of the year. Thats the highest number since 1992 and since measles was declared eliminated in 2000. Given that measles is extremely contagious the virus can linger in rooms even after a sick person has left and can lead to serious complications, this is really alarming.

There is a simple way to help: get more people immunized.

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The Mmr Vaccine And Autism

Many people confuse the controversy over the vaccine for measles, mumps, and rubella with that of thimerosal, but the two have always been totally separate issues. In fact, MMR vaccines have never even contained thimerosal.

The link between MMR and autism gained traction following the publication of a very small British study published in a British medical journal, The Lancet. The study was lead by Dr. Andrew Wakefield and it concluded that children developed autism soon after they received the MMR vaccine. The theory: The measles portion of the shot causes inflammation and infection of the intestines, which can then spread dangerous proteins to the brain, causing damage that may lead to autism.

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Should My Kid Get Vaccinated

Although the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and many other reputable organizations agree that vaccines do not cause autism, there are still small but vocal groups who believe they do. And amid that conflicting information, some parents might opt not get their children vaccinated“just to be safe,” because they worry about other possible reactions, or because of religious or other beliefs.

“But if you choose not to vaccinate your child, you are increasing his risk of contracting serious diseases that can lead to complications, hospitalization, and even death,” says Dr. Fombonne. For example, after the MMR vaccine was first linked to autism in England, many parents stopped vaccinating their childrenand several children died during a measles outbreak in Ireland soon afterward. And a recent measles outbreak in the United States has infected hundreds of people.

For all the major childhood vaccinations , most experts agree that the many, many benefits from getting vaccinated far outweigh any possible side effects or risks.

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Nichd Autism Research Information

The US National Institute of Child Health and Human Development is one of many federal entities involved in autism spectrum disorder research. NICHD’s portfolio covers a variety of topics in autism, including autism etiology, epidemiology, treatment, and screening. The institute also supports professional training and the development of research infrastructure that will facilitate research in ASD and other intellectual and developmental disabilities.

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An Emory Pediatrician Follows The Evidence

When a child is diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental disorder, it’s understandable that parents sometimes ask what they could have done or not done during pregnancy, childbirth, or the baby’s infancy. I spend a lot of time talking with families about the many possible causes about which they worry, many gleaned from the Internet. It is rewarding to be able to assure them that they are not at fault. The causes of these disorders are largely unknown, and therefore without currently recognized preventive measures.

Because of the extensive public awareness that surrounds autism, parents are less likely to look internally for a cause and more likely to look externally to diet, the environment, and especially, the vaccines that children receive. Concern over a possible role for vaccines in causing autism has immediate and potentially life-changing implications for children. Pediatricians must be well prepared and take the time to explain the science behind their decisionlike my ownto recommend that children be immunized.

These findings, however, did not cause our nations leading research institutions to close the door on further investigation of a possible role for vaccines and autism. The CDC is conducting or supporting a number of studies conducted with the NIH, AAP, and academic and research institutions.

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Methylmercury And The Developing Brain

Methylmercury, the form of mercury linked most closely in the public mind with environmental pollution, has a history as public and infamous as the history of ethylmercury has been quiet and inconspicuous. Much in the thimerosal debate hinges on the alleged similarity, or dissimilarity, of ethylmercury to methylmercury. The two compounds sound alike, differ by only one methylated side chain in their structure, and tend to be mentioned interchangeably in the popular press. Yet the chemical distinction is not trivial it may be compared with that between ethanol and its highly lethal counterpart methanol. Methylmercury was once used widely in developing countries as a fungicide as part of the Green Revolution that transformed agriculture after 1945. It is also synthesized by bacteria living in mercury-polluted waters, where it is passed up the food chain and concentrated in fish. The dangers of methylmercury in both contexts have been vividly demonstrated in a series of environmental disasters.

Mmr Vaccine Does Not Cause Autism Examine The Evidence

There is no scientific evidence that MMR vaccine causes autism. The question about a possible link between MMR vaccine and autism has been extensively reviewed by independent groups of experts in the United States, including the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Medicine . These reviews have concluded that the available epidemiologic evidence does not support a causal link between MMR vaccine and autism

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Talking About Vaccines: Autism

Claims that vaccines cause autism have led some parents to delay or refuse vaccines for their children. The most common claims are that autism is caused by MMR vaccine, vaccines that contain thimerosal, or too many vaccines. Many scientific studies have been done to test these claims. None has shown any correlation between vaccines and autism.

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The Danger Of Medical Myths

People want and need to be able to make informed decisions about their own health care and the health care of their family. And when armed with the correct, science-based information, people can make very effective health decisions for themselves and their loved ones.

Other vaccine myths have cropped up as well.

One myth is that we dont need to vaccinate against diseases that are no longer endemic. But the only time we can safely stop using a vaccine is when a disease is eradicated worldwide. So far, thats only happened with smallpox.

Other people have raised fears that vaccines weaken the immune system and that natural immunity is better. However, thats not the case. Vaccines strengthen the immune system by providing a challenge to the immune system against a very particular antigen or group of antigens.

Medical myths are not benign. They have the potential to do the most harm.

People want and need to be able to make informed decisions about their health care and the health care of their families. When armed with the correct, science-based information, people can make very effective health decisions for themselves and their loved ones.

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Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy In Autism Families

Beliefs about causes of autism and vaccine hesitancy among parents of children with autism spectrum disorderVaccineSeptember 2020

Parental attitudes and decisions regarding MMR vaccination during an outbreak of measles among an undervaccinated Somali community in MinnesotaVaccineOctober 2020

Vaccine Hesitancy and Attributions for Autism among Racially and Ethnically Diverse Groups of Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Study

Why Millennials Believe Vaccines Cause Autism

The recent news that one in five Millennials believes vaccines cause autism and that Millennials as a whole are more likely than older generations to say that parents should be able to choose whether or not to vaccinate their children comes as little surprise to those of us who have devoted time and attention to studying this cohort.

There are several factors at work.

Millennials lack trust in authority figures and institutions. According to 2014 survey research from the Institute of Politics at Harvard, Millennial trust in the President has decreased from 39% to 32% over 2013 numbers. Trust in the military dropped from 54% to 47% and faith in the Supreme Court has fallen from 40% to 36%. Having lived through the likes of Clintons impeachment, Enron, the second Iraq War and the Great Recession and having come of age in an era where actions seem divorced from consequences, their skepticism about whether leaders and organizations have their best interests at heart is understandable.

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Timing Of First Symptoms

Using a sophisticated movement analysis, videos from children eventually diagnosed with autism or not diagnosed with autism were coded and evaluated for their capacity to predict autism. Children who were eventually diagnosed with autism were predicted from movies taken in early infancy. This study supported the hypothesis that very subtle symptoms of autism are present in early infancy and argues strongly against vaccines as a cause of autism.

Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism

• Some people have had concerns that ASD might be linked to the vaccines children receive, but studies have shown that there is no link between receiving vaccines and developing ASD. The National Academy of Medicine, formerly known as Institute of Medicine, reviewed the safety of 8 vaccines to children and adults. The review found that with rare exceptions, these vaccines are very safe.Adverse Effects of Vaccines: Evidence and Causality external icon

• A CDC study published in 2013 added to the research showing that vaccines do not cause ASD. The study focused on the number of antigens given during the first two years of life. Antigens are substances in vaccines that cause the bodys immune system to produce disease-fighting antibodies. The results showed that the total amount of antigen from vaccines received was the same between children with ASD and those that did not have ASD.Increasing exposure to antibody-stimulating proteins and polysaccharides in vaccines is not associated with risk of autism external icon

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