Autism Is A Neurodevelopmental Disorder

Autism is not an immune-mediated disease. There is no evidence of immune activation or inflammatory lesions in people with autism. No studies have compared the incidence of autism in vaccinated, unvaccinated, or alternatively vaccinated children. Twenty epidemiologic studies have shown that neither thimerosal or MMR vaccine causes autism. There have been studies in many countries by different people who have tried multiple statistical methods. A meta-analysis of ten studies involving more than 1.2 million children reaffirms that vaccines don’t cause autism. Immunization was associated with decreased risk that children would develop autism, a possibility that’s strongest with the measles-mumps-rubella

Autism Spectrum Disorder is defined as a neurodevelopmental condition that is classified by a triad of impairments. These impairments are in communication, socialization, and repetitive patterns of behavior (Wolf, 2004). Autism affects about 1% of the current population (Shishido, Branko, & Norio, 2013). This disorder seems like a common diagnosis in the current day in age but the disorder was only discovered around sixty years ago. The two founding researchers that discovered the disorder are Kanner and Asperger. Since then there has been a significant amount of research on the disorder and they have narrowed down the criteria associated with Autism. Since the discovery of Autism Spectrum Disorder, there has been many debates on what causes this condition. When it was, a recent discovery scientist thought it could have been caused by many factors including psychological conditions and poor parenting. Now research has shifted in another direction (Wolf, 2004). In recent years, there has been a debate if childhood vaccinations or genetic mutations cause the disorder. This debate has led many parents to stop vaccinating their children in case it does cause the disorder. In 2010 (de los Reyes) the immunization rates fell to 80%. These parents’ decisions greatly effects the nation’s public health so it has fueled even more research to find the cause. A very common vaccine that has been said to cause the disorder is the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine or the MMR vaccine. This

In the article, “Vaccines Cause Autism,” Michael Snyder, an attorney and writer, attempts to convince parents of young children that autism is directly linked to childhood vaccinations. He claims that numerous toxins, including thimerosal, are present in vaccines that are forced into the bloodstream, later causing neurological and brain damage to children. He says that autism has risen by 78 percent over the past decade, and that 1/88 children in the US have an autistic disorder. Snyder believes that most autistic individuals start out completely normal, and that the vaccinations they are given are harming them. He blames the pharmaceutical companies for being too

autism were studied, it was suggested that measles was related to autism. Seven years later they did another study that involved 4000 children and found just the opposite, shots had no connection to causing a person to receive the diagnosis of autism”. (Offit 1) (Thinktwice 1) There are probably multiple causes for

One of the most controversial stories in today’s medicine is between autism and vaccinations. Autism is a disorder that makes it difficult for people to communicate with others and form relationships with them. It has been thought that vaccinations that children receive at an early age cause autism. Autism has become more prevalent over the years and scientists are still unsure how the disorder has come about. Some parents have taken it upon themselves to not vaccinate their children because they believe it will cause their child to become autistic. The real question is do vaccines really cause autism and if so which vaccine is it?

In the past couple of years controversy over immunizations has become a large debate in society. Many parents have come to the belief that if their child is given vaccinations their chance of getting autism spectrum disorder increases; therefore they choose not to vaccinate their child. However, evidence has show that vaccines have no correlation with autism spectrum disorder. A meta-analysis conducted of five cohort and five case studies found no evidence for the link between vaccinations and the subsequent risk of developing autism spectrum disorder (Taylor, Swerdfeger, & Eslick, 2014). The cohort study consisted of 1,256,407 children and the case studies consisted of a total of 9,920 children (Taylor, Swerdfeger, & Eslick, 2014).

The purpose of this research is to find whether there is an actual link between childhood vaccines (MMR) and autism. The research also aimed to dispute the notion that MMR vaccines caused autism.

For recurrent generations, there encompasses numerous controversies surrounding vaccinations for children in addition to the unfavorable reactions that may arise. The chief concerns are whether vaccinating causes serious developmental delays such as autism in children. The aim of this composition is to enlighten others that vaccinating children does not bring about autism. By means of scientific exploration along with advanced medical diagnosis in children, researchers currently recognize that the increase in autism claims are not vaccine linked.

Do vaccines cause autism is a question that has been bouncing around for over twenty years. The increase in the number of diagnosed cases of Autism Spectrum Disorder has increased significantly and due to the impact this has in people’s lives several studies have been done in an effort to determine the cause. More specifically the MMR, Measles, Mumps, and Rubella, vaccination has been accused of being the cause of autism. This accusation then contributed to families not vaccinating their children. Even though science disproves the link between vaccines and autism in several studies done in the United Kingdom, California, and Canada, many people cling to the vaccination-autism connection (Gerber, 2009).

The risk of Autism through vaccination theory was once again disproved by a study conducted in 2013 by the Journal of Pediatrics. At the head of the study was Dr. Frank DeStefano, who is the director of the Immunization Safety Office at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study was conducted using 256 children who had autism and 752 children who did not (Lindeman para 3). By looking at “antigens, the substances in vaccines that cause the body’s immune

The measles is one disease that has seen a recent outbreak across the globe. Michael Snyder makes a correlation between the rise of vaccines administered to children and the percentage of ASD in children. The current ASD rates are in “numbers well below 1 in 100 in states like Minnesota... Published studies in the 1970s showed an autism rate of 1 in 10,000, so autism has grown 100-fold, or 10,000%” (Handley). Also according to J. B. Handley, the amount of total shots kids received before the age of five have gone up from 10 to 36 since 1989 and there have been tens of thousands of cases in which parents report their children being diagnosed with ASD after getting these childhood vaccines. “Vaccines are known to cause brain damage, and parents report regression and later autism after getting them” (Handley). The ingredients in these vaccines are also what parents believe are the causes of impaired brain development in their children. One particular ingredient that is getting attention is thimerosal which contains the element mercury, the most toxic and dangerous

Also being linked to Autism and most vaccinations is Thimerosal. Thimerosal is the preservative in vaccinations used to keep them free of fungi and bacteria, also known as mercury. In 2001 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released results from a study that found levels of mercury in immunizations were 2 times what the Environmental Protection Agency deemed safe. (Park, 2008) Another study found the likeliness of neurodevelopment disorder increased 4 fold, on average, following an additional 75-100 microgram dosage in thimerosal-containing vaccinations in comparison to thimerosal-free vaccinations. (Geier & Geier, 2003) Following studies such as these the FDA took into consideration all of the concern and “theoretical potential for neurotoxicity” and decided to reduce the amount of thimerosal in vaccinations. In most cases the preservative has been removed completely. (FDA / Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, 2009)

A fairly recent study published in the October 2010 issue of Pediatrics had established that “Prenatal and infant exposure to thimerosal does not increase the risk for autism.” Researchers compared 256 children with autism and 752 children without autism, and found that the children with autism received no greater amounts of thimerosal in their vaccines than those without autism.” The study was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control, Harvard Medical School, Kaiser Permanente, and the University of California’s Center for Vaccine Research, among other well-trusted schools and organizations” (BabyCenter).

The scientific evidence for vaccination holds a strong argument. In one study, the number of children diagnosed with autism has increased from 176 cases among children born in 1980 (44 cases per 100, 000) to 1182 among children born in 1994 (208 cases per 100,000) the increase in prevalence over this period was 373 percent. The immunization coverage by the age of 24 months increased from 72 to 82 percent over the same timeframe, an increase of only 14 percent (Bauchner, 2001)

Autism and vaccinations one of the biggest controversies in the media in America today. The media have linked vaccinations to autism so many parents are running scared. With the fear of causing harm and fear of neglect. When it comes to vaccinating their children. Always get the facts. Learn all you can about autism. Don’t just go by what you have heard. Go by what you know, get an understanding, learn the truth. Autism “is a complex neurobehavioral disorder that includes impairments in social interaction and develop language and communication skills combined with rigid, repetitive behaviors” www, webmd.com. “Theoretical aspects of autism: Causes a review,” in the Journal of Immunotoxicology (2011), states, “Autism is the result of genetic