Vaccinations And Autism : How Have Vaccines Effected The World Today?

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

Many believe the measles mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine triggers autism spectrum disorder in some children. Many Hollywood celebrities in the acting community that have birthed children that suffer from autism spectrum disorder have concluded that this is how their child developed autism. These celebrities being very vocal about this link between vaccinations and autism spectrum disorders and have in turn influenced the increase in many ordinary middle-class parents refraining from getting the medically recommended vaccinations for their children. The medical community has done extensive research on this theory. However, to this date no reliable study shows a link between autism spectrum disorder and the measles mumps-rubella vaccine. In fact, the medical community have continued to recommend childhood vaccinations and continue to emphasis the danger of a non vaccinated child catching and spreading serious diseases like whooping cough (pertussis), measles and mumps (Mayo Clinic, 2012).

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

Almost one in every 166 children in the United States is said to have autism, many of whose origins are unknown. Now out of this alarming number of diagnosed children, how many can really be caused from vaccines trying to benefit their body? Even if these vaccines did play a part in some of these autistic children, we would have to regenerate almost every vaccine in distribution, cutting short our supply of immunity to diseases. Must we be reminded of life before vaccines? Life such as the smallpox pandemic of the 18th century, which finally slowed when physicist Edward Jenner created the first vaccine? No. We cannot let paranoid

“Today one in every 150 children has been diagnosed on the autism spectrum; 20 years ago that statistic was one in 10,000” (Mooney, 2009, p. 58). There are many vaccines that are administered to children today that protect them from measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox, tetanus, invasive Haemophilus influenza type B (Hib) infections, etc. (Miller & Reynolds, 2009, p. 167). Among these and many other diseases children are currently being vaccinated against 14 diseases, and these take place from infancy until the start of kindergarten. These childhood vaccinations are given as early as they can be to make sure the children are protected against any diseases that can occur in their

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.

Today, parents are not vaccinating their children for a number of reasons, whether it is religious beliefs, it is not natural, and some parents are even trying to link vaccinations to the rise in autism. This however has been proven false and stated in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The increase in vaccinations and the increase in children with autism happened at the same time, which leads some parents to believe that is why their child was diagnosed with autism, but this is correlation not causation. There is no real scientific test to diagnose autism and it is based off of the child’s social and communication skills and their behavior. A retrospective study was done from 1980 to 1994 where scientist recorded the amount of children receiving the measles vaccination and the amount of children diagnosed with autism. Over this time span, there was only a 10% increase in the amount of children receiving the MMR vaccine and 572% increase in children with autism. If the MMR vaccine was the cause of autism, then they should have increased at the same rate and therefore concluding that autism is caused by other unknown factors.

Millions upon millions of people would die everyday form deadly disease and there was nothing anyone could do about it.  As a result, vaccinations were created to stop the sickness and mass tragedy that came along with them. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccinations (MMR), that are supposed to help are being questioned by people believing they are linked to Autism. Numerous studies have shown that there is no connection between the two. The holes and lies in this theory are prevalent when looking in depth at how this theory was established, whom it benefits if it's true, and the facts that disprove it.

Vaccinations are something that is none around the world. It is supported in many countries but in others it is not. In the United States there is a constant controversy as to whether to vaccinate or not. Most parents in our society opt for the vaccination process to protect their children in any way they can. Although, many parents do not see it that way. The controversy of childhood vaccination spans back more than just a few years it goes back as far as the 18th century (Nelson) but the fact of the matter is childhood vaccinations have very few side effects, there have been very few lines between autism and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) (“Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Vaccines”; Shea, Diekema), and when children come in to contact with diseases they are not vaccinated for it can cause nationwide pandemic (Nelson; “Should Any Vaccines Be Required for Children?”).

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

There is no doubt that the number of vaccines recommended by health care professionals and government agencies has increased rapidly since 1980. Furthermore, vaccines have also changed in how they are made, which is unknown or poorly understood by the general public. While reviewing the literature, this was shown in the article, “Vaccines and Autism: A Tale of Shifting Hypotheses”, by Gerber & Offit (2009), where they discuss how vaccines have changed overtime. The authors state that today a single vaccine use uses less than 200 bacterial and viral proteins or polysaccharides compared to over 3000 immunological components used in 1980. In addition, the amount of protein chemistry and recombinant DNA has also increased. This helps cut back on vaccine-related reactions, because the vaccine only resembles a microbe and doesn’t function on one.

Many people believe that vaccinations are harmful to human beings because they either do not work well enough or in some cases, such as the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination, they may be related to autism. They also may be harmful because of the side effects including soreness, redness, or swelling. However, those are very minor side effects and very common in any vaccine. Others believe that vaccinations are very important to get because they could save someone’s life. There is not any proven fact that vaccinations could be a factor of autism, there are only assumptions being made to this. Parents either want their kids to get vaccinated or want absolutely nothing to do with vaccinations. Even though vaccines have minor side effects and have controversial issues such as autism, there is no evidence for the issue; therefore vaccines are very important because it can prevent diseases from occurring and in some cases, death.

The fear that vaccines caused autism began in a 1988 study published in the Lancet by Andrew Wakefield and his colleagues. The study suggested that measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine may put children at risk for behavioral regression and persuasive development. Wakefield had a sample size of 12 children (11 boys), ages 3-10. These children when through numerous testing which included: gastrointestinal, neurological, and developmental assessments. The findings were that “In eight children, the onset of behavioral problems had been linked, either by the parents or by the child's physician, with measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination. Five had had an early adverse reaction to immunization (rash, fever, delirium; and, in three cases, convulsions).

In the year 1998, Dr. Andrew Wakefield published a scientific article that would eventually weaken the human species in both Europe and the United States and sow distrust in the idea of getting children properly vaccinated (Kolodziejski). In his article, Dr. Wakefield falsely claimed that the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine could be linked to the development of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) (Kolodziejski). Unfortunately, even though Dr. Wakefield’s study was discredited the “damage was already done” (McLeod 8). The article caused a decline of vaccinations of children by their parents for fear of unintentionally inflicting ASD upon them. Years later, Celebrities Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey also reinforced his ideas reflected in the article in the United States that caused a similar effect as well (McLeod 8). It is not surprising that outbreaks of diseases that were previously regulated by vaccinations began to occur once again following these events. It should be a requirement for children to get vaccinated because it saves the lives of children, it is safe, it benefits more than just the child and it is still a necessary precaution.

This is part of the fear of autism. Within the last five years there has been a fear of autism being caused by vaccines. It has gotten so bad some parents will not let their children get vaccinated in fear of their child getting autism like it could contracted like some disease. The group AutismOne has over one-hundred and fifty seminars trying to convince people that autism can be caused by vaccinations(Mnookin 14). Michelle Guarino- a mother of an autistic child was quoted saying: "I gave birth to my daughter, I watched her develop normally and then she started losing speech at close to 2… Shortly after her MMR she short-circuited. Was it just coincidence?"(qted in Alisson). For some a lot of parents these coincidences have no way not be connected. Then with data showing that a small percent, around one percent of kids get autism after vaccinations(MMR-Autism). It also something to note that “the diagnostic on autism has jumped by 373 percent”, but at the same time “the rate of MMR vaccination increased by just 10 percent”(Alisson). The fear does not hold much ground though. There is plenty research to prove that a huge majority of kids will not get autism from