In 1998 a British gastroenterologist, Andrew Wakefield publishes a paper in The Lancet proposing that the MMR vaccine caused intestinal inflammation that led to movement of peptides, in the GI tract, to the blood stream and eventually the brain; where they affected development. (Gerber and Offit) He based this off of his observation of 8 children that displayed symptoms of Autism spectrum Disorder (ASD) along with gastrointestinal discomfort 1 month after getting the meales-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. After a spike in ASD diagnoses this article gained traction with concerned parents looking for something to blame. As it turns out Wakefield’s proposal was wrong for a few reasons. First his research had no control subjects, GI symptoms have never been associated with MMR vaccines, and the traveling peptide has never been identified. …show more content…
A study performed by scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2007 showed that mercury in vaccines did not cause even subtle signs or symptoms of mercury poisoning. (Gerber and Offit) Also the symptoms of autism and mercury poisoning are vastly different. The American Academy of Pediatrics reviewed multiples studies related to link between thimerosal, mercury, methylmercury, and ethylmercury. The evidence reviews in the studies reviewed showed that there is no association between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism It is well documented that unfounded concerns about vaccine safety can result in decreases in vaccination rates, subsequent disease outbreaks, and inefficient and ineffective utilization of scarce financial and research resources. (Parker, Schwartz and
Shlomo Yitzchaki is one of the most influential rabbis in Jewish history. Born in Troyes, France in 1040, Shlomo Yitzchaki grew up Jewish and learned from his father. When his father died in 1046, Shlomo Yitzchaki lived with his mother until 1057 when he married his wife and joined the Yeshiva of Yaakov Ben-Yakar. Since then he has become a staple in Jewish learning and Jewish history. Today we know him as Rashi. Rashi was and is very influential to Jewish scholars because of the way his commentary spread, the simplicity and variation of his commentary, and the controversy of his method that is still discussed in modern times.
An explanation is a set of statements constructed to describe a set of facts which clarifies the causes, contexts, and consequences of those facts. This description may establish rules or laws, and may clarify the existing ones in relation to any objects, or phenomena examined. The first piece Bush Remarks Roil Debate over Teaching of Evolution written by Elizabeth Bumiller, is an explanation. Bumiller addresses her points using facts rather than opinions, she also says, “Recalling his days as Texas governor, Mr. Bush said in the interview, according to a transcript, “I felt like both sides ought to be properly taught.”(2), this signifies that this is an explanation and not an argument since he sees both sides instead of choosing one. For
In 1999 a study was done in the United Kingdom to see if there was a link between the two. In this study, researchers compared children had had and had not gotten the measles, mumps and rubella vaccination. The study identified four hundred and ninety-eight cases of autism including core autism, atypical autism and Asperger syndrome in children born in the United Kingdom since 1979. There was an increase in cases by year of birth with no change after the introduction of the vaccination. There was also no age difference at diagnosis between the cases vaccinated before or after eighteen months of age and children that were never vaccinated. These results showed no temporal association between the onset of autism within one or two years after being vaccinated with MMR and developmental regression was not clustered in the months after vaccination. The data from these results does not support the connection between MMR and autism and if an association was to occur it was so rare it could not be identified. Many studies have been done over this topic but the results prove that it in fact does not cause autism. It is likely that this myth is strongly accepted because the symptoms of autism begin to occur around the same time as the child is to be vaccinated with the MMR
All the children had intestinal abnormalities. Before receiving the MMR vaccine, all the children had showed satisfactory achievement of their early milestones. Soon after receiving the vaccine, regression occurred in seven of the children. Wakefield’s results suggested that the direct cause of the children’s illnesses were the MMR vaccine. Based on the knowledge that I know now; Wakefield article is not accurate. There were many signs that pointed to this research being wrong. Some things discussed in “Vaccine War” were that all of the children studies in his research were referred to him by an attorney that was working on a case against the manufacturers of the MMR vaccine. Another major issue with Wakefield’s findings is that they are not able to be reproduced. A large part of research being credible is its ability to be reproduced in another study, and without that, the finding that he found are not sound. Because of the evidence the research may not have been correct, there was an editorial written stating that Wakefield’s findings that the MMR vaccine and autism were connected were fraudulent. This editorial also brings to light the fact that Wakefield relied heavily on the recall and beliefs of the parents and altered many of the facts about the patient’s medical histories in order to support his
Despite all the testing and approval process of vaccines, many people still mistakenly believe that vaccines cause autism, even in light of research that has disproven the notion. This evidences the difficulty of dispelling false statements once someone has accepted a falsehood, especially if it has scientific research backing the results. It also highlights the gullibility of the public at large to believe anything that medical research reports without questioning the findings. Unfortunately, the media attention such examples of junk science receive aids in convincing many of its truthfulness. The hype surrounding the belief that vaccines cause autism began in 1998 when Andrew Wakefield in the UK published an article in the Lancet linking the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR...
Every year, tens of thousands Americans die from the seasonal flu alone. This alarming statistic is what led the United States government to urge the country to vaccinate themselves, as well as their children every November, when the flu season is fast approaching. Though countless Americans do follow the government’s plea, many others insist that these vaccines distributed every year (as well as other year-long vaccines) contain an abnormally high amount of thimerosal, (a mercury-based chemical in vaccines designed to prevent the growth of bacteria) which could eventually lead to autism. This generation of fear is what has led many concerned parents to refuse to vaccinate their children, who seem to be the most vulnerable to this disease. However, can we really trust a rumor to fuel our doubts of America’s struggle to fight disease among our people? Can we discontinue our trust in the health department because of paranoia? No. Even if autism may be an effect of these vaccines, it is our duty, our responsibility to protect the good of the public by preventing an outbreak of this infl...
"My child fell into autism directly after his 12 month MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine" (Stark). Her son Kieran was developing and acting like a normal child until his MMR vaccines (Stark). After the vaccines, Kieran developed a high fever, lethargic, and extreme diarrhea which eventually led him to be unresponsive, refuse to eat, and became mute (Stark). After 20 months of these symptoms, Kieran was diagnosed with autism (Stark). This parent is just one of millions that experience the same side effects of
Doctor Andrew Wakefield had written a paper in Lancet journal in 1998 which suggested that MMR vaccine causes autism. In his research, he found out that MMR vaccine was responsible for bowel inflammation that leads to the translocation of non-permeable peptides into the bloodstream. (American Academy of Pediatrics) This in turn carries them to the brain causing the root of autism spectrum disorder to form. His research was called weak by drug corporations, governments and media companies and was then discredited earning him a fraud reputation. His paper has since raised a decade long argument on MMR vaccine originating autism spectrum disorder. This has caused a lot of parents to withdraw their children from being vaccinated, which increased measles infections.
In the Frontline episode The Vaccine War, a progressively distressful debate ensues among many scientists and doctors within the public health system and an unnerving alliance of parents, politicians, and celebrities. The topic of debate is the overwhelming pressure parents feel to vaccinate their children and their right to decline such vaccinations. In several American neighborhoods, groups of parents have been exercising their right to refuse vaccinations, which has elevated anxiety on the return of vaccine-preventable diseases such as pertussis and measles. The reason such parents are denying their children various vaccines such as the MMR “triple shot” for measles, mumps, and rubella is because they are convinced that it is linked to autism, a link that has yet to be proven. Many of these parents are focused solely on their children, not taking into account that their decision may put the American populace at risk for disease. Such parents are not thinking about other members of society that vaccines don’t work for, and in certain adolescents the effects deteriorate, thus only when every person is immunized the “heard immunity” is successful.
Just like prescription drugs, vaccines can be a harmful risk. For example, the small pox vaccine that is recommended by government health officials carries a risk for complications like inflammation of the brain which can lead to damage of the brain or even death. People who believe we should have mandatory vaccinations will say that vaccines have saved many lives, and though its true vaccines have also caused many serious and sometimes fatal side effects. There are also many cases where many parents strongly believe that some vaccines may have caused autism in their children. The reason being that many parents noticed shortly after their child was vaccinated they noticed symptoms like loss of language abilities and they were suddenly stopped interacting with people. Also, the vaccines used to treat measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) are linked to many autism cases. Vaccines that contain thimerosal, which is an organic compound that contains mercury, has also been suspected to cause autism in children. Thimerosal has been removed from most vaccines because of its linkage to autism. Scientist believe that MMR vaccines trigger a regressive form of autism, because the measles virus in the vaccine embeds itself in the intestine, causing some kind of reaction in the brain. Mercury, a chemical element, is used in a lot of vaccines can be very dangerous. High levels of
In recent years, the correlation between vaccines and autism has become the subject of much debate. On one side, there are the anti-vaccinators, or anti-vaccers. On the other, there’s pretty much everyone else. Despite the fact that the anti-vaccination movement has little base in scientific fact, their campaign to end early infanthood vaccinations rages on. While doctors and scientists try desperately to make parents look at the research studies, vaccination rates continue to fall. But, even in these dark times, there is still hope that scientific fact will prevail and defeat the anti-vaccination fear mongers who have caused many children to fall ill and even die because their parents did not properly vaccinate them. This is one of the most saddening scientific failures of the twenty-first century. A failure to educate the public properly has resulted in child, even infant, fatalities. The anti-vaccination movement was started based on falsified data and continues only because of a lack of knowledge and proper education of the general public.
A recent study shows that infants have been exposed to large amounts of mercury when they are vaccinated and the high levels of mercury are toxic and can result in neurodevelopment disorders and behavioral disorders (O’Meara). Why expose a child to toxic levels of mercury if it is not necessary? Parents deserve the right to choose to get their kids vaccinated or not. People are being forced against their will to have their children vaccinated with harmful substances that could potentially kill them (Cronin). Every parent should be able to have the choice to protect their children from the harmful effects of vaccinations.
Vaccines against diphtheria, polio, pertussis, measles, mumps and rubella, and more recent additions of hepatitis B and chicken pox, have given humans powerful immune guards to ward off unwelcome sickness. And thanks to state laws that require vaccinations for kids enrolling in kindergarten, the U.S. presently enjoys the highest immunization rate ever at 77%. Yet bubbling beneath these national numbers is the question about vaccine safety. Driven by claims that vaccinations can be associated with autism, increasing number of parents are raising questions about whether vaccines are in fact harmful to children, instead of helpful (Park, 2008).
A prevailing argument that pro-voluntaristic individuals frequently make is that vaccines have the potential to be harmful to individuals; a primary motive behind this pertains to an alleged correlation that exists between thimerosal, a component of vaccines, and countless disorders including autism (Benjamin, 2003). According to Barbara Loe Fisher, president of the National Vaccine Information Center, “When you take a look at the ever-increasing numbers of doses of vaccines babies have gotten over the past two decades and you see this corresponding rise in chronic disease and disability in our children, it is out of control” (Benjamin, 2003). Many speculated that the mercury contained within the thimerosal was to blame for this. However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), thimerosal contains a form of mercury known as ethylmercury that quickly evacuates the body and cannot cause adverse reactions unless exposure involves abnormally large doses (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). Nevertheless, a fair handful of United States citizens are medically unable to receive vaccines; for example, out of a billion people, nearly 250,000 possible vaccine reactions were documented
...t have thimerosal and autism. It does not make sense that someone that is being vaccinated to help prevent diseases would end up with an intellectual disability, difficulties with motor coordination and attention and physical health issues (Concerns About Austim). The original study that started this debate for years had been retracted. Parents should be more informed and keep up with regarding this situation.