According to Autism Society Facts and Statistics, one in every sixty-eight children are born with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Autism is a neurodevelopment disorder that affects people physically, mentally, and socially. Autism and Vaccination-the Current Evidence by Lisa Miller and Joni Reynolds, states that, ASD is a developmental disability which causes social interaction and communication to be very difficult and repetitive behaviors are often seen in ASD (166). For many years’ doctors and scientists have been trying to figure out the cause to babies being born with Autism. There have been many theories over the years, but one of the most common is the effects of vaccinations. As stated in, Autism and Measles-Mumps-Rubella Vaccination: …show more content…
Controversy laid to rest by DeStefano and Chen, the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) are the three most common vaccines that people think can cause children to be born with an ASD (831). Many parents of children with Autism are convinced that the vaccinations caused their children to have Autism. Studies in MMR Vaccination and Autism by Kreesten Madsen and Mogens Vestergaard concluded that, there have been cases of children ages one to two years old that receive vaccinations and begin to develop signs of an Autism disorder, but this does not mean the ASD symptoms are a result of the vaccines (838).
Contrary to this theory, scientists have determined there is no correlation between vaccines and Autism for many reasons such as, the timing of the vaccines received, Autism is a genetic disorder that develops in the embryo and there is simply not enough proof to prove this theory correct. It has been suggested that Autism has been increasing while infant vaccinations have increased (DeStefano and Chen 831).
Due to this statistic, this had led people to believe there is a direct parallel between vaccines and ASD. In some children’s cases, signs of Autism have become apparent within weeks or months after vaccinations (DefSefano and Chen 831). Scientists found that there could be a connection between when kids are diagnosed with an ASD and when they receive their vaccinations. Frank DeStefano and R.T. Chen, stated “typically, autism is first diagnosed or suspected during the second year of life, which is also when the MMR vaccine is given” (832). Children are given vaccinations to fight against fourteen different diseases, and they are all received during infancy and preschool years, which is typically around the time signs of ASD begin (Miller and Reynolds166). After much research, it was determined that children vaccinated before eighteen months of age had comparable ages at diagnosis, as with patients who had been vaccinated after eighteen months, or not at all (DeStefano and Chen 833). This indicated that vaccinations do not induce earlier symptoms of ASD. A study revealed that at the age of two, the MMR vaccination coverage with children without ASD was the same, revealing that there is no association between vaccinations and Autism (DeStefano and Chen
833). Secondly, another reason scientists believe there is no correlation between vaccines and ASD is due to the genetic and embryonic development of Autism. “Autism has a strong genetic component and the associated neurological defects probably occur early in embryonic development” (DeStefano and Chen 833). Autism is present at birth, even if a child is not showing symptoms right away and are not diagnosed until around one or two years old when their behavior and character begins to change (DeStefano and Chen 833). If Autism did not develop in the embryo, then researchers would have more reason to believe there could be a slight correlation with vaccines and ASD. The Committee of Disease Prevention came to three main conclusions about the link to MMR and Autism. “There is a lack of epidemiological evidence linking Autism and the MMR vaccine, case reports of children with Autism and bowel disorders that did not address causality and there is a lack of biologic models linking ASD with MMR vaccine” (Miller and Reynolds 168). There are three very common hypotheses of vaccines and ASD that were thought to trigger the onset of Autism. An article by Jeffery Gerber and Paul Offit titled Vaccines and Autism: A Tale of Shifting Hypotheses explains, that first, MMR vaccine causes Autism by damaging the intestinal lining. Secondly, thimerosal (mercury) is toxic to the central nervous system and lastly; taking multiple vaccines at once can overwhelm and weaken the immune system (Gerber and Offit 456). After research, it was found that there was a misunderstanding between what people thought was Autism and another disorder. MMR vaccination can sometimes cause a mild inflammatory bowel disease, which like Autism can cause behavioral regression (Madsen and Vestergaard 831). Vaccines do not overwhelm or suppress the immune system, and they do not cause ASD (Gerber and Offit 460). Even though infants immune systems are younger, they are still capable of using protective responses (Gerber and Offit 459). Autism is not an immune-medicated disease, meaning it cannot be caused by a weakened immune system or vaccine (Gerber and Offit 460). To conclude, ASD is a very prevalent genetic disorder that many children around the world suffer from. Autism develops during embryonic development, but is typically not diagnosed until around the first or second year of life. ASD affects people physically, mentally, and socially. For many people, a common theory they believed was that vaccines cause children to have Autism, especially the MMR vaccine. They believed that it was due to the mercury thimerosal. After much research, it was discovered that people were getting the onset of behavior regression confused with a bowel disorder, which has similar behavioral symptoms. The onset of Autism is not a result of the MMR vaccine, due to when the vaccine is received, when kids are diagnosed with ASD and Autism is a genetic disorder. Lastly, there is not enough hard evidence to prove this theory.
Haertlein, Lauren L. “Immunizing Against Bad Science: The Vaccine Court and The Autism Test Case.” Law and Contemporary Problems 72 (2012): 211-32. EconLit. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.
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
Studies over the years along with the special vaccine injury tribunal have all agreed that there is no evidence that links autism and the MMR vaccination. Studies also prove that 95% of children who receive their first does of the MMR vaccine between ages 12 months and 15 months develop immunity to all three of the viruses. A second dose is given between four years old and six years old; this second dose gives immunity to almost all who did not respond to the first dose.
Vaccines have been used to prevent diseases for centuries, and have saved countless lives of children and adults. The smallpox vaccine was invented as early as 1796, and since then the use of vaccines has continued to protect us from countless life threatening diseases such as polio, measles, and pertussis. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (2010) assures that vaccines are extensively tested by scientist to make sure they are effective and safe, and must receive the approval of the Food and Drug Administration before being used. “Perhaps the greatest success story in public health is the reduction of infectious diseases due to the use of vaccines” (CDC, 2010). Routine immunization has eliminated smallpox from the globe and led to the near removal of wild polio virus. Vaccines have reduced some preventable infectious diseases to an all-time low, and now few people experience the devastating effects of measles, pertussis, and other illnesses.
My brother Dan was born November 22, 1999. Daniel was a normal child, he developed at a normal physical and social rate. He was just beginning to talk, gave eye contact, and would use hand gestures (pointing and clapping). When he was almost 2, he when to the doctor's office to receive his MMR (Measles, mumps, and Rubella) shots. He received 9 doses of the shot. After 24 hours of the vaccination, Dan developed an extremely high fever that lasted for two weeks. Once Dan's fever receded, he did not socialize, give eye contact, couldn't be touched, and did not interact with the family anymore. Dan was diagnosed with Autism soon after. Many families report this happening to their child, the reports have grown since the late 90's. I believe that vaccines are the cause of autism and the only way to lower the rate is to give fewer vaccines at a time.
The MMR vaccine is administered between the ages of 12-15 months. When a child develops autism, their parents describe the disease as the child growing normally until they reach an age where a degenerative process starts. This problem usually happens around the age of 2 years. Although parents do say the child was growing normally, many researchers do not believe that the child was actually growing normally until the age of 1-2 years but some children do go through a degenerative process and this usually happens after the administration of MMR vaccine. The question is does MMR have a true relation with the development of autism or is it just a coincidence?
There are many reason parents choose to vaccinate or not. Side effects and fears of permanent adverse reactions are among the biggest of parent fears when considering when and how to vaccinate their child. With the emergence of fears of autism, neurological problems, develop...
Since then many case-control studies have been done to investigate the relationship between vaccines and autism. This means, they compared a group which was vaccinated with a group that was not vaccinated but apart from that identical. They did not find MMR vaccines to be the cause of autism. Neither did they find an increased risk for autism by the vaccination.
The correlation exists because some children developed signs of autism shortly after being vaccinated. However, the only real relationship between the two is the timing of early childhood vaccinations and the first appearance of symptoms of autism (“Top 20 Questions”). Unfortunately, because of this many parents choose not to get their children vaccinated. This leads to many children facing serious illnesses and possibly infecting others, because parents believe the illness is less of a risk compared to ASD even though there is no proof. A 2013 CDC study added to the research showing that vaccines do not cause autism spectrum disorder. The study looked at the number of antigens from vaccines during the first two years of life. 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 (Knopf). This shows that although it is not a proven fact that vaccines cause autism it is very unlikely. Therefore, parents should ensure that their children are vaccinated because they have nothing to fear. Vaccines are only beneficial to the child's
Violence and Conflict in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It is the violence and conflict that make this play exciting and thrilling. The snares are a lot of fun. You would think that Romeo and Juliet's main theme would be that of the love of God.
Vaccines have been around for hundreds of years now, allowing humans to increase life expectancy tremendously. Vaccines have been a great contribution to today’s science and human health, but vaccines have also brought fourth numerous concerns for many parents. One of the most controversial debates that society is currently facing is whether there is link between vaccines and autism. To distinguish if there is a link between vaccines and autism a closer look must be taken within the research of both. A vaccine is an injected or orally administered substance that contains live(attenuated) or killed pathogens to activate the production of antibodies in the body to produce immunity against a disease or different types of diseases. (Red) Vaccines are composed of different molecules and ingredients, one of them being Thimerosal, an organic mercury compound. (blue) The use of Thimerosal in vaccines have associated the link between vaccines and autism. Autism or Autism Spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurological development disorder that can affect an individual’s behavior, communications and social skills. (green)
Childhood vaccinations have received a lot of media in the past few years, and parents continue to question whether or not they should have their children vaccinated. This topic is a very important issue because it seems to be a trend in our society where parents are not vaccinating their children. This then leads their children becoming more susceptible to unnecessary diseases/viruses that can be prevented with vaccines. The focus of the following articles was on the association of the specific vaccines measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR), and vaccines containing thimerosal, which has been a speculated reason for the cause of autism. This contentious hypothesis has many parents failing to vaccinate their children; this is especially true of many friends and family members of mine. They believe that vaccines can cause autism, and I want to prove otherwise.
“Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how someone communicates with, and relates to other people. Autism also affects how a person makes sense of the world around them ”(autism.org). People wonder the causes of this disability, but what they do not know is there has not been an official cause yet determined! Although there hasn’t been an official cause of autism, there are a lot of theories people believe cause autism. One of the main theories is what pills or vitamins women take during their pregnancy. During pregnancy women have to be very careful on what antibiotics or vitamins they take. Sometimes the child can be affected by the pill which leads to problems during birth. “Another major theory is exposure to chemical pollutants, metals, pesticides, etc.” (webmd.). These substances contain a lot of poisons, chemicals, or bacteria that are very dangerous for a fetus to be exposed too. This is why people say pregnant women should just stay away from places where these substances are. But the main theory that many people think causes autism is vaccines. Although vaccines are supposed to prevent disease, people think there is a chemical in them which causes autism, but this theory is false! The cause of autism has not yet been fully determined, but it is not caused by vaccines; it is usually caused by genetics, metabolic or neurological factors, or lastly problems that occurred during birth.
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 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, an organic compound that contains mercury, have also been suspected to cause autism in children. Thimerosal has been removed from most vaccines because of its linkage to autism.
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).