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Vaccines in no way cause autism, massive new study finds
More vaccine-autism facts for the fact-averse.
07 March, 2019
(Robin Utrecht/AFP/Getty Images)
- A massive new study finds absolutely no link between MMR vaccination and autism.
- Some question the expenditure of yet more research money on convincing conspiracy theorists.
- There are already 206 measles cases this year in the U.S., and the disease is up by 30% globally, despite previous near-eradication.
<p>Measles were <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/about/history.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">eliminated</a> in the U.S. in 2000. Those were the days. Now it's back, with <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/measles/cases-outbreaks.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">206 cases in 11 states</a> already confirmed this year. Measles' return is due to an <a href="https://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20180620vaccineexempts.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">increasing number of parents</a> opting not to vaccinate their kids with the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/vis/vis-statements/mmr.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">MMR vaccine</a>, a 97% effective treatment against measles, mumps, and rubella. It's a frustrating and frightening development for other parents who have done their part by having their own children vaccinated to keep these highly communicable diseases from spreading to everyone's kids. The anti-vaxxer movement is based on research from a single UK-based doctor, Andrew Wakefield, who erroneously linked vaccinations to a rising incidence of children with autism. By 2010, more scrupulous researchers had <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/7095145/GMC-brands-Dr-Andrew-Wakefield-dishonest-irresponsible-and-callous.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">completely debunked his claims</a>. Yet widespread belief in his claims has proven remarkably resilient.</p><p><a href="https://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/2727726/measles-mumps-rubella-vaccination-autism-nationwide-cohort-study" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">A comprehensive study</a> just published in <em>Annals of Internal Medicine</em> and based on 10 years of data and half a million people hopes to finally, authoritatively, put Wakefield's spurious and dangerous claims to rest. Of course, with anti-vaxxers motivated by paranoia, blame-shifting, a distrust of experts, or just stubbornness, it's anyone's guess if it will help.</p>
The 2019 Danish vaccine-autism study
<p>The study from scientists at Denmark's Statens Serum Institut finds no statistical link whatsoever between the administration of MMR doses and the likelihood of developing autism. It also found no correlation between areas in which vaccines are administered and clusters of autism diagnoses occur. In fact, as the anti-vax movement has grown, so has the incidence of autism, from 1 out of 68 eight-year-olds having it in 2016, to <a href="http://www.autism-society.org/news/2018-cdc-autism-incidence-rate-statement-from-the-autism-society/" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">1 out of 59 in 2018</a>.</p><p>The researchers studied the medical histories of Danish children born between 1999 and the end of 2010. Using population registries, they were able assess other risk factors — including sibling histories of autism — and look for correspondences between vaccinations and the occurrence of autism. Speaking of the statistics presented in the study, global health expert <a href="http://vaccines.emory.edu/faculty-evc/primary-faculty/omer_saad.html" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">Saad Omer</a> tells the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/03/05/measles-vaccine-doesnt-cause-autism-says-new-decade-long-study-half-million-people/?utm_term=.b8972078fe24" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1"><em>Washington Post</em></a>, "The appropriate interpretation is that there's no association whatsoever."</p>Money well spent or wasted?
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTI1ODc0Mi9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MjMyMTI3Nn0.vYCGA4qiVQfOniVQ7psQueQDLUvAGp-D_DFagc6TYE8/img.jpg?width=980" id="92bd1" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="16890fa6a8ed7970265eae363c83ac0c" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />(Fred Tanneau/AFP/Getty Images)
<p>Dispositive as the new study's evidence is, Omer and others consider it questionable to use research money sorely needed elsewhere to convince anti-vaxxers. As bioethicist <a href="https://sites.google.com/site/sydmjohnson/" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">Syd M Johnson</a> says, "They are immune to facts." Alongside the study in <em>Annals</em> is an <a href="https://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/2727208/further-evidence-mmr-vaccine-safety-scientific-communications-considerations" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">editorial</a> by Omer decrying this waste of time, effort, and money on people living in what he calls a "fact-resistant" world.</p><p>Omer's concerned that anti-vaxxer beliefs undermine general public faith in vaccines, so he sees value in spending <em>some</em> money on continuing to gather contrary evidence, but only "if the cost, including the opportunity cost, of these studies is not too high." By "opportunity cost," Omer refers to the lost chance of developing cures with these funds, warning, "continuing to evaluate the MMR-autism hypothesis might come at the expense of not pursuing some of the more promising leads."</p>A teen leading the way
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xOTI1ODc1OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0Mzg5MjM3Nn0.z45s5snGwksRvU2UCoPtHwEwHTJLkOw1OD8w6jYmAtc/img.jpg?width=980" id="7b218" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="18e486afe78bcfe29e74f940d86c571f" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Ethan Lindenberger addresses the U.S. Senate.
(Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
<p>The new report coincides with last week's worrying hearing in the U.S. Senate at which 18-year-old <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/03/06/700617424/18-year-old-testifies-about-getting-vaccinated-despite-mothers-anti-vaccine-beli" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">Ethan Lindenberger</a> testified about his decision to get himself vaccinated against the wishes of his parents. He's written on <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/NoStupidQuestions/comments/9xm989/my_parents_are_kind_of_stupid_and_dont_believe_in/?st=JRTFJJR5&sh=0b2c98a8" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">Reddit</a> that his mother became convinced from Facebook posts that vaccinations "are some kind of government scheme." His Reddit thread says, "I have an appointment in a few weeks to get my shots! My mom was especially angry but my dad said because I'm 18 he doesn't care that much. Although my mom's trying to convince me to not do it and saying I don't care about her, I know that this is something I need to do regardless."</p><p>Facebook <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/02/15/facebook-will-consider-removing-or-demoting-anti-vaccination-recommendations-amid-backlash/?utm_term=.f3f6430fe4d0" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">claims</a> to have "taken steps to reduce the distribution of health-related misinformation on Facebook, but we know we have more to do." On March 6, Facebook announced a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-plans-tackle-anti-vaccine-misinformation-rejecting-ads-de-ranking-pages-2019-3" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">new plan</a>. </p>Your child or mine?
<p>It's understandable that anti-vaxxer parents expect to be able to control the health decisions regarding their own children, but unfortunately, their kids — and the other with whom they come in contact — are not immune to infectious diseases.</p><p>As a result, everyone else has no choice but to sit by and watch the unwarranted return of serious diseases. Many U.S. states allow "religious" exemptions that allow parents to opt out of vaccinating their children, but it's not just a U.S. problem. With the prevalence of measles up by 30% globally, the World Health Organization ranks "<a href="https://www.who.int/emergencies/ten-threats-to-global-health-in-2019" target="_blank" data-vivaldi-spatnav-clickable="1">vaccine hesitancy</a>" among the top 10 threats to global health in 2019, at a cost of 1.5 million lives annually .</p>
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Number of American parents not vaccinating infants has quadrupled
A measles comeback is not the sort of return our children deserve.
19 October, 2018
MIAMI, FL - OCTOBER 04: An influenza vaccination is prepared for a patient at the CVS Pharmacy store's MinuteClinic on October 4, 2018 in Miami, Florida. CVS stores will provide flu vaccinations at their MinuteClinic as well as the pharmacy and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics between now and the end of October is the best time to get vaccinated as the flu season begins. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
- The percentage of children under 2 years old who haven't received any vaccinations has quadrupled in the last 17 years.
- In 2016 in Europe there were 5,273 cases of measles. One year later that jumped to 21,315 cases.
- Discredited doctor Andrew Wakefield's false study linking vaccines and autism still influences parents, two decades later.
<p>Health care should be a public right today, especially in wealthy nations such as America, though for most of history such support systems were impossible. Social health initiatives are relatively new. Bureaucratic European states instituted such programs, but it was not until Germany introduced the "medical police" in the late 17th century that widespread programs started to take root. Johan Peter Frank helped construct the ideological underpinnings of this movement in a nine-volume series of books that took 48 years to write. </p><p>Frank was a champion of inoculation, the burgeoning practice of introducing small amounts of a disease — in this case, smallpox — into a person, which allowed their immune system build up defenses against a full-fledged ravaging virus. Inoculation itself dates back at least to ancient China; Frank was merely giving bureaucratic form to the formula. </p><p>By the middle of the 18th century, such inoculations were widespread, though an ignorance of proper dosage still lead to many deaths. While royalty and the wealthy were first in line, a physician named Edward Jenner brought it mainstream by injecting cowpox into a young boy who became immune to this ailment. Jenner called it a "vaccination," after the Latin word for "cow." </p><p>Decades later, the British Public Health Movement enforced compulsory vaccination. This led to an intense scrutiny of the major causes of disease, such as poverty, child labor, water supply, and prostitution. A linkage between our social environment and disease was forged. Public health reforms in Britain and America were instituted, with the World Health Organization being formed in 1948 to study and fight disease on a global scale. </p>
<span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="97c72e57b6ecb83f0f6d333586765bf6"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7VG_s2PCH_c?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span><p>Such efforts made a huge impact. Malaria was cut down in many countries. Perhaps the biggest victory was smallpox, whose last known case occurred in 1977. In May, 1980 the agency announced its extinction. Other chronic diseases have been greatly restricted: polio, measles, and tetanus are confined, while influenza, HPV, and chicken pox have been verified as ailments that vaccines minimize.</p><p>Then, in 1998, a now-discredited British doctor, Andrew Wakefield, was <a href="https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/antivaccine-hero-andrew-wakefield-scientific-fraud/" target="_blank">paid to falsify evidence</a> linking the MMR vaccine and autism. The paper was eventually retracted. Yet it was published during a time when conspiracy theories were growing thanks to a new communications device called the internet. Rightfully-confused and upset parents were seeking a cause to the growing number of autistic children. Wakefield offered an answer, of sorts. </p><p>Problem is, that answer didn't address the question of making us healthier. Not only do vaccines not cause autism, the anti-vax movement that has grown from his deceptive paper is making us sicker. Last year in Minnesota the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/imams-in-us-take-on-the-anti-vaccine-movement-during-ramadan/2017/05/26/8660edc6-41ad-11e7-8c25-44d09ff5a4a8_story.html?utm_term=.75815407e075" target="_blank">worst measles outbreak</a> in generations occurred in a Somali population that received false information from an anti-vaxxer group. It's not only America: in 2016 in Europe there were 5,273 cases of measles. Due to <a href="https://www.popsci.com/measles-vaccination-rates-outbreak" target="_blank">anti-vaxxer fever</a>, just one year later 21,315 people fell ill to a disease that has been successfully fought since 1960. </p><p>And now, this disturbing news was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/percentage-of-young-us-children-who-dont-receive-any-vaccines-has-quadrupled-since-2001/2018/10/11/4a9cca98-cd0d-11e8-920f-dd52e1ae4570_story.html?utm_term=.ae5f4db17854" target="_blank">recently published</a> regarding American children:</p><p style="margin-left: 20px;">The percentage of children under 2 years old who haven't received any vaccinations has quadrupled in the last 17 years, according to federal health data released Thursday.</p>
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODc0NDQ5MS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0ODQ2MTYxN30.85iMPThYVIp6xooWkWPKZk_HiIA-JKooxGo0K98dKZ4/img.jpg?width=980" id="828fc" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6c75b1a5a3730fd4b08dcbc0944d74b2" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />INDONESIA-HEALTH-CHILDREN
A medical worker injects a baby with a measles-rubella (MR) vaccine at a health station in Banda Aceh in Aceh province on September 19, 2018. Photo by CHAIDEER MAHYUDDIN / AFP
<p>The CDC <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/wr/mm6740a4.htm?s_cid=mm6740a4_e" target="_blank">notes</a> that coverage was lowest among the uninsured and children covered under Medicaid. A free, federally-funded <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/programs/vfc/index.html" target="_blank">Vaccines For Children</a> program exists, causing <em>The </em><em>Washington Post</em> to speculate that at least part of this issue might be education. </p><p>Yet really, this entire debacle is indicative of a lack of education. Vaccine researcher Peter Hotez, whose daughter suffers from autism, has published a book detailing the issue, in which which he <a href="https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/10/16/17964992/vaccine-autism-book-peter-hotez" target="_blank">explains</a>: </p><blockquote>From my experience, a majority of vaccine-hesitant parents are not deeply dug in. They've gotten misinformation from anti-vaccine websites and social media, or they've heard something unsavory about vaccines from friends and relatives… Then there's another group, maybe 10 to 20 percent who are deeply dug in and believe all of the fake conspiracy theories. Those individuals are really difficult to reach.</blockquote><p>For most of history, disease was ambiguous, random, metaphysical even — there is no dearth in literature relating sickness with gods and demons. It was long thought karma was the reason you fell ill or died. We know better today, yet too many people refuse to recognize this basic fact, placing their faith in biological mysticism. This is child abuse, yet sadly this is akin to smartphone addiction: we're simply not ready to label it as such on a societal scale. </p><p>Vaccine science is not perfect. Each year, the efficacy of the influenza vaccine is an educated guess. However, just because researchers haven't nailed every facet of disease does not mean we should write off the science. Millions of lives have been saved due to vaccines. Now, if current trends continues, millions more will be put at risk.</p><p>The majority of American children are vaccinated. I've heard complaints by a number of friends whose children are put on a rigorous schedule from birth; their skepticism of the validity of this approach is warranted. We should debate courses. We should not, however, debate basic science, such as vaccinating children for measles or polio. Parents putting their children at risk due to their own lack of common sense is not only unfair, it's dangerous.</p><p>--</p><p><span></span><em>Stay in touch with Derek on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/derekberes" target="_blank">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DerekBeresdotcom" target="_blank">Facebook</a>.</em></p>
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Why experts are certain another influenza pandemic will occur
It's been 100 years since the world's last deadliest flu pandemic. Experts warn that another one is inevitable, but are we ready?
18 October, 2018
- 100 years ago, the Spanish Flu killed over 50 million people.
- According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 80,000 Americans died of the flu last winter.
- Experts stress that the world needs to take precautions and prepare for the next pandemic.
<p>Humans have been fighting the influenza virus for millenia. We've discovered new strains throughout the years and also <a href="https://bigthink.com/news/a-flu-drug-that-kills-the-virus-in-24-hours-is-just-around-the-corner" target="_self">devised greater methods for eradicating</a> them along the way. But on the 100th year anniversary of the Spanish Flu pandemic, it's more important now than ever that we look back at one of the deadliest pandemics the world has ever faced. </p><p>Our global village is tied together in such a way that it makes containing a localized infection nearly impossible. Through air, freight-train and onwards through land and sea, the most populous and densely packed cities in the world are now just a stone's throw away. </p><p>The possibility that another epidemic could sweep through the world and claim millions of lives is no surprise to the experts. After all, it's happened before. </p>
History of the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918
<img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODczOTUzMS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0NjI3MjAyNH0.yssTkvJY3QgwANQ_-QDhDLuamLYJ32VewXNQSlRHbzg/img.jpg?width=980" id="58916" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="1195e8e98e4ca9687f36ad12c63f4c70" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" /><p>Let's look back at how the Spanish flu first got its start. </p><p>It was the fall of 1918 and the First Great War in Europe was just winding down. Americans had been shipped overseas and were helping assist the Allies as they fought against the Germans. Soldiers around the globe dug out and wintered through trenches in horrible and brutal conditions. They had probably thought they'd seen the worst of things by this point. </p><p>Lurking just somewhere over the horizon, however, was one of the deadliest flus the world would ever face. </p><p>Over a third of the world's population became infected. Erupting in pockets around the globe the outbreaks swept through Asia, Europe, Africa and America by bustling trade routes. Many also suspected rapid troop movement assisted in the spread of the disease. Around 675,000 Americans died of influenza during the two year pandemic. </p><p>The intensity and speed in which the pandemic struck was unfathomable at the time. With over 500 million people infected and an estimated 50 million deaths worldwide, the global death toll eclipsed even World War I casualties. The disease is not "Spanish" in origin per say, but because of wartime censorship in other countries, Spain was the first to report of the pandemic. </p><p>Our most recent flu seasons pale in comparison to the great plight wrought from the Spanish flu.</p>Latest trends in America’s flu seasons
<p>For the most part, vaccinations, antibiotics and better global hygiene has drastically reduced the effects of influenza and other associated diseases. But viruses never rest — and they never stop evolving. </p><p>Officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have estimated that a preliminary figure of last year's winter flu season was around 80,000 deaths. This figure may be revised, but it's unlikely the numbers will go down. Dr. Daniel Jernigan, a CDC flu expert, believes that the deaths were higher than usual because there are both more Americans and more elderly people now.</p><p>Luckily, Jernigan believes that <a href="http://www.who.int/influenza/surveillance_monitoring/updates/latest_update_GIP_surveillance/en/" target="_blank">next year's flu season </a>is stacking up to be both a milder strain and also more receptive to vaccination. "We don't know what's going to happen," he said, "but we're seeing more encouraging signs than we were early last year."</p><p>While we might be all right for the upcoming flu season. Others warn that a hidden virus could jumpstart a new global pandemic.<br></p>The U.S is not ready for a major pandemic
<p>One of the worst case scenarios in the short term, could be the release of a hidden, lethal and highly infectious flu strain that breaks out into a crowded city. According to the John Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health, this would be devastating for an unprepared city that lacked a strong public health infrastructure.</p><p>A fast moving virus could hitch a ride from one city to a next and spread internationally before health officials even knew what hit humanity. Scientists at John Hopkins believe that avian influenza viruses pose the greatest risk if they evolve into deadlier strains. Amesh Adalja from the Center of Healthy Security at John Hopkins states: "In terms of pandemic potential, an avian influenza virus is thought to be a likely candidate, based on prior pandemics."</p><p>Yet, there are safeguards that didn't exist 100 years ago we can use to preemptively ward off a potential flu pandemic. </p><p>For example we can:</p><ul><li>Improve vaccine research and deployment. Funding for high-priority vaccines is a must to create herd immunity. </li><li>Increase pandemic preparation funding. Public health officials need to be able to deal with a multiple of infected at once.</li><li>Create a global response network that can quickly intervene in a pandemic. For example, the World Health Organization (WHO) needs a counterpart that can take action once any kind of pandemic has been declared. </li></ul><p>The more we do to combat these diseases now, the less risk we have for another worldwide pandemic later.</p>
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The Evidence Is Overwhelming—Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism
Anti-vaxxers may have a friend coming into the White House, and medical experts are worried.
13 January, 2017
A doctor vaccinates a child.
A small but tenacious group of parents and others who are against vaccines may soon enjoy support from the White House, a fact that is causing health experts alarm. Since 2000, a small but tenacious group of parents have refused to vaccinate their children and advocate against it, believing that the contents cause autism. Because of this, cases of measles, whooping cough, and mumps have increased dramatically, illnesses which medical science was thought to have under control, and in the case of measles, nearly wiped out.
<p>Now they’re back with a vengeance, as <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-to-meet-with-proponent-of-debunked-tie-between-vaccines-and-autism/2017/01/10/4a5d03c0-d752-11e6-9f9f-5cdb4b7f8dd7_story.html?utm_term=.815444daa47c" target="_blank" title="The Washington Post ">a 2015 outbreak of measles at Disney World </a>suggests, and anti-vaccinators may be to blame. Not only does the trend hurt individual children, but it weakens herd immunity effect. There will always be those with compromised immune systems and other natural impediments to vaccination. But if everyone around them is vaccinated, they are by default protected. The herd immunity effect weakens however with each child left unvaccinated.</p> <p>Recently, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who is a known vaccination skeptic, met with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in Manhattan. Kennedy suggested that Trump tapped him to lead <a href="http://hub.jhu.edu/2017/01/11/vaccines-autism-public-health-expert/" target="_blank" title="Johns Hopkins University">a panel on vaccines</a>. Quizzically, just after this meeting, a spokesperson for Trump assured the press that no one had been selected for the position just yet.</p> <p>Meanwhile, Kennedy told reporters he had been offered and accepted the position. In the past, Kennedy has supported an exemption for parents against vaccination, as it’s illegal in most states not to vaccinate your kids. According to Kennedy, mercury additives in vaccines cause autism, and big pharma, the government, and the media have all conspired to keep this from the public. </p> <p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODMzODM2Ni9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYwNDY5MDQ1M30.x9cheLpeHxNbtUxJAusWH4arQKQCPNGH1IfNaRKFtOE/img.jpg?width=980" id="779b0" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="15c4f8822d5815e4debb5fb3dcabe471" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"><br><em>Robert Kennedy, Jr. talks to reporters outside of Trump Tower in Manhattan.</em></p> <p>Not only have vaccine myths been debunked, backing an anti-vaccine agenda runs counter to the government’s own stance, as well as that of the medical establishment. There already exists a federal advisory committee on immunization. These are medical experts and public health professionals who weigh in on vaccine-related issues from time to time.</p> <p>Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, Peter Hotez, told<em> The Washington Post </em>that few could be less qualified than Kennedy for a vaccine commissionership. Hotez also said that there is overwhelming evidence that no link between autism and vaccinations exists. There isn’t “…even any plausibility for a link,” he said. <a href="http://hub.jhu.edu/2017/01/11/vaccines-autism-public-health-expert/" target="_blank" title="Johns Hopkins University">Daniel Salmon</a> is an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He's also the deputy director of the school’s Institute for Vaccine Safety.</p> <p>Salmon said that, “Vaccines are very safe and very effective.” They offer a high level of protection. Most are “80-99% effective.” Meanwhile, according to Salmon, negative effects are very rare. Because of this, vaccinating children should be one of the simplest decisions parents make, not only to protect the child but other vulnerable people in society.</p> <p><img type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8xODMzODM2Ny9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY0MjU1MDM5NH0.XY-Y8kuhVOOBYVZ8u71csRPS6H4clYifg1gZ-ZdcThw/img.jpg?width=980" id="a1c3d" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="3e144679da6f7508e6ac23480825a154" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image"><br><em>Newborns and small children can get up to 200 vaccines. But the advantages far outweigh the risks.</em></p> <p>In the case of an adverse reaction, the most common side effects are soreness at the injection area, a lack of energy and in some cases, a low-grade fever. In very, very rare cases, a febrile seizure can occur. These may look worrisome, but they do not cause any long-term effects. As for a connection with autism itself, 13 studies of the highest caliber have been conducted. All turned up bupkis. The CDC, Institute of Medicine, American Academy of Pediatrics, and many other esteemed medical organizations regularly assess such studies. Hotez called the pile of evidence against vaccines causing autism “massive.”</p> <p>Kennedy is hardly the only celebrity anti-vaxxer out there. Count Jenny McCarthy and Jim Carrey among them. And Trump himself has made statements supporting the movement. During the 2015 Republican Presidential Debate, Trump said he witnessed it himself. “We had so many instances,” he said, “people that work for me, just the other day, two years old, a beautiful child, went to have the vaccine and came back and a week later got a tremendous fever, got very, very sick, now is autistic.”</p> <p>Oddly enough, former neurosurgeon and housing and urban development (HUD) nominee, Dr. Benjamin Carson, on that very same stage, noted the overwhelming evidence against vaccines causing autism. So what is the fear, if anti-vaxxers grow in number or are allowed more leeway? It could increase the infection and transmission of diseases such as the flu, pertussis or whooping cough, measles, and many others.</p> <p>To hear what geneticist Michael Wigler thinks of vaccines causing autism, click here: </p> <p><span style="display:block;position:relative;padding-top:56.25%;" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="33711e0ee31d6d6bdb2443e5022253c3"><iframe type="lazy-iframe" data-runner-src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/IVBz1-26prg?rel=0" width="100%" height="auto" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;"></iframe></span></p>
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