I thought these things might be clues.

Autisim caused by Vacines?

By thaddeusphoenix on Apr 24, 2009 at 4:06 PM 11 Vote 0 Votes

I just got back from going down the rabbit hole with this toppic. After reading a post by Jim Carey at HufPo, I followed arguements and tyrades across the blog sphere. Anyone care to give me a quick history of this conspiricy theory?

11 Replies

| Add a Reply

Andyo | April 24, 2009 4:30 PM | Reply

Desperate parents trying to blame something (scary Big Pharma... ooooh) and unscrupulous assholes trying to make a buck out of it. Pretty much sums it all. Lemme know if I missed something, tried to be as thorough as possible.
Zaphod for President | April 24, 2009 6:44 PM | Reply

Dr. Paul Offit: Debunking the Vaccine-Autism Link

The Original Vaccine/Autism Study Debunked

JREF forum (great for debunking myths and conspiracy theory)
thaddeusphoenix | April 27, 2009 10:46 AM | Reply

Thanks for the links! Thankfully I haven't ran into anyone off-line that is suckered into this. But I wanted to be ready. Andyo, thanks for that description!
Andyo | April 28, 2009 12:13 AM | Reply

I've read good things about Offit's book. I myself might get it in the future.
gypsy sister | May 5, 2009 9:06 PM | Reply

Heading home - but the occasional active fundamentalist Christian who's against vaccines (and all their ills doncha know) found his/her way to accuse autism on vaccines.
RedSeven | May 5, 2009 11:02 PM | Reply

I think it is more complicated then just assholes and conspiracy theories.

The Theory that a jump in late 90's autism was caused by a late 80's change in vaccinations.

A study was done.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3643676.stm

That article mostly lampoons the study as bogus. The non scientific language in there sort of bother's me a little.

Small studies have done that disprove a cause and effect relationship between vaccine and Autism, but don't necessarily address a correlation.

The parents and Anti-vax people take this lack of large scale studies as an insulting brush-off.

The reason there seems to be no large scale studies is two fold. The science on diagnosis seems to be pretty bad and the scope of the disorder seems to be increasing over time and also, big studies are expensive and drug companies are trying to find ways to make vaccines more profitable, not less.

But small studies have shown no direct cause and effect which at the very least shows the vaccines are less likely to cause something then they are to prevent something. And parents should stop risking their kids health and accept that drug companies don't really care if they feel comfortable.

Finding a trend of increase in autism cases would be a good bit of knowledge to have if one was trying to track down the actual cause of autism and I have yet to see a study that really shows the mercury compound in vaccines isn't a potential factor for worsening symptoms.

The lives of children seem to make both sides rather emotional and unable to hear the other side.

I think the clip in the following post shows both sides using very emotional arguments.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3643676.stm
- Andyo replied to RedSeven | May 6, 2009 12:42 AM | Reply
  
  A study was done. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3643676.stm That article mostly lampoons the study as bogus. The non scientific language in there sort of bother's me a little.
  
  The non-scientific language in where? The article? Wakefield and his bogus study has been amply discredited throughout the scientific community.
  
  And all the vaccine-autism culture can be tracked to that study. It's like people don't even care that he's a fake, the religion based on nothing is already established. Like L. Ron Hubbard was a convicted conman and failed science fiction writer, but do scientologists even care?
  - RedSeven replied to Andyo | May 6, 2009 8:04 AM | Reply
    
    No you are right, there is actually only one line in there that get me..
    
    There have been many studies examining the safety of MMR since 1998. All have concluded that the three-in-one jab is safe.
    
    Studies don't find something safe, they rule out certain potential problems. Studies have shown that vaccines don't cause autism, not that they cause no real risks. It's not a crash test program. maybe I am wrong or at least just nit picking.
Erick | May 5, 2009 11:43 PM | Reply

A scientist weighs in on the issue of: Do Vaccines Cause Autism? (Youtube)
- gypsy sister replied to Erick | May 7, 2009 9:31 AM | Reply
  
  Erick, Thanks for posting this link. Because I try not to take meds for every ailment that comes my way*, the initial claims that vaccines may have a cause and effect relationship with autism sparked my interest. When it became evident that these claims were bogus, that was the end of my interest.
  
  Unfortunately some people just will not let this go. That is too bad, because they could be spending their efforts more wisely toward real causes, such as the gene identified in the Amish community. sigh
  
  *Meds are available for a reason: people need them. My problem is with those who take a pill to solve an ailment and then go about business as usual when they should be staying home and recuperating. Sometimes the pill isn't even a necessity to better health, but this is a tangent for another discussion.
- RedSeven replied to Erick | May 7, 2009 11:46 AM | Reply
  
  Great Video Erik. Summarized some data I had not seen before and removed a few misconceptions I had.
  
  Much better refutation then I have seen elsewhere.