Posted by
Havefaith
15 yrs ago
I have recently seen a program on BBC discussing that there are doctors who believe MMR vacination can cause autism. I am ofcourse very concerned because my daughter is 9 months old and should be receiving the MMR vacination in 3 months' time. We can opt not to give it to her but she can die if she gets MM or R. As such, we are thinking not giving the vacination to her until she can speak. Please share your experience/understanding. Thank you.
HF
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788
15 yrs ago
Another article.... a very good read.
http://www.wired.com/magazine/2009/10/ff_waronscience/
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One has to remember that these programs want viewers. They will always seek the headline.
There is always a risk with any vaccine. However as you pointed out yourself she can die if she doesn't get the vaccine. The risk of not getting the vaccine is much greater. It is interesting to note how H1N1 vaccine is also surrounded by a miasma of unfounded myths.
As I recall in his case, there was never any conclusive evidence of a link to autism, and there was certainly a lot of investigation.
Personally, I hope Jenny McCarthy some day gets to face the parents of those kids who have died and will continue to die because they listened to her and did not get the shots for their children.
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The MMR injection has been proved scientifically to have no link with Autism. Children are more likely to suffer long term dissability or even death if the catch Measles, Mumps or Rubella, whilst these diseases are mild in some children, the side effects of the illnesses can be devastating.
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Make sure you make an informed choice:
try http://www.patient.co.uk/health/MMR-Immunisation.htm and www.mmrthefacts.nhs.uk.
The study linking MMR and autism was completely discredited- no link was found.
We do know for a fact that these illnesses can be extremely unpleasant and can sometimes (but not often) be very dangerous (for example death from measles is not unknown, even in developed countries)
I'm a dr with a toddler and looked into the evidence as fully as I could and made a decision- my child is vaccinated.
This is such a difficult decision and it is a very personal one- often you feel guilty whatever you do! Try to find a friendly family doctor who can talk through options and implications with you.
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hmm
15 yrs ago
The UK based Dr. who asserted this in the first place has been widely discredited and, I believe, barred from practice. Enough said.
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cd
15 yrs ago
My friend who is in the medical profession, said that they are now looking into a link between lack of vitamin D and autism, not the MMR vaccine. That said I have actually met children who have been left severly disabled by vaccines, (not mmr), so personally have chosen my own agenda when it comes to vaccines. i.e i gave them the mmr vaccines separately, and the other ones I spaced out to my own scedule so they were not getting 7 at once.
Read all you can about all vaccines and make the decision that you feel comfortable with.
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I was a strong opponent of the MMR because I heard all these rumors and thought "better safe than sorry" - however after a lot of own research I have found that:
the original study, which linked the MMR to autism was done a) on a very small patient group (12 children, thereof 9 autistic) and the results were in no way scientifically sound - Dr. Andrew Wakefield, who did said study got PAID OVER 400.000 GBP to "prove" that the vaccine was unsafe. After this was uncovered he retracted the "study".
Basically - it was a sham, but unfortunately these rumours are still "in the wild" and get passed on, simply because it's so easy to frighten parents when it comes to their child's health and safety ...
read this if you need to know more:
http://briandeer.com/mmr-lancet.htm
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Yes, my GP, who was also a mother of small children, recommended spreading the load, so to speak. My daughter was about 2+ when she got the MMR. I think if you live in such a densely populated place as HK, it's better to get the vaccinations sooner or later, as it's very easy for kids to pick up bugs etc.
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ptk
15 yrs ago
OP-I understood how you are feeling right now as I was also worried sick when it came to MMR a few years ago, I opted for separate MMR, but unfortunately they were no longer available, so I decided to delay the shot till my children were around 2+ and had them vaccinated with the combined MMR, I also waited till they were able to speak.
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Its certainly worrying that there is an increase in Autism, Japan banned the triple vaccine years ago but still has a similar rate of Autism as everywhere else.
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Wise words cara. Certainly society changes over time, but it seems to be that it hasn't changed enough in a short time to explain the increases in autism and ADHD.
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For me there is no proof. All my children had MMR and are fine. I am believer of the benefits outweighing the risks. However, I did delay the MMR for my twins until 18 months. My oldest just had her second dose. But, they never had adverse reactions to vaccines.
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I see that no-one who has responded thusfar, has a kid who has suffered vaccine injury resulting in autism. Nonetheless, they all appear to have pretty strong views on how there is no scientific link. I'd like to hear their explanation on what happened to my child. Not every child is sensitive to the thimerosol (mercury)/aluminium often found in the preservatives used for many vaccines. My young son was a few years back and he got nailed with mercury poisoning and an autism diagnosis after becoming mute following MMR and flu shots over a period of 2-3 months. It has taken years of detox and other medical interventions to recover him. I am grateful to have him back, but many others have not been so lucky. For his sister I have been more careful, choosing to have her vaccinated not with the combo shot, but with single vaccines confirmed to be thimerosol-free and spacing the shots farther apart to buffer vaccine trauma. Since everyone seems to recommend a book here, I've got one for you "Evidence of Harm" by David Kirby.
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Until 2001, some childhood vaccines included thimerosal, a preservative containing ethylmercury. (Thimerosal isn’t gone from all vaccines — it’s still present in some influenza formulations. But none of the vaccines routinely required for school admission contains thimerosal as a preservative.) Mercury, of course, can cause neurological damage. But there’s scientific consensus that the amount once used in vaccines — around 50 micrograms per 0.5-ml dose — was far short of toxic. And autism rates have continued to climb, suggesting that there’s either a different cause or, more likely, that a better understanding of the condition has increased diagnoses. A comprehensive review of the research, conducted in 2004 by the prestigious Institute of Medicine, found no evidence of a connection between vaccines and autism. None.
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Without addressing autism specifically, do vaccines sometimes cause harm and adverse reaction - yes unequivocably. Family/genetic history has been highlighted as a contributory factor and as I do not have full transparency as to my children's history, I have chosen to spread the load across a longer period of time, get MMR as single shots (Measles and Rubella are available in HK currently, Mumps potentially in 2010) and will not administer preventitive flu shots.
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There are vaccinations that do not have a high importance to public health, sure.
But when parents are getting so panicked that overall immunization rates fall dramatically and in certain clustered locations up to 10% of kids are not immunized against diseases that actually KILL or CRIPPLE children ... then we're getting a serious public health problem - where the willingness of a few to embrace a hypothetical anti vaccine pseudo-science endangers not only their own kids - but everyone's.
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We are living in a world where there has been a dramatic increase in the vaccination schedule and a subsequent explosion in the autism rate. A once rare disorder is now so common that everyone knows someone with an autistic child and no one can reasonably tell us why. Health officials, heavily tied to the pharmaceutical industry, keep producing studies that show no link between their vaccines and the autism numbers.
In the U.S. , the latest autism rate is one in every 91 children, one in every 58 boys. In Britain , the rate is one in every 60 kids, one in every 38 boys. We are told this is just "better diagnosing" and an expanded spectrum of autistic disorders, but makes no sense that the numbers keep going up. Five years ago the rate was one in every 166 children. By 2009, the rate should have stabilized, but it continues to get worse.
This report was published about court rulings on vaccine damageMMR Causes Autism – Another Win In US Federal Court
http://childhealthsafety.wordpress.com/2009/06/14/juliawinsmmrcase/ June 14, 2009:
“CBS News has found that since 1988, the vaccine court has awarded money judgments, often in the millions of dollars, to thirteen hundred and twenty two families whose children suffered brain damage from vaccines. In many … cases, the government paid out awards following a judicial finding that vaccine injury lead to the child’s autism spectrum disorder”
Please watch this video and hear from parents about how vaccines damaged their children.
http://video.aol.co.uk/video-detail/brian-deer-dr-andrew-wakefield-mmr-vaccine-film-not-nb/1661126182
Finally, here’s a news story by Dr Peter Fletcher, who was the Chief Scientific Officer in the UK , on the safety of the MMR.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-376203/Former-science-chief-MMR-fears-coming-true.html
Dr. Fletcher said, ‘There are very powerful people in positions of great authority in Britain and elsewhere who have staked their reputations and careers on the safety of MMR and they are willing to do almost anything to protect themselves.’
He left us with the haunting comment, ‘The refusal by governments to evaluate the risks properly will make this one of the greatest scandals in medical history.’
Anne Dachel Media editor: Age of Autism http://www.ageofautism.com/
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well ..first it was thimerosal that was the root of all evil and "caused autism". then thimerosal was gone, but the autism rates refused to decline.
And the reaction of the "vaccine causes autism" scaremongers was: then it has to be the new ingredient, the aluminium salts. Or the amount of vaccines given. Or the amount of vaccines combined into one single shot...Or, Or, Or.. they just keep moving the goalposts, as one "cause" is scientifically disproved they find a different one.
And, on a sidenote: ... quoting the "Daily Mail" - THE most scaremongering "today we're all gonna die of ... XYZ!" newspaper in the United Kingdom doesn't make it more credible either...
anyways, I'll retreat from this discussion. Everybody has the right to make up their own mind, but I generally prefer to be on the side of science and logic than fear and disinformation.
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teme
15 yrs ago
Hi, there are options , as opposed to Mmr, you can do the immunisations separately, most will tell you otherwise ..but I have investigated and now know that it is posible. I did not have my daughter immunised. I had very serious concerns and spoke to a doctor who told me " MMR is a social vaccination. Mumps is to protect the adult male population, rubella is to protect pregnant females, mesales is to protect your child"....based on this I did not have my daughter vaccinated. I have now found out that my daughter can be vaccinated seperateley for rubella and measeles. I am not against vaccinations, I just do not like the cocktails, which are very new.
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Yo FlyBoyHK, it's easy for you to discredit a vaccination link backed up by articles or findings by "prestigious" institutions. Bear in mind there are equally vocal distinguished critics from the medical and scientific community arguing otherwise. It took a long time for governments and the medical establishment to endorse a connection between tobacco and cancer because of medical and scientific evidence produced by the Tobacco Lobby. For decades the Tobacco industry were successful in convincing the world otherwise. No-one ever said some vaccinations are "the " cause " of autism, just "a" cause. The rates of Autism continues to increase because of multiple factors/causes which continue to be identified: the removal of thimerasol (only in some countries; some outsourced manufacturers have not complied)alone will not do the trick. Some children have a unique sensitivity towards some vaccines and associated preservatives, but yet most doctors do not test for this sensitivity beforehand because they buy the low dosage argument. I believe your contention that supporters of a link move goalposts or come up with new causes when some scientific authority descredits it is an unfair one. Vaccine injury courts in the U.S. have been making awards for years, but they go through great lengths to seal the court records: interesting, to say the least. Andrew Wakefield mentioned in a response above is actually coming for a talk in Hong Kong next May. Probably worth judging yourself whether his views are a "sham" instead of relying on media or establishment (Pharma) efforts to discredit him. Incidently, the British Medical Council has yet to establish conclusive evidence to take his medical license away. Nice try.The council also was forced to drop a case against another woman doctor last year expressing the same views. You're right though Flyboy, everyone has to come their own conclusions after checking out both sides of the argument and making the effort to ask the relevant questions. I would be wary if you can identify reasonable alternatives and your doctor will not support or explain well why not.
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Puti
15 yrs ago
Just a small note - the second MMR is a booster. A simple blood test will tell you if the first MMR took and if they indeed need a second shot. Neither of my children needed a second MMR. It helped that we were having blood tests for an unrelated matter, the doctor just added that to the tests.
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Hi
Thanks for input - definitely a controversial issue. Can I ask what ages were the children that developed Autism? How long ago did they get the shots? Do you know if thimerosal was present in the MMR shots?
We are thinking of seperate shots at a older age when our LOL is already talking.
Thanks again.
HF
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MMR scare doctor 'acted unethically', panel finds
The doctor who first suggested a link between MMR vaccinations and autism acted unethically, the official medical regulator has found.
Dr Andrew Wakefield's 1998 Lancet study caused vaccination rates to plummet, resulting in a rise in measles - but the findings were later discredited.
The General Medical Council ruled he had acted "dishonestly and irresponsibly" in doing his research.
.......
'Callous disregard'
The verdict, read out by panel chairman Dr Surendra Kumar, criticised Dr Wakefield for the invasive tests, such as spinal taps, that were carried out on children and which were found to be against their best clinical interests.
The panel said Dr Wakefield, who was working at London's Royal Free Hospital as a gastroenterologist at the time, did not have the ethical approval or relevant qualifications for such tests.
The GMC also took exception with the way he gathered blood samples. Dr Wakefield paid children £5 for the samples at his son's birthday party.
Dr Kumar said he had acted with "callous disregard for the distress and pain the children might suffer".
He also said Dr Wakefield should have disclosed the fact that he had been paid to advise solicitors acting for parents who believed their children had been harmed by the MMR.
full article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8483865.stm
=====================================
Lancet accepts MMR study 'false'
Experts say MMR is completely safe
The medical journal which originally published the discredited research linking autism and MMR has now issued a full retraction of the paper.
The Lancet said it now accepted claims made by the researchers were "false".
full article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8493753.stm
========================
"He also failed to disclose that he had applied for a patent on a single measles vaccine nine months before publication of The Lancet paper, which the panel found was "contrary to his duties" as its senior author."
full article:
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/damning-verdict-on-doctor-who-linked-mmr-with-autism-1882547.html
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Ban for doctor at heart of MMR vaccine row
Yesterday, 12:17 pm
Reuters Kate Kelland, Health and Science Correspondent
A doctor whose claims of links between vaccination and autism triggered a scientific storm before being widely discredited was struck off the medical register Monday for professional misconduct.
Dr Andrew Wakefield's 1998 study led many parents to refuse to have their children vaccinated with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) shot and has been blamed for a big rise in measles cases in the United States and parts of Europe in recent years.
A disciplinary panel of the General Medical Council (GMC) found that Wakefield had acted in a "dishonest," "misleading" and "irresponsible" way during his research.
The ruling means Wakefield, who now lives and works in the United States, can no longer practise as a doctor in Britain, but can continue to work in medicine outside the UK.
His paper, published in The Lancet medical journal but since widely discredited, caused one of the biggest medical rows in a generation.
"The panel has determined that Dr Wakefield's name should be erased from the medical register," the GMC said in a statement.
Wakefield had failed to disclose various details about the funding of the study -- a failure the GMC described as "dishonest and misleading" -- and had acted "contrary to the clinical interests" of the children involved in his research.
Striking Wakefield off the medical register was "the only sanction that is appropriate to protect patients" and was in the wider public interest. It was also "proportionate to the serious and wide-ranging findings made against him," the statement said.
Data released last February for England and Wales showed a rise in measles cases of more than 70 percent in 2008 from the previous year, mostly due to a fall in the number of children being vaccinated. Vaccination rates are now recovering.
Terence Stephenson, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said the false suggestion of a link between autism and the MMR vaccine had caused "untold damage" to vaccination programs.
"We cannot stress too strongly that all children and young people should have the MMR vaccine. Overwhelming scientific evidence shows that it is safe," he said in a statement.
Wakefield defended his work, and said the GMC had sought to deny that the case against him was related to whether the vaccine was safe, and specifically, whether it caused autism.
"Efforts to discredit and silence me through the GMC process have provided a screen to shield the government from exposure on the ... MMR vaccine scandal," he said in a statement.
The GMC said his refusal to accept that he had made mistakes meant that a temporary suspension of Wakefield's licence was not enough and he should be banned altogether.
"Dr Wakefield's continued lack of insight as to his misconduct serve only to satisfy the panel that suspension is not sufficient and that his actions are incompatible with his continued registration as a medical practitioner," it said.
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A good thing, but unfortunately Dr. Wakefield's actions have scared a generation of parents. A crying shame that so many children will suffer due to his actions.
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The long-running MMR vaccine/autism debate has been fired up again by two recent court rulings ....
http://www.nyrnaturalnews.com/chemicals-2/2012/05/italian-court-rules-mmr-vaccine-did-trigger-autism/
And this study showing how infant monkeys given standard doses of vaccines develope austism symptoms adds a new twist to the debate .....
http://vran.org/in-the-news/infant-monkeys-given-standard-doses-of-vaccines-develop-autism-symptoms/
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