Saturday, February 19, 2011

Autism and Vaccines

This is a blog I’ve wanted to write for a long, long while.

I came home from my Doctors visit and re-hab the other day. I popped a pill, being in a 'little' pain and turned on the TV. On the TV there was Dr. Oz. I never watch this or any other day time talk show…but tune in this time I did as a sign from the God’s that this is what I was supposed to blog about.

Dr. Oz called it a national crisis...

I don’t have children with Autism, or any other issue for that matter other than ‘smart mouth syndrome’.
My children were all adopted, see 'Adoption, Yes, I have a serious side’, blog if you want to know their and my story of how we became a family.
My children never had prenatal care, were not breast fed and all had their vaccines on time.
I can count the ear infections they ALL had on one hand. Illness is not rampant in my home. I don’t have hand sanitizer all over the place (all though my Ex does). They play outside and get dirty.

I do however have many friends with children that have Autism.
There are several varying degrees of Autism. I’m not going to get into the details because the degrees are SO VAST! One type and probably the most common kind is Aspergers.

In 1943 psychiatrist Lea Kanner, ‘discovered’ Autism. At about the same time Hans Asperger described a comparable syndrome.  I only put it in quotes because it was always there, they just put a name to something. It did not become a widely used as a diagnosis until the 1990’s as doctors became more aware and educated.

I like to describe Aspergers as a mild form of Autism where the children have a difficult time communicating, making eye contact and feeling empathy for others and also usually but not always have an odd fascination and knowledge about one subject. Think ‘Rain Man’, yet less pronounced.

What causes Autism and how can we stop it from happening?
Those are two of the biggest questions people have….and if your chid is diagnosed with Autism, “How can I stop this, make them better, improve their life standard?”
I do not pretend to comprehend what they deal with on a daily basis.

There are three major schools of thought as to what does cause autism…

Vaccines
Environment
...and conceiving a child after the age of 35 women.
If you are over the age of 35 should you have a child? The risks are there, this is a fact. You increase the risks of having a child with Autism by 30%.

Our society has a perpetual belief that everything can be blamed or explained.

I’m only going to focus on vaccines as our environment is fucked up but the passion with concerns to vaccines is prevalent and indisputably dangerous.

Vaccinations…

There are some people out there that refuse to get their children vaccinated for reasons of fright (not right). They are afraid their child will be the one out of however many that will have the side effects of vaccinations and something dreadful will happen.
Yes, this may happen but the chances are miniscule. So I say bullshit, you are putting others at risk. To rid disease we must eradicate it. To eradicate it you must have 95 out of 100 people vaccinated or this will not work.
You can find any conclusion you WANT if you dedicate a little time on the internet. (As I just have.) Pharmaceutical companies do study vaccines as do Doctors and Scientists. Yes, Pharmaceutical companies want to make money…this is not about that...

The main reason parents don’t vaccinate their children with the MMR (Measles, Mumps and Rubella)…is because a few Doctors/Scientists have done studies that suggest it is linked to cause Autism. One very publicized study was done by Andrew Wakefield in 1997. It’s 2011 now, that was 14 years ago. Parent’s started running scared…
…In the Netherlands on June 21, 1999 there was a Measles outbreak at an Orthodox Reformed Elementary School. 5 cases were diagnosed by a General Practitioner. 2 days later the Head Master of the school informed the Public Health Service that 80 of the 412 students were home sick. They found that only 7% of the children had been vaccinated.

Andrew Wakefield had to retract and admit his is study was falsified. Completely and utterly it was FALSE!


There have been over 1500 papers and studies written stating that Thimerosal is toxic and we have been putting it in our bodies for decades. They also link it to the rise in Autism.
Thimerosal is a Mercury based preservative found in some vaccines. Mercury is poison. In 1999, as a precautionary measure the Public Health Service agencies, the American Academy of Pediatrics and vaccine manufacturers agreed that thimerosal should be reduced or eliminated from vaccines.
I think this is a great idea.
The University of Calgary states that the "United States is in the midst of a tragic epidemic". The study goes on to say that it is NOT due to changes in diagnosis, population changes or environment. Bullshit yet again.

A Doctor on Dr. Oz, a female, said something very smart…
...”Not getting your children vaccinated is the same as driving with them in your car hoping you don’t get in a car accident.”


5200 cases in 1991 rose to 19,200 in 1995. Before the ’90’s autism was not widely diagnosed. Changes in the definition of Autism have led to more children becoming diagnosed within a greater range.

The MMR, containing thimerosal had been given to children in the US from 1971 till 1990’s.  During the time the MMR vaccine that contained thimersoal was given there were less cases of Autism diagnosed…AFTER it was taken out, all the sudden was an ‘epidemic’…


What if you thought of Autism from a different point of view…the one they DIDN’T discuss on Dr. Oz?

Children become aware of themselves and make dramatic changes in social and speech behavior around the age of 12 months…around the same time the MMR vaccine is given.

I have the answer.
It’s a simple one, yet sad.

Children used to be just called, ‘retarded’ or ’slow'…LONG BEFORE vaccines and the environment changed. Some people think of the word retarded as hateful. I don’t think they meant it to be poisonous. It was just a different time.
The word retard just means…slow. It’s not demeaning, but it did turn into a hurtful word out of the mouths of unsympathetic beings.

Why do people say there is an epidemic of Autism?
Autism is not an epidemic.
Something finally has a name and the only epidemic is that of education.
Education is a GOOD thing.

Children with Autism ARE different. They learn differently than their Peers. Understanding that they learn differently can improve their chances in society. They just need a chance.

If you are a parent with an Autistic child I want you to know I support you.
I’m sorry if you want an answer. Sometimes there isn’t a reason or something/someone to blame. We are just born the way we are born.

If I am ever found to be wrong in my opinion and there is real definitive proof (not internet crap) as to why so many children have Autism now, I will be the first to raise my hand and say I am wrong.



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