For more than a decade, a suggested link between childhood vaccinations and autism has caused an outcry amongst many parents and autism advocates. A study in 1998 by Dr. Andrew Wakefield proposed a possible link between children with the disorder and the measles-mumps-rubella shot. It was suggested that the mercury, or thimerosal in the vaccine caused “widespread” neurological damage resulting in autism. Now experts are saying the link doesn’t exist.
As the mother of a son with autism, I have never agreed with the theory that immunizations caused his autism. My son Kyle had unique behaviors and some physical anomalies from birth (and earlier), including a high-pitched squeal instead of a cry, and a skull circumference which measured as slightly large with a disproportionately small chin. Even Kyle’s positioning in the womb was unusual. He was in a breech presentation, with one leg up and the other bent down, and had a large birth weight—ten pounds one ounce. I recognize that other parents of children with autism may not have observed these traits in their newborns. But for me, Kyle was a curious bundle from the start. He came into the world with his own unique style, and has remained a distinctive individual all throughout his life. I have never felt that a “poisoning from thimerosal” hypothesis makes sense in his case, or in the case of others. Injecting a toxic chemical into a child would, in my opinion, cause across-the-board damage, and could not “rewire” the brain, creating both areas of genius and disability.
A recent medical review board has determined that Wakefield’s 1998 study included falsified data. The board ruled that Dr. Wakefield’s practices were improper, and that he disregarded the well-being of his patients. They also found his funding sources to be suspicious. Dr. Wakefield has denied that any improper practices took place, however, the British Medical Journal has retracted his study, and medical experts are saying it should “never have been published” in the first place. Dr. Susan Levy, director of the Regional Autism Center at Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia has stated that due to the numerous recent studies which have been conducted, she is “very comfortable” with the conclusion that immunizing children has not caused autism.
What is of particular interest to me is the need many parents still have to cling to the vaccines-cause-autism theory, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Jenny McCarthy, a long-time advocate for autism and the mother of a son with the condition, has spoken out in defense of Dr. Wakefield and still insists that “over-vaccination” has caused the neurological damage resulting in autism. Parents are refusing to vaccinate their children out of fear, leading to recent outbreaks in measles and mumps.
Perhaps the need to hold on to that belief is it makes the complex, mysterious disorder of autism a little less frightening. If immunizations were causing autism, we could “cure” it by simply refusing to vaccinate. We could “save” children by withholding a few shots. If only it were so simple. Unfortunately, even after removing thimerosal from vaccines, the number of children diagnosed with autism has not decreased.
In my view, it’s more likely that autism is connected to auto-immune illness. Researchers have documented the existence of particular auto-antibodies in the blood of autistic people, including some which appear to be against certain regions of the brain. This concept needs further exploration. One thing is clear—until research can give us ironclad answers, autism will remain a mystifying and challenging reality for many families.
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