Let's first get this out there: Major studies have been done trying to find a link between childhood vaccines and autism and they have not found any connection. Still, thousands of families argue that their child's autism was caused by a vaccination... or more specifically, a mercury-rich preservative that used to be found in many vaccines called thimerosal. And this week, they get their day in court... a special federal vaccine court, that could give families access to compensation. There are so many questions flying around out there about this, so today we grabbed two experts, and will take your questions about the debate over autism and vaccines. Post them here, and we'll ask the experts in a Q&A...
Blog of the Nation
My first thought on hearing the story is that this is a classic misunderstanding between correlation and causality.
Kids all get vaccinated at around the same age, and that age may happen to be the same time at which symptoms of autism manifest.
Doesn???t it seem funny to anybody else that there???s such an outbreak of Autism?
Not so long ago, kids who displayed characteristics of what is now being called ???autism??? were called shy or introverted. I don???t think there are any more true autism cases than any other period in time, just more people using the word to describe what used to be considered normal behavior.
There are many more bored mothers with too much time on their hands who want to find problems where there are none.
Parents are just asking for Thimrosol be removed from vaccines.
Think of folks asking for seatbelts in cars....
You can have your child tested for mercury poisoning. We sent a hair sample in for my autistic son. It came back negative, but with high levels of aluminum and titanium. Traditional doctors won't touch this sort of a thing. They're the ones that recommended the vaccines. You will need to go to a alternative or wholistic doctor.
You can treat mercury poisoning. If you child has been diaagnosed with autism, have him tested.
I have two questions:
Is there a significant percentage of families who do not conect their child's autism with vaccinations?
Is there any information about rates of autism in countries or regions that do not receive these vaccinations?
Thank you!
My 52 year old brother is a high-functioning autistic person. He was born in 1955 before the MMR vaccine. In our family there have been several individuals with autistic behaviors, although like my brother when he was young, they were described as "slow," "shy" or "odd." That argues a genetic cause. As far the Amish are concerned, my brother and other family members likely would be fully-functioning in that kind of highly structured, very predictable and controllable closed community.
My son, who is now 22, had a horrible reaction to his fist vaccination shot as an infant. He was fine when we went in, and then shortly after we returned home from the pediatrician's office, he developed a fever, and lapsed into unconciousness. I was terrified, and rushed him to the hospital. Fortunately, he was revived, and recovered. At that time, the nurse in the emergency room pulled me aside, and advised me that my son had probably had a reaction to the vaccination. She also told me to make sure that he did not receive the "WHOOPING COUGH' part of the vaccine again, as she told me that it was suspected of causing brain damage and autism. At his next vaccine, I made sure that the WHOOPING COUGH portion was removed (although I had to sign waivers). My son never experienced that scary reaction again, all throughout his childhood vaccination schedule, and I will be forever grateful to that nurse, who went outside of the "politically correct" scientific rhetoric and very possibly saved my son. That is why these parents are doing this: NOT for money, but to warn other parents. There are plenty of things that science does not yet know the reasons for, and plenty of "folk remedies" and "Old Wive's tales" that have turned out to be true. I took offense at the cavalier, know-it-all tone of your first guest. Everything is NOT known about this subject, and there needs to be more research before more children are put at risk.
If only for the good PR, to encourage more parents to vaccinate their children, why is there resistance to using the flu vaccine that does not contain thimerasol, since mercury is a known neurotoxin? Why is there resistance to spreading out the dosages? If it is possible that children with autism may be immunocompromised and be more likely to react to a vaccine, would that not reassure more parents to vaccinate?
I'm no scientist, but my instincts tell me that when apologists go to such extremes to shoot down concerns like this one about mercury, one thing is certain: there's a problem with the mercury. When they compare the toxicity of mercury to water (!) I'm more convinced than ever that the experts know for sure that vaccines cause autism.
Mercury is toxic as water. Thanks for the heads-up, NPR.
I am amazed how one sided the guests of the show. There should have been experts from both sides invited. Just makes me more suspicious of the whole ordeal with the vaccines.
I am the mother of a 4 1/2 year old with autism. I don't know if vaccines contributed to his diagnosis (although we noticed he started to "drift away" the night of his MMR shot). But let's face facts -- can you imagine how much this will cost the manufacturers of vaccines if it is found that vaccines have contributed to autism (or any other medical condition, for that matter)? This could cost millions and millions of dollars to an INCREDIBLY POWERFUL industry with a powerful,powerful lobby! My son's little sister is receiving her vaccine's, but ONE SHOT AT A TIME! Parents are told that our children are supposed to be vaccinated for five, six, seven diseases at one time! How can that be good for ANYONE, much less a child?
Mothering Magazine's Jan/Feb 2006 issue is a special Autism Edition covers different treatments and vaccines that aren't represented on today's show.
Why does autism seem to be a disorder of white, middle (upper middle)class families? As a middle school teacher in an urban school district with a predominantly poor and minority student population, I rarely see poor and minority children diagnosed within the autism spectrum - it is usually white middle class children who have been identified.
As a parent of a 13 autistic girl (who has a typical twin) and an advocate, I think that the diagnostic criteria need updated. I work with some kids who have the dx, but present very differently than my daughter. I am frankly a little weary of the constant pity part some parents like to throw. Don't invite me, by the way, I love my kid just the wa she is.
Vaccines can be broken up into 1 or 2 per visit. Also vaccines are bundled for example MMR and these can be broken into individual vaccines. Yes kids need vaccines but not all at the same time. Parents can ask for them to be broken up.
Amongst all the uncertainty surrounding vaccines, parents needn't feel that their choices are limited to either vaccinating or not vaccinating.
For all of the reason outlined by the epxerts on your show, vaccinating is a critical component of a healthy childhood. However, it does not have to be done using the combined vaccines widely used by most pediatricians. Upon request, pediatricians will seperate out vaccines so that effectively, a child could receive only one dose of a vaccine against a specific illness at a time. While it takes longer to complete and requires more visits to the doctor, this has been the standard response to the vaccine dilemna by UK parents for about a decade now.
This is a behavior/thought process that is completely understandable. When something happens to you or your children's state of health, it is normal to look for something to blame. Things that just happen for a reason that is completely out of your power is hard to accept. I see this all the time from my many years (30) of working in a hospital. Unfortunately, I think our emotions override a logical explanation. While I have every compassion for those of you with autistic children (and I have a niece with a form of autism), I think blaming a vaccine for a complex condition that seems to be related to the function of the brain is an easy out. If the research is showing the signs of mercury poisoning are different, then I believe them.
I am an engineer and my children were vaccinated, that not withstanding history has proven that when ever there is a detectable trend in the public sector regarding a medical anomaly there is almost always some validity to the trend. Researchers would do well to take the approach that algebra takes, you can not prove something false you can only prove it true; if it can not be proven true then it must be false. Research should start out assuming the connection between Autism and Vaccinations is a fact and try to prove it. If there is no connection it will come out it the research. I know several retired family doctors who are certain that something in our modernized condition is causing an increase in Autism. If vaccinations are not the cause then what is, it is not increase diagnoses. If increase diagnoses were the case then clinicians of 50 years of age and greater would be able to identify that trend. Instead the fact is that members of the medical field are in agreement that there is an increase in Autism not related to increase diagnoses. The problem is real, no possibility for the cause should be ruled out.
Thank You
Rick Kazmierzak
Columbia SC
Come on Neil, nice way to go on the defensive when someone pointed out the obvious one-sidedness of this reporting. There ABSOLUTELY are credible experts on the other side of this issue that would have balanced this report and given your listeners valuable information with which to form opinions on this issue. This story should never have even hit the airwaves if NPR was not willing to report it from the perspective of the 4800 people who are finally being heard in court. It is unfortunate that the laws that allowed pharmaceutical companies to direct market to consumers also have enabled them to OWN the media. What news organization is going to risk losing their share of the pharma cash cow by reporting negatively about their sugar daddies? This is evident on all levels of media. I thought NPR was different, I guess I was wrong. This is depressing. I hope these families have better luck finding an audience in the vaccine court that is not already bought and paid for by the industry.
I do not have a connection with the family of an autistic child, but I was disturbed by the one-sidedness of this program and by Neil Conan's defense of your guest selection. The federal court system does not create a special session with special procedures for cases in which there is (as the show baldly asserted) no evidence of liability - it dismisses the cases with prejudice. The very existence of a "federal vaccine court" ought to indicate that there is some credible evidence to support these cases, and it is an egregious lapse that NPR did not invite one of the plaintiffs' experts to appear on the program.
I was very disappointed with this story. Neal, you and your producers did a poor and incomplete job at researching the subject. The segment came off as a "whitewashing" of the subject matter -- which is very uncharacteristic of Talk of the Nation. You can do better
It is not just autism children that are damaged by mercury products, some of the neuro psychiatric disorders clear up after mercury based amalgams are removed and the person is chelated. Been ther and done that with son recovered from OCD.
To Sophie: I also felt the guests were "one-sided".
Toney: Hopefully I never need to rely on your care at a hospital. As a parent who had my child tested for mercury poisoning, I wasn't looking for any one to blame. I was checking to see if there was something I could do for my child.
They're going to great extremes to assure us there is no connection.
If you have an autistic child, I encourage you to have them tested, although you won't be able to go to your regular doctor. They're the one that gave them the vaccination. I found a wholistic doctor to test my son.
I don't buy Neil Cohnan's explanation that "we got the best experts that we could on this topic." Obviously "best" is a subjective assessment and there are many experts that they could have found to present the other side of the issue. That's like saying that "We got the politicians that were most knowledgeable on healthcare reform [and they all happen to be democrats/republicans.]" There are studies out there that show evidence of a link between vaccines and autism. Just a few examples include Vaccines, Autism and Childhood Disorders: Crucial Data That Could Save Your Child's Life by Neil Z. Miller and Bernard Rimland,Changing the Course of Autism: A Scientific Approach for Parents and Physicians by Bryan Jepson, Katie Wright, and Jane Johnson, Evidence of Harm: Mercury in Vaccines and the Autism Epidemic: A Medical Controversy by David Kirby and Children with Starving Brains: A Medical Treatment Guide for Autism Specrum Disorder by Jaquelyn McCandless. I could go on, but you get the picture. There is no airtight proof of the connection and there are studies that show evidence of just the opposite, but that is why you need representatives on both sides! I'm really disappointed in Talk of the Nation.
I understand that Thimerosal has no longer been used in childhood vaccines for many years now, and yet autism rates have not slowed.
Objectivity Lost to Reason: The responsibility to present both sides of this debate should not have been abandoned, regardless of the strength scientific evidence gives to the side contending vaccination and autism are mutually exclusive. Talk of the Nation framed the debate in the lexicon of the majority and, as a result, the caller, Keith, became the only representative of the minority. Otherwise, you were unprepared to let the minority face the majority, but instead allowed the majority to explain away the minority. Please be advised Talk of the Nation listeners receive no benefit when a conclusion is foisted upon them, let alone in the very first line of a show's abstract. You must not assume that just because evidence so strongly supports one side, we do not wish to hear from the other.
I found the autism show so uniformative. Yes, I understand the value of vaccines. My girls are both fully vacinated. Yes, I understand the fear that questioning the safety of some vaccines will cause panic. Here is the show I want to listen to. Why does my 10 year old autistic son have sky high mercury levels in his body? Why do so many autistic children I know have the same mercury levels? What are the emerging theories? Why are there so many new legitimate studies exploring toxic exposure and autism. There is a glut of information available and almost no mainstream media coverage of it. Correlation does'nt create causation, but it sure makes the idea of of intruducing any new toxins into your autistic childs system seem worrisome.
I live in a country where our government lead us into a war based on false information. A country where the tobacco industry was able to suppress the truth for decades. Where the government introduced syphilis to adult men in the 50. I vaccinated my girls, I have not vaccinated my son since his diagnosis. I'm still waiting...for the show I want to hear.
Why is it that the federally operated Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD) database, which collects data on vaccine safety and reactions since 1990, is not available to independent researchers? If CDC studies claiming to show no link between vaccines and autism (or any other adverse reactions) are good science, then make this data available to independent research, so these results can be collaborated. Visit http://www.nvic.org/petition.htm to sign a petition to make this data available.
In the last pledge drive I pledged $120. The bias manner in which you have presented this story has changed my mind. I will not send in the $120 donation. I can not support your bad sicence.
As a teacher of elementary children for the last 20 years, I question the comment that the rise in autism is due to diagnostics becoming more astute. There is no doubt that I have seen an increase in "autistic syndrome " children. My husband, a local physician has also treated numerous children who had adverse effects from vacinations- from mild developmental delays to total brain damage and paralysis. I have also heard that in the state of North Carolina, where all infants are vaccinated for hepatitis before leaving the hospital after birth. that thimersol is still in that vaccine, even though the NIH has admitted to health risks. When questioned, the economics of waisting approx. 5-6 years of vaccine was given as the reason for not pulling this off the shelf. Any health practitioner could tell you that a newborn does not have the kidney function required to deal with that kind of assault.
If you do get your child or you tested for mercury, do not get only a blood test- most mercury exposure people have had is no longer in the bloodstream and has been deposited in the tissues and especially the bones.
Dear Sirs and Madames,
If Talk of the Nation truly wished to present this topic as a debate, they would have invited one of the many reputable and courageous doctors and scientists who have dedicated their careers to studying the negative effects of vaccinations. I am dissapointed that Talk of the Nation and NPR have tarnished their reputation with such poor research and reporting. I openly wonder if the pharmaceuticals and other vaccine-friendly donors to NPR influenced this story. If I wanted such slanted information I could watch FOX news instead.
Regretful,
Scott Witham
Madras, Oregon
Member of OPB radio.
I am regularly amazed at the excessive confidence displayed by experts of topics that are obviously not fully understood yet. Mercury is one of those topics. I had epilepsy for 15 years after having my mouth fitted with mercury laden dental work as a child. I had all of that dental work removed, cleaned my body out with chelating agents, and have not had a seizure since that time (10 years ago). No study proved to me that mercury caused my seizures, but do you think I'll be letting it in my body any time soon? To say so emphatically, that the small amount of mercury once found in vaccines could absolutely never harm anyone, is a rediculous and naive statement. Vaccines are another one of those topics that we have much to learn about. To be so confident in dismissing their risks (thimersol is only one of many worries), is again, naive and rediculous to me. The pressures to vaccinate frustrate and anger me beyond words, especially when there is so much we do not understand yet. And you do need to have a broader samping of experts on your show, no matter how overly confident and naive the prove to be, atleast we would then have more of the picture.
Comment to JB: There was not an actual requirement to remove thimerosol, but a recommendation to do so. Some companies did not do it, or waited to do it, and the older vaccines that still had it were left on the shelf to be used. They are still being used in some places. It is up to the individual to make sure the vaccine is thimerosol free. Only children's vaccines were affected so adult vaccines still often have it. As usual trusting in the establishment is not to your benefit.
I used to work at NPIH/UCLA and there were a few ongoing studies concerning autism; http://www.npi.ucla.edu/center/cng/research.html. Susan L. Smalley, Ph.D. is a leading researcher in the field of autism and has approached the syndrome from various aspects. Her studies and findings could provide a wealth of knowledge.
I enjoy NPR's thoughtful, well-researched programs regularly, but I must say I was outraged and disappointed today when I tuned in. Whomever booked the guests for today's segment on mercury and autism was extremely sloppy. How incredibly one-sided! There are scores of peer-reviewed, credible studies finding a causal relationship between thimerosal and neurological damage. See the work of Boyd Haley, Richard Deth, Jill James and many others. All you had to do was a simple Google search or consult any of the several major autism advocacy groups. Believe me, they've done THEIR homework, and Neal, you should have too. You did a disservice to the families who are desperately seeking justice in vaccine court. Bad day for NPR! I really think you erred so badly, that if you truly want to actually call yourself a journalist, you should do a followup segment presenting the other side. You've lost all credibility with me.
I find it so perplexing that people are coming here to call this story one-sided. Sorry folks, but the truth is one sided. You need only go to the part where the massive exposure to mercury in Japan didn't result in one single case of autism, not one. And the bonus is the autism rates in countries where thermosal is banned have not gone down since the bans took effect. The supporters of the link can not explain either of these facts.
@Heather Zardus Beecher who said the vaccination is somehow "not fully understood yet." What is your proof of this statement? Did Polio and Dyptheria just vanish by coincidence? You would rather we agonize over minor perceived risks than save millions from death? Also chelation is complete bunk, ask any doctor with a real diploma.
Neil,
As a skilled journalist, I am sure you know it is all about how you ask the question.
For instance:
"Did Neil forget everything he learned at All Things Considered?"
Or, "What is it Neil forgot from his stint at All Things Considered?"
Or, "Is Neil still associated with All Things Considered?"
Or, "Should Neil be held to the standards of All Things Considered as a talk show host of Talk of the Nation?"
Or, "Is Neil a fair guy?"
Some imply the answer and others let the audience decide.
Peace,
Sean
Your incredibly one-sided portrayal of this issue shows you are just lazy journalists. You call up the same "experts" who have been running the PR campaign on this issue for years and don't bother to take the obvious steps to ascertain what the issues and controversies are. There's a reason parents don't believe the "experts", because the experts have proven their incompetence on the science of this question. But they know how to manage a public relations campaign.
One classic PR tactic is one you all got suckered by: nullification of opposing arguments ("there's simply no evidence") and evidence ("it's junk science"). Whenever you hear peremptory comments like that, your journalistic antennae should rise. But apparently they don't. NPR, you should know better. Please don't give up on this question. The issues are simple:
1. There's an epidemic of autism. It's a national emergency.
2. The epidemic must have environmental causes. These are complex, but there's plenty of evidence implicating mercury and vaccines.
3. It's a whole body problem, not just a neurological, genetic and psychiatric problem. That's why your experts are wrong. Their experts in the old framing of the disease, which has been proven obsolete.
4. It's treatable. That's why so many parents are outraged, because not only are the "experts" in denial about the epidemic, they're denying that there's anything parents can do to help their children.
5. With treatment, many children can recover. As parents learn more about the hope that they can find for their child, their commitment to the movement increases and their outrage grows.
You can do much better than this and you should.
I thought TOTN would have shown itself superior to network news programs and most newspapers and truly tried to present both sides. I am severely disappointed that TOTN failed to do despite Neal Conan assurances that they consulted many reporters on the issue. You should have talked to journalists such as Dan Olmstead, UPI reporter and/or David Kirby who wrote Evidence of Harm, a NY Times Best Seller. For scientists, the gentleman from the MIND institute did a very admirable job. But, to have the president of the Sabin Vaccine Institute, regardless of whether or not his daughter has autism, is outrageous. He has a vested interest in trashing even the thought of a connection between vaccines and autism. The caller, Keith was right in suggesting that you failed to look hard enough for scientists without a bias perspective. You might as well have had a scientist from a vaccine manufacturer. Oh yeah, the recent study claiming that the Rhogam which contained thimerosal had no connection to autism was paid for by JOHNSON & JOHNSON, the manufacturer of the Rhogam shot. This is a clear conflict of interest.
As a father of a 7 year old son on the Autism spectrum, I created two lists of autism resources to assist others in the autism community especially new parents. If anyone is interested in a list of autism internet resources and/or a list of autism books recommended by parents with children on the autism spectrum, I will be happy to provide anyone with these lists free of charge. I can be reached at drvote@mindspring.com
I am the teacher of a 20 year- old severely affected boy with regressive autism and regular listener of TOTN. On the way home from school, I was excited to hear that Neal Conan would be discussing the controversy regarding the MMR vaccine and autism. In fact, I called the father of this child and told him he would surely hear a fair, balanced and intelligent discussion. Boy, was I wrong. While I don't believe TOTN's motives were questionable as implied by the caller,Keith, the discussion was clearly slanted. Dig deeper, speak with Rep. Dan Burton and many others before the next installment.
And keep this in mind:
Every truth passes through three stages before it is recognized. In the first, it is ridiculed. In the second, it is violently opposed. In the third, it is regarded as self-evident. (Shopenhauer)
Patience, my friends and the truth will prevail.
A caller asked who funds these studies that assure us vaccines are safe, and the guest's response, though vague, indicated that funding and studies often originate in Europe. Do other countries vaccinate as much as we do? I thought they do not. Also, can someone please explain to me how you can have "seizures and die" from drinking too much water?
I would have really appreciated hearing multiple perspectives on this issue!
I really think the focus of the argument has to go beyond thimerosal. This debate is really hurting the research of trying to find the culprit for the incredible numbers of children regressing into autism
I think the real issue could be the vaccines themselves. Since 1992 the government has imposed an overly aggressive vaccine schedule where babies are recieving numerous vaccines before the age of two. Most baby's get multiple injections of multi-valent vaccines between the ages of 12 months to 18 months and it is after these injections that many parents are seeing regression of their children into autism. Vaccines contain not only the antigens, but adjuvants designed to heighten the immune system response (one such adjuvant is aluminum). Is it any wonder that parents are seeing these acute reactions (fever etc.) immediately after injection? And could there be a connection to increases in autoimmune diseases or other immune system related diseases such as asthma, eczema and food allergies to our policy of injecting infants with vaccines?
I believe it is important to vaccinate, I just question the need for such an aggressive schedule (why do infants need Hep-B? why do we need to put measels, mumps and rubella in the same injection?). Our son regressed into autism after receiving multiple shots on his first birthday (he was very sick for days immediately after the injections). three years later we elected to spread out the vaccinations for our daughter. It took a little longer to get all her vaccines (using single valent and a delayed schedule), but she still got fully vaccinated.
I would appreciate it if NPR could help bring light to additional concerns of vaccines rather than rehashing the same arguments about thimerosol.
While I think more vaccine research is extremely neccesary to ensure their safety and our better understanding, I hope parents do make an informed choice about vaccinating their children. While the there MAY or MAY NOT indeed be a risk of autism, there could be greater risk to diseases that the vaccines have shown to prevent.
Someone called in about the Amish saying they were unvaccinated and free of autism. Never shown. Never. There has not been an epidemiological study of autism among the Amish. The only research on vaccination among the Amish shows they do get vaccinated, not quite as high a rate as the general population but certainly the vast majority are vaccinated. The information that led people to think this about the Amish is a single newspaper article by Dan Olmsted, based on a few questions he asked a pediatrician and, I believe, a water cooler salesman. Again: there have been no scientific studies of autism among the Amish, and only one study of vaccination showing they are vaccinated.
I checked mercury levels in my 5 y.o. vaccinated daughter - they are very high. We used French Urine Porphyrine test which looks at the "result/damage" of long-term mercury presence in the body.
Her speech is not delayed anymore, we are very lucky she is recovering thanks to treatments. There's no doubt vaccinations was the reason behind elevated mercury level.
I am very disappointed at the one-sided NPR program. You haven't done your research. Read this:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=67953
I have thought about the differences in levels of autism as well as the differences in the level of "biomedical affects". When people ask you why some get austism when exposed to thimerosal and some do not, ask them if they can positively determine:
1) where the thimerosal travels to in the body of each child immediately after vaccination,
2) at what concentration does it remain when it gets there
3) is it possible that higher concentrations follow certain paths differently in each child
4) is it possible that in most kids it distributes more evenly and does not cause problems because when it eventually gets to that particular tissue it is less than the concentration needed to cause damage, but in some kids it remains in a "blob" of concentration at high enough levels to cause the damage shown in the research? That we never really know where that "blob" of higher concentration will get to and depending on the tissue, you get different ilnesses - athsma, autism , add, etc.????
Good question for Haley, Deth or even the attorney representing the government in the vaccine hearings..........
Makes it all very complicated, but I have never really heard the topic discussed. I know they say that thimerosal transforms very quickly into ethyl mercury, but how does it travel in the body? I know it does not immediately distribute evenly throughout the body instantly, but I do know that whatever tissue the 50,000 ppb hits, it damages, always, until it is diluted beyond the one fifth of one part per billion that Richard Deth shows an affect on methylation.
Jim Holly writes:
WELL JIM,
If you have ever delved into the subject as much as I or many of the others posting have, you would know that the State Government Health Departments were ordering mercury free vaccines without telling the mainstream doctors to do so. The Vaccine For Childrens (VFC) programs in many states started as soon as possible to get mercury reduced (less than 1 microgram mercury) vaccines as soon as they were available so the poorest kids got the safest vaccines.
Meanwhile, the "rich white folk" as you insuinuate, who had most times both parents working, and kids in daycare at 6 weeks of age, were getting the "accelerated" vaccine schedule and many of these kids got more mercury, and much sooner, than the kids that got to stay at home.
Just my opinion, but something to think about...
Tim Kasemodel
Wayzata, MN
Children are in pain -- while too many adults waste time in debate and posturing. Read page 40, line 18 of Day 1's trial transcript. That poor little girl was hitting herself on the chest, trying to tell SOMEONE that she was hurting miserably. Thank heavens for Dr. Krigsman, who healed her open sores.
Who cares about some bureaucrat's statistics when these children's lab work shows esophageal lesions, intestinal lesions, nonexistent gut flora, nutritional insufficiencies, toxic heavy metals, allergies, immune dysfunction, gluten/casein sensitivity, etc. ad nauseam?
Even a LOW mercury reading isn't good news... the metal is probably stuck in the child's brain tissue. Some might be readable from other tissues after a dose of chelating chemical such as DMSA.
Forget Gardiner Harris and his unprofessional bias, and the stakeholders worried about finances and reputation.
Forget psychologists who observe behaviors instead of figuring out what the children are trying to say.
Forget psychiatrists who prescribe drugs that mask or worsen symptoms without addressing the root causes of aberrant behaviors.
Parents, get the medical tests run on your children. Find out for yourself what the truth is regarding heavy metals, vaccine injury, environmental toxins, autism and neurodevelopmental disorders.
It's pathetic that years will pass before society looks back and realizes what an injustice was done to families and what a plague was brought down on a vulnerable subset of children -- all in the name of preventing disease.
I've been a TOTN listener for many years and I've always respected the balanced approach your show takes with difficult subjects. I have a vaccine damaged son who is doing remarkably well through medical interventions aimed at detoxifying his body of heavy metals and regulating his immune system. He is now mainstreamed in second grade and performing at grade level with his peers. Please consider having a more balanced panel of experts the next time you choose to do a show on autism. David Kirby and Dr. Martha Herbert would be a great start.
If one listened closely to the "panel" they carefully and specifically chose their chose their words...
They said : "VACCINES do not cause AUTISM"...
A very broad based a statement.
Can they say MERCURY does NOT cause MERCURY POISONING?
NO they cannot!
The VACCINE was the was the delivery system for the POISON...
FACT:
MERCURY exposure via injection can CAUSE neural damage to the developing brain of a fetus and infant.
Easy to prove:
MERCURY (bolus exposure via injection) = MERCURY POISONING (neural damage to developing baby brain).
It is painfully obvious the lop sided panel with vested interests are more interested in protecting the Immunization Program over Protecting our babies.
Shameful...
What ever happened to "First do no harm"
Injecting mercury into a newborn is harmful, I don't care how you spin it!
The truth on mercury poisoning and the fall of a generation of children is bubbling to the surface, there is no way to keep a lid on this one boys...
The American public is not that ignorant.
The NPR feature highlighted the current tragedy of 1 in 150 children having damaged brains. As with other epidemics, the initial consideration should be a search for an infectious cause. I have provided evidence for atypical (stealth-adapted) viruses in autistic children. These results have not been acknowledged by either the Federal Government or the various autism advocacy groups. The Government???s hesitation is due, in part, to the origin of some stealth adapted viruses from simian cytomegalovirus contaminants of polio vaccines. The patient advocacy groups have largely been directed by individuals wanting simpler answers that do not involve complex virology. NPR could provide a real service by informing the public about stealth adapted viruses. Additional information can be found in the Medical News and Commentary Section at www.s3support.com. Kind regards, W. John Martin, MD, PhD.
For those who only take science into consideration when making the decision whether to vaccinate or not: has there been a study of autism in un-immunized children? If so, someone please site this to the folks at NPR. If not, why not? I am appauled at the one-sidedness of this story. I encourage TOTN to run another, well-balanced story to follow-up asap.
I think this was the worst NPR show I have ever heard! The whole tone was extremely defensive and one-sided and the very articulate caller who had important things to say about the link he feels is present between autism and vaccinations was cut off very rudely by Neil Conan. I thought NPR was pretty balanced until now. If you didn't think the drug companies, scientists and doctors (and NPR) were hiding anything before, this show would be enough to convince you otherwise. Shame on you NPR.
Along with many other NPR listeners I would like to hear another show on this issue. I do not blame the Dr's for being so one sided. They have been trained for years in medical school to see only one side. And for the last 2 1/2 years, I only saw one side as well. That is until I started to educate myself on the other side. Many parents don't think they have any choice on the vaccine issue. If I don't vaccinate, my child won't be allowed into daycare or school we???re told. This is completely false as well. The state cannot force us to vaccinate because if they could force us they would have to prove that vaccines are 100 % safe and would have no affect on my child. They cannot prove with any kind of certainty that vaccines are 100% safe. On the other side of that logic, it isn't 100% safe not to vaccinate your child either. There are risks to each choice you make but every parent should have that right to choose based on an INFORMED decision. Doctors offices do not give us ALL the information. They give us the information they have been taught for years and it's up to the parents to research the unconventional side of medicine. It's up to the parents to keep our children safe from not only the thimerosal, but the aluminum, the formaldehyde, the aborted fetal tissue, the animal tissue that some of these are grown on, etc. NPR, please present the other side to this issue you owe it the Dad who called in with the one month old. He and his wife have every right to be nervous for their child and to hear an "expert" tell him that the ONLY reason we do not have these diseases is because of vaccines, is completely untrue, do the research and find out for yourself that the rate of these diseases declined significantly even before vaccines were introduced. Please NPR, show us your true colors, if you haven???t already.
Wow. I am bothered by the statement that the research is done in Europe. The NIH does in fact fund studies in Europe. Also, isn't it a concern that despite our trillion dollar economy and our superior medical development and research, that we do NOT fund studies here? Even though we produce many if not most of the vaccines? That is very odd to me.
What as seriously disappointing segment. I had so hoped that the show would challenge both sides and instead, it just let one side be presented and the "other side" be a caller that was made to look bad as he is the only person with whom Neil got angry.
I am tired of the "no autism" link, it's environmental yet I have not seen a single study or theory proposed as to what in the environment might be causing the rise in autism. It's odd to me that after all this time they can claim it is not vaccines, claiming it's not thimerosal or some other toxicity damage from vaccines in general, yet they cannot prove what it is in fact causing the autism rise??
I'm hesitant to want to grant pharmacuetical companies longer patent rights. Those companies are the same ones that promote the use of cipro in chicken feed as a growth accerator.
A good friend of mine has two boys with autism. After hearing this show I started doing some reading on the topic. I thought she might like to know about it. If it were not for an outraged caller I would not have bothered, but would have just taken the "experts" opinion for truth. What I found was, while none of the evidence is absolutely conclusive, there very well could be a correlation. What sis certain however is tha NPR completely failed to take an objective position on the topic. To say they have found the top 'experts' on the matter was simply a way to preclude debate. In retrospect, the whole program sounded rather like a whitewash. Thank god for that outraged caller. If I had depended on NPR's coverge for my opinion I would have thought the plantiffs were just opportunistic cranks. This show has a exemplified a disturbing element of bias on the station. How revealing and utterly disappointing.
I hope whoever booked the guests for this extremely biased segment is fired for their incompetence. For an example of unbiased reporting on the matter see:
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2007/06/15/couricandco/entry2934107.shtml
So the parent that called in and told his story of his son not waking up after receiving a vaccine and lost his speech in a week, lied? The child woke up and wouldn't look them in the face anymore. The experts just blew him off. It was a coincidence. Late Autism onset.
Dr. Sudhir Gupta, autoimmune researcher at UCI stated it this way, "Genetics loads the gun the environment pulls the trigger." It doesn't have to be mercury poisoning just something that effects the body in such a way that it tips the scale to autism.
Maybe it's mercury, maybe it's something else. The problem is that no one is allowed to question vaccines, at all. WHY? My belief is that the CDC and the medical community in general cannot allow vaccines to be questioned because they are for the common good period. If a small percentage of people have bad reactions tough luck. It's for the good of all. That is sound reasoning. No one wants polio back. But and this is my problem with how the argument/discussion goes. Going back to the parent that called in, Did he lie? The panel's response was to ignore his story and say that it couldn't have been the vaccines. Stonewalling pure and simple. The actions of the government in that light are completely understandable.
Gee, so NPR finally decided to cover this incredibly important issue. Sadly, I am not suprised the report was extremely one-sided. I realized that NPR is no longer an unbiased radio station about two years ago when I learned, to my shock, that top NPR folks told David Kirby, author of the book, Evidence of Harm, NOT to call back regarding the possibility of doing an interview about his well researched book on this very controversy. His book later ended up on the NYT best-seller list and received one of the highest honors possible from a professional association of investigative journalists. Why exactly wouldn't NPR listeners want to hear what Mr. Kirby learned upon investigating this topic?
I really don't know. Maybe because George Bush's friends at Eli Lilly don't want them to? Maybe because NPR is heavily dependent on pharmaceutical "supporters"? You tell me.
A former loyal supporter of NPR, I subsequently stopped donating. Your program today reaffirms that I made the correct assessment of NPR's lack of integrity on this issue and calls into question your integrity on all other issues that I have not had time to investigate independently.
I first heard about the possible link between vaccines and autism from two friends, both with autistic kids, both of whom had no doubt that vaccines were the cause of their sons' severe problems. I originally thought my friends were not thinking rationally, and that the possiblity of a link between vaccines and autism was extremely unlikely. BUT, I decided to research the topic and examine the arguments from BOTH sides--which I used to think was what NPR reporters did, and which it seems to me anyone in search of the truth ought to do.
I discovered, to my horror, that, in fact, the possibility that autism and vaccines may be linked is entirely credible. Not only that, but it now seems highly likely to me that Alzheimers, ADHD, diabetes, asthma, Chronn's disease, ODD, and other skyrocketing health/behavior problems may also be linked to increasing levels of mercury in our bodies from vaccines, amalgam fillings, and the environment.
I am not a parent of an autistic child. I don't have any lawsuit pending. And I really, really wanted to believe that doctors, the CDC, the FDA, and the pharmaceutical companies were all doing their best to protect and improve everyone's health. I could not have been more wrong. I think it was the final blow to my world view when NPR turned out to be untrustworthy too.
Sad to say, but CBS recently managed a more balanced look at this extremely important controversy than you. Even Fox News has done better.
Shame, shame on NPR.
Neal Conan...bad boy...should know better!, making a one side story about vaccines is a pay back for bigpharma or what?, sorry to see yoyu falling so low and defend a issue that you can see is lost in google in 5 minutes, yes!...look for "dangers of vaccines" on google and youll see a ton of books and data about all the side effects that you could see in your own child if you have a bad luck of having that experience ...only then you could agree with us...you should ask for forgivenes for leting all of us down. Hope NPR will come to reazon and make a statement about this.
I would be fairly surprised if pharmaceutical manufacturers are that concerned about losing profits from vaccine. Vaccine is surprisingly non-profitable. People pay much less to vaccinate their children than to control cholesterol or get an erection. The pharmaceutical companies would much rather make drugs for chronic diseases of the rich. This is why vaccine production is highly protected by the government (Vaccine court, grants, etc) because otherwise we would be hard-pressed to find a company willing to make it.
I feel very fortunate to live in an era and region in which we rarely see a child with measles, polio, or pertussis. These diseases regularly kill. While I am fully sympathetic to parents of autistic children and recognize it is a horrible disease, I hope parents keep the above in mind when decide whether or not to vaccinate. When outbreaks of polio and pertussis occur in the United States it is in unvaccinated communities (ie polio in the Amish). Even diseases uncommon in the US (like measles) are only a plane ride away. Please don???t underestimate the value of vaccines. I do not want vaccines to be legally untouchable, I also don???t want parents to be scared away from vaccination.
Also high quatities of water can kill so stop making snide comments. New York Times magazine recently ran an article on water poisoning. Here is a brief definition of it: ???Water intoxication (also known as hyperhydration or water poisoning) is a potentially fatal disturbance in brain function that results when the normal balance of electrolytes in the body is pushed outside of safe limits by a very rapid intake of water.???
I have three sons; two with autism and one without. The two with classic autism are only half-brother, so it was unlikely that both would have autism. My youngest son was not vaccinated and he does not have autism. I know a family with sons who are identical twins, one with autism and one without. The one with autsim was vaccinated, the one without autism was not because he had complications at birth and was considered too fragile to vaccinate. I don't know what causes autsim, but I would recommend that families who have a frequent rate of autism not vaccinate their children.
Maybe the questions should be geared toward "What data or stats do have that show how our children are healthier for these vaccines?". If all these studies show this and that. Then prove with your stats how we need these to bust our immune system.
I am an objective parent of two children with autism. I read with great interest the research and developments in the treatment of this disorder. I have reached no definitive conclusions on the cause of their autism. I was greatly disappointed with your show today. Dr. Peter Hotez, president, Sabin Vaccine Institute, stated ridiculous, unsupported opinions as facts. Study after study including ones produced by the CDC have shown a clear, disturbing increase in autism that goes well beyond the expanded definition effect. He cited studies that he knew little to nothing about and would not disclose the pharmaceutical links to most major studies.
Do you know why many parents are suspect of the vaccine program? In 1999, the CDC looked at the amount of Mercury a child receives in a standard visit and realized that they never added up the total of all the recommended shots. The total was way above the EPAs limits and was being injected into our most vunerable citizens. It was an embarrassing revelation. But instead of doing the right thing of notifying the public and pulling it from the shelves, they chose to slowly, quietly phased it out. It wasn't until 4 years later that most of it was off the shelves.
In September of 2000 each of my twin boys (at 6 weeks of age) were injected with 20 times the EPAs safety limit of Mercury for their weights. Similar excess doses were repeated over the course of the next year and a half.
I do not know if Mercury plays a role in my childrens' autism, but we can all agree that it was a toxic dose (by EPAs standards) and one that should have been avoided. The worst part is that the Mercury has no therapeutic effect, it is part of a preservative used to save money on packaging. I would have paid the extra couple of dollars a shot for a safer alternative.
So now you know why it is hard to trust the CDC. They have shown both ignorance a cowardice over the past decade. They have produced statistical studies and then "lost" the base data so others cannot replicate their conclusions. Their own behavior makes them suspect to controversy.
For experts on an issue of toxicology you found a shrink and a shill (for the vaccine industry).
What is wrong TOTN? Hard for you to find toxicologists willing to go on air and say injecting mercury is safe?
I just listened to this show and have to say, what a one-sided program. I have listened to NPR for many years in order to get one side of the story, and then to other sources for the other side(s) of the story. I finally had to quit listening to NPR because they have become so one-sided in their stories, I can't trust what they say.
When a so-called 'expert' on something makes a blatant claim, such as 'vaccines do not cause autism', I tend to discount the validity of that statement, and the value of that 'expert'. I also question the comment about 'correlation does not prove causation'. How can you say that? Correlation is one of the main tools of research, and yes, it does help to determine causes. If it didn't, they wouldn't spend so much time on it in college chemistry and biology for determining lab results.
And last, I have known the caller, Keith, for several years, and I have heard the tribulations he has gone through, almost since the beginning. Keith has nothing to gain by this, he's not looking for a pay-out or a pay-off, he just wants his son back. The problem is that the various drug companies responsible for vaccine manufacture and also the research, have a lot to lose if any of this comes to the mainstream media. They ARE trying to supress any decent research. As others here have said, chelation of heavy metals DOES help. Tell me how that doesn't correlate...
When something smells fishy, follow the money, and that goes for NPR too.
I'm a mother of a son who is on the verge of being diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. What he suffers from is a very apparent inability to process information like most people, and he is not shy or introverted. This inability manifests itself as social ineptness mainly, but there are thousands of other things that go along with it. If high functioning autistic people are shy or introvertive, it's probably due to years of being rejected or ignored by peers. My point is, this is not just a matter of parents running around and thinking something is wrong with their children because they are shy and introvertive. And if autism is not on the rise, I would question where all the 30 year-old autistics are today. I'd personally like to see the conversations about vaccinations end. I'd hate to see the reprocussions if parents started refusing to vaccinate their children. But I'd like to hear more conversation about diets and links to autism. Maybe we were all exposed to food additives when we were younger and now our children are predisposed and are continuing to be effected as they ingest unnatural chemicals in foods. Maybe chemicals in foods are causing interferences with sensory inputs. Or maybe unknown gluten and casein intolerances is somehow associated. My son recently had issues with his kidneys (unrelated issues), and I've seen how the inability for the body to filter out toxins effected him mentally. It is not such a far reach for me to question the negative potential of food dyes, preservatives, artificial sweetners, intolerances to proteins, etc.
I actually don't have a comment, but a question. I am a mother of a 19 month old boy and I refuse to vaccinate him when he turns 2. However, I live in IL and the rules here are pretty strict about shots, Can anyone tell me how I go about not having him vaccinated?
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