Mercury has not been used in the majority of U.S. vaccines for quite a number of years now (since 2001, I think). There are still a couple of vaccines that use thimerosal, the flu vaccine being one. The total amount of mercury exposure for the regular battery of vaccinations is currently in the range of trace amounts. Any mercury that a child is exposed to through vaccines is negligible and will be expelled by the body over a relatively short period of time.

The preservative is still used in multidose vials of vaccines outside the U.S. to prevent the growth of fungi and other contaminants. These contaminants pose a far greater health risk than any mercury that may be in the vaccines.

This is not to say that mercury is 100% safe or that thimerosal is the best possible method of vaccine preservation, but I just wanted to provide you with a little more context. You may also want to look up the difference between ethyl mercury (the type in thimerosal, and for which the EPA does not have exposure guidelines) and methyl mercury (the type most common in environmental exposures for which the EPA has exposure guidelines).

So, while we allow ourselves to get distracted from this red herring, consider the 800-pound gorilla lurking in the closet: mercury and compounds containing mercury in whatever form have absolutely no business being in the human body. Mercury is a known potent neurotoxin and has no known natural or positive biological function within the human body. It doesn’t belong there, and whenever the human body is exposed to mercury, it suffers some damage.

So when will research come up with a decent and equally-effective alternative to mercury in vaccinations and in dental-filling amalgims? (In the case of the latter, we’re talking about a “medical practice” nearly a century old now). And if that research is deemed unnecessary by sober and well-meaning researchers BECAUSE they have conducted plenty of tests that demonstrate to their satisfaction that compounds containing mercury in vaccinations or dental fillings don’t cause autism or other discernable neurological problems, I’ll rip the rest of my hair out.

Get rid of the friggin’ mercury, and my guess is that this particular controversy will have the wind knocked out of it.

A strong vaccination program is needed, not to keep kids from missing a week or two of school, but to prevent diseases that, depending on the individual’s immune system, can be devastating, even with proper medical care. It also helps to protect those who, for medical reasons, cannot receive vaccinations, such as the immune compromised.

Keep in mind, that by not vaccinating your kids, you don’t just put them at risk for getting a preventable disease. You also put everyone they come in contact with: friends, family, neighbors, strangers on the bus, at the store, at the doctor’s office.

They got the odd illness unvaccinated and are fine – no emergency there. A week or maybe two off school with proper care is all thats required for most illnesses. Here’s a radical thought – what say we look after kids properly when they get ill along with good nutrition etc. All the bad outcomes I’ve seen are due to poor general health and improper care during sickness. Then we might only need to immunize the kids who really are at risk. All that spare money could then be used for something else.

viv

Science? What science are you talking about? When my son was diagnosed with autism at the Meyer Center at Texas Children’s Hospital (which incidentally is considered the best children’s hospital in the state) I wasn’t even told about ABA, the only therapy for autism that has any scientific evidence supporting it. I had to find out about ABA by doing my own research. No doctor ever told me about it. And I know lots and lots of parents who had the same experience.

Parents can only ignore the science if they are made aware of it. You think the pro-science side has done an adequate job in this area? You’re wrong. ABA, the only scientifically based therapy for autism isn’t even covered by most medical insurance (including mine – my insurer laughed me out of the room when I filed a claim for ABA therapy) and is NOT provided by most special education programs across the country (again, including mine). I’ve never received one dime from any entity, public or private, to provide ABA therapy for my son even though it is the only thing that has made a difference in his behavior. Now, why is that? I suppose it’s the fault of the anti-vaxers, right?

Offit can write all the books he wants pointing fingers at Wakefield (and incidentally enriching his own bank account the same way Wakefield is doing), but that will do nothing to provide scientifically based therapies for children who need it.

You are generalizing. Because, as I have said we had very good and early diagnosis of the actual condition. There was, of course, the underlying seizure condition that was a reason to keep an eye out for any problems (note that Ms. McCarthy’s son also has a seizure condition, this is not the same as autism, but can cause issues like damage to certain parts of the brain).

If you kid was diagnosed as “late-talking” at age four, then you are dealing with incompetent people. Especially these days.

While my son was young, we did get lots of “wait and see, he will talk when he is ready”, but these were from friends, relatives and generally the clueless “helpful” people you meet at the playground. One thing the helped immensely was getting the book “Childhood Speech, Language and Listening Disorder” by Patricia McAleer Hamaguchi. She explained all of the sorts of communication disorders, and even better: where to get good help!

As for your list of “therapies”, You are right about all the crooks and cranks… RUN, do not walk to your nearest library and get the book “The Science and Fiction of Autism” by Laura Schreibman … and Berneen Bratt’s book “No Time for Jello”

You end with “So it’s important for the pro-science side to look themselves in the mirror and repeat after me:

WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND THEY ARE US”

I disagree… it is those of you who are ignoring the science and letting yourselves get swayed with useless anecdotes, sales pitches and the conspiracy theories (hey, you are the one who posted a link to the whale.to site!). You need to learn more about the neurology, the history and the other stuff. Read the books I suggested, add some others like those written by Oliver Sacks. Definitely read all three of Paul Offit’s books, and real factual books by people who know what they are writing about!

Of course this just begs the question: Why are the parents misguided and why are they attracted to pseudoscience in their quest to help their children? I think I can speak to that question from personal experience.

IMHO it is primarily the result of the shoddy way in which the medical community handles the diagnosis. In the first place, your front-line pediatrician who is likely to be the first one you consult when you suspect there might be a problem with your child, knows relatively little about autism, what symptoms to look for, etc. I was told my boy was a late talker and he would grow out of it by my pediatrician. This went on for about two years until Zack was almost 4 years old and still not talking.

Next, they will attempt to shuffle you off to an “expert” usually a developmental pediatrician or a neurologist. The experience you have with this second line of doctors varies tremendously from doctor to doctor. There is really no standard diagnostic technique. Assuming they give you a diagnosis of autism the prognosis is usually bleak – there really isn’t much you can do about it, there’s not much of a future for your child, etc., etc. I was told all of these things. Of course, these are the same clowns who were routinely institutionalizing autistic kids only a generation ago.

So it’s no surprise to me that many, perhaps a majority of parents react to this depressing news by seeking something, anything that allows them to feel in control and like they are doing something. This might involve audio therapy, music therapy, gluten-free cassein-free diets, chelation, hyperbaric treatment, weighted vests, horseback riding, etc., etc. There is no shortage of crooks who are willing to provide any of these therapies to your child for a not-so-small fee. There are conferences and seminars set up for each of these therapies. This leads many parents to conclude the therapy must be scientific, right? After all, ASA (Autism Society of America) is recommending it and there are several folks with letters after their name who are providing it.

So the parents feel they are at least doing something to address the situation and it fulfills an emotional void which the scientific/medical/educational establishment isn’t filling. And we all know, nature abhors a vacuum. If science/medicine/education isn’t willing to provide therapies that actually work then by golly we’re going to make our own, whether they work or not.

So it’s important for the pro-science side to look themselves in the mirror and repeat after me:

WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND THEY ARE US