The Immunizations Cause Autism Myth
In the spirit of National Immunization Awareness Month… we’ve decided that this week’s “NEWS YOU CAN USE” should speak to the myth that "immunizations cause autism."
In a recent article… our friends over at the Mayo Clinic set out to address the myth, while encouraging parents to vaccinate their children — for their sake, and for the sake of those around them.
The article cites that a small study in 1998 suggested a link between vaccinations and autism spectrum disorder, but the study was reviewed further and retracted. In addition, the author's medical license was revoked due to falsified information.
Further, in April 2015, JAMA published the largest study to date, analyzing the health records of over 95,000 children. About 2,000 of those children were classified at risk for autism because they had a sibling already diagnosed with autism. The study confirmed that the MMR vaccine did not increase the risk for autism spectrum disorder.
More importantly, the article shares that for almost all children, the benefits of getting vaccinated are much greater than the possible side effects. Complications from illnesses that children are vaccinated against are often much more severe, sometimes leading to lifelong complications, hospitalizations and death.
