Autism And Vaccines: MMR Vaccine Study Rebuked Autism Research, "Do Vaccines Cause Autism?"
Autism and vaccines were first linked as a result of Dr. Andrew Wakefield's 1998 Lancet study. With this autism and vaccines study now rebuked; the question remains, "Do vaccines cause autism?"
As a result of the original study, MMR vaccinations in England and the rest of Europe dropped significantly. However, there has been a long controversy around this autism research study. The General Medical Council in Britain has spent 2 1/2 years in hearings. It has now concluded that the doctor acted "dishonestly and irresponsibly." Dr. Wakefield did not receive ethical approval for his research. Further, it was found that he also lacked the qualifications for this research. Please note that the hearing looked at the methods of research. It did not evaluate whether the doctor's conclusions or findings were right or wrong. This is an important distinction. The results can not be evaluated from a study that was so severely flawed in it's methods. Based on the GMC findings, the
Lancet
has withdrawn this paper from it's collection. What Does This Mean For You Dr. Wakefield's article was very well publicized and referenced as a reason for not giving the MMR vaccine to children. Ok, if this research was in any way responsible for your position on autism and vaccines, it may be time to re-evaluate your stand. I am not encouraging nor discouraging your child's vaccination. What I am doing is pointing out that the results of the study, although not investigated, now lack credibility. They lack credibility because of the research methods practiced during the autism research. Sound research discloses the methods used so that other researchers can duplicate the research. And if the research has a valid conclusion, other researchers should be able to produce the same results. This just makes sense. You should be able to make the same things happen. It's like getting a recipe from a friend. If she wrote down everything she puts in and everything she does, you should be able to make it just like she does. If you can't, then something was missed-a step or an ingredient. Well, no other researchers have been able to come to the same conclusions that Dr. Wakefield did. And they did try. There is no doubt that the movement against vaccines will be affected by the GMC's findings. However, the council did not look at the safety of vaccines or the validity of a link to autism. The General Medical Council evaluated the research methods and ethical practices. So you need to disregard this research paper and re-evaluate your stand. You do this by consulting with your child's doctor and researching the risks involved with vaccines. Start your research at the
National Vaccine Information Center
website for unbiased fact based info. Then decide what would be best for your child.
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