There are both pros and cons of this controversial issue. Scientists and evidence support the pro side, that the MMR vaccine does not cause Autism. Others, especially parents of Autistic children believe the vaccine does cause Autism; thus presenting the con side of the issue. I have joined the pro side, but there are reasons to support the con side.
The con issue is that the vaccine does cause Autism in young children. Parents of Autistic children have done their research. They noticed that their children were developing normally, until shortly after they received the MMR vaccine. As infants, children are given the MMR vaccine to protect them from the mumps, measles, and rubella. Parents noticed that after getting vaccinated, their children developed the symptoms and signs of Autism. High doses of mercury in the vaccine are known to cause certain neurological diseases. A parent has every right to "point a finger" at the vaccine. Autism is a disease that doctors and researchers are working hard to pin-point. Parents want answers, and many feel the vaccine is to blame.
On the contrary, the pro side states that there is no evidence to conclude that the MMR vaccine causes Autism. Scientists have done many tests repeatedly and none have shown that the vaccine is to blame. Researchers did find high levels of mercury, but the vaccine has been moderated since those findings. It is a possibility that the vaccine MAY react with certain metals in a child's body and trigger the Autism, not cause it to develop.
One question does remain: Why is the rate of Autism increasing? One thing is for sure, the MMR vaccine is not the likely cause of increase.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I find this topic interesting because I always thought that Autism and most other mental diseases were genetically programmed at birth. I thought that was a universally accepted concept as well. If you continue to research the topic, proving your point should be relatively simple. Since your side seems to possess a more scientific and factual based standing, I would go more into detail finding specific statistics to back up your claim. I completely agree with your standing point as well.
This topic is particularly interesting-- I wasn't really aware of the alleged connection between the MMR vaccine and autism until I read the NYTimes article, but even then I was skeptical because I had always been told that Autism was transferred through one's genes.
Ironically, there is another NYTimes article that contradicts what it was claiming earlier: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/health/08autism.html?scp=6&sq=autism&st=nyt
I hope that website helps in your research (:
Post a Comment