Reflection of autism and vaccine
Re: Why does the Vaccine/autism controversy live on?
From Discover magazine, June 2009
The purpose of this article is to reveal the reason that the vaccine/autism controversy still lives on and the importance of understanding this controversy. Since the early 1990’s the incidence of autism has dramatically increased, Researchers claimed an epidemic of autism. Some publications showed evidence that mercury and thimerosal in vaccines might cause autism. However, the opponents of this controversy stated that although "thimerosal is no longer present in any recommended childhood vaccines since 2001", the incidence of autism hasn’t decrease. Some researchers even questioned the claim of autism epidemic. Unfortunately, though the IOM panel found no evidence of a causal relationship between MMR and autism “at the population level”, it couldn't rule out the possibility that it might contribute to autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in a subset of children.
Besides the concerning of vaccine and autism, the vaccine skeptic claimed that giving multiple vaccines at once could harm the children’s immune systems. This anti-vaccination attitude has caused more concerns than the vaccine-autism controversy itself in public health. If large population is holding back vaccines, it is possible that the already vanished diseases could become epidemic again.
To resolve this potential problem, some researchers suggests that scientists and policy makers should work together to break down the barriers of vaccination. “The problem is not only research, but also is trust”.
My opinion
1. I do believe that there are some relationships between vaccine and autism. Certain component in vaccines may be harmful to vulnerable children.
2. Vaccination is necessary for preventing many fatal and infectious diseases. However, not any any single vaccine is 100% safe for use, I will take into account many factors to decide if I should get vaccinated to prevent many non- fatal diseases. For example,
From Discover magazine, June 2009
The purpose of this article is to reveal the reason that the vaccine/autism controversy still lives on and the importance of understanding this controversy. Since the early 1990’s the incidence of autism has dramatically increased, Researchers claimed an epidemic of autism. Some publications showed evidence that mercury and thimerosal in vaccines might cause autism. However, the opponents of this controversy stated that although "thimerosal is no longer present in any recommended childhood vaccines since 2001", the incidence of autism hasn’t decrease. Some researchers even questioned the claim of autism epidemic. Unfortunately, though the IOM panel found no evidence of a causal relationship between MMR and autism “at the population level”, it couldn't rule out the possibility that it might contribute to autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in a subset of children.
Besides the concerning of vaccine and autism, the vaccine skeptic claimed that giving multiple vaccines at once could harm the children’s immune systems. This anti-vaccination attitude has caused more concerns than the vaccine-autism controversy itself in public health. If large population is holding back vaccines, it is possible that the already vanished diseases could become epidemic again.
To resolve this potential problem, some researchers suggests that scientists and policy makers should work together to break down the barriers of vaccination. “The problem is not only research, but also is trust”.
My opinion
1. I do believe that there are some relationships between vaccine and autism. Certain component in vaccines may be harmful to vulnerable children.
2. Vaccination is necessary for preventing many fatal and infectious diseases. However, not any any single vaccine is 100% safe for use, I will take into account many factors to decide if I should get vaccinated to prevent many non- fatal diseases. For example,