
The "vaccination causes autism" fraud - gronkie
http://theincidentaleconomist.com/wordpress/the-autismmmr-fraud/
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kingkawn
I saw someone yesterday who was in his 30's with measles, his mother sitting
next to him explaining why she didn't get him vaccinated because she thought
it would make him sick.

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amelim
It's unfortunate because there are many people who either can't be vaccinated
due to allergies or have other legitimate medical issues such as being too
young for the vaccine, that rely upon the herd immunity of the portion of the
population that can be vaccinated. Opting out of vaccines puts these people at
risk, not to mention the increased risk of child opted out.

~~~
grav1tas
There was a Frontline documentary (I think it was them) detailing this risk
and it coming to a head in a smaller community where too many people were
skipping vaccinations and the herd immunity was significantly diminished. It
was a really interesting piece on what could happen if too many people start
skipping vaccines.

~~~
Legion
Yes, it was Frontline. "The Vaccine War".

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SeanDav
Bottom line: vaccines are good for society but fault lines occur because
vaccines are not always good for individuals and government are conditioned to
not admit this or keep it as quiet as possible.

My daughter had complications 10 days after her MMR in the UK. She had
episodes of going floppy and eyes rolling back in her head while making
strange mewing sounds. 10 days is around the time that the measles component
of the MMR can manifest side effects. We took her to the hospital where
doctors absolutely refused to admit that the MMR vaccine could have anything
to do with these symptoms she has never had before or since.

I found out later that in fact these exact symptoms were a known side effect
of MMR in some cases. I also found out later that doctors are "encouraged" to
not admit side-effects to MMR.

I also know that the UK government were using vaccines with a mercury
preservative that had been banned in countries like Japan for years.

My point is, examine any claims by government or big Pharm or sensational
reports about autism very carefully and make up your own mind.

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phren0logy
Can you please provide credible (i.e. peer-reviewed) references to the
symptoms you describe being a known side-effect of MMR vaccination? And to
doctors being "encouraged" not to admit said side-effects? I'm not saying you
are wrong, I'm just saying what you are describing is really unusual.

Which brings me to my next point: any decision has consequences. If there is a
1 in 1 billion chance of a side-effect, and a 1 in 5000 chance of getting a
debilitating disease, I think it's still fair to make the argument that the
treatment is not just for society but also for the patient. Who is "society"
if not "all the patients?"

~~~
SeanDav
Sure the "peer" review you require is on the long list of side-effects on one
of the MMR manufacturer's own packaging. Look it up.

The doctors being encouraged comes from the mouth of a doctor friend of ours
that used to work for the NHS. Sorry you are just going to have to take my
word on this. I can't prove this.

Disagree with you on individual verse society point, but this is a discussion
for another day.

~~~
phren0logy
I will continue to search, but I also want to point out a common
misperception: adverse events in the PDR or on product packaging are simply a
list of all reported adverse events, with little data to demonstrate
causality. Common medications often have dozens to hundreds. Clearly, some of
these are valid, but with more rare events it becomes harder to say. This kind
of data is important, but should be viewed in context.

Some of what you describes sounds a bit like Guillain-Barré Syndrome, but
there are some more idiosyncratic elements. Either way, I hope your daughter
is safe and feeling better.

My point here is not to be argumentative, but I really do feel that as a
physician I have a duty to point out that the overwhelming majority of
available data suggests that routine vaccines for common childhood illnesses
(those recommended by the CDC and NSH) are safe and effective. Clearly,
sometimes people have adverse side-effects, but the data support that the risk
of a bad outcome is worse without the vaccine than with. Either decision has
consequences.

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michaelty
This bastard belongs in jail.

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pella
more debate :

 _"Retracted autism/vaccine study an 'elaborate fraud,' British journal finds
(cnn.com)"_

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2073192>

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alanh
Argh, just noticed his top navigation LOOKS like a breadcrumb nav but in fact
is not. At all.

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SeanDav
<http://www.jabs.org.uk/>

Look at this site and their forum for a broader perspective on vaccines and
side-effects. Some highly qualified people from both sides of the fence
express opinions here.

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tokenadult
That organization had much to do with starting the fraud in the first place.

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SeanDav
Please justify that comment, references?

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carey
tokenadult is probably referring to the BMJ article at
<http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c5347.full> , which finds that at least
four of the children in Wakefield’s study were referred to him by JABS
activists.

~~~
SeanDav
fair enough - I last looked at it in detail about the time my daughter had her
seizures and found it useful. If you look beyond the emotional content there
were some fairly balanced opinions. I think it is unfair to call concerned
parents "activists" though.

~~~
tokenadult
Here in the United States it is rather routine to call people who are active
in support of a cause "activists." Some people seem to consider that term
derogatory, but many people just think that distinguishes interested persons
from more deeply involved persons.

