E. Johnson
For nearly 200 years, vaccines have limited the prevalence of fatal diseases in many countries. However, in 1998, a study falsely informed people that there is a positive correlation between vaccines and autism. Scientists investigated whether there is a link between Thimerosal, a component of vaccines, and autism by monitoring cases of autism and the ethylmercury dose levels in vaccines from 1981 to 1998. Overall, there is a negative correlation between ethylmercury and autism. By educating people on negative correlation between vaccines and autism, support for vaccinations may increase and reduce incidences of preventable disease.
Thimerosal contains ethylmercury and some claimed it caused autism. In 1992, ethylmercury doses lowered, yet cases of autism increased. In 1997 when the number of autism cases was at its height, the ethylmercury dosages were only 1% the level in 1991. Before people believed autism was caused by vaccines, there were very few reported cases of autism. Perhaps anti-vaccine parents might argue the rates began to increase because the children who received vaccines in the earlier years of the study were diagnosed around five years later. However, if that argument were valid, once the dosages of ethylmercury decreased, the number of autism cases would be expected to decrease but they do not decrease. The negative correlation between autism and Thimerosal does not support the misconception that vaccines cause autism.
To combat the misconception that vaccines cause autism, the public must be educated on the falsehood of that statement and the consequences of not vaccinating. Near the end of the study, dosage of ethylmercury became about 1% of previous doses, however, cases of autism rose showing a negative correlation. With fewer parents getting their children vaccinated, diseases like measles and mumps may endanger children’s lives and spread to others. This is especially dangerous for immunocompromised people who do not have the capacity to fight off the diseases. For the wellbeing of every child, it is important to correct the misconception between vaccines and autism and end the boycott of vaccines.
*Stehr-Green et. al American Journal of Preventive Medicine
